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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 13354 ***
+
+THE BOY KNIGHT.
+
+A TALE OF THE CRUSADES.
+
+
+BY G.A. HENTY,
+
+_Author of "The Young Buglers," "Through the Fray," "The Cornet of
+Horse," "The Young Colonists," "In Times of Peril," etc., etc._
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+The Outlaws.
+
+CHAPTER II.
+A Rescue.
+
+CHAPTER III.
+The Capture of Wortham Hold.
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+The Crusades.
+
+CHAPTER V.
+Preparations.
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+The Lists.
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+Revenge.
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+The Attack.
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+The Princess Berengaria.
+
+CHAPTER X.
+Pirates.
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+In the Holy Land.
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+The Accolade.
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+In the Hands of the Saracens.
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+An Effort for Freedom.
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+A Hermit's Tale.
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+A Fight of Heroes.
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+An Alpine Storm.
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+Sentenced to Death.
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+Dresden.
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+Under the Greenwood.
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+The Attempt on the Convent.
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+A Dastardly Stratagem.
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+The False and Perjured Knight.
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+The Siege of Evesham Castle.
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+In Search of the King.
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+King Richard's Return to England.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BOY KNIGHT.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE OUTLAWS.
+
+
+It was a bright morning in the month of August, when a lad of some
+fifteen years of age, sitting on a low wall, watched party after party
+of armed men riding up to the castle of the Earl of Evesham. A casual
+observer glancing at his curling hair and bright open face, as also at
+the fashion of his dress, would at once have assigned to him a purely
+Saxon origin; but a keener eye would have detected signs that Norman
+blood ran also in his veins, for his figure was lither and lighter, his
+features more straightly and shapely cut, than was common among Saxons.
+His dress consisted of a tight-fitting jerkin, descending nearly to his
+knees. The material was a light-blue cloth, while over his shoulder hung
+a short cloak of a darker hue. His cap was of Saxon fashion, and he wore
+on one side a little plume of a heron. In a somewhat costly belt hung a
+light short sword, while across his knees lay a crossbow, in itself
+almost a sure sign of its bearer being of other than Saxon blood. The
+boy looked anxiously as party after party rode past toward the castle.
+
+"I would give something," he said, "to know what wind blows these knaves
+here. From every petty castle in the Earl's feu the retainers seem
+hurrying here. Is he bent, I wonder, on settling once and for all his
+quarrels with the Baron of Wortham? or can he be intending to make a
+clear sweep of the woods? Ah! here comes my gossip Hubert; he may tell
+me the meaning of this gathering."
+
+Leaping to his feet, the speaker started at a brisk walk to meet a
+jovial-looking personage coming down from the direction of the castle.
+The newcomer was dressed in the attire of a falconer, and two dogs
+followed at his heels.
+
+"Ah, Master Cuthbert," he said, "what brings you so near to the castle?
+It is not often that you favor us with your presence."
+
+"I am happier in the woods, as you well know, and was on my way thither
+but now, when I paused at the sight of all these troopers flocking in to
+Evesham. What enterprise has Sir Walter on hand now, think you?"
+
+"The earl keeps his own counsel," said the falconer, "but methinks a
+shrewd guess might be made at the purport of the gathering. It was but
+three days since that his foresters were beaten back by the landless
+men, whom they caught in the very act of cutting up a fat buck. As thou
+knowest, my lord though easy and well-disposed to all, and not fond of
+harassing and driving the people as are many of his neighbors, is yet to
+the full as fanatical anent his forest privileges as the worst of them.
+They tell me that when the news came in of the poor figure that his
+foresters cut with broken bows and draggled plumes--for the varlets had
+soused them in a pond of not over savory water--he swore a great oath
+that he would clear the forest of the bands. It may be, indeed, that
+this gathering is for the purpose of falling in force upon that
+evil-disposed and most treacherous baron, Sir John of Wortham, who has
+already begun to harry some of the outlying lands, and has driven off, I
+hear, many heads of cattle. It is a quarrel which will have to be fought
+out sooner or later, and the sooner the better, say I. Although I am no
+man of war, and love looking after my falcons or giving food to my dogs
+far more than exchanging hard blows, yet would I gladly don the buff and
+steel coat to aid in leveling the keep of that robber and tyrant, Sir
+John of Wortham."
+
+"Thanks, good Hubert," said the lad. "I must not stand gossiping here.
+The news you have told me, as you know, touches me closely, for I would
+not that harm should come to the forest men."
+
+"Let it not out, I beseech thee, Cuthbert, that the news came from me,
+for temperate as Sir Walter is at most times, he would, methinks, give
+me short shift did he know that the wagging of my tongue might have
+given warning through which the outlaws of the Chase should slip through
+his fingers."
+
+"Fear not, Hubert; I can be mum when the occasion needs. Can you tell
+me further, when the bands now gathering are likely to set forth?"
+
+"In brief breathing space," the falconer replied. "Those who first
+arrived I left swilling beer, and devouring pies and other provisions
+cooked for them last night, and from what I hear, they will set forth as
+soon as the last comer has arrived. Whichever be their quarry, they will
+try to fall upon it before the news of their arrival is bruited abroad."
+
+With a wave of his hand to the falconer the boy started. Leaving the
+road, and striking across the slightly undulated country dotted here and
+there by groups of trees, the lad ran at a brisk trot, without stopping
+to halt or breathe, until after half an hour's run he arrived at the
+entrance of a building, whose aspect proclaimed it to be the abode of a
+Saxon franklin of some importance. It would not be called a castle, but
+was rather a fortified house, with a few windows looking without, and
+surrounded by a moat crossed by a drawbridge, and capable of sustaining
+anything short of a real attack. Erstwood had but lately passed into
+Norman hands, and was indeed at present owned by a Saxon. Sir William de
+Lance, the father of the lad who is now entering its portals, was a
+friend and follower of the Earl of Evesham; and soon after his lord had
+married Gweneth, the heiress of all these fair lands--given to him by
+the will of the king, to whom by the death of her father she became a
+ward--Sir William had married Editha, the daughter and heiress of the
+franklin of Erstwood, a cousin and dear friend of the new Countess of
+Evesham.
+
+In neither couple could the marriage at first have been called one of
+inclination on the part of the ladies, but love came after marriage.
+Although the knights and barons of the Norman invasion would, no doubt,
+be considered rude and rough in these days of broadcloth and
+civilization, yet their manners were gentle and polished by the side of
+those of the rough though kindly Saxon franklins; and although the Saxon
+maids were doubtless as patriotic as their fathers and mothers, yet the
+female mind is greatly led by gentle manners and courteous address.
+Thus, then, when bidden or forced to give their hands to the Norman
+knights, they speedily accepted their lot, and for the most part grew
+contented and happy enough. In their changed circumstances it was
+pleasanter to ride by the side of their Norman husbands, surrounded by a
+gay cavalcade, to hawk and to hunt, than to discharge the quiet duties
+of mistress of a Saxon farmhouse. In many cases, of course, their lot
+was rendered wretched by the violence and brutality of their lords; but
+in the majority they were well satisfied with their lot, and these mixed
+marriages did more to bring the peoples together and weld them in one
+than all the laws and decrees of the Norman sovereigns.
+
+This had certainly been the case with Editha, whose marriage with Sir
+William had been one of the greatest happiness. She had lost him three
+years before the story begins, fighting in Normandy, in one of the
+innumerable wars in which our first Norman kings were constantly
+involved. On entering the gates of Erstwood Cuthbert had rushed hastily
+to the room where his mother was sitting, with three or four of her
+maidens, engaged in work.
+
+"I want to speak to you at once, mother," he said.
+
+"What is it now, my son?" said his mother, who was still young and very
+comely. Waving her hand to the girls they left her.
+
+"Mother," he said, when they were alone, "I fear me that Sir Walter is
+about to make a great raid upon the outlaws. Armed men have been coming
+in all the morning from the castles round, and if it be not against the
+Baron de Wortham that these preparations are intended, and methinks it
+is not, it must needs be against the landless men."
+
+"What would you do, Cuthbert?" his mother asked anxiously. "It will not
+do for you to be found meddling in these matters. At present you stand
+well in the favor of the earl, who loves you for the sake of his wife,
+to whom you are kin, and of your father, who did him good liegeman's
+service."
+
+"But, mother, I have many friends in the wood. There is Cnut, their
+chief, your own first cousin, and many others of our friends, all good
+men and true, though forced by the cruel Norman laws to refuge in the
+woods."
+
+"What would you do?" again his mother asked.
+
+"I would take Ronald my pony and ride to warn them of the danger that
+threatens."
+
+"You had best go on foot, my son. Doubtless men have been set to see
+that none from the Saxon homesteads carry the warning to the woods. The
+distance is not beyond your reach, for you have often wandered there,
+and on foot you can evade the eye of the watchers; but one thing, my
+son, you must promise, and that is, that in no case, should the earl and
+his bands meet with the outlaws, will you take part in any fray or
+struggle."
+
+"That will I willingly, mother," he said. "I have no cause for offense
+against the castle or the forest, and my blood and my kin are with both.
+I would fain save shedding of blood in a quarrel like this. I hope that
+the time may come when Saxon and Norman may fight side by side, and I
+may be there to see."
+
+A few minutes later, having changed his blue doublet for one of more
+sober and less noticeable color, Cuthbert started for the great forest,
+which then stretched to within a mile of Erstwood. In those days a large
+part of the country was covered with forest, and the policy of the
+Normans in preserving these woods for the chase tended to prevent the
+increase of cultivation.
+
+The farms and cultivated lands were all held by Saxons, who although
+nominally handed over to the nobles to whom William and his successors
+had given the fiefs, saw but little of their Norman masters. These
+stood, indeed, much in the position in which landlords stand to their
+tenants, payment being made, for the most part, in produce. At the edge
+of the wood the trees grew comparatively far apart, but as Cuthbert
+proceeded further into its recesses, the trees in the virgin forest
+stood thick and close together. Here and there open glades ran across
+each other, and in these his sharp eye, accustomed to the forest, could
+often see the stags starting away at the sound of his footsteps.
+
+It was a full hour's journey before Cuthbert reached the point for which
+he was bound. Here, in an open space, probably cleared by a storm ages
+before, and overshadowed by giant trees, was a group of men of all ages
+and appearances. Some were occupied in stripping the skin off a buck
+which hung from the bough of one of the trees. Others were roasting
+portions of the carcass of another deer. A few sat apart, some talking,
+others busy in making arrows, while a few lay asleep on the greensward.
+As Cuthbert entered the clearing several of the party rose to their
+feet.
+
+"Ah, Cuthbert," shouted a man of almost gigantic stature, who appeared
+to be one of the leaders of the party, "what brings you here, lad, so
+early? You are not wont to visit us till even, when you can lay your
+crossbow at a stag by moonlight."
+
+"No, no, Cousin Cnut," Cuthbert said, "thou canst not say that I have
+ever broken the forest laws, though I have looked on often and often,
+while you have done so."
+
+"The abettor is as bad as the thief," laughed Cnut, "and if the
+foresters caught us in the act, I wot they would make but little
+difference whether it was the shaft of my longbow or the quarrel from
+thy crossbow which brought down the quarry. But again, lad, why comest
+thou here? for I see by the sweat on your face and by the heaving of
+your sides that you have run fast and far."
+
+"I have, Cnut; I have not once stopped for breathing since I left
+Erstwood. I have come to warn you of danger. The earl is preparing for a
+raid."
+
+Cnut laughed somewhat disdainfully.
+
+"He has raided here before, and I trow has carried off no game. The
+landless men of the forest can hold their own against a handful of
+Norman knights and retainers in their own home."
+
+"Ay," said Cuthbert, "but this will be no common raid. This morning
+bands from all the holds within miles round are riding in, and at least
+five hundred men-at-arms are likely to do chase to-day."
+
+"Is it so?" said Cnut, while exclamations of surprise, but not of
+apprehension, broke from those standing round. "If that be so, lad, you
+have done us good service indeed. With fair warning we can slip through
+the fingers of ten times five hundred men, but if they came upon us
+unawares, and hemmed us in, it would fare but badly with us, though we
+should, I doubt not, give a good account of them before their
+battle-axes and maces ended the strife. Have you any idea by which road
+they will enter the forest, or what are their intentions?"
+
+"I know not," Cuthbert said; "all that I gathered was that the earl
+intended to sweep the forest, and to put an end to the breaches of the
+laws, not to say of the rough treatment that his foresters have met with
+at your hands. You had best, methinks, be off before Sir Walter and his
+heavily-armed men are here. The forest, large as it is, will scarce hold
+you both, and methinks you had best shift your quarters to Langholm
+Chase until the storm has passed."
+
+"To Langholm be it, then," said Cnut, "though I love not the place. Sir
+John of Wortham is a worse neighbor by far than the earl. Against the
+latter we bear no malice, he is a good knight and a fair lord; and could
+he free himself of the Norman notions that the birds of the air, and the
+beasts of the field, and the fishes of the water, all belong to Normans,
+and that we Saxons have no share in them, I should have no quarrel with
+him. He grinds not his neighbors, he is content with a fair tithe of the
+produce, and as between man and man is a fair judge without favor. The
+baron is a fiend incarnate; did he not fear that he would lose by so
+doing, he would gladly cut the throats, or burn, or drown, or hang every
+Saxon within twenty miles of his hold. He is a disgrace to his order,
+and some day, when our band gathers a little stronger, we will burn his
+nest about his ears."
+
+"It will be a hard nut to crack," Cuthbert said, laughing. "With such
+arms as you have in the forest the enterprise would be something akin to
+scaling the skies."
+
+"Ladders and axes will go far, lad, and the Norman men-at-arms have
+learned to dread our shafts. But enough of the baron; if we must be his
+neighbors for a time, so be it."
+
+"You have heard, my mates," he said, turning to his comrades gathered
+around him, "what Cuthbert tells us. Are you of my opinion, that it is
+better to move away till the storm is past than to fight against heavy
+odds, without much chance of either booty or victory?"
+
+A general chorus proclaimed that the outlaws approved of the proposal
+for a move to Langholm Chase. The preparations were simple. Bows were
+taken down from the boughs on which they were hanging, quivers slung
+across the backs, short cloaks thrown over the shoulders. The deer was
+hurriedly dismembered, and the joints fastened to a pole slung on the
+shoulders of two of the men. The drinking-cups, some of which were of
+silver, looking strangely out of place among the rough horn implements
+and platters, were bundled together, carried a short distance and
+dropped among some thick bushes for safety; and then the band started
+for Wortham.
+
+With a cordial farewell and many thanks to Cuthbert, who declined their
+invitations to accompany them, the retreat to Langholm commenced.
+
+Cuthbert, not knowing in which direction the bands were likely to
+approach, remained for awhile motionless, intently listening.
+
+In a quarter of an hour he heard the distant note of a bugle.
+
+It was answered in three different directions, and Cuthbert, who knew
+every path and glade of the forest, was able pretty accurately to
+surmise those by which the various bands were commencing to enter the
+wood.
+
+Knowing that they were still a long way off, he advanced as rapidly as
+he could in the direction in which they were coming. When by the sound
+of distant voices and the breaking of branches he knew that one, at
+least, of the parties was near at hand, he rapidly climbed a thick tree
+and ensconced himself in the branches, and there watched, secure and
+hidden from the sharpest eye, the passage of a body of men-at-arms fully
+a hundred strong, led by Sir Walter himself, accompanied by some half
+dozen of his knights.
+
+When they had passed Cuthbert again slipped down the tree and made at
+all speed for home. He reached it, so far as he knew, without having
+been observed by a single passer-by.
+
+After a brief talk with his mother he started for the castle, as his
+appearance there would divert any suspicion that might arise; and it
+would also appear natural that seeing the movements of so large a body
+of men, he should go up to gossip with his acquaintances there.
+
+When distant a mile from Evesham he came upon a small party.
+
+On a white palfrey rode Margaret, the little daughter of the earl. She
+was accompanied by her nurse and two retainers on foot.
+
+Cuthbert--who was a great favorite with the earl's daughter, for whom he
+frequently brought pets, such as nests of young owlets, falcons, and
+other creatures--was about to join the party when from a clump of trees
+near burst a body of ten mounted men.
+
+Without a word they rode straight at the astonished group. The retainers
+were cut to the ground before they had thought of drawing a sword in
+defense.
+
+The nurse was slain by a blow with a battle-ax, and Margaret, snatched
+from her palfrey, was thrown across the saddlebow of one of the mounted
+men, who then with his comrades dashed off at full speed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+A RESCUE.
+
+
+The whole of the startling scene of the abduction of the Earl of
+Evesham's daughter occupied but a few seconds. Cuthbert was so astounded
+at the sudden calamity that he remained rooted to the ground at the spot
+where, fortunately for himself, unnoticed by the assailants, he had
+stood when they first burst from their concealment.
+
+For a short time he hesitated as to the course he should take.
+
+The men-at-arms who remained in the castle were scarce strong enough to
+rescue the child, whose captors would no doubt be reinforced by a far
+stronger party lurking near.
+
+The main body of Sir Walter's followers were deep in the recesses of the
+forest, and this lay altogether out of the line for Wortham, and there
+would be no chance whatever of bringing them up in time to cut off the
+marauders on their way back.
+
+There remained only the outlaws, who by this time would be in Langholm
+Forest, perhaps within a mile or two of the castle itself.
+
+The road by which the horsemen would travel would be far longer than
+the direct line across country, and he resolved at once to strain every
+nerve to reach his friends in time to get them to interpose between the
+captors of the Lady Margaret and their stronghold.
+
+For an instant he hesitated whether to run back to Erstwood to get a
+horse; but he decided that it would be as quick to go on foot, and far
+easier so to find the outlaws.
+
+These thoughts occupied but a few moments, and he at once started at the
+top of his speed for his long run across the country.
+
+Had Cuthbert been running in a race of hare and hound, he would
+assuredly have borne away the prize from most boys of his age. At
+headlong pace he made across the country, every foot of which, as far as
+the edge of Langholm Chase, he knew by heart.
+
+The distance to the woods was some twelve miles, and in an hour and a
+half from the moment of his starting Cuthbert was deep within its
+shades. Where he would be likely to find the outlaws he knew not; and,
+putting a whistle to his lips, he shrilly blew the signal, which would,
+he knew, be recognized by any of the band within hearing.
+
+He thought that he heard an answer, but was not certain, and again
+dashed forward, almost as speedily as if he had but just started.
+
+Five minutes later a man stood in the glade up which he was running. He
+recognized him at once as one of Cnut's party.
+
+"Where are the band?" he gasped.
+
+"Half a mile or so to the right," replied the man.
+
+Guided by the man, Cuthbert ran at full speed, till, panting and scarce
+able to speak, he arrived at the spot where Cnut's band were gathered.
+
+In a few words he told them what had happened, and although they had
+just been chased by the father of the captured child, there was not a
+moment of hesitation in promising their aid to rescue her from a man
+whom they regarded as a far more bitter enemy, both of themselves and
+their race.
+
+"I fear we shall be too late to cut them off," Cnut said, "they have so
+long a start; but at least we will waste no time in gossiping."
+
+Winding a horn to call together some of the members of the band who had
+scattered, and leaving one at the meeting-place to give instructions to
+the rest, Cnut, followed by those assembled there, went off at a
+swinging trot through the glades toward Wortham Castle.
+
+After a rapid calculation of distances, and allowing for the fact that
+the baron's men--knowing that Sir Walter's retainers and friends were
+all deep in the forest, and even if they heard of the outrage could not
+be on their traces for hours--would take matters quietly, Cnut concluded
+that they had arrived in time.
+
+Turning off, they made their way along the edge of the wood, to the
+point where the road from Evesham ran through the forest.
+
+Scarcely had the party reached this point when they heard a faint
+clatter of steel.
+
+"Here they come!" exclaimed Cuthbert.
+
+Cnut gave rapid directions, and the band took up their posts behind the
+trees, on either side of the path.
+
+"Remember," Cnut said, "above all things be careful not to hit the
+child, but pierce the horse on which she is riding. The instant he
+falls, rush forward. We must trust to surprise to give us the victory."
+
+Three minutes later the head of a band of horsemen was seen through the
+trees. They were some thirty in number, and, closely grouped as they
+were together, the watchers behind the trees could not see the form of
+the child carried in their midst.
+
+When they came abreast of the concealed outlaws Cnut gave a sharp
+whistle, and fifty arrows flew from tree and bush into the closely
+gathered party of horsemen. More than half their number fell at once;
+some, drawing their swords, endeavored to rush at their concealed foes,
+while others dashed forward in the hope of riding through the snare into
+which they had fallen. Cuthbert had leveled his crossbow, but had not
+fired; he was watching with intense anxiety for a glimpse of the
+bright-colored dress of the child. Soon he saw a horseman separate
+himself from the rest and dash forward at full speed. Several arrows
+flew by him, and one or two struck the horse on which he rode.
+
+The animal, however, kept on its way.
+
+Cuthbert leveled his crossbow on the low arm of a tree, and as the rider
+came abreast of him touched the trigger, and the steel-pointed quarrel
+flew true and strong against the temple of the passing horseman. He fell
+from his horse like a stone, and the well-trained animal at once stood
+still by the side of his rider.
+
+Cuthbert leaped forward, and to his delight the child at once opened her
+arms and cried in a joyous tone:
+
+"Cuthbert!"
+
+The fight was still raging fiercely, and Cuthbert, raising her from the
+ground, ran with her into the wood, where they remained hidden until the
+combat ceased, and the last survivors of the baron's band had ridden
+past toward the castle.
+
+Then Cuthbert went forward with his charge and joined the band of
+outlaws, who, absorbed in the fight, had not witnessed the incident of
+her rescue, and now received them with loud shouts of joy and triumph.
+
+"This is a good day's work indeed for all," Cuthbert said; "it will make
+of the earl a firm friend instead of a bitter enemy; and I doubt not
+that better days are dawning for Evesham Forest."
+
+A litter was speedily made with boughs; on this Margaret was placed, and
+on the shoulders of two stout foresters started for home, Cnut and
+Cuthbert walking beside, and a few of the band keeping at a short
+distance behind, as a sort of rearguard, should the baron attempt to
+regain his prey.
+
+There was now no cause for speed, and Cuthbert in truth could scarce
+drag one foot before another, for he had already traversed over twenty
+miles, the greater portion of the distance at his highest rate of speed.
+
+Cnut offered to have a litter made for him also, but this Cuthbert
+indignantly refused; however, in the forest they came upon the hut of a
+small cultivator, who had a rough forest pony, which was borrowed for
+Cuthbert's use.
+
+It was late in the afternoon before they came in sight of Evesham
+Castle. From the distance could be seen bodies of armed men galloping
+toward it, and it was clear that only now the party were returning from
+the wood, and had learned the news of the disappearance of the earl's
+daughter, and of the finding of the bodies of her attendants.
+
+Presently they met one of the mounted retainers riding at headlong
+speed.
+
+"Have you heard or seen anything," he shouted, as he approached, "of the
+Lady Margaret? She is missing, and foul play has taken place."
+
+"Here I am, Rudolph," cried the child, sitting up on the rude litter.
+
+The horseman gave a cry of astonishment and pleasure, and without a word
+wheeled his horse and galloped past back at headlong speed toward the
+castle.
+
+As Cuthbert and the party approached the gate the earl himself,
+surrounded by his knights and followers, rode out hastily from the gate
+and halted in front of the little party. The litter was lowered, and as
+he dismounted from his horse his daughter sprang out and leaped into his
+arms.
+
+For a few minutes the confusion and babble of tongues were too great for
+anything to be heard, but Cuthbert, as soon as order was somewhat
+restored, stated what had happened, and the earl was moved to fury at
+the news of the outrage which had been perpetrated by the Baron of
+Wortham upon his daughter and at the very gates of his castle, and also
+at the thought that she should have been saved by the bravery and
+devotion of the very men against whom he had so lately been vowing
+vengeance in the depths of the forest.
+
+"This is not a time," he said to Cnut, "for talk or making promises, but
+be assured that henceforth the deer of Evesham Chase are as free to you
+and your men as to me. Forest laws or no forest laws, I will no more
+lift a hand against men to whom I owe so much. Come when you will to the
+castle, my friends, and let us talk over what can be done to raise your
+outlawry and restore you to an honest career again."
+
+Cuthbert returned home tired, but delighted with his day's work, and
+Dame Editha was surprised indeed with the tale of adventure he had to
+tell. The next morning he went over to the castle, and heard that a
+grand council had been held the evening before, and that it had been
+determined to attack Wortham Castle and to raze it to the ground.
+
+Immediately on hearing of his arrival, the earl, after again expressing
+his gratitude for the rescue of his daughter, asked him if he would go
+into the forest and invite the outlaws to join their forces with those
+of the castle to attack the baron.
+
+Cuthbert willingly undertook the mission, as he felt that this alliance
+would further strengthen the position of the forest men.
+
+When he arrived there was some considerable consultation and discussion
+between the outlaws as to the expediency of mixing themselves in the
+quarrels between the Norman barons. However, Cnut persuaded them that as
+the Baron of Wortham was an enemy and oppressor of all Saxons, it was in
+fact their own quarrel that they were fighting rather than that of the
+earl, and they therefore agreed to give their aid, and promised to be at
+the rendezvous outside the castle to be attacked soon after dawn next
+morning. Cuthbert returned with the news which gave great satisfaction
+to the earl.
+
+The castle was now a scene of bustle and business; armorers were at work
+repairing headpieces and breastplates, sharpening swords and
+battle-axes, while the fletchers prepared sheaves of arrows. In the
+courtyard a number of men were engaged oiling the catapults, ballistas,
+and other machines for hurling stones. All were discussing the chances
+of the assault, for it was no easy matter which they had set themselves
+to do. Wortham Hold was an extremely strong one, and it needed all and
+more than all the machines at their disposal to undertake so formidable
+an operation as a siege.
+
+The garrison, too, were strong and desperate; and the baron, knowing
+what must follow his outrage of the day before, would have been sure to
+send off messengers round the country begging his friends to come to
+his assistance. Cuthbert had begged permission of his mother to ask the
+earl to allow him to join as a volunteer, but she would not hear of it.
+Neither would she suffer him to mingle with the foresters. The utmost
+that he could obtain was that he might go as a spectator, with strict
+injunctions to keep himself out of the fray, and as far as possible
+beyond bow-shot of the castle wall.
+
+It was a force of some four hundred strong that issued from the wood
+early next morning to attack the stronghold at Wortham. The force
+consisted of some ten or twelve knights and barons, some one hundred and
+fifty or one hundred and sixty Norman men-at-arms, a miscellaneous
+gathering of other retainers, two hundred strong, and some eighty of the
+forest men. These last were not to fight under the earl's banner, but
+were to act on their own account. There were among them outlaws, escaped
+serfs, and some men guilty of bloodshed. The earl then could not have
+suffered these men to fight under his flag until purged in some way of
+their offenses.
+
+This arrangement suited the foresters well.
+
+Their strong point was shooting; and by taking up their own position,
+and following their own tactics, under the leadership of Cnut, they
+would be able to do far more execution, and that with less risk to
+themselves, than if compelled to fight according to the fashion of the
+Normans.
+
+As they approached the castle a trumpet was blown, and the herald
+advancing, demanded its surrender, stigmatized the Baron of Wortham as a
+false knight and a disgrace to his class and warned all those within
+the castle to abstain from giving him aid or countenance, but to submit
+themselves to the earl, Sir Walter of Evesham, the representative of
+King Richard.
+
+The reply to the summons was a burst of taunting laughter from the
+walls; and scarcely had the herald withdrawn than a flight of arrows
+showed that the besieged were perfectly ready for the fray.
+
+Indeed the baron had not been idle. Already the dispute between himself
+and the earl had come to such a point that it was certain that sooner or
+later open hostilities would break out.
+
+He had therefore been for some time quietly accumulating a large store
+of provisions and munitions of war, and strengthening the castle in
+every way.
+
+The moat had been cleaned out, and filled to the brim with water. Great
+quantities of heavy stones had been accumulated on the most exposed
+points of the walls, in readiness to hurl upon any who might try to
+climb. Huge sheaves of arrows and piles of crossbow bolts were in
+readiness, and in all, save the number of men, Wortham had for weeks
+been prepared for the siege.
+
+On the day when the attempt to carry off the earl's daughter had failed,
+the baron, seeing that his bold stroke to obtain a hostage which would
+have enabled him to make his own terms with the earl had been thwarted,
+knew that the struggle was inevitable.
+
+Fleet messengers had been sent in all directions. To Gloucester and
+Hereford, Stafford, and even Oxford, men had ridden, with letters to the
+baron's friends, beseeching them to march to his assistance.
+
+"I can," he said, "defend my hold for weeks. But it is only by aid from
+without that I can finally hope to break the power of this baggart
+[Transcriber's note: sic] earl."
+
+Many of those to whom he addressed his call had speedily complied with
+his demand, while those at a distance might be expected to reply later
+to the appeal.
+
+There were many among the barons who considered the mildness of the Earl
+of Evesham toward the Saxons in his district to be a mistake, and who,
+although not actually approving of the tyranny and brutality of the
+Baron of Wortham, yet looked upon his cause to some extent as their own.
+
+The Castle of Wortham stood upon ground but very slightly elevated above
+the surrounding country. A deep and wide moat ran round it, and this
+could, by diverting a rivulet, be filled at will.
+
+From the edge of the moat the walls rose high, and with strong flanking
+towers and battlements.
+
+There were strong works also beyond the moat opposite to the drawbridge;
+while in the center of the castle rose the keep, from whose summit the
+archers, and the machines for casting stones and darts, could command
+the whole circuit of defense.
+
+As Cuthbert, accompanied by one of the hinds of the farm, took his post
+high up in a lofty tree, where at his ease he could command a view of
+the proceedings, he marveled much in what manner an attack upon so fair
+a fortress would be commenced.
+
+"It will be straightforward work to attack the outwork," he said, "but
+that once won, I see not how we are to proceed against the castle
+itself. The machines that the earl has will scarcely hurl stones strong
+enough even to knock the mortar from the walls. Ladders are useless
+where they cannot be planted; and if the garrison are as brave as the
+castle is strong, methinks that the earl has embarked upon a business
+that will keep him here till next spring."
+
+There was little time lost in commencing the conflict.
+
+The foresters, skirmishing up near to the castle, and taking advantage
+of every inequality in the ground, of every bush and tuft of high grass,
+worked up close to the moat, and then opened a heavy fire with their
+bows against the men-at-arms on the battlements, and prevented their
+using the machines against the main force now advancing to the attack
+upon the outwork.
+
+This was stoutly defended. But the impetuosity of the earl, backed as it
+was by the gallantry of the knights serving under him, carried all
+obstacles.
+
+The narrow moat which encircled this work was speedily filled with great
+bundles of brushwood, which had been prepared the previous night. Across
+these the assailants rushed.
+
+Some thundered at the gate with their battle-axes, while others placed
+ladders by which, although several times hurled backward by the
+defenders, they finally succeeded in getting a footing on the wall.
+
+Once there, the combat was virtually over.
+
+The defenders were either cut down or taken prisoners, and in two hours
+after the assault began the outwork of Wortham Castle was taken.
+
+This, however, was but the commencement of the undertaking, and it had
+cost more than twenty lives to the assailants.
+
+They were now, indeed, little nearer to capturing the castle than they
+had been before.
+
+The moat was wide and deep. The drawbridge had been lifted at the
+instant that the first of the assailants gained a footing upon the wall.
+And now that the outwork was captured, a storm of arrows, stones, and
+other missiles was poured into it from the castle walls, and rendered it
+impossible for any of its new masters to show themselves above it.
+
+Seeing that any sudden attack was impossible, the earl now directed a
+strong body to cut down trees, and prepare a moveable bridge to throw
+across the moat.
+
+This would be a work of fully two days; and in the meantime Cuthbert
+returned to the farm.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+
+
+Upon his return home, after relating to his mother the events of the
+morning's conflict, Cuthbert took his way to the cottage inhabited by an
+old man who had in his youth been a mason.
+
+"Have I not heard, Gurth," he said, "that you helped to build the Castle
+of Wortham?"
+
+"No, no, young sir," he said; "old as I am, I was a child when the
+castle was built. My father worked at it, and it cost him, and many
+others, his life."
+
+"And how was that, prithee?" asked Cuthbert.
+
+"He was, with several others, killed by the baron, the grandfather of
+the present man, when the work was finished."
+
+"But why was that, Gurth?"
+
+"We were but Saxon swine," said Gurth bitterly, "and a few of us more or
+less mattered not. We were then serfs of the baron. But my mother fled
+with me on the news of my father's death. For years we remained far away
+with some friends in a forest near Oxford. Then she pined for her native
+air, and came back and entered the service of the franklin."
+
+"But why should your mother have taken you away?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"She always believed, Master Cuthbert, that my father was killed by the
+baron to prevent him giving any news of the secrets of the castle. He
+and some others had been kept in the walls for many months, and were
+engaged in the making of secret passages."
+
+"That is just what I came to ask you, Gurth. I have heard something of
+this story before, and now that we are attacking Wortham Castle, and the
+earl has sworn to level it to the ground, it is of importance if
+possible to find out whether any of the secret passages lead beyond the
+castle, and if so, where. Almost all the castles have, I have been told,
+an exit by which the garrison can at will make sorties or escape; and I
+thought that maybe you might have heard enough to give us some clue as
+to the existence of such a passage at Wortham."
+
+The old man thought for some time in silence and then said:
+
+"I may be mistaken, but methinks a diligent search in the copse near the
+stream might find the mouth of the outlet."
+
+"What makes you think that this is so, Gurth?"
+
+"I had been with my mother to carry some clothes to my father on the
+last occasion on which I saw him. As we neared the castle I saw my
+father and three other of the workmen, together with the baron, coming
+down from the castle toward the spot. As my mother did not wish to
+approach while the baron was at hand, we stood within the trees at the
+edge of the wood and watched what was being done. The baron came with
+them down to the bushes, and then they again came out, crossed the
+river, and one of them cut some willows, peeled them, and erected the
+white staves in a line toward the castle. They walked for a bit on each
+side, and seemed to be making calculations. Then they went back into the
+castle, and I never saw my father again."
+
+"Why did you not go in at once according to your intention?"
+
+"Because my mother said that she thought some important work was on
+hand, and that maybe the baron would not like that women should know
+aught of it, for he was of suspicious and evil mind. More than this I
+know not. The castle had already been finished and most of the masons
+discharged. There were, however, a party of serfs kept at work, and also
+some masons, and rumor had it that they were engaged in making the
+secret passages. Whether it was so or not I cannot say, but I know that
+none of that party ever left the castle alive. It was given out that a
+bad fever had raged there, but none believed it; and the report went
+about, and was I doubt not true, that all had been killed, to preserve
+the secret of the passage."
+
+Cuthbert lost no time in making use of the information that he had
+gained.
+
+Early next morning, at daybreak, he started on his pony to Wortham.
+
+As he did not wish the earl or his followers to know the facts that he
+had learned until they were proved, he made his way round the camp of
+the besiegers, and by means of his whistle called one of the foresters
+to him.
+
+"Where is Cnut?" he asked.
+
+"He is with a party occupied in making ladders."
+
+"Go to him," Cuthbert said, "and tell him to withdraw quietly and make
+his way here. I have an important matter on which I wish to speak to
+him."
+
+Cnut arrived in a few minutes, somewhat wondering at the message. He
+brightened greatly when Cuthbert told him what he had learned.
+
+"This is indeed important," he said. "We will lose no time in searching
+the copse you speak of. You and I, together with two of my most trusty
+men, with axes to clear away the brush, will do. At present a thing of
+this sort had best be kept between as few as may be."
+
+They started at once and soon came down upon the stream.
+
+It ran at this point in a little valley, some twenty or thirty feet
+deep. On the bank not far from the castle grew a small wood, and it was
+in this that Cuthbert hoped to find the passage spoken of by Gurth.
+
+The trees and brushwood were so thick that it was apparent at once that
+if the passage had ever existed it had been unused for some years.
+
+The woodmen were obliged to chop down dozens of young saplings to make
+their way up from the water toward the steeper part of the bank.
+
+The wood was some fifty yards in length, and as it was uncertain at
+which point the passage had come out, a very minute search had to be
+made.
+
+"What do you think it would be like, Cnut?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Like enough to a rabbit-hole, or more likely still there would be no
+hole whatever. We must look for moss and greenery, for it is likely that
+such would have been planted, so as to conceal the door from any
+passer-by, while yet allowing a party from inside to cut their way
+through it without difficulty."
+
+After a search of two hours, Cnut decided that the only place in the
+copse in which it was likely that the entrance to a passage could be
+hidden was a spot where the ground was covered thickly with ivy and
+trailing plants.
+
+"It looks level enough with the rest," Cuthbert said.
+
+"Ay, lad, but we know not what lies behind this thick screen of ivy.
+Thrust in that staff."
+
+One of the woodmen began to probe with the end of a staff among the ivy.
+For some time he was met by the solid ground, but presently the butt of
+the staff went through suddenly, pitching him on his head, amid a
+suppressed laugh from his comrades.
+
+"Here it is, if anywhere," said Cnut, and with their billhooks they at
+once began to clear away the thickly grown creepers.
+
+Five minutes' work was sufficient to show a narrow cut, some two feet
+wide, in the hillside, at the end of which stood a low door.
+
+"Here it is," said Cnut, with triumph, "and the castle is ours. Thanks,
+Cuthbert, for your thought and intelligence. It has not been used
+lately, that is clear," he went on. "These creepers have not been moved
+for years. Shall we go and tell the earl of our discovery? What think
+you, Cuthbert?"
+
+"I think we had better not," Cuthbert said.
+
+"We might not succeed in getting in, as the passage may have fallen
+further along; but I will speak to him and tell him that we have
+something on hand which may alter his dispositions for fighting
+to-morrow."
+
+Cuthbert made his way to the earl, who had taken possession of a small
+cottage a short distance from the castle.
+
+"What can I do for you?" Sir Walter said.
+
+"I want to ask you, sir, not to attack the castle to-morrow until you
+see a white flag waved from the keep."
+
+"But how on earth is a white flag to be raised from the keep?"
+
+"It may be," Cuthbert said, "that I have some friends inside who will be
+able to make a diversion in our favor. However, sir, it can do no harm
+if you will wait till then, and may save many lives. At what hour do you
+mean to attack ?"
+
+"The bridges and all other preparations to assist us across the moat
+will be ready to-night. We will advance then under cover of darkness,
+and as soon after dawn as may be attack in earnest."
+
+"Very well, sir," Cuthbert said. "I trust that within five minutes after
+your bugle has sounded the white flag will make its appearance on the
+keep, but it cannot do so until after you have commenced an attack, or
+at least a pretense of an attack."
+
+Two or three hours before daylight Cuthbert accompanied Cnut and
+twenty-five picked men of the foresters to the copse. They were provided
+with crowbars, and all carried heavy axes. The door was soon pried open.
+It opened silently and without a creak.
+
+"It may be," Cnut said, "that the door has not been opened as you say
+for years, but it is certain," and he placed his torch to the hinges,
+"that it has been well oiled within the last two or three days. No doubt
+the baron intended to make his escape this way, should the worst arrive.
+Now that we have the door open we had better wait quiet until the dawn
+commences. The earl will blow his bugle as a signal for the advance; it
+will be another ten minutes before they are fairly engaged, and that
+will be enough for us to break open any doors that there may be between
+this and the castle, and to force our way inside."
+
+It seemed a long time waiting before the dawn fairly broke--still longer
+before the earl's bugle was heard to sound the attack. Then the band,
+headed by Cnut and two or three of the strongest of the party entered
+the passage.
+
+Cuthbert had had some misgivings as to his mother's injunctions to take
+no part in the fray, and it cannot be said that in accompanying the
+foresters he obeyed the letter of her instructions. At the same time as
+he felt sure that the effect of a surprise would be complete and
+crushing, and that the party would gain the top of the keep without any
+serious resistance, he considered the risk was so small as to justify
+him in accompanying the foresters.
+
+The passage was some five feet high, and little more than two feet wide.
+It was dry and dusty, and save the marks on the ground of a human foot
+going and returning, doubtless that of the man who had oiled the lock
+the day before, the passage appeared to have been unused from the time
+that it left the hands of its builders.
+
+Passing along for some distance they came to another strong oaken door.
+This, like the last, yielded to the efforts of the crowbars of the
+foresters, and they again advanced. Presently they came to a flight of
+steps.
+
+"We must now be near the castle," Cnut said. "In fact, methinks I can
+hear confused noises ahead."
+
+Mounting the steps, they came to a third door; this was thickly studded
+with iron, and appeared of very great strength. Fortunately the lock was
+upon their side, and they were enabled to shoot the bolt; but upon the
+other side the door was firmly secured by large bolts, and it was fully
+five minutes before the foresters could succeed in opening it. It was
+not without a good deal of noise that they at last did so; and several
+times they paused, fearing that the alarm must have been given in the
+castle. As, however, the door remained closed, they supposed that the
+occupants were fully engaged in defending themselves from the attacks of
+the earl's party.
+
+When the door gave way they found hanging across in front of them a very
+thick arras, and pressing this aside they entered a small room in the
+thickness of the wall of the keep. It contained the merest slit for
+light, and was clearly unused. Another door, this time unfastened, led
+into a larger apartment, which was also at present unoccupied. They
+could hear now the shouts of the combatants without, the loud orders
+given by the leaders on the walls, the crack, as the stones hurled by
+the mangonels struck the walls, and the ring of steel as the arrows
+struck against steel cap and cuirass.
+
+"It is fortunate that all were so well engaged, or they would certainly
+have heard the noise of our forcing the door, which would have brought
+all of them upon us. As it is, we are in the heart of the keep. We have
+now but to make a rush up these winding steps, and methinks we shall
+find ourselves on the battlements. They will be so surprised that no
+real resistance can be offered to us. Now let us advance."
+
+So saying Cnut led the way upstairs, followed by the foresters,
+Cuthbert, as before, allowing five or six of them to intervene between
+him and the leader. He carried his short sword and a quarterstaff, a
+weapon by no means to be despised in the hands of an active and
+experienced player.
+
+Presently, after mounting some fifty or sixty steps, they issued on the
+platform of the keep. Here were gathered some thirty or forty men, who
+were so busied in shooting with crossbows, and in working machines
+casting javelins, stones, and other missiles upon the besiegers, that
+they were unaware of the addition to their numbers until the whole of
+the foresters had gathered on the summit, and at the order of Cnut
+suddenly fell upon them with a loud shout.
+
+Taken wholly by surprise by the foe, who seemed to have risen from the
+bowels of the earth by magic, the soldiers of the Baron of Wortham
+offered but a feeble resistance. Some were cast over the battlement of
+the keep, some driven down staircases, others cut down, and then,
+Cuthbert fastening a small white flag he had prepared to his
+quarterstaff, waved it above the battlements.
+
+Even now the combatants on the outer wall were in ignorance of what had
+happened in the keep; so great was the din that the struggle which had
+there taken place had passed unnoticed; and it was not until the
+fugitives, rushing out into the courtyard, shouted that the keep had
+been captured, that the besieged became aware of the imminence of the
+danger.
+
+[Illustration: CUTHBERT FASTENED A SMALL WHITE FLAG TO HIS QUARTER-STAFF
+AND WAVED IT ABOVE THE BATTLEMENTS.]
+
+Hitherto the battle had been going well for the defenders of the
+castle. The Baron of Wortham was indeed surprised at the feebleness of
+the assault. The arrows which had fallen in clouds upon the first day's
+attack upon the castle among his soldiers were now comparatively few and
+ineffective. The besiegers scarcely appeared to push forward their
+bridges with any vigor, and it seemed to him that a coldness had fallen
+upon them, and that some disagreement must have arisen between the
+foresters and the earl, completely crippling the energy of the attack.
+
+When he heard the words shouted from the courtyard below he could not
+believe his ears. That the keep behind should have been carried by the
+enemy appeared to him impossible. With a roar he called upon the bravest
+of his men to follow, and rushing across the courtyard, rapidly ascended
+the staircase. The movement was observed from the keep, and Cnut and a
+few of his men stationed themselves with their battle-axes at the top of
+various stairs leading below.
+
+The signal shown by Cuthbert had not passed unobserved. The earl, who
+had given instructions to his followers to make a mere feint of
+attacking, now blew the signal for the real onslaught. The bridges were
+rapidly run across the moat, ladders were planted, and the garrison
+being paralyzed and confused by the attack in their rear, as well as
+hindered by the arrows which now flew down upon them from the keep
+above, offered but a feeble resistance, and the assailants, led by Sir
+Walter himself, poured over the walls.
+
+Now there was a scene of confusion and desperate strife. The baron had
+just gained the top of the stairs, and was engaged in a fierce conflict
+with Cnut and his men, when the news reached him that the wall was
+carried from without. With an execration he again turned and rushed down
+the stairs, hoping by a vigorous effort to cast back the foe.
+
+It was, however, all too late; his followers, disheartened and alarmed,
+fought without method or order in scattered groups of threes and fours.
+They made their last stand in corners and passages. They knew there was
+but little hope of mercy from the Saxon foresters, and against these
+they fought to the last. To the Norman retainers, however, of the earl
+they offered a less determined resistance, throwing down their arms and
+surrendering at discretion.
+
+The baron, when fiercely fighting, was slain by an arrow from the keep
+above, and with his fall the last resistance ceased. A short time was
+spent in searching the castle, binding the prisoners, and carrying off
+the valuables that the baron had collected in his raids. Then a light
+was set to the timbers, the granaries were fired, and in a few minutes
+the smoke wreathing out of the various loopholes and openings told the
+country round that the stronghold had fallen, and that they were free
+from the oppressor at last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE CRUSADES.
+
+
+Warm thanks and much praise were bestowed upon Cuthbert for his share in
+the capture of the castle, and the earl, calling the foresters round
+him, then and there bestowed freedom upon any of them who might have
+been serfs of his, and called upon all his knights and neighbors to do
+the same, in return for the good service which they had rendered.
+
+This was willingly done, and a number of Cnut's party, who had before
+borne the stigma of escaped serfs, were now free men.
+
+We are too apt to forget, in our sympathy with the Saxons, that, fond as
+they were of freedom for themselves, they were yet severe masters, and
+kept the mass of the people in a state of serfage. Although their laws
+provided ample justice as between Saxon man and man, there was no
+justice for the unhappy serfs, who were either the original inhabitants
+or captives taken in war, and who were distinguished by a collar of
+brass or iron round their neck.
+
+Cnut's party had indeed long got rid of these badges, the first act of a
+serf when he took to the woods being always to file off his collar; but
+they were liable when caught to be punished, even by death, and were
+delighted at having achieved their freedom.
+
+"And what can I do for you, Cuthbert?" Sir Walter said, as they rode
+homeward. "It is to you that I am indebted: in the first place for the
+rescue of my daughter, in the second for the capture of that castle,
+which I doubt me much whether we should ever have taken in fair fight
+had it not been for your aid."
+
+"Thanks, Sir Walter," the lad replied. "At present I need nothing, but
+should the time come when you may go to the wars I would fain ride with
+you as your page, in the hope of some day winning my spurs also in the
+field."
+
+"So shall it be," the earl said, "and right willingly. But who have we
+here?"
+
+As he spoke a horseman rode up and presented a paper to the earl.
+
+"This is a notice," the earl said, after perusing it, "that King Richard
+has determined to take up the cross, and that he calls upon his nobles
+and barons to join him in the effort to free the holy sepulcher from the
+infidels. I doubt whether the minds of the people are quite prepared,
+but I hear that there has been much preaching by friars and monks in
+some parts, and that many are eager to join in the war."
+
+"Think you that you will go to the war, Sir Walter?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"I know not as yet; it must much depend upon the king's mood. For myself
+I care not so greatly as some do about this question of the Holy Land.
+There has been blood enough shed already to drown it, and we are no
+nearer than when the first swarms of pilgrims made their way thither."
+
+On Cuthbert's returning home and telling his mother all that had passed,
+she shook her head, but said that she could not oppose his wishes to go
+with the earl when the time should come, and that it was only right he
+should follow in the footsteps of the good knight his father.
+
+"I have heard much of these Crusades," he said; "canst tell me about
+them?"
+
+"In truth I know not much, my son; but Father Francis, I doubt not, can
+tell you all the particulars anent the affair."
+
+The next time that Father Francis, who was the special adviser of Dame
+Editha, rode over from the convent on his ambling nag, Cuthbert eagerly
+asked him if he would tell him what he knew of the Crusades.
+
+"Hitherto, my son," he said, "the Crusades have, it must be owned,
+brought many woes upon Europe. From the early times great swarms of
+pilgrims were accustomed to go from all parts of Europe to the holy
+shrines.
+
+"When the followers of the evil prophet took possession of the land,
+they laid grievous burdens upon the pilgrims, heavily they fined them,
+persecuted them in every way, and treated them as if indeed they were
+but the scum of the earth under their feet.
+
+"So terrible were the tales that reached Europe that men came to think
+that it would be a good deed truly to wrest the sepulcher of the Lord
+from the hands of these heathens. Pope Urban was the first to give
+authority and strength to the movement, and at a vast meeting at
+Claremont of thirty thousand clergy and four thousand barons, it was
+decided that war must be made against the infidel. From all parts of
+France men flocked to hear Pope Urban preach there; and when he had
+finished his oration the vast multitude, carried away by enthusiasm,
+swore to win the holy sepulcher or to die.
+
+"Mighty was the throng that gathered for the First Crusade. Monks threw
+aside their gowns and took to the sword and cuirass; even women and
+children joined in the throng. What, my son, could be expected from a
+great army so formed? Without leaders, without discipline, without
+tactics, without means of getting food, they soon became a scourge of
+the country through which they passed.
+
+"Passing through Hungary, where they greatly ravaged the fields, they
+came to Bulgaria. Here the people, struck with astonishment and dismay
+at this great horde of hungry people who arrived among them like
+locusts, fell upon them with the sword, and great numbers fell. The
+first band that passed into that country perished miserably, and of all
+that huge assembly, it may be said that, numbering at the start not less
+than two hundred and fifty thousand persons, only about one hundred
+thousand crossed into Asia Minor. The fate of these was no better than
+that of those who had perished in Hungary and Bulgaria. After grievous
+suffering and loss they at last reached Nicaea. There they fell into an
+ambuscade; and out of the whole of the undisciplined masses who had
+followed Peter the Hermit, it is doubtful whether ten thousand ever
+returned home.
+
+"This first attempt to rescue the holy sepulcher was followed by others
+equally wild, misguided, and unfortunate. Some of them indeed began
+their evil deeds as soon as they had left their home. The last of these
+bodies fell upon the Jews, who are indeed enemies of the Christian
+faith, but who have now, at least, nothing to do with the question of
+the holy sepulcher. As soon as they entered into Germany the Crusaders
+put them to death with horrible torture. Plunder and rapine indeed
+appeared to be the object of the Crusaders. On this as well as on most
+other preceding bands, their misdeeds drew down the vengeance of the
+people. At an early period of their march, and as soon as they reached
+Hungary, the people fell upon them, and put the greater portion to the
+sword.
+
+"Thus, in these irregular expeditions no less than five hundred thousand
+people are supposed to have perished. Godfrey de Bouillon was the first
+who undertook to lead a Crusade according to the military knowledge of
+the day. With him were his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, the Counts of
+Anault and St. Paul, and many other nobles and gentlemen, with their
+retainers, well armed and under good order; and so firm was the
+discipline of Duke Godfrey that they were allowed to pass freely by the
+people of the countries who had opposed the previous bands.
+
+"Through Hungary, Bulgaria, and Thrace he made his way; and though he
+met with many difficulties from Alexius, the crafty and treacherous
+Emperor of the Greeks, he at last succeeded in crossing into Asia. There
+he was joined by many from England, as well as from France and other
+countries. Duke Robert, the son of our first William, led a strong band
+of Normans to the war, as did the other great princes of France and
+Spain.
+
+"The army which crossed the narrow passage of the Hellespont is
+estimated at no less than seven hundred thousand fighting men. Of these
+one hundred thousand were knights clad in complete armor, the remainder
+were men-at-arms and bowmen.
+
+"Nicaea, the place which had been the scene of the massacre of Peter the
+Hermit's hosts, was taken after a desperate conflict, lasting for many
+weeks, and the Crusaders afterward defeated the Turks in a great battle
+near the town of Doryleum. After these successes disputes arose among
+the leaders, and Count Baldwin, brother of Duke Godfrey, left the main
+body with about fifteen hundred men, and founded a kingdom for himself
+in Mesopotamia.
+
+"The main body, slowly and painfully, and suffering from disease,
+famine, and the heat, made its way south. Antioch, a city of great
+strength and importance, was besieged, but it proved so strong that it
+resisted for many months, and was at last only taken by treachery.
+
+"After the capture of this place the sufferings of the Crusaders so far
+from being diminished were redoubled. They themselves during the siege
+had bought up all the food that could be brought from the surrounding
+country, while the magazines of the town were found, when an entry was
+effected, to be entirely deserted. The enemy, aided by a great Persian
+host, came down, and those who had been the besiegers were now besieged.
+However, when in the last strait the Christian army sallied out, and
+inspired with supernatural strength, defeated the Turks and Persians,
+with a slaughter of one hundred thousand men. Another slow movement to
+the south brought them into the Holy Land, and pressing forward, they
+came at last within sight of Jerusalem itself.
+
+"So fearful had been the losses of the Crusaders that of seven hundred
+thousand who crossed the Hellespont, not more than forty thousand
+reached the end of the pilgrimage. This fragment of an army, which had
+appeared before a very strongly fortified town, possessed no means of
+capturing the place--none of the machines of war necessary for the
+purpose, no provisions or munitions of any kind. Water was scarce also;
+and it appeared as if the remnant of the great army of Godfrey de
+Bouillon had arrived before Jerusalem only to perish there.
+
+"Happily just at this time a further band of Crusaders from Genoa, who
+had reached Jaffa, made their appearance. They were provided with
+stores, and had skilled workmen capable of making the machines for the
+siege. On July 14, 1099, the attack was made, and after resistance
+gallant and desperate as the assault, the Crusaders burst into the city,
+massacred the whole of the defenders and inhabitants, calculated at
+seventy thousand in number, and so became masters of the holy sepulcher.
+
+"The Sultan of Egypt was meanwhile advancing to the assistance of the
+Mohammedans of Syria; but Godfrey, with twenty thousand of his best men,
+advanced to meet the vast host, and scattered them as if they had been
+sheep. Godfrey was now chosen King of Jerusalem, and the rest of his
+army--save three hundred knights and two hundred soldiers, who agreed to
+remain with him--returned to their home. The news of the victory led
+other armies of Crusaders to follow the example of that of Godfrey; but
+as these were almost as completely without organization or leadership as
+those of Peter the Hermit, they suffered miserably on their way, and few
+indeed ever reached the Holy Land. Godfrey died in 1100, and his brother
+Baldwin succeeded him.
+
+"The history of the last hundred years has been full of fresh efforts to
+crush the Moslem power, but hitherto it cannot be said that fortune has
+attended the efforts of the Christians. Had it not been indeed for the
+devotion of the Knights of St. John and of the Templars, two great
+companies formed of men who devoted their lives to the holding of the
+sepulcher against the infidel, our hold of the Holy Land would have been
+lost.
+
+"Gradually the Saracens have wrested post after post from our hands.
+Edessa was taken in 1144, and the news of this event created an intense
+excitement. The holy St. Bernard stirred up all France, and Louis VII.
+himself took the vow and headed a noble army. The ways of God are not
+our ways, and although the army of Germany joined that of France, but
+little results came of this great effort.
+
+"The Emperor Conrad, with the Germans, was attacked by the Turk Saladin
+of Iconium, and was defeated with a loss of sixty thousand men. The King
+of France, with his army, was also attacked with fury, and a large
+portion of his force were slaughtered. Nothing more came of this great
+effort, and while the first Crusade seemed to show that the men-at-arms
+of Europe were irresistible, the second on the contrary gave proof that
+the Turks were equal to the Christian knights. Gradually the Christian
+hold of the Holy Land was shaken. In 1187, although fighting with
+extraordinary bravery, the small army of Christian Knights of the Temple
+and of St. John were annihilated, the King of Jerusalem was made
+prisoner, and the Christian power was crushed. Then Saladin, who
+commanded the Turks, advanced against Jerusalem, and forced it to
+capitulate.
+
+"Such, my boy, is the last sad news which has reached us; and no wonder
+that it has stirred the hearts of the monarchs of Europe, and that every
+effort will be again made to recapture the holy sepulcher, and to avenge
+our brethren who have been murdered by the infidels."
+
+"But, Father Francis, from your story it would seem that Europe has
+already sacrificed an enormous number of lives to take the holy
+sepulcher, and that after all the fighting, when she has taken it, it is
+only to lose it again."
+
+"That is so, my son; but we will trust that in future things will be
+better managed. The Templars and Hospitalers now number so vast a number
+of the best lances in Europe, and are grown to be such great powers,
+that we may believe that when we have again wrested the holy sepulcher
+from the hands of the infidels they will be able to maintain it against
+all assaults. Doubtless the great misfortunes which have fallen upon the
+Christian armies have been a punishment from heaven, because they have
+not gone to work in the right spirit. It is not enough to take up lance
+and shield, and to place a red cross upon the shoulder. Those who desire
+to fight the battle of the Lord must cleanse their hearts, and go forth
+in the spirit of pilgrims rather than knights. I mean not that they
+should trust wholly to spiritual weapons--for in truth the infidel is a
+foe not to be despised--but I mean that they should lay aside all
+thoughts of worldly glory and rivalry one against another."
+
+"And think you, Father, that such is the spirit with which King Richard
+and the other kings and nobles now preparing to go to the Holy Land are
+animated?"
+
+Father Francis hesitated.
+
+"It is not for me, my son, to judge motives, or to speak well or ill of
+the instruments who have been chosen for this great work. It is of all
+works the most praiseworthy, most holy. It is horrible to think that the
+holy shrines of Jerusalem should be in the hands of men who believe not
+in our Redeemer; and I hold it to be the duty of every man who can bear
+arms, no matter what his rank or his station, to don his armor and to go
+forth to battle in the cause. Whether success will crown the effort, or
+whether God wills it otherwise, it is not for man to discuss; it is
+enough that the work is there, and it is our duty to do it."
+
+"And think you, Father, that it will do good to England?"
+
+"That do I, my son, whether we gain the Holy Land or no. Methinks that
+it will do good service to the nation that Saxon and Norman should fight
+together under the holy cross. Hitherto the races have stood far too
+much apart. They have seen each other's bad qualities rather than good;
+but methinks that when the Saxon and the Norman stand side by side on
+the soil of the Holy Land, and shout together for England, it must needs
+bind them together, and lead them to feel that they are no longer
+Normans and Saxons, but Englishmen. I intend to preach on the village
+green at Evesham next Sunday morning on this subject, and as I know you
+are in communication with the forest men, I would, Cuthbert, that you
+would persuade them to come in to hear me. You were wondering what could
+be found for these vagrants. They have many of them long since lost the
+habits of honest labor. Many of them are still serfs, although most have
+been freed by the good earl and the knights his followers. Some of those
+who would fain leave the life in the woods still cling to it because
+they think that it would be mean to desert their comrades, who being
+serfs are still bound to lurk there; but methinks that this is a great
+opportunity for them. They are valiant men, and the fact that they are
+fond of drawing an arrow at a buck does not make them one whit the worse
+Christians. I will do my best to move their hearts, and if they will but
+agree together to take the cross, they would make a goodly band of
+footmen to accompany the earl."
+
+"Is the earl going?" Cuthbert asked eagerly.
+
+"I know not for certain," said Father Francis; "but I think from what I
+hear from his chaplain, Father Eustace, that his mind turns in that
+direction."
+
+"Then, Father, if he goes, I will go too," Cuthbert exclaimed. "He
+promised to take me as his page the first time he went to war."
+
+Father Francis shook his head.
+
+"I fear me, Cuthbert, this is far from the spirit in which we awhile ago
+agreed that men should go to the holy war."
+
+Cuthbert hung his head a little.
+
+"Ay, Father Francis, men; but I am a boy," he said, "and after all, boys
+are fond of adventure for adventure's sake. However, Father," he said,
+with a smile, "no doubt your eloquence on the green will turn me
+mightily to the project, for you must allow that the story you have told
+me this morning is not such as to create any very strong yearning in
+one's mind to follow the millions of men who have perished in the Holy
+Land."
+
+"Go to," said Father Francis, smiling, "thou art a pert varlet. I will
+do my best on Sunday to turn you to a better frame of mind."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+PREPARATIONS.
+
+
+Next Sunday a large number of people from some miles round were gathered
+on the green at Evesham, to hear Father Francis preach on the holy
+sepulcher. The forest men in their green jerkins mingled with the crowd,
+and a look of attention and seriousness was on the faces of all, for the
+news of the loss of the holy sepulcher had really exercised a great
+effect upon the minds of the people in England as elsewhere.
+
+Those were the days of pilgrimage to holy places, when the belief in the
+sanctity of places and things was overwhelming, and when men believed
+that a journey to the holy shrines was sufficient to procure for them a
+pardon for all their misdeeds. The very word "infidel" in those days was
+full of horror, and the thought that the holy places of the Christians
+were in the hands of Moslems affected all Christians throughout Europe
+with a feeling of shame as well as of grief.
+
+Among the crowd were many of the Norman retainers from the castle and
+from many of the holds around, and several knights with the ladies of
+their family stood a little apart from the edge of the gathering; for
+it was known that Father Francis would not be alone, but that he would
+be accompanied by a holy friar who had returned from the East, and who
+could tell of the cruelties which the Christians had suffered at the
+hands of the Saracens.
+
+Father Francis, at ordinary times a tranquil preacher, was moved beyond
+himself by the theme on which he was holding forth. He did not attempt
+to hide from those who stood around that the task to be undertaken was
+one of grievous peril and trial; that disease and heat, hunger and
+thirst, must be dared, as well as the sword of the infidel. But he spoke
+of the grand nature of the work, of the humiliation to Christians, of
+the desecration of the shrines, and of the glory which awaited those who
+joined the Crusade, whether they lived or whether they died in the Holy
+Land.
+
+His words had a strong effect upon the simple people who listened to
+him, but the feelings so aroused were as naught to the enthusiasm which
+greeted the address of the friar.
+
+Meager and pale, with a worn, anxious face as one who had suffered much,
+the friar, holding aloft two pieces of wood from the Mount of Olives
+tied together in the form of a cross, harangued the crowd. His words
+poured forth in a fiery stream, kindling the hearts, and stirring at
+once the devotion and the anger of his listeners.
+
+He told of the holy places, he spoke of the scenes of Holy Writ, which
+had there been enacted; and then he depicted the men who had died for
+them. He told of the knights and men-at-arms, each of whom proved
+himself again and again a match for a score of infidels. He spoke of the
+holy women, who, fearlessly and bravely, as the knights themselves, had
+borne their share in the horrors of the siege and in the terrible times
+which had preceded it.
+
+He told them that this misfortune had befallen Christianity because of
+the lukewarmness which had come upon them.
+
+"What profited it," he asked, "if a few knights who remained to defend
+the holy sepulcher were heroes? A few heroes cannot withstand an army.
+If Christendom after making a mighty effort to capture the holy
+sepulcher had not fallen away, the conquest which had been made with so
+vast an expenditure of blood would not have been lost. This is a work in
+which no mere passing fervor will avail; bravery at first, endurance
+afterward, are needed. Many men must determine not only to assist to
+wrest the holy sepulcher from the hands of the infidels, but to give
+their lives, so long as they might last, to retaining it. It is scarce
+to be expected that men with wives and families will take a view like
+this, indeed it is not to be desired. But there are single men, men of
+no ties, who can devote their whole lives, as did the Knights of the
+Orders of the Cross, to this great object. When their life has come to
+an end doubtless others will take up the banner that their hands can no
+longer hold. But for life it is, indeed, that many of humble as well as
+of princely class must bind themselves to take and defend to death the
+holy sepulcher."
+
+So, gradually raising the tone of his speech, the friar proceeded; until
+at length by his intense earnestness, his wild gesticulations, his
+impassioned words, he drew the whole of his listeners along with him;
+and when he ceased, a mighty shout of "To the Holy Land!" burst from his
+hearers.
+
+Falling upon their knees the crowd begged of him to give them the sign
+of the cross, and to bestow his blessing upon their swords, and upon
+their efforts.
+
+Father Francis had prepared, in contemplation of such a movement, a
+large number of small white crosses of cloth. These he and the friar now
+fastened to the shoulders of the men as they crowded up to receive it,
+holding their hands aloft, kissing the cross that the friar extended to
+them, and swearing to give their lives, if need be, to rescue the holy
+shrines from the infidel.
+
+When all had received the holy symbol, Father Francis again ascended the
+bank from which they had addressed the crowd:
+
+"Now go to your homes, my sons," he said. "Think of the oath that you
+have taken, and of the course that lies open to you when the time comes.
+When King Richard is prepared to start, then will you be called upon to
+fulfill your vows. It may be that all who have sworn may not be called
+upon to go. It needs that the land here should be tilled, it needs that
+there should be protectors for the women and children, it needs that
+this England of ours should flourish, and we cannot give all her sons,
+however willing they might be to take the cross. But the willingness
+which you will, I am sure, show to go if needs be, and to redeem your
+vows, will be sufficient. Some must go and some must stay; these are
+matters to be decided hereafter; for the time let us separate; you will
+hear when the hour for action arrives."
+
+A fortnight later the Earl of Evesham, who had been on a long journey to
+London, returned with full authority to raise and organize a force as
+his contingent to the holy wars.
+
+All was now bustle and activity in the castle. Father Francis informed
+him of the willingness of such of the forest men as he deemed fit to
+enlist under his banner; and the earl was much gratified at finding that
+the ranks of heavily-armed retainers whom he would take with him were to
+be swollen by the addition of so useful a contingent as that of one
+hundred skillful archers.
+
+Cuthbert was not long in asking for an interview with the earl.
+
+He had indeed great difficulty in persuading Dame Editha that he was old
+enough to share in the fatigues of so great an expedition, but he had
+Father Francis on his side; and between the influence of her confessor,
+and the importunities of her son, the opposition of the good lady fell
+to the ground.
+
+Cuthbert was already, for his age, well trained to arms. Many of the old
+soldiers at the castle who had known and loved his father had been ever
+ready to give lessons in the use of arms to Cuthbert, who was
+enthusiastic in his desire to prove as good a knight as his father had
+been. His friends, the outlaws, had taught him the use of the bow and of
+the quarterstaff; and Cuthbert, strong and well-built for his age, and
+having little to do save to wield the sword and the bow, had attained a
+very considerable amount of skill with each.
+
+He had too, which was unusual, a certain amount of book learning,
+although this, true to say, had not been acquired so cheerfully or
+willingly as the skill at arms. Father Francis had, however, taught him
+to read and to write--accomplishments which were at that time rare,
+except in the cloister. In those days if a knight had a firm seat in his
+saddle, a strong arm, a keen eye, and high courage, it was thought to be
+of little matter whether he could or could not do more than make his
+mark on the parchment. The whole life of the young was given to
+acquiring skill in arms; and unless intended for the convent, any idea
+of education would in the great majority of cases have been considered
+as preposterous.
+
+To do Cuthbert justice, he had protested with all his might against the
+proposition of Father Francis to his mother to teach him some clerkly
+knowledge. He had yielded most unwillingly at last to her entreaties,
+backed as they were by the sound arguments and good sense of Father
+Francis.
+
+The Earl of Evesham received Cuthbert's application very graciously.
+
+"Certainly, Cuthbert," he said, "you shall accompany me; first, on
+account of my promise to you; secondly, because from the readiness you
+displayed both in the matter of my daughter and of the attack on
+Wortham, you will be a notable aid and addition to my party; thirdly,
+from my friendship for your father and Dame Editha."
+
+This point being settled, Cuthbert at once assumed his new duties. There
+was plenty for him to do--to see that the orders of the earl were
+properly carried out; to bear messages to the knights who followed the
+earl's fortunes, at their various holds; to stand by and watch the
+armorers at work, and the preparation of the stores of arms and missiles
+which would be necessary for the expedition.
+
+Sometimes he would go round to summon the tenants of the various farms
+and lands, who held from the earl, to come to the castle; and here Sir
+Walter would, as far as might be without oppression, beg of them to
+contribute largely to the expedition.
+
+In these appeals he was in no slight way assisted by Father Francis, who
+pointed out loudly to the people that those who stayed behind were bound
+to make as much sacrifice of their worldly goods as those who went to
+the war might make of their lives. Life and land are alike at the
+service of God. Could the land be sold, it would be a good deed to sell
+it; but as this could not be, they should at least sell all that they
+could, and pledge their property if they could find lenders, in order to
+contribute to the needs of their lord, and the fitting out of this great
+enterprise.
+
+The preparations were at last complete, and a gallant band gathered at
+the castle ready for starting. It consisted of some two hundred
+men-at-arms led by six knights, and of one hundred bowmen dressed in
+Lincoln green, with quilted jerkins to keep out the arrows of the enemy.
+All the country from around gathered to see the start. Dame Editha was
+there, and by her side stood the earl's little daughter. The earl
+himself was in armor, and beside him rode Cuthbert in the gay attire of
+a page.
+
+Just at that moment, however, his face did not agree with his costume,
+for although he strove his best to look bright and smiling, it was a
+hard task to prevent the tears from filling his eyes at his departure
+from his mother. The good lady cried unrestrainedly, and Margaret joined
+in her tears. The people who had gathered round cheered lustily; the
+trumpets blew a gay fanfaronade, and the squire threw to the wind the
+earl's colors.
+
+It was no mere pleasure trip on which they were starting, for all knew
+that, of the preceding Crusades, not one in ten of those who had gone so
+gladly forth had ever returned.
+
+It must not be supposed that the whole of those present were animated by
+any strong religious feeling. No doubt there existed a desire, which was
+carefully fanned by the preaching of the priests and monks, to rescue
+the holy sepulcher from the hands of the Saracens; but a far stronger
+feeling was to be found in the warlike nature of the people in those
+days. Knights, men-at-arms, and indeed men of all ranks were full of a
+combative spirit. Life in the castle and hut was alike dull and
+monotonous, and the excitement of war and adventure was greatly looked
+for, both as a means of obtaining glory and booty, and for the change
+they afforded to the dreary monotony of life.
+
+There is little to tell of the journey of the Earl of Evesham's band
+through England to Southampton, at which place they took ship and
+crossed to France--or rather to Normandy, for in those days Normandy was
+regarded, as indeed it formed, a part of England.
+
+Cuthbert, as was natural to his age, was full of delight at all the
+varying scenes through which they passed. The towns were to him an
+especial source of wonder, for he had never visited any other than that
+of Worcester, to which he had once or twice been taken on occasions of
+high festival. Havre was in those days an important place, and being the
+landing-place of a great portion of the English bands, it was full of
+bustle and excitement. Every day ships brought in nobles and their
+followings.
+
+The King of England was already in Normandy hastening the preparations,
+and each band, as it landed, marched down to the meeting-place on the
+plains of Vezelay. Already they began to experience a taste of the
+hardships which they were to endure.
+
+In those days there was no regular supply train for an army, but each
+division or band supported itself by purchase or pillage, as the case
+might be, from the surrounding country.
+
+As the English troops were marching through a friendly country, pillage
+was of course strictly forbidden; but while many of the leaders paid for
+all they had, it must be owned that among the smaller leaders were many
+who took anything that they required with or without payment.
+
+The country was eaten up.
+
+The population in those days was sparse, and the movement of so large a
+number of men along a certain route completely exhausted all the
+resources of the inhabitants; and although willing to pay for all that
+his men required, the Earl of Evesham had frequently to lie down on the
+turf supperless himself.
+
+"If this is the case now," he said to Cuthbert, "what will it be after
+we have joined the French army? Methinks whatever we may do if we reach
+the Holy Land, that we have a fair chance of being starved before we
+sail."
+
+After a long succession of marches they arrived in sight of the great
+camp at Vezelay. It was indeed rather a canvas town than a camp. Here
+were gathered nearly one hundred thousand men, a vast host at any time,
+but in those days far greater in proportion to the strength of the
+countries than at present. The tents of the leaders, nobles, and other
+knights and gentlemen rose in regular lines, forming streets and
+squares.
+
+The great mass of troops, however, were contented to sleep in the open
+air; indeed the difficulties of carriage were so great that it was only
+the leaders who could carry with them their canvas abodes. Before each
+tent stood the lance and colors of its owner, and side by side in the
+center of the camp stood the royal pavilions of Philip of France and
+Richard of England, round which could be seen the gonfalons of all the
+nobles of Western Europe.
+
+Nothing could be gayer than the aspect of this camp as the party rode
+into it. They were rather late, and the great body of the host were
+already assembled.
+
+Cuthbert gazed with delight at the varied colors, the gay dresses, the
+martial knights, and the air of discipline and order which reigned
+everywhere.
+
+This was indeed war in its most picturesque form, a form which, as far
+as beauty is concerned, has been altogether altered, and indeed
+destroyed, by modern arms.
+
+In those days individual prowess and bravery went for everything. A
+handful of armored knights were a match for thousands of footmen, and
+battles were decided as much by the prowess and bravery of the leader
+and his immediate following as by that of the great mass of the army.
+
+The earl had the day before sent on a messenger to state that he was
+coming, and as the party entered the camp they were met by a squire of
+the camp-marshal, who conducted them to the position allotted to them.
+
+The earl's tent was soon erected, with four or five grouped around it
+for his knights, one being set aside for his squires and pages.
+
+When this was done Cuthbert strolled away to look at the varied sights
+of the camp. A military officer in these days would be scandalized at
+the scenes which were going on, but the strict, hard military discipline
+of modern times was then absolutely unknown.
+
+A camp was a moving town, and to it flocked the country people with
+their goods; smiths and armorers erected their forges; minstrels and
+troubadours flocked in to sing of former battles, and to raise the
+spirits of the soldiers by merry lays of love and war; simple countrymen
+and women came in to bring their presents of fowls or cakes to their
+friends in camp; knights rode to and fro on their gayly caparisoned
+horses through the crowd; the newly-raised levies, in many cases
+composed of woodmen and peasants who had not in the course of their
+lives wandered a league from their birthplaces, gaped in unaffected
+wonder at the sights around them; while last, but by no means least, the
+maidens and good wives of the neighborhood, fond then as now of brave
+men and gay dresses, thronged the streets of the camp, and joined in,
+and were the cause of, merry laughter and jest.
+
+Here and there, a little apart from the main stream of traffic, the
+minstrels would take up their position, and playing a gay air, the
+soldier lads and lasses would fall to and foot it merrily to the
+strains. Sometimes there would be a break in the gayety, and loud
+shouts, and perhaps fierce oaths, would rise. Then the maidens would fly
+like startled fawns, and men hasten to the spot; though the quarrel
+might be purely a private one, yet should it happen between the
+retainers of two nobles, the friends of each would be sure to strike in,
+and serious frays would arise before the marshal of the camp with his
+posse could arrive to interfere. Sometimes, indeed, these quarrels
+became so serious and desperate that alliances were broken up and great
+intentions frustrated by the quarrels of the soldiery.
+
+Here and there, on elevated platforms, or even on the top of a pile of
+tubs, were friars occupied in haranguing the soldiers, and in inspiring
+them with enthusiasm for the cause upon which they were embarked. The
+conduct of their listeners showed easily enough the motives which had
+brought them to war. Some stood with clasped hands and eager eyes,
+listening to the exhortations of the priests, and ready, as might be
+seen from their earnest gaze, to suffer martyrdom in the cause. More,
+however, stood indifferently round, or, after listening to a few words,
+walked on with a laugh or a scoff; indeed, preaching had already done
+all that lay in its power. All those who could be moved by exhortations
+of this kind were there, and upon the rest the discourses and sermons
+were thrown away.
+
+Several times in the course of his stroll round the camp Cuthbert
+observed the beginnings of quarrels, which were in each case only
+checked by the intervention of some knight or other person in authority
+coming past, and he observed that these in every instance occurred
+between men of the English and those of the French army.
+
+Between the Saxon contingent of King Richard's army and the French
+soldiers there could indeed be no quarrel, for the Saxons understood no
+word of their language; but with the Normans the case was different, for
+the Norman-French, which was spoken by all the nobles and their
+retainers in Britain, was as nearly as possible the same as that in use
+in France.
+
+It seemed, however, to Cuthbert, watching narrowly what was going on,
+that there existed by no means a good feeling between the men of the
+different armies; and he thought that this divergence so early in the
+campaign boded but little good for the final success of the expedition.
+
+When he returned to the tent the earl questioned him as to what he had
+seen, and Cuthbert frankly acknowledged that it appeared to him that the
+feeling between the men of the two armies was not good.
+
+"I have been," the earl said, "to the royal camp, and from what I hear,
+Cuthbert, methinks that there is reason for what you say. King Richard
+is the most loyal and gallant of kings, but he is haughty and hasty in
+speech. The Normans, too, have been somewhat accustomed to conquer our
+neighbors, and it may well be that the chivalry of France love us not.
+However, it must be hoped that this feeling will die away, and that we
+shall emulate each other only in our deeds on the battlefield."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+THE LISTS.
+
+
+The third day after the arrival of the Earl of Evesham there was a great
+banquet given by the King of France to King Richard and his principal
+nobles.
+
+Among those present was the Earl of Evesham, and Cuthbert as his page
+followed him to the great tent where the banquet was prepared.
+
+Here, at the top of the tent, on a raised daïs, sat the King of France,
+surrounded by his courtiers. The Earl of Evesham, having been conducted
+by the herald to the daïs, paid his compliments to the king, and was
+saluted by him with many flattering words.
+
+The sound of a trumpet was heard, and Richard of England, accompanied by
+his principal nobles, entered.
+
+It was the first time that Cuthbert had seen the king.
+
+Richard was a man of splendid stature and of enormous strength. His
+appearance was in some respects rather Saxon than Norman, for his hair
+was light and his complexion clear and bright. He wore the mustache and
+pointed beard at that time in fashion; and although his expression was
+generally that of frankness and good humor, there might be observed in
+his quick motions and piercing glances signs of the hasty temper and
+unbridled passion which went far to wreck the success of the enterprise
+upon which he was embarked.
+
+Richard possessed most of the qualities which make a man a great king
+and render him the idol of his subjects, especially in a time of
+semi-civilization, when personal prowess is placed at the summit of all
+human virtues. In all his dominions there was not one man who in
+personal conflict was a match for his king.
+
+Except during his fits of passion, King Richard was generous, forgiving,
+and royal in his moods. He was incapable of bearing malice. Although
+haughty of his dignity, he was entirely free from any personal pride,
+and while he would maintain to the death every right and privilege
+against another monarch, he could laugh and joke with the humblest of
+his subjects on terms of hearty good fellowship. He was impatient of
+contradiction, eager to carry out whatever he had determined upon; and
+nothing enraged him so much as hesitation or procrastination. The delays
+which were experienced in the course of the Crusade angered him more
+than all the opposition offered by the Saracens, or than the hardships
+through which the Christian host had to pass.
+
+At a flourish of trumpets all took their seats at dinner, their places
+being marked for them by a herald, whose duty it was to regulate nicely
+the various ranks and dignities.
+
+The Earl of Evesham was placed next to a noble of Brabant. Cuthbert took
+his place behind his lord and served him with wines and meats, the
+Brabant being attended by a tall youth, who was indeed on the verge of
+manhood.
+
+As the dinner went on the buzz of conversation became fast and furious.
+In those days men drank deep, and quarrels often arose over the cups.
+From the time that the dinner began Cuthbert noticed that the manner of
+Sir de Jacquelin Barras, Count of Brabant, was rude and offensive.
+
+It might be that he was accustomed to live alone with his retainers, and
+that his manners were rude and coarse to all. It might be that he had a
+special hostility to the English. At any rate, his remarks were
+calculated to fire the anger of the earl.
+
+He began the conversation by wondering how a Norman baron could live in
+a country like England, inhabited by a race but little above pigs.
+
+The earl at once fired up at this, for the Normans were now beginning to
+feel themselves English, and to resent attacks upon a people for whom
+their grandfathers had entertained contempt.
+
+He angrily repelled the attack upon them by the Brabant knight, and
+asserted at once that the Saxons were every bit as civilized, and in
+some respects superior to the Normans or French.
+
+The ill-feeling thus began at starting clearly waxed stronger as dinner
+went on. The Brabant knight drank deeply, and although his talk was not
+clearly directed against the English, yet he continued to throw out
+innuendos and side attacks, and to talk with a vague boastfulness, which
+greatly irritated Sir Walter.
+
+Presently, as Cuthbert was about to serve his master with a cup of wine,
+the tall page pushed suddenly against him, spilling a portion of the
+wine over his dress.
+
+"What a clumsy child!" he said scoffingly.
+
+"You are a rough and ill-mannered loon," Cuthbert said angrily. "Were
+you in any other presence I would chastise you as you deserve."
+
+The tall page burst into a mocking laugh.
+
+"Chastise me!" he said. "Why, I could put you in my pocket for a little
+hop-of-my-thumb as you are."
+
+"I think," said Sir Jacquelin--for the boys' voices both rose loud--to
+the earl, "you had better send that brat home and order him to be
+whipped."
+
+"Sir count," said the earl, "your manners are insolent, and were we not
+engaged upon a Crusade, it would please me much to give you a lesson on
+that score."
+
+Higher and higher the dispute rose, until some angry word caught the ear
+of the king.
+
+Amid the general buzz of voices King Philip rose, and speaking a word
+to King Richard, moved from the table, thus giving the sign for the
+breaking up of the feast.
+
+Immediately afterward a page touched the earl and Sir Jacquelin upon the
+shoulder, and told them that the kings desired to speak with them in the
+tent of the King of France.
+
+The two nobles strode through the crowd, regarding each other with eyes
+much like those of two dogs eager to fly at each other's throat.
+
+"My lords, my lords," said King Philip when they entered, "this is
+against all law and reason. For shame, to be brawling at my table. I
+would not say aught openly, but methinks it is early indeed for the
+knights and nobles engaged in a common work to fall to words."
+
+"Your majesty," said the Earl of Evesham, "I regret deeply what has
+happened. But it seemed from the time we sat down to the meal that this
+lord sought to pass a quarrel upon me, and I now beseech your majesty
+that you will permit us to settle our differences in the lists."
+
+King Richard gave a sound of assent, but the King of France shook his
+head gravely.
+
+"Do you forget," he said, "the mission upon which you are assembled
+here? Has not every knight and noble in these armies taken a solemn oath
+to put aside private quarrels and feuds until the holy sepulcher is
+taken? Shall we at this very going off show that the oath is a mere form
+of words? Shall we show before the face of Christendom that the knights
+of the cross are unable to avoid flying at each other's throats, even
+while on their way to wrest the holy sepulcher from the infidel? No,
+sirs, you must lay aside your feuds, and must promise me and my good
+brother here that you will keep the peace between you until this war is
+over. Whose fault it was that the quarrel began I know not. It may be
+that my Lord of Brabant was discourteous. It may be that the earl here
+was too hot. But whichever it be, it matters not."
+
+"The quarrel, sire," said Sir Jacquelin, "arose from a dispute between
+our pages, who were nigh coming to blows in your majesty's presence. I
+desired the earl to chide the insolence of his varlet, and instead of so
+doing he met my remarks with scorn."
+
+"Pooh, pooh," said King Richard, "there are plenty of grounds for
+quarrel without two nobles interfering in the squabbles of boys. Let
+them fight; it will harm no one. By the bye, your Majesty," he said,
+turning to the King of France with a laugh, "if the masters may not
+fight, there is no reason in the world why the varlets should not. We
+are sorely dull for want of amusement. Let us have a list to-morrow, and
+let the pages fight it out for the honor of their masters and their
+nations."
+
+"It were scarce worth while to have the lists set for two boys to
+fight," said the King of France.
+
+"Oh, we need not have regular lists," said King Richard. "Leave that
+matter in my hands. I warrant you that if the cockerels are well
+plucked, they will make us sport. What say you, gentlemen?"
+
+The Brabant noble at once assented, answering that he was sure that his
+page would be glad to enter the lists; and the earl gave a similar
+assent, for he had not noticed how great was the discrepancy between the
+size of the future combatants.
+
+"That is agreed, then," said King Richard joyously. "I will have a piece
+of ground marked out on the edge of the camp to-morrow morning. It shall
+be kept by my men-at-arms, and there shall be a raised place for King
+Philip and myself, who will be the judges of the conflict. Will they
+fight on foot or on horse?"
+
+"On foot, on foot," said the King of France. "It would be a pity that
+knightly exercises should be brought to scorn by any failure on their
+part on horseback. On foot at least it will be a fair struggle."
+
+"What arms shall they use?" the Brabant knight asked.
+
+"Oh, swords and battle-axes, of course," said King Richard with a laugh.
+
+"Before you go," King Philip said, "you must shake hands, and swear to
+let the quarrel between you drop, at least until after our return. If
+you still wish to shed each other's blood, I shall offer no hindrance
+thereto."
+
+The earl and Count Jacquelin touched each other's hands in obedience to
+the order, went out of the tent together, and strode off without a word
+in different directions.
+
+"My dear lad," the Earl of Evesham said on entering his tent where his
+page was waiting him, "this is a serious business. The kings have
+ordered this little count and myself to put aside our differences till
+after the Crusade, in accordance with our oath. But as you have in no
+wise pledged yourself in the same fashion, and as their majesties feel
+somewhat dull while waiting here, it is determined that the quarrel
+between the count and me, and between you and the count's page, shall be
+settled by a fight between you two in the presence of the kings."
+
+"Well, sir," Cuthbert said, "I am glad that it should be, seeing the
+varlet insulted me without any cause, and purposely upset the cup over
+me."
+
+"What is he like?" the earl asked. "Dost think that you are a fair
+match?"
+
+"I doubt not that we are fair match enough," Cuthbert said. "As you
+know, sir, I have been well trained to arms of all kinds, both by my
+father and by the men-at-arms at the castle, and could hold my own
+against any of your men with light weapons, and have then no fear that
+this gawky loon, twenty years old though he seems to be, will bring
+disgrace upon me or discredit upon my nation."
+
+"If thou thinkest so," the earl said, "the matter can go on. But had it
+been otherwise I would have gone to the king and protested that the
+advantage of age was so great that it would be murder to place you in
+the lists together."
+
+"There is," Cuthbert said, "at most no greater difference between us
+than between a strong man and a weak one, and these, in the ordeal of
+battle, have to meet in the lists. Indeed I doubt if the difference is
+so great, for if he be a foot taller than I, methinks that round the
+shoulders I should have the advantage of him."
+
+"Send hither my armorer," the earl said; "we must choose a proper suit
+for you. I fear that mine would be of little use; but doubtless there
+are some smaller suits among my friends."
+
+"The simpler and lighter the better," Cuthbert said. "I'd rather have a
+light coat of mail and a steel cap than heavy armor and a helmet which
+would press me down, and a visor through which I could scarce see. The
+lighter the better, for after all if my sword cannot keep my head,
+sooner or later the armor would fail to do so too."
+
+The armorer speedily arrived, and the knights and followers of the earl
+being called in and the case stated, there was soon found a coat of fine
+linked mail, which fitted Cuthbert well. As to the steel cap there was
+no difficulty whatever.
+
+"You must have a plume at least," the earl said, and took some feathers
+from his own casque and fastened them in. "Will you want a light sword
+and battle-ax?"
+
+"No," Cuthbert said, "my arms are pretty well used to those of the
+men-at-arms. I could wield my father's sword, and that was a heavy
+one."
+
+The lightest of the earl's weapons were chosen, and it was agreed that
+all was now ready for the conflict to-morrow.
+
+In the morning there was a slight bustle in the camp.
+
+The news that a fight was to take place between an English and a Brabant
+page, by the permission of the kings of England and France, that their
+majesties were to be present, and that all was to be conducted on
+regular rules, caused a stir of excitement and novelty in the camp.
+
+Nowhere is life duller than among a large body of men kept together for
+any time under canvas, and the thought of a combat of this novel kind
+excited general interest.
+
+In a meadow at a short distance from the camp a body of King Richard's
+men-at-arms marked off an oval space of about an acre. Upon one side of
+this a tent was pitched for the kings, and a small tent was placed at
+each end for the combatants. Round the inclosure the men-at-arms formed
+the ring, and behind them a dense body of spectators gathered, a place
+being set aside for nobles, and others of gentle blood.
+
+At the hour fixed the kings of England and France arrived together. King
+Richard was evidently in a state of high good humor, for he preferred
+the clash of arms and the sight of combat to any other pleasure.
+
+The King of France, on the other hand, looked grave. He was a far wiser
+and more politic king than Richard; and although he had consented to
+the sudden proposal, yet he felt in his heart that the contest was a
+foolish one, and that it might create bad feeling among the men of the
+two nationalities whichever way it went. He had reserved to himself the
+right of throwing down the baton when the combat was to cease, and he
+determined to avail himself of this right to put a stop to the conflict
+before either party was likely to sustain any deadly injury.
+
+When the monarchs had taken their places the trumpeters sounded their
+trumpets, and the two combatants advanced on foot from their ends of the
+lists. A murmur of surprise and dissatisfaction broke from the crowd.
+"My Lord of Evesham," the king said angrily to the earl, who with Count
+Jacquelin was standing by the royal party, "thou shouldst have said that
+the difference between the two was too great to allow the combat to be
+possible. The Frenchman appears to be big enough to take your page under
+his arm and walk off with him."
+
+The difference was indeed very striking. The French champion was arrayed
+in a full suit of knightly armor--of course without the gold spurs which
+were the distinguishing mark of that rank--and with his helmet and lofty
+plume of feathers he appeared to tower above Cuthbert, who, in his
+close-fitting steel cap and link armor seemed a very dwarf by the side
+of a giant.
+
+"It is not size, sire, but muscle and pluck will win in a combat like
+this. Your majesty need not be afraid that my page will disgrace me. He
+is of my blood, though the kinship is not close. He is of mixed Saxon
+and Norman strain, and will, believe me, do no discredit to either."
+
+The king's brow cleared, for in truth he was very proud of his English
+nationality, and would have been sorely vexed to see the discomfiture of
+an English champion, even though that champion were a boy.
+
+"Brother Philip," he said, turning to the king, "I will wager my gold
+chain against yours on yonder stripling."
+
+"Methinks that it were robbery to take your wager," the King of France
+said. "The difference between their bulk is disproportionate. However, I
+will not balk your wish. My chain against yours."
+
+The rule of the fight was that they were to commence with swords, but
+that either could, if he chose, use his battle-ax.
+
+The fight need scarcely be described at length, for the advantage was
+all one way. Cuthbert was fully a match in strength for his antagonist,
+although standing nigh a foot shorter. Constant exercise, however, had
+hardened his muscles into something like steel, while the teaching that
+he had received had embraced all what was then known of the use of arms.
+
+Science in those days there was but little of; it was a case rather of
+hard, heavy hitting, than of what we now call swordsmanship.
+
+With the sword Cuthbert gained but slight advantage over his adversary,
+whose superior height enabled him to rain blows down upon the lad, which
+he was with difficulty enabled to guard; but when the first paroxysm of
+his adversary's attack had passed he took to the offensive, and drove
+his opponent back step by step. With his sword, however, he was unable
+to cut through the armor of the Frenchman, but in the course of the
+encounter, guarding a severe blow aimed at him, his sword was struck
+from his hand, and he then, seizing his ax, made such play with it that
+his foe dropped his own sword and took to the same weapon.
+
+In this the superior height and weight of his opponent gave him even a
+greater advantage than with the sword, and Cuthbert knowing this, used
+his utmost dexterity and speed to avoid the sweeping blows showered upon
+him. He himself had been enabled to strike one or two sweeping strokes,
+always aiming at the same place, the juncture of the visor with the
+helmet. At last the Frenchman struck him so heavy a blow that it beat
+down his guard and struck his steel cap from his head, bringing him to
+the knee. In an instant he was up, and before his foe could be again on
+guard, he whirled his ax round with all its force, and bringing it just
+at the point of the visor which he had already weakened with repeated
+blows, the edge of the ax stove clean through the armor, and the page
+was struck senseless to the ground.
+
+A great shout broke from the English portion of the soldiery as
+Cuthbert leaned over his prostrate foe, and receiving no answer to the
+question "Do you yield?" rose to his feet, and signified to the squire
+who had kept near that his opponent was insensible.
+
+King Richard ordered the pursuivant to lead Cuthbert to the royal
+inclosure.
+
+"Thou art a brave lad and a lusty," the king said, "and hast borne thee
+in the fight as well as many a knight would have done. Wert thou older,
+I would myself dub thee knight; and I doubt not that the occasion will
+yet come when thou wilt do as good deeds upon the bodies of the Saracens
+as thou hast upon that long-shanked opponent of thine. Here is a gold
+chain; take it as a proof that the King of England holds that you have
+sustained well the honor of his country; and mark me, if at any time you
+require a boon, bring or send me that chain, and thou shalt have it
+freely. Sir Walter," he said, turning to the earl, "in this lad thou
+hast a worthy champion, and I trust me that thou wilt give him every
+chance of distinguishing himself. So soon as thou thinkest him fit for
+the knightly rank I myself will administer the accolade."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+REVENGE.
+
+
+After his interview with the king Cuthbert was led to his tent amid the
+hearty plaudits of the English troops.
+
+His own comrades flocked round him; the men of the greenwood, headed by
+Cnut, were especially jubilant over his victory.
+
+"Who would have thought," said the tall forester, "that the lad who but
+a short time ago was a child should now have sustained the honor of the
+country? We feel proud of you, Cuthbert; and trust us some day or other
+to follow wherever you may lead, and to do some deed which will attain
+for you honor and glory, and show that the men of Evesham are as doughty
+as any under King Richard's rule."
+
+"You must be wary, Cuthbert," the earl said to him that evening.
+"Believe me that you and I have made a foe, who, although he may not
+have the power, has certainly the will to injure us to the death. I
+marked the eye of Count Jacquelin during the fight, and again when you
+were led up to the king. There was hatred and fury in his eye. The page
+too, I hear, is his own nephew, and he will be the laughing-stock of the
+French camp at having been conquered by one so much younger than
+himself. It will be well to keep upon your guard, and not to go out at
+night unattended. Keep Cnut near you; he is faithful as a watch-dog, and
+would give his life, I am sure, for you. I will myself be also upon my
+guard, for it was after all my quarrel, and the fury of this fierce
+knight will vent itself upon both of us if the opportunity should come.
+I hear but a poor account of him among his confréres. They say he is one
+of those disgraces to the name of knight who are but a mixture of robber
+and soldier; that he harries all the lands in his neighborhood; and that
+he has now only joined the Crusade to avoid the vengeance which the
+cries of the oppressed people had invoked from his liege lord. I am told
+indeed that the choice was given him to be outlawed, or to join the
+Crusades with all the strength he could raise. Naturally he adopted the
+latter alternative; but he has the instincts of the robber still, and
+will do us an evil turn, if he have the chance."
+
+Two days later the great army broke up its camp and marched south. After
+a week's journeying they encamped near a town, and halted there two or
+three days in order to collect provisions for the next advance; for the
+supplies which they could obtain in the country districts were wholly
+insufficient for so great a host of men. Here the armies were to
+separate, the French marching to Genoa, the English to Marseilles, the
+town at which they were to take ship.
+
+One evening the earl sent Cuthbert with a message to another English
+lord, staying in the town at the palace of the bishop, who was a friend
+of his.
+
+Cnut accompanied Cuthbert, for he now made a point of seldom letting him
+out of his sight. It was light when they reached the bishop's palace,
+but here they were delayed for some time, and night had fallen when they
+sallied out.
+
+The town was already quiet, for the inhabitants cared not to show
+themselves in the streets now that such a large army of fierce men were
+in the neighborhood.
+
+The orders indeed of the monarchs were stringent, but discipline there
+was but little of, and the soldiery in those days regarded peaceful
+citizens as fair game; hence, when they came from the palace the streets
+of the city were already hushed and quiet, for the orders of the king
+had been peremptory that no men-at-arms, or others except those on duty,
+were to be away from their camp after nightfall. This order had been
+absolutely necessary, so many were the complaints brought in by country
+peasants and farmers of the doings of bands of soldiers.
+
+Cnut and Cuthbert proceeded along the streets unmolested for some
+distance. Occasionally a solitary passer-by, with hooded cape, hurried
+past. The moon was half full, and her light was welcome indeed, for in
+those days the streets were unlighted, and the pavement so bad that
+passage through the streets after dark was a matter of difficulty, and
+even of danger.
+
+Here and there before some roadside shrine a lamp dimly burned; before
+these they paused, and, as good Catholics, Cnut and Cuthbert crossed
+themselves. Just as they had passed one of these wayside shrines, a
+sudden shout was heard, and a party of eight or ten men sprang out from
+a side street and fell upon them.
+
+Cnut and Cuthbert drew their swords and laid about them heartily, but
+their assailants were too strong. Cnut was stricken to the ground, and
+Cuthbert, seeing that defense was hopeless, took to his heels and ran
+for his life. He was already wounded, but happily not so severely as in
+any way to disable him.
+
+Seeing that it was speed, and speed alone, which now could save him, he
+flung aside his belt and scabbard as he ran, and with rapid steps flew
+along the streets, not knowing whither he went, and striving only to
+keep ahead of his pursuers. They, more incumbered by arms and armor,
+were unable to keep up with the flying footsteps of a lad clothed in the
+light attire of a page; but Cuthbert felt that the blood running from
+his wound was weakening him fast, and that unless he could gain some
+refuge his course must speedily come to an end. Happily he saw at some
+little distance ahead of him a man standing by a door. Just as he
+arrived the door opened, and a glow of light from within fell on the
+road, showing that the person entering was a monk.
+
+Without a moment's hesitation Cuthbert rushed through the door, shouting
+"Sanctuary!" and sank almost fainting on the ground.
+
+The monks, accustomed to wild pursuits and scenes of outrage in those
+warlike days, hastily closed the door, barring it securely. In a moment
+there was a rush of men against it from without.
+
+One of the monks opened a lattice above the door.
+
+"What mean you," he said, "by this outrage? Know ye not that this is the
+Monastery of St. John, and that it is sacrilege to lay a hand of
+violence even against its postern? Begone," he said, "or we'll lodge a
+complaint before the king."
+
+The assailants, nothing daunted, continued to batter at the door; but at
+this moment the monks, aroused from their beds, hastened to the spot,
+and seizing bill and sword--for in those days even monks were obliged at
+times to depend upon carnal weapons--they opened the door, and flung
+themselves upon the assailants with such force that the latter,
+surprised and discomfited, were forced to make a hasty retreat.
+
+The doors were then again barred, and Cuthbert was carried up to a cell
+in the building, where the leech of the monastery speedily examined his
+wound, and pronounced that although his life was not in danger by it, he
+was greatly weakened by the loss of blood, that the wound was a serious
+one and that it would be some time before the patient would recover.
+
+[Illustration: THE DOORS WERE AGAIN BARRED, AND CUTHBERT WAS CARRIED TO
+A CELL.]
+
+It was two days before Cuthbert was sufficiently restored to be able to
+speak. His first question to the monk was as to his whereabouts, and how
+long he had been there. Upon being answered, he entreated that a
+messenger might be dispatched to the camp of the Earl of Evesham, to beg
+that a litter might be sent for him, and to inquire what had become of
+Cnut, whom he had last seen stricken down.
+
+The monk replied, "My son, I grieve to tell you that your request cannot
+be complied with. The army moved away yesternoon, and is now some
+twenty-five miles distant. There is nothing for you but patience, and
+when restored you can follow the army, and rejoin your master before he
+embarks at Marseilles. But how is it that a lad so young as you can have
+incurred the enmity of those who sought your life? For it is clear from
+the pertinacity with which they urged their attack that their object was
+not plunder, of which indeed they would get but little from you, but to
+take your life."
+
+Cuthbert recounted the circumstances which had led to the feud of the
+Count of Brabant against him, for he doubted not that this truculent
+knight was at the bottom of the attack.
+
+"After what has happened," the monk said, "you will need have caution
+when you leave here. The place where you have taken refuge is known to
+them, and should this wild noble persist in his desire for vengeance
+against you, he will doubtless leave some of his ruffians to watch the
+monastery. We will keep a lookout, and note if any strangers are to be
+seen near the gates; if we find that it is so, we shall consider what is
+best to be done. We could of course appeal to the mayor for protection
+against them, and could even have the strangers ejected from the town or
+cast into prison; but it is not likely that we should succeed in
+capturing more than the fellow who may be placed on the lookout, and the
+danger would be in no wise lessened to yourself. But there is time to
+talk over this matter before you leave. It will be another fortnight at
+least before you will be able to pursue your journey."
+
+Cuthbert gained strength more rapidly than the monk had expected. He was
+generously fed, and this and his good constitution soon enabled him to
+recover from the loss of blood; and at the end of five days he expressed
+his hope that he could on the following day pursue his journey. The monk
+who attended him shook his head.
+
+"Thou mightst, under ordinary circumstances, quit us to-morrow, for thou
+art well enough to take part in the ordinary pursuits of a page; but to
+journey is a different thing. You may have all sorts of hardships to
+endure; you may have even to trust for your life to your speed and
+endurance; and it would be madness for you to go until your strength is
+fully established. I regret to tell you that we have ascertained beyond
+a doubt that the monastery is closely watched. We have sent some of the
+acolytes out, dressed in the garbs of monks, and attended by one of our
+elder brethren; and in, each case, a monk who followed at a distance of
+fifty yards was able to perceive that they were watched. The town is
+full of rough men, the hangers-on of the army; some, indeed, are
+followers of laggard knights, but the greater portion are men who merely
+pursue the army with a view to gain by its necessities, to buy plunder
+from the soldiers, and to rob, and, if necessary, to murder should there
+be a hope of obtaining gold. Among these men your enemies would have
+little difficulty in recruiting any number, and no appeal that we could
+make to the mayor would protect you from them when you have left the
+walls. We must trust to our ingenuity in smuggling you out. After that,
+it is upon your own strength and shrewdness that you must rely for an
+escape from any snares that may be laid for you. You will see, then,
+that at least another three or four days are needed before you can set
+forth. Your countrymen are so far away that a matter of a few days will
+make but little difference. They will in any case be delayed for a long
+time at Marseilles before they embark; and whether you leave now or a
+month hence, you would be equally in time to join them before their
+embarkation--that is, supposing that you make your way through the
+snares which beset you."
+
+Cuthbert saw the justice of the reasoning, and it was another week
+before he announced himself as feeling absolutely restored to strength
+again, and capable of bearing as much exertion as he could have done
+before his attack.
+
+A long consultation was held with the prior and a monk who had acted as
+his leech, as to the best plan of getting Cuthbert beyond the walls of
+the city. Many schemes were proposed and rejected. Every monk who
+ventured beyond the walls had been closely scrutinized, and one or two
+of short stature had even been jostled in the streets, so as to throw
+back their hoods and expose a sight of their faces. It was clear, then,
+that it would be dangerous to trust to a disguise. Cuthbert proposed
+that he should leave at night, trusting solely to their directions as to
+the turnings he should take to bring him to the city walls, and that,
+taking a rope, he should there let himself down, and make the best of
+his way forward. This, however, the monks would not consent to, assuring
+him that the watch was so strictly kept round the monastery that he
+would inevitably be seen.
+
+"No," the prior said, "the method, whatever it is, must be as open as
+possible; and though I cannot at this moment hit upon a plan, I will
+think it over to-night, and putting my ideas with those of Father Jerome
+here, and the sacristan, who has a shrewd head, it will be hard if we
+cannot between us contrive some plan to evade the watch of those robber
+villains who beset the convent."
+
+The next morning, when the prior came in to see Cuthbert, the latter
+said: "Good father, I have determined not to endeavor to make off in
+disguise. I doubt not that your wit could contrive some means by which I
+should get clear of the walls without observation from the scouts of
+this villain noble. But once in the country, I should have neither horse
+nor armor, and should have hard work indeed to make my way down through
+France, even though none of my enemies were on my track. I will
+therefore, if it please you, go down boldly to the mayor and claim a
+protection and escort. If he will but grant me a few men-at-arms for one
+day's ride from the town, I can choose my own route, and riding out in
+mail, can then take my chance of finding my way down to Marseilles."
+
+"I will go down with you, my son," the prior said, "to the mayor. Two of
+my monks shall accompany us; and assuredly no insult will be offered to
+you in the street thus accompanied." Shortly afterward Cuthbert started
+as arranged, and soon arrived at the house of the mayor, Sir John de
+Cahors.
+
+Upon the prior making known to this knight whom he had brought with him
+the mayor exclaimed:
+
+"_Peste!_ young gentleman; you have caused us no small trouble and
+concern. We have had ridings to and fro concerning you, and furious
+messages from your fiery king. When in the morning a tall, stalwart
+knave dressed in green was found, slashed about in various places, lying
+on the pavement, the townsmen, not knowing who he was, but finding that
+he still breathed, carried him to the English camp, and he was claimed
+as a follower of the Earl of Evesham. There was great wrath and anger
+over this; and an hour later the earl himself came down and stated that
+his page was missing, and that there was reason to believe that he had
+been foully murdered, as he had accompanied the man found wounded.
+Fortunately the bulk of the armies had marched away at early dawn, and
+the earl had only remained behind in consequence of the absence of his
+followers. I assured the angry Englishman that I would have a thorough
+search made in the town; and although in no way satisfied, he rode off
+after his king with all his force, carrying with him the long-limbed man
+whom we had picked up. Two days after a message came back from King
+Richard himself, saying that unless this missing page were discovered,
+or if, he being killed, his murderers were not brought to justice and
+punished, he would assuredly on his return from the Holy Land burn the
+town over our ears. Your king is not a man who minces matters. However,
+threatened men live long, especially when the person who threatens is
+starting for a journey, from which, as like as not, he may never return.
+However, I have had diligent search made for you. All the houses of bad
+repute have been examined and their inhabitants questioned. But there
+are so many camp-followers and other rabble at present in the town that
+a hundred men might disappear without our being able to obtain a clew. I
+doubted not indeed that your body had been thrown in the river, and
+that we should never hear more of you. I am right glad that you have
+been restored; not indeed from any fear of the threats of the king your
+master, but because, from what the Earl of Evesham said, you were a lad
+likely to come to great fame and honor. The earl left in my charge your
+horse, and the armor which he said you wore at a tournament lately, in
+case we should hear aught of you."
+
+Cuthbert gave an exclamation of pleasure. His purse contained but a few
+pieces of silver, and being without arms except for his short dagger, or
+means of locomotion, the difficulties of the journey down to Marseilles
+had sorely puzzled him. But with his good horse between his knees, and
+his suit of Milan armor on his back, he thought that he might make his
+way through any dangers which threatened him.
+
+The prior now told the knight that circumstances had occurred which
+showed that it was known to the assailants of Cuthbert that he had taken
+refuge in the convent, over which a strict watch had been kept by
+Cuthbert's enemies.
+
+"If I could find the varlets I would hang them over the gates of the
+town," the knight said wrathfully. "But as at the present moment there
+are nearly as many rogues as honest men in the place it would be a
+wholesale hanging indeed to insure getting hold of the right people.
+Moreover, it is not probable that another attempt upon his life will be
+made inside our walls; and doubtless the main body of this gang are
+somewhere without, intending to assault him when he continues his
+journey, and they have left but a spy or two here to inform them as to
+his movements. I will give you any aid in my power, young sir. The army
+is by this time nigh Marseilles, and, sooth to say, I have no body of
+men-at-arms whom I could send as your escort for so long a distance. I
+have but a small body here, and they are needed, and sorely, too, to
+keep order within the walls."
+
+"I thought, sir," Cuthbert said, "that if you could lend me a party of
+say four men-at-arms to ride with me for the first day I could then
+trust to myself, especially if you could procure me one honest man to
+act as guide and companion. Doubtless they suppose that I should travel
+by the main road south; but by going the first day's journey either east
+or west, and then striking some southward road, I should get a fair
+start of them, throw all their plans out, and perchance reach Marseilles
+without interruption."
+
+The knight willingly agreed to furnish four men-at-arms, and a
+trustworthy guide who would at least take him as far south as Avignon.
+
+"I will," he said, "tell the men-at-arms off to-night. They shall be at
+the western gate at daybreak, with the pass permitting them to ride
+through. The guide shall be at the convent door half an hour earlier. I
+will send up to-night your armor and horse. Here is a purse which the
+Earl of Evesham also left for your use. Is there aught else I can do for
+you?"
+
+"Nothing, sir," Cuthbert said; "and if I regain the army in safety I
+shall have pleasure in reporting to King Richard how kindly and
+courteously you have treated me."
+
+The arrangements were carried out.
+
+An hour before daybreak Cuthbert was aroused, donned his armor and steel
+casque, drank a flask of wine, and ate a manchet of bread which the
+prior himself brought him, and then, with a cordial adieu to the kind
+monks, issued forth.
+
+The guide had just reached the gate, and together they trotted down the
+narrow streets to the west gate of the city, where four men-at-arms were
+awaiting them.
+
+The gates were at once opened, and Cuthbert and his little troop sallied
+forth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+THE ATTACK.
+
+
+All day they rode with their faces west, and before nightfall had made a
+journey of over forty miles. Then bestowing a largess upon the
+men-at-arms, Cuthbert dismissed them, and took up his abode at a
+hostelry, his guide looking to the two horses.
+
+Cuthbert was pleased with the appearance of the man who had been placed
+at his disposal. He was a young fellow of twenty-two or twenty-three,
+with an honest face. He was, he told Cuthbert, the son of a small farmer
+near Avignon; but having a fancy for trade, he had been apprenticed to a
+master smith. Having served his apprenticeship, he found that he had
+mistaken his vocation, and intended to return to the paternal vineyards.
+
+Cuthbert calculated that he would make at least four days' journey to
+the south before he could meet with any dangers. Doubtless his exit from
+the convent had been discovered, and the moment the gates of the city
+were opened the spy would have proceeded south to warn his comrades, and
+these would doubtless have taken a road which at a distance would again
+take them on to that by which Cuthbert would be now traveling. As,
+however, he rode fast, and made long marches each day, he hoped that he
+might succeed in distancing them. Unfortunately, upon the third day his
+horse cast his shoe, and no smith could be met with until the end of the
+day's journey. Consequently, but a short distance could be done and this
+at a slow pace. Upon the fifth day after their first start they arrived
+at a small town.
+
+The next morning Cuthbert on rising found that his guide did not present
+himself as usual. Making inquiries he found that the young man had gone
+out the evening before, and had not returned. Extremely uneasy at the
+circumstance, Cuthbert went to the city guard, thinking that perhaps his
+guide might have got drunk, and been shut up in the cells. No news,
+however, was to be obtained there, and after waiting some hours, feeling
+sure that some harm had befallen him, he gave notice to the authorities
+of his loss, and then mounting his horse, and leaving some money with
+the landlord of the hostelry to give to his guide in case the latter
+should return, he started at midday by the southern road.
+
+He felt sure now that he was overtaken, and determined to keep his eyes
+and faculties thoroughly on watch.
+
+The roads in those days were mere tracks. Here and there a little
+village was to be met with; but the country was sparsely cultivated, and
+traveling lonely work. Cuthbert rode fast, carefully avoiding all
+copses and small woods through which the road ran, by making a circuit
+round them and coming on to it again on the other side.
+
+His horse was an excellent one, the gift of the earl, and he had little
+fear, with his light weight, of being overtaken if he could once leave
+his enemies behind him.
+
+At length he approached an extensive forest, which stretched for miles
+on either side.
+
+Half a mile before he reached it the track divided.
+
+He had for some little time eased his horse down to a walk, as he felt
+that the wood would be the spot where he would in all probability be
+attacked, and he needed that his steed should be possessed of its utmost
+vigor.
+
+At the spot where the track branched a man in the guise of a mendicant
+was sitting. He begged for alms, and Cuthbert threw him a small coin.
+
+A sudden thought struck him as he heard a rustling in the bushes near.
+
+"Which is the nearest and best road to Avignon?" he said.
+
+"The right-hand road is the best and shortest," the beggar said. "The
+other makes a long circuit and leads through several marshes, which your
+honor will find it hard to pass."
+
+Cuthbert thanked him and moved forward, still at a walk, along the
+right-hand road.
+
+When he had gone about two hundred yards, and was hidden from the sight
+of the man he had left--the country being rough, and scattered with
+clumps of bushes--he halted, and, as he expected, heard the sound of
+horses' hoofs coming on at full gallop along the other road.
+
+"Your master must have thought me young indeed," he said, "to try and
+catch me with such a transparent trick as that. I do not suppose that
+accursed page has more than ten men with him, and doubtless has placed
+five on each road. This fellow was placed here to see which track I
+would follow, and has now gone to give the party on the left hand the
+news that I have taken this way. Had it not been for him I should have
+had to run the gantlet with four or five of my enemies. As it is, the
+path will doubtless be clear."
+
+So saying, he turned his horse, galloped back to the spot where the
+tracks separated, and then followed the left-hand route.
+
+As he had hoped, he passed through the wood without incident or
+interruption, and arrived safely that night at a small town, having seen
+no signs of his enemies.
+
+The next day he started again early, and rode on until midday, when he
+halted at a large village, at which was the only inn between the place
+from which he started and his destination. He declined the offer of the
+servant of the inn to take his horse round to the stable, telling the
+man to hold him outside the door and give him from a sieve a few
+handfuls of grain.
+
+Then he entered the inn and ate a hearty meal. As he appeared at the
+door he saw several men gathered near. With a single spring he threw
+himself into the saddle, just as a rush forward was made by those
+standing round. The man next to him sprang upon him, and endeavored to
+drag him from the saddle. Cuthbert drew the little dagger called a
+_miséricorde_ from his belt, and plunged it into his throat. Then
+seizing the short mace which hung at the saddlebow, he hurled it with
+all his force full in the face of his enemy, the page of Sir Philip, who
+was rushing upon him sword in hand. The heavy weapon struck him fairly
+between the eyes, and with a cry he fell back, his face completely
+smashed in by the blow, the sword which he held uplifted to strike
+flying far through the air.
+
+Cuthbert struck his spurs into his horse, and the animal dashed forward
+with a bound, Cuthbert striking with his long sword at one or two men
+who made a snatch at the reins. In another minute he was cantering out
+of the village, convinced that he had killed the leader of his foes, and
+that he was safe now to pursue the rest of his journey on to Marseilles.
+
+So it turned out.
+
+Without further incident he traveled through the south of France, and
+arrived at the great seaport. He speedily discovered the quarters in
+which the Earl of Evesham's contingent were encamped, and made toward
+this without delay. As he entered a wild shout of joy was heard, and
+Cnut ran forward with many gestures of delight.
+
+"My dear Cuthbert, my dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "Can it be true that
+you have escaped? We all gave you up; and although I did my best, yet
+had you not survived it I should never have forgiven myself, believing
+that I might have somehow done better, and have saved you from the
+cutthroats who attacked us."
+
+"Thanks, thanks, my good Cnut," Cuthbert cried. "I have been through a
+time of peril, no doubt; but as you see, I am hale and well--better,
+methinks, than you are, for you look pale and ill; and I doubt not that
+the wound which I received was a mere scratch to that which bore you
+down. It sounded indeed like the blow of a smith's hammer upon an
+anvil."
+
+"Fortunately, my steel cap saved my head somewhat," Cnut said, "and the
+head itself is none of the thinnest; but it tried it sorely, I confess.
+However, now that you are back I shall, doubt not, soon be as strong as
+ever I was. I think that fretting for your absence has kept me back more
+than the inflammation from the wound itself--but there is the earl at
+the door of his tent."
+
+Through the foresters and retainers who had at Cnut's shout of joy
+crowded up, Cuthbert made his way, shaking hands right and left with the
+men, among whom he was greatly loved, for they regarded him as being in
+a great degree the cause of their having been freed from outlawry, and
+restored to civil life again. The earl was really affected. As Cuthbert
+rode up he held out both arms, and as his page alighted he embraced him
+as a father.
+
+"My dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "What anxiety have we not suffered.
+Had you been my own son, I could not have felt more your loss. We did
+not doubt for an instant that you had fallen into the hands of some of
+the retainers of that villain count; and from all we could learn, and
+from the absence of any dead body by the side of that of Cnut, I
+imagined that you must have been carried off. It was clear that your
+chance of life, if you fell into the hands of that evil page, or his
+equally vile master, was small indeed. The very day that Cnut was
+brought in I visited the French camp, and accused him of having been the
+cause of your disappearance and Cnut's wounds. He affected the greatest
+astonishment at the charge. He had not, as he said, been out of the camp
+for two days. My accusation was unfounded and malicious, and I should
+answer this as well as the previous outrage, when the vow of the
+Crusaders to keep peace among themselves was at an end. Of course I had
+no means of proving what I said, or I would have gone direct to the king
+and charged him with the outrage. As it was I gained nothing by my
+pains. He has accompanied the French division to Genoa; but when we meet
+at Sicily, where the two armies are to rendezvous, I will bring the
+matter before the king, as the fact that his page was certainly
+concerned in it must be taken as showing that he was the instigator."
+
+"It would, my lord earl, be perhaps better," Cuthbert said, "if I might
+venture to advise, to leave the matter alone. No doubt the count would
+say that he had discharged his page after the tournament, and that the
+latter was only carrying out his private feud with me. We should not be
+able to disprove the story, and should gain no satisfaction by the
+matter."
+
+The earl admitted the justice of Cuthbert's reasoning, but reserved to
+himself the task of punishing the author of the outrage upon the first
+fitting opportunity.
+
+There was a weary delay at Marseilles before the expedition set sail.
+This was caused by the fact of the English fleet, which had been ordered
+to be there upon their arrival, failing to keep the agreement.
+
+The words English fleet badly describe the vessels which were to carry
+the English contingent to their destination. They were ships belonging
+to the maritime nations of Italy--the Venetians, Genoese, Pisans, etc.;
+for England at that time had but few of her own, and these scarcely
+fitted for the stormy navigation of the Bay of Biscay.
+
+King Richard, impatient as ever of delay, at last lost his temper, and
+embarked on board a ship with a few of his chosen knights, and set sail
+by himself for Sicily, the point at which the two armies of the
+expedition were to reunite. A few days after his departure the
+long-looked-for fleet arrived, and a portion of the English host
+embarked at once, and set sail for Sicily, where they were to be
+landed, and the ships were to return to fetch the remaining contingent.
+
+A sea voyage of this kind in those days was a serious matter. Long
+voyages were rare, and troops were carried very much upon the principle
+of herrings; that is, were packed as close as they could be, without any
+reference to their comfort. As the voyages seldom lasted more than
+twenty-four hours, this did not much matter, but during long voyages the
+discomforts, or as may be said sufferings, of the troops were
+considerable. So tightly packed were the galleys in which the English
+set sail from Marseilles that there was no walking about. Every man
+slept where he sat, and considered himself lucky indeed if he could
+obtain room sufficient to stretch himself at full length. Most slept
+sitting against bulwarks or other supports. In the cabins, where the
+knights, their pages and squires were placed, the crowding was of course
+less excessive, but even here the amount of space, which a subaltern
+traveling to India for the first time nowadays would grumble at, was
+considered amply sufficient for half a dozen knights of distinction. It
+was a week after sailing, when Cnut touched Cuthbert's arm as he came on
+deck one morning, and said:
+
+"Look, look, Cuthbert! that mountain standing up in the water has caught
+fire on the top. Did you ever see such a thing?"
+
+The soldiers crowded to the side of the vessel in intense astonishment
+and no little awe. From the top of a lofty and rugged hill, rising
+almost straight from the sea, flames were roaring up, smoke hung over
+the island, and stones were thrown into the air and rattled down the
+side of the hill, or fell into the sea with a splash.
+
+"That is a fearsome sight," Cnut said, crossing himself.
+
+"It looks as if it was the mouth of purgatory," exclaimed another,
+standing by.
+
+Cuthbert himself was amazed, for the instruction he had received from
+Father Francis was of too slight a nature to include the story of
+volcanoes. A priest, however, who accompanied the ship in the character
+of leech and confessor, explained the nature of the phenomenon to his
+astonished listeners, and told them that over on the mainland was a
+mountain which at times vomited forth such masses of stones and of
+liquid rock that it had swallowed up and covered many great cities.
+There was also, he told them, another mountain of the same sort, even
+more vast, on the island of Sicily itself; but that this had seldom, as
+far back as man could remember, done any great harm.
+
+Sailing on, in another day they arrived off the coast of Sicily itself,
+and sailing up the straits between it and the mainland they landed at
+Messina. Here a considerable portion of the French army had already
+arrived, having been brought down from Genoa.
+
+There was no news of the King of England; and, as often happens, the
+saying "The more haste the less speed," had been verified here.
+
+It was some days later before King Richard arrived, having been driven
+from his course by tempests, well-nigh cast ashore, and having besides
+gone through many adventures. Three weeks later the whole of the army of
+the Crusaders were gathered around Messina, where it was intended to
+remain some little time before starting. It was a gay time; and the
+kings vied with each other in entertainments, joustings, and
+tournaments. The Italian knights also made a brave show, and it might
+have been thought that this huge army of men were gathered there simply
+for amusement and feasting. In the tournaments every effort was made to
+prevent any feeling of national rivalry, and although parties of knights
+held their own against all comers, these were most carefully selected to
+represent several nationalities, and therefore victory, on whichsoever
+side it fell, excited no feelings of bitterness.
+
+Alone, King Richard was undoubtedly the strongest cavalier of the two
+armies. Against his ponderous strength no knight could keep his seat;
+and this was so palpable that after many victories King Richard was
+forced to retire from the lists from want of competitors, and to take
+his place on the daïs with the more peace-loving King of France.
+
+The gayety of the camp was heightened by the arrival of many nobles and
+dames from Italy. Here, too, came the Queen of Navarre, bringing with
+her the beautiful Princess Berengaria.
+
+"Methinks," the Earl of Evesham said to Cuthbert a fortnight after the
+arrival of the queen "that unless my eyes deceive me the princess is
+likely to be a cause of trouble."
+
+"In what way?" asked Cuthbert with surprise, for he had been struck with
+her marvelous beauty, and wondered greatly what mischief so fair a being
+could do.
+
+"By the way in which our good lord, the king, gazes upon her, methinks
+that it were like enough that he broke off his engagement with the
+Prince of France for the sake of the fair eyes of this damsel."
+
+"That were indeed a misfortune," Cuthbert said gravely, for he saw at
+once the anger which such a course would excite in the minds of the
+French king and his knights, who would naturally be indignant in the
+extreme at the slight put upon their princess. As day after day passed
+it became evident to all that the King of England was infatuated by the
+princess. Again he entered the lists himself, and as some fresh Italian
+knights and others had arrived, he found fresh opponents, and
+conspicuously laid the spoils of victory at the feet of the princess,
+whom he selected as the Queen of Beauty.
+
+All sorts of rumors now became current in camp; violent quarrels between
+the kings, and bad feelings between the French and English knights broke
+out again in consequence, and this more violently than before.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA.
+
+
+One night it chanced that Cuthbert was late in his return to camp, and
+his road took him through a portion of the French encampment; the night
+was dark, and Cuthbert presently completely lost all idea as to his
+bearings. Presently he nearly ran against a tent; he made his way to the
+entrance in order to crave directions as to his way--for it was a wet
+night; the rain was pouring in torrents, and few were about of whom he
+could demand the way--and, as he was about to draw aside the hangings,
+he heard words said in a passionate voice which caused him to withdraw
+his hand suddenly.
+
+"I tell you," said a voice, "I would rather drive a dagger myself into
+her heart than allow our own princess to be insulted by this hot-headed
+island dog."
+
+"It is sad indeed," said another, but in a calmer smoother tone, "that
+the success of a great expedition like this, which has for its object
+the recovery of the holy sepulcher from the infidels, should be wrecked
+by the headstrong fancies of one man. It is even, as is told by the old
+Grecian poet, as when Helen caused a great war between people of that
+nation."
+
+"I know nothing," another voice said, "either of Helen or the Greeks, or
+of their poets. They are a shifty race, and I can believe aught that is
+bad of them. But touching this princess of Navarre, I agree with our
+friend, it would be a righteous deed to poniard her, and so to remove
+the cause of dispute between the two kings, and, indeed, the two
+nations. This insult laid upon our princess is more than we, as French
+knights and gentlemen, can brook; and if the king says the word there is
+not a gentleman in the army but will be ready to turn his sword against
+the islanders."
+
+Then the smooth voice spoke again.
+
+"It would, my brethren, be wrong and useless to shed blood; but methinks
+that if this apple of discord could be removed a good work would be done
+not, as our friend the count has suggested, by a stab of the dagger;
+that indeed would be worse than useless. But surely there are scores of
+religious houses, where this bird might be placed in a cage without a
+soul knowing where she was, and where she might pass her life in prayer
+that she may be pardoned for having caused grave hazards of the failure
+of an enterprise in which all the Christian world is concerned."
+
+The voices of the speakers now fell, and Cuthbert was straining his ear
+to listen, when he heard footsteps approaching the tent, and he glided
+away into the darkness.
+
+With great difficulty be recovered the road to the camp, and when he
+reached his tent he confided to the Earl of Evesham what he had heard.
+
+"This is serious indeed," the earl said, "and bodes no little trouble
+and danger. It is true that the passion which King Richard has conceived
+for Berengaria bids fair to wreck the Crusade, by the anger which it has
+excited in the French king and his nobles; but the disappearance of the
+princess would no less fatally interfere with it, for the king would be
+like a raging lion deprived of his whelps, and would certainly move no
+foot eastward until he had exhausted all the means in his power of
+tracing his lost lady love. You could not, I suppose, Cuthbert, point
+out the tent where this conversation took place?"
+
+"I could not," Cuthbert answered; "in the darkness one tent is like
+another. I think I should recognize the voices of the speakers did I
+hear them again; indeed, one voice I did recognize; it was that of the
+Count of Brabant, with whom we had trouble before."
+
+"That is good," the earl said, "because we have at least an object to
+watch. It would never do to tell the king what you have heard. In the
+first place, his anger would be so great that it would burst all bounds,
+and would cause, likely enough, a battle at once between the two armies;
+nor would it have any good effect, for he of Brabant would of course
+deny the truth of your assertions, and would declare it was merely a
+got-up story to discredit him with the king, and so to wipe out the old
+score now standing between us. No, if we are to succeed, alike in
+preventing harm happening to the princess, and an open break between the
+two monarchs, it must be done by keeping a guard over the princess,
+unsuspected by all, and ourselves frustrating any attempt which may be
+made."
+
+Cuthbert expressed his willingness to carry out the instructions which
+the earl might give him; and, much disturbed by the events of the day,
+both earl and page retired to rest, to think over what plan had best be
+adopted.
+
+The princess was staying at the palace of the bishop of the town; this
+he, having another residence a short distance outside the walls, had
+placed at the disposal of the Queen of Navarre and her suite; and the
+first step of Cuthbert in the morning was to go into the town, to
+reconnoiter the position and appearance of the building. It was a large
+and irregular pile, and communicated with the two monasteries lying
+alongside of it. It would therefore clearly be a most difficult thing to
+keep up a complete watch on the exterior of so large a building. There
+were so many ways in which the princess might be captured and carried
+off by unscrupulous men that Cuthbert in vain thought over every plan by
+which it could be possible to safeguard her. She might be seized upon
+returning from a tournament or entertainment; but this was improbable,
+as the queen would always have an escort of knights with her, and no
+attempt could be successful except at the cost of a public fracas and
+much loss of blood. Cuthbert regarded as out of the question that an
+outrage of this kind would be attempted.
+
+The fact that one of the speakers in the tent had used the words "my
+sons," showed that one priest or monk, at least, was connected with the
+plot. It was possible that this man might have power in one of the
+monasteries, or he might be an agent of the bishop himself; and Cuthbert
+saw that it would be easy enough in the night for a party from one or
+other of the monasteries to enter by the door of communication with the
+palace, and carry off the princess without the slightest alarm being
+given. Once within the walls of the convent she could be either hidden
+in the dungeons or secret places, which buildings of that kind were sure
+to possess, or could be at once carried out by some quiet entrance, and
+taken into the country, or transferred to some other building in the
+town.
+
+When Cuthbert joined the earl he told him the observations that he had
+made, and Sir Walter praised the judgment which he had shown in his
+conclusions. The earl was of opinion that it would be absolutely
+necessary to get some clew as to the course which the abductors purposed
+to take; indeed it was possible that on after-consideration they might
+drop their plan altogether, for the words which Cuthbert had overheard
+scarcely betokened a plan completely formed and finally decided upon.
+
+The great point he considered, therefore, was that the tent of his old
+enemy should be carefully watched, and that an endeavor should be made
+to hear something of what passed within, which might give a clew to the
+plan fixed upon. They did not, of course, know whether the tent in which
+the conversation had been heard by Cuthbert was that of Sir de Jacquelin
+Barras, or of one of the other persons who had spoken; and Cuthbert
+suggested that the first thing would be to find out whether the count,
+after nightfall, was in the habit of going to some other tent, or
+whether, on the other hand, he remained within and was visited by
+others.
+
+It was easy, of course, to discover which was his tent; and Cuthbert
+soon got its position, and then took Cnut into his counsels.
+
+"The matter is difficult," Cnut said, "and I see no way by which a watch
+can be kept up by day; but after dark--I have several men in my band who
+can track a deer, and surely could manage to follow the steps of this
+baron without being observed. There is little Jack, who is no bigger
+than a boy of twelve, although he can shoot, and run, and play with the
+quarterstaff, or, if need be, with the bill, against the best man in the
+troop. I warrant me that if you show him the tent he will keep such
+sharp watch that no one shall enter or depart without his knowing where
+they go to. On a dark night he will be able to slip among the tents, and
+to move here and there without being seen. He can creep on his stomach
+without moving a leaf, and trust me the eyes of these French
+men-at-arms will look in vain for a glimpse of him."
+
+"You understand, Cnut, all that I want to know is whether the other
+conspirators in this matter visit his tent, or whether he goes to
+theirs."
+
+"I understand," Cnut said. "That is the first point to be arrived at."
+
+Three days later Cnut brought news that each night after dark a party of
+five men met in the tent that was watched; that one of the five always
+came out when all had assembled, and took his station before the
+entrance of the tent, so as to be sure that no eavesdropper was near.
+
+Cuthbert smiled.
+
+"It is a case of locking the door after the horse has gone."
+
+"What is to be done now?" Cnut asked.
+
+"I will talk with the earl before I tell you, Cnut. This matter is too
+serious for me to take a step without consulting Sir Walter."
+
+That night there was a long talk between the earl and his page as to the
+best course to be pursued. It was clear that their old enemy was the
+leading person in the plot, and that the only plan to baffle it with any
+fair chances of success was to keep a constant eye upon his movements,
+and also to have three or four of the sturdiest men of the band told off
+to watch, without being perceived, each time that the princess was in
+her palace.
+
+The Earl of Evesham left the arrangements entirely in the hands of his
+page, of whose good sense and sagacity he had a very high opinion.
+
+His own first impulse had been to go before the king and denounce the
+Count of Brabant. But the ill-will between them was already well known;
+for not only was there the original dispute at the banquet, but when the
+two armies had joined at Sicily, King Richard, who had heard from the
+earl of the attempt at the assassination of Cuthbert, had laid a
+complaint before King Philip of the conduct of his subject.
+
+Sir de Jacquelin Barras, however, had denied that he had any finger in
+the matter.
+
+"He had," he said, "discharged his page after the encounter with
+Cuthbert, and knew nothing further whatever of his movements."
+
+Although it was morally certain that the page could not have purchased
+the services of the men who assisted him, from his own purse, or gain
+them by any means of persuasion, but that they were either the followers
+of the Count of Brabant, or ruffians hired with his money, as no proof
+could be obtained the matter was allowed to drop.
+
+The earl felt, however, that an accusation against the count by him of
+an intention to commit a high crime, and this merely on the evidence of
+his page, would appear like an attempt to injure the fame of his rival.
+
+Feeling, therefore, that nothing could be done save to watch, he left
+the matter entirely in the hands of his page, telling him that he could
+take as many men-at-arms or archers as he might choose and use them in
+his name.
+
+Cnut entered warmly into Cuthbert's plans; and finally it was arranged
+between them that six of the archers should nightly keep watch opposite
+the various entrances of the bishop's palace and of the two monasteries
+joining. Of course, they could not patrol up and down without attracting
+attention, but they were to take up posts where they could closely
+observe the entrances, and were either to lie down and feign drunken
+sleep, or to conceal themselves within the shadow of an arch or other
+hiding-place.
+
+Down on the seashore Cuthbert made an arrangement with one of the owners
+of small craft lying there that ten of his men should sleep on board
+every night, together with some fishermen accustomed to the use of the
+oar.
+
+Cuthbert himself determined to be always with this party.
+
+Night after night passed, and so long a time went by that Cuthbert began
+to think the design must have been given up.
+
+However, he resolved to relax none of his watchfulness during the
+remaining time that the expedition might stop in Sicily.
+
+It was in January, three weeks after the first watch had been set, when
+one of the men who had been placed to watch the entrance to one of the
+monasteries leaped on board the craft and shook Cuthbert by the
+shoulder.
+
+"A party of some five men," he said, "have just issued out from the
+monastery. They are bearing a burden--what, I cannot see. They were
+making in the direction of the water. I whistled to Dion who was next to
+me in the lane. He is following them, and I came on to tell you to
+prepare."
+
+The night was pitch-dark, and it was difficult in the extreme to see any
+one moving at a short distance off.
+
+There were two or three streets that led from the monastery, which stood
+at the top of the town, toward the sea; and a party coming down might
+take any of these, according to the position in which the boat they were
+seeking was placed.
+
+Cuthbert now instantly sent five or six of his men with instructions to
+avoid all noise, along the line of the port, with orders to bring in
+word should anyone come down and take boat, or should they hear any
+noise in the town. He himself with the sailors loosed the ropes which
+fastened the boat to shore, got out the oars, and prepared to put off at
+a moment's notice.
+
+He was of course ignorant whether the abductor would try to carry the
+princess off by water, or would hide her in one of the convents of the
+town; but he was inclined to think that the former would be the course
+adopted; for the king in his wrath would be ready to lay the town in
+flames, and to search every convent from top to bottom for the princess.
+Besides, there would be too many aware of the secret.
+
+Cuthbert was not wrong in his supposition.
+
+Soon the man he had sent to the extreme right came running up with the
+news that a boat had embarked at the further end with a party of some
+ten men on board. As he came along he had warned the others, and in five
+minutes the whole party were collected in the craft, numbering in all
+twelve of Cuthbert's men and six sailors. They instantly put out, and
+rowed in the direction in which the boat would have gone, the boatmen
+expressing their opinion that probably the party would make for a vessel
+which was lying anchored at some little distance from shore. The
+bearings of the position of this ship was known to the boatmen, but the
+night was so dark that they were quite unable to find it. Orders had
+been given that no sound or whisper was to be heard on board the boat;
+and after rowing as far as they could the boatmen said they were in the
+direction of the ship.
+
+The boatmen all lay on their oars, and all listened intently. Presently
+the creaking of a pulley was heard in the still night, at a distance of
+a few hundred yards. This was enough. It was clear that the vessel was
+getting up sail. The boat's head was turned in that direction; the crew
+rowed steadily but noiselessly, and in a few minutes the tall mast of a
+vessel could be seen faintly against the sky. Just as they perceived the
+situation, a hail from on board showed that their approach was now
+observed.
+
+"Stretch to your oars," Cuthbert said, "we must make a dash for it now."
+
+The rowers bent to their work and in a minute the boat ran alongside the
+craft.
+
+As Cuthbert and his followers scrambled upon the deck they were attacked
+by those of the crew and passengers who were standing near; but it was
+evident at once that the chiefs of the expedition had not heard the
+hail, and that there was no general plan of defense against them.
+
+It was not until the last of them had gained a footing and were
+beginning to fight their way along the vessel that from below three or
+four men-at-arms ran up, and one in a tone of authority demanded what
+was the matter. When he heard the clash of swords and the shouts of the
+combatants he put himself at once at the head of the party and a fierce
+and obstinate fight now took place.
+
+The assailants had, however, the advantage.
+
+Cuthbert and his men were all lightly clad, and this on the deck of a
+ship lumbered with ropes and gear, and in the dark, was a great
+advantage, for the mailed men-at-arms frequently stumbled and fell. The
+fight lasted for several minutes. Cnut, who was armed with a heavy mace,
+did great service, for with each of his sweeping blows he broke down the
+guard of an opponent, and generally leveled him to the deck.
+
+The numbers at the beginning of the fight were not unequal, but the men
+to whom the vessel belonged made but a faint resistance when they
+perceived that the day was going against them. The men-at-arms, however,
+consisting of three, who appeared to be the leaders, and of eight
+pikemen fought stubbornly and well.
+
+Cuthbert was not long in detecting in the tones of the man who was
+clearly at the head of affairs the voice of Sir de Jacquelin Barras. To
+do him justice he fought with extreme bravery, and when almost all his
+followers were cut down or beaten overboard, he resisted stanchly and
+well. With a heavy two-handed sword he cleaved a space at the end of the
+boat, and kept the whole of Cuthbert's party at bay.
+
+At last Cnut, who had been engaged elsewhere, came to the front, and a
+tough fight ensued between them.
+
+It might have ended badly for the brave forester, for his lack of armor
+gave an enormous advantage to his opponent. Soon, however, the count's
+foot slipped on the boards of the deck, and before he could recover
+himself the mace of Cnut descended with tremendous force upon his head,
+which was unprotected, as he had taken off his casque on arriving at the
+ship. Without a word or a cry the count fell forward on the deck, killed
+as a bullock by a blow of a poleax.
+
+While this conflict had been going on, occasionally the loud screams of
+a woman had been heard below.
+
+Cuthbert, attended by Cnut and two of his followers, now descended.
+
+At the bottom of the steps they found a man-at-arms placed at the door
+of a cabin. He challenged as they approached, but being speedily
+convinced that the vessel was in their hands, and that his employer and
+party were all conquered, he made a virtue of necessity, and laid down
+his arms.
+
+"You had better go in alone," Cnut said, "Master Cuthbert. The lady is
+less likely to be frightened by your appearance than by us, for she must
+wonder indeed what is going on."
+
+On entering the cabin, which had evidently been fitted up for the use of
+a lady, Cuthbert saw standing at the other end the princess, whom of
+course he knew well by sight. A lamp was burning in the cabin, and by
+its light he could see that her face was deadly pale. Her robes were
+torn and disarranged, and she wore a look at once of grave alarm and
+surprise upon seeing a handsomely dressed page enter with a deep
+reverence.
+
+"What means this outrage, young sir? Whoever you be, I warn you that the
+King of England will revenge this indignity."
+
+"Your highness," Cuthbert said, "you have no further reason for alarm;
+the knaves who carried you off from the bishop's palace and conveyed you
+to this ship are all either killed or in our power. I am the page of the
+Earl of Evesham, a devoted follower of King Richard. Some of the designs
+of the bold men came to the ears of my lord, and he ordered me and a
+band of his followers to keep good guard over the palace and buildings
+adjoining. We were unable to gather our strength in time to prevent your
+being taken on board, but we lost no time in putting forth when we found
+that your abductors had taken boat, and by good fortune arrived here in
+time; a few minutes later, and the knaves would have succeeded in their
+object, for the sails were already being hoisted, and the vessel making
+way, when we arrived. Your abductors are all either killed or thrown
+overboard, and the vessel's head is now turned toward the shore, and I
+hope in a few minutes to have the honor of escorting you to the palace."
+
+The princess, with a sigh of much satisfaction and relief, sank on to a
+couch.
+
+"I am indeed indebted to you, young sir," she said. "Believe me, the
+Princess Berengaria is not ungrateful, and should it be ever in her
+power to do aught for your lord, or for yourself, or for those who have
+accompanied you to rescue her, believe me that she will do it."
+
+"May I be so bold as to ask a boon?" Cuthbert said, dropping on one knee
+before her.
+
+"It is granted at once, whatever it be, if in my power."
+
+"My boon is, lady," he said, "that you will do your best to assuage the
+natural anger which the King of England will feel at this bold and most
+violent attempt. That he should be told, is of course necessary; but,
+lady, much depends upon the telling, and I am sure that at your request
+the king would restrain his anger. Were it not for that, I fear that
+such quarrels and disputes might arise as would bring the two armies to
+blows, and destroy forever all hope of the successful termination of
+our joint enterprise."
+
+"You are a wise and good youth," the princess said, holding out her hand
+to Cuthbert, which, as duty bound, he placed to his lips. "Your request
+is wise and most thoughtful. I will use any poor influence which I may
+possess"--and Cuthbert could see that the blood came back now to the
+white face--"to induce King Richard to allow the matter to pass over.
+There is no reason why he should take up the case. I am no more under
+his protection than under that of the King of France, and it is to the
+latter I should appeal, for as I believe the men who abducted me were
+his subjects."
+
+"The leader of them, madam, was a certain Sir de Jacquelin Barras, a
+Count of Brabant, with whom my master has had an old feud, and who has
+been just killed by the leader of our men-at-arms. The others, who have
+had the most active hand in the matter, have also perished; and it
+would, I think be doubtful whether any clew could be obtained of those
+who were in league with them. The only man in the party who is alive was
+placed as a sentry at your door, and as he is but a man-at-arms we may
+be sure that he knows naught of the enterprise, but has merely carried
+out the orders of his master."
+
+The vessel had by this time brought up close to the port. The princess
+determined to wait on board until the first dawn was seen in the skies,
+and then under the escort of her deliverers to go back to the palace,
+before the town was moving. This plan was carried out, and soon after
+dawn the princess was safe in the palace from which she had been carried
+a few hours previously.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+PIRATES.
+
+
+It was not possible that a matter of this sort could be entirely hushed
+up. Not many hours passed before rumors were current of events which had
+taken place, though none knew what those events were.
+
+There were reports that the tire-woman of the Princess Berengaria had in
+the night discovered that her mistress' couch was unoccupied, that she
+had found signs of a struggle, and had picked up a dagger on the floor,
+where it had evidently fallen from the sheath; also it was said that the
+princess had returned at daylight escorted by an armed party, and that
+she was unable to obtain entrance to the palace until one of the ladies
+of the queen had been fetched down to order the sentries at the gate to
+allow her to enter.
+
+This was the news which rumor carried through the camp. Few, however,
+believed it, and none who could have enlightened them opened their lips
+upon the subject.
+
+It was known, however, that a messenger had come to King Richard early,
+and that he had at once mounted and ridden off to the bishop's palace.
+What had happened there none could say, but there were rumors that his
+voice had been heard in furious outbursts of passion. He remained there
+until the afternoon, when he sent for a number of his principal nobles.
+
+When these arrived they found him standing on a daïs in the principal
+hall of the palace, and he there formally introduced to them the
+Princess Berengaria as his affianced wife. The ceremony of the marriage,
+he told them, would shortly take place.
+
+This announcement caused a tremendous stir in both armies. The English,
+who had never been favorable to the alliance with the French princess,
+were glad to hear that this was broken off, and were well content that
+the Princess Berengaria should be their future queen, for her beauty,
+high spirit, and kindness had won all hearts.
+
+On the part of the French, on the other hand, there was great
+indignation, and for some time it was feared that the armies would come
+to open blows.
+
+King Philip, however, although much angered, was politic enough to
+deprecate any open outbreak. He knew that a dispute now began would not
+only at once put a stop to the Crusade, but that it might lead to more
+serious consequences at home. The fiery bravery of the English king,
+backed as it would be by the whole strength of his subjects, might
+render him a very formidable opponent; and the king felt that private
+grievances must be laid aside where the good of France was concerned.
+
+Still the coldness between the armies increased, their camps were moved
+further apart, and during the time that they remained in Sicily there
+was but little commerce between the two forces.
+
+As soon as the winter had broken the French monarch broke up his camp,
+and in March sailed for the Holy Land.
+
+The English had expected that the marriage ceremony of the king and
+Princess Berengaria would be celebrated before they left Sicily, but
+this was not the case. There were high joustings and _fêtes_ in honor of
+the princess, but the marriage was delayed. A fortnight after the French
+had sailed the English embarked in the two hundred ships which had been
+prepared, and sailed also on their way to Acre.
+
+It must not be supposed that the attempted abduction of the Princess
+Berengaria was unimportant in its results to Cuthbert.
+
+After returning from the palace the king, who had heard from her the
+details of what had taken place, and the names of her rescuers, sent for
+the Earl of Evesham. The latter had of course learned from Cuthbert all
+that had happened, and had expressed his high approval of his conduct,
+and his gratification at the result.
+
+"I learn, Sir Earl," said King Richard, "that it is to you that I am
+indebted for the rescue of the princess. She tells me that suspecting
+some plot you placed a guard around the bishop's palace, with a strong
+body on the shore ready to rescue her from the hands of any who might
+attempt to take her to sea."
+
+"It is as you say, sire," replied the earl; "but the whole merit of the
+affair rests upon my page, the lad whom you may remember as having
+fought with and conquered the French page, and of whose conduct you then
+approved highly. You may also remember that he escaped by some display
+of bravery and shrewdness the further attempts to assassinate him, and
+your majesty was good enough to make a complaint to King Philip of the
+conduct of one of his nobles on that head. It seems that some two months
+since the lad in coming through the French camp at night missed his way,
+and accidentally overheard a few words spoken in a voice which he
+recognized as that of his enemy. The name of your majesty being
+mentioned, he deemed it his duty to listen, and thus discovered that a
+plot was on foot for carrying off the princess. After consultation with
+me, we agreed upon the course to be adopted, namely, to place sentries
+round the bishop's place and the buildings adjoining, who should follow
+and bring word should she be taken to another place in town, while a
+band was placed on the shore in readiness to interfere at once to
+prevent her being carried away by sea. He undertook the management of
+all details, having with him a trusty squire who commands my Saxon
+bowmen."
+
+"For your own part I thank you, my lord," the king said, "and, believe
+me, you shall not find Richard ungrateful. As to your page, he appears
+brave and wise beyond his years. Were it not that I think that it would
+not be good for him, and might attract some envy upon the part of
+others, I would at once make him a knight. He already has my promise
+that I will do so on the first occasion when he can show his prowess
+upon the infidels. Bring him to me to-morrow, when the princess will be
+here with the Queen of Navarre at a banquet. I would fain thank him
+before her; and, although I have agreed--at the princess' earnest
+solicitation--to take no further notice of the matter, and to allow it
+to pass as if it had not been, yet I cannot forgive the treachery which
+has been used, and without letting all know exactly what has occurred
+would fain by my reception of your page let men see that something of
+great import has happened, of the nature of which I doubt not that rumor
+will give some notion."
+
+Upon the following day, therefore, Cuthbert to his confusion found
+himself the center of the royal circle. The king expressed himself to
+him in the most gracious manner, patting him on the shoulder, and said
+that he would be one day one of the best and bravest of his knights. The
+princess and the Queen of Navarre gave him their hands to kiss, and
+somewhat overwhelmed, he withdrew from the royal presence, the center of
+attention, and, in some minds, of envy.
+
+Cnut too did not pass unrewarded.
+
+His majesty, finding that Cnut was of gentle Saxon blood, gave him a
+gold chain in token of his favor, and distributed a heavy purse among
+the men who had followed him.
+
+When the British fleet, numbering two hundred ships, set sail from
+Sicily, it was a grand and martial sight. From the masts were the colors
+of England and those of the nobles who commanded; while the pennons of
+the knights, the bright plumes and mantles, the flash of armor and arms
+made the decks alive with light and color.
+
+The king's ship advanced in the van, and round him were the vessels
+containing his principal followers. The Queen of Navarre and the
+Princess Berengaria were with the fleet. Strains of music rose from the
+waters, and never were the circumstances of war exhibited in a more
+picturesque form.
+
+For two days the expedition sailed on, and then a change of a sudden and
+disastrous kind took place.
+
+"What is all this bustle about?" Cuthbert said to Cnut. "The sailors are
+running up the ladders, all seems confusion."
+
+"Methinks," said Cnut, "that we are about to have a storm. A few minutes
+ago scarce a cloud was to be seen; now that bank over there has risen
+halfway up the sky. The sailors are accustomed to these treacherous
+seas, and the warnings which we have not noticed have no doubt been
+clear enough to them."
+
+With great rapidity the sails of the fleet came down, and in five
+minutes its whole aspect was changed; but quickly as the sailors had
+done their work, the storm was even more rapid in its progress. Some of
+the ships whose crews were slower or less skillful than the others were
+caught by the gale before they could get their sails snug, and the great
+sheets of white canvas were blown from the bolt-ropes as if made of
+paper, and a blackness which could almost be felt covered the sea, the
+only light being that given by the frothing waters. There was no longer
+any thought of order. Each ship had to shift for herself; and each
+captain to do his best to save those under his charge, without thought
+of what might befall the others.
+
+In the ship which carried the Earl of Evesham's contingent, order and
+discipline prevailed. The earl's voice had been heard at the first puff
+of wind, shouting to the men to go below, save a few who might be of use
+to haul at ropes. His standard was lowered, the bright flags removed
+from the sides of the ship, the shields which were hanging over the
+bulwarks were hurriedly taken below, and when the gale smote them the
+ship was trim, and in readiness to receive it. A few square yards of
+sail alone were all that the captain had thought it prudent to keep
+spread, and in a minute from the time she was struck the lofty hulk was
+tearing along through the waters at a tremendous speed. Four of the best
+hands were placed at the helm; and here the captain took his post.
+
+The danger was now that in the darkness they might run against one of
+their consorts. Even in the war of the elements they could hear from
+time to time crashes as of vessels striking against each other, with
+shouts and cries. Once or twice from the darkness ships emerged, close
+on one hand or the other; but the steadiness of the captain in each case
+saved the ship from collision.
+
+As the storm continued these glimpses of other vessels became more and
+more rare, and the ship being a very fast sailer, the captain indulged
+the hope that he was now clear of the rest of the fleet.
+
+He now attempted to lie-to to the storm, but the wind was too strong.
+The ships in those days, too, were so high out of the water, and offered
+in themselves such a target to the wind, that it was useless to adopt
+any other maneuver than to run before it.
+
+For two days and nights the tempest raged.
+
+"What think you," the earl said to the captain, "of our position? Where
+are we, and where will the course upon which we are running take us?"
+
+"I cannot say with certainty," the captain said, "for the wind has
+shifted several times. I had hoped to gain the shelter of Rhodes, but a
+shift of wind bore us away from there, and I much fear that from the
+direction in which we have been running we must be very nigh on the
+coast of Africa."
+
+"_Peste!_" the earl said. "That would indeed be a speedy end to our
+Crusade. These Moors are pirates and cutthroats to a man; and even
+should we avoid the risk of being dashed to pieces, we should end our
+lives as slaves to one of these black infidels."
+
+Three hours later the captain's prophecies turned out right. Breakers
+were seen in various points in front, and with the greatest difficulty
+the vessel was steered through an opening between them; but in another
+few minutes she struck heavily, one of her masts went over the side, and
+she lay fast and immovable. Fortunately, the outside bank of sand acted
+as a sort of breakwater; had she struck upon this the good ship would
+have gone to pieces instantly; but although the waves still struck her
+with considerable force, the captain had good hope that she would not
+break up. Darkness came on; the tempest seemed to lull. As there was no
+immediate danger, and all were exhausted by the tossing which they had
+received during the last forty-eight hours, the crew of the Rose slept
+soundly.
+
+In the morning the sun rose brilliantly, and there was no sign of the
+great storm which had scattered the fleet of England. The shore was to
+be seen at a distance of some four miles. It was low and sandy, with
+lofty mountains in the distance. Far inland a white town with minaret
+and dome could be seen.
+
+"Know you where we are?" the earl asked.
+
+"As far as I can tell," the captain said, "we have been driven up the
+bay called the Little Syrtis--a place full of shoals and shallows, and
+abounding with pirates of the worst kind."
+
+"Think you that the ship has suffered injury?"
+
+"Whether she has done so or not," the captain said, "I fear greatly
+that she is fast in the sand, and even the lightening of all her cargo
+will scarce get her off; but we must try at least."
+
+"It is little time that we shall have to try, Master Captain," Cuthbert,
+who was standing close, said. "Me thinks those two long ships which are
+putting out from that town will have something to say to that."
+
+"It is too true," the captain said. "Those are the galleys of the
+Moorish corsairs. They are thirty or forty oars, draw but little water,
+and will be here like the wind."
+
+"What do you advise?" asked the earl. "The falconets which you have upon
+the poop can make but a poor resistance to boats that can row around us,
+and are no doubt furnished with heavy metal. They will quickly perceive
+that we are aground and defenseless, and will be able to plump their
+shot into us until they have knocked the good ship to pieces. However,
+we will fight to the last. It shall not be said that the Earl of Evesham
+was taken by infidel dogs and sold as a slave, without striking a blow
+in his defense."
+
+Cuthbert stood watching the corsairs, which were now rowing toward them
+at all speed.
+
+"Methinks, my lord," he said presently, "if I might venture to give an
+opinion, that we might yet trick the infidel."
+
+"As how, Cuthbert?" the earl said. "Speak out; you know that I have
+great faith in your sagacity."
+
+"I think, sir," the page said, "that did we send all your men below,
+leaving only the crew of the vessel on deck, they would take us for a
+merchant ship which has been wrecked here, and exercise but little care
+how they approach us. The men on deck might make a show of firing once
+or twice with the falconets. The pirates, disdaining such a foe, would
+row alongside. Once there, we might fasten one or both to our side with
+grapnels, and then, methinks, that English bill and bow will render us
+more than a match for Moorish pirates, and one of these craft can
+scarcely carry more men than we have. I should propose to take one of
+them by force, and drive the pirates overboard; take possession of, if
+possible, or beat off her consort; and then take the most valuable
+stores from the ship and make our way as best we can to the north."
+
+"Well thought of!" exclaimed the earl cordially. "You have indeed
+imagined a plan which promises well. What think you, captain?"
+
+"I think, my lord," the Genoese said, "that the plan is an excellent
+one, and promises every success. If your men will all go below, holding
+their arms in readiness for the signal, mine shall prepare grapnels and
+ropes, and the first of these craft which comes alongside they will lash
+so securely to the Rose that I warrant me she gets not away."
+
+These preparations were soon made.
+
+The soldiers, who at first had been filled with apprehension at the
+thought of slavery among the infidels, were now delighted at the
+prospect of a struggle ending in escape.
+
+The archers prepared their bows and arrows, and stood behind the
+portholes in readiness to pour a volley into the enemy; the men-at-arms
+grasped their pikes and swords; while above, the sailors moved hither
+and thither as if making preparations for defense, but in reality
+preparing the grapnels and ropes.
+
+One of the pirates was faster than the other, and soon coming within
+reach, opened fire upon the Rose with a heavy cannon, which she carried
+in her bow.
+
+The crew of the Rose replied with their falconets and sakers from the
+poop.
+
+The corsair at first did not keep her course direct for the ship, but
+rowed once or twice round her, firing as she did so. Then, apparently
+satisfied that no great precaution need be observed with a feebly-manned
+ship in so great a strait as the Rose, they set up a wild cry of
+"Allah!" and rowed toward her.
+
+In two minutes the corsair was alongside of the Rose, and the fierce
+crew were climbing up her sides. As she came alongside the sailors cast
+grapnels into her rigging, and fastened her to the Rose; and then a loud
+shout of "Hurrah for England!" was heard; the ports opened, and a volley
+of arrows was poured upon the astonished corsair; and from the deck
+above the assailants were thrown back into the galley, and a swarm of
+heavily armed men leaped down from the ship upon them.
+
+Taken by surprise, and indeed outnumbered, the resistance of the
+corsairs was but slight. In a close fierce _mêlée_ like this the
+light-armed Moors had but little chance with the mail-clad English,
+whose heavy swords and axes clove their defenses at a blow. The fight
+lasted but three minutes, and then the last of the corsairs was
+overboard.
+
+The men who rowed the galley had uttered the most piercing cries while
+this conflict had been raging. They were unable to take any part in it,
+had they been disposed to do so, for they were all slaves chained to the
+oars.
+
+Scarcely had the conflict ended when the other galley arrived upon the
+scene; but seeing what had happened, and that her consort had fallen
+into the hands of the English, she at once turned her head, and rowed
+back rapidly to the town from which she had come.
+
+Among the slaves who rowed the galley were many white men, and their
+cries of joy at their liberation greatly affected those who had thus
+unexpectedly rescued them. Hammers were soon brought into requisition,
+the shackles struck off them, and a scene of affecting joy took place.
+The slaves were of all nationalities, but Italians and Spaniards, French
+and Greeks formed the principal part. There was no time, however, to be
+lost; the arms and munitions of war were hastily removed from the Rose,
+together with the most valuable of the stores.
+
+The galley-slaves again took their places, and this time willingly, at
+the oars, the places of the weakest being supplied by the English,
+whose want of skill was made up by the alacrity with which they threw
+their strength into the work; and in an hour from the time that the
+galley had arrived alongside of the Rose, her head was turned north, and
+with sixty oars she was rowing at all speed for the mouth of the bay.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+IN THE HOLY LAND.
+
+
+As soon as the galley which had escaped reached the town from which it
+had started, it with three others at once set out in pursuit; while from
+a narrow creek two other galleys made their appearance.
+
+There were a few words of question among the English whether to stop and
+give battle to these opponents, or to make their way with all speed. The
+latter counsel prevailed; the earl pointing out that their lives were
+now scarcely their own, and that they had no right on their way to the
+holy sepulcher to risk them unnecessarily.
+
+Fortunately they had it in their hands to fight or escape, as they
+chose; for doubly banked as the oars now were there was little chance of
+the enemy's galleys overtaking them. Gradually as they rowed to sea the
+pursuing vessels became smaller and smaller to view, until at last they
+were seen to turn about and make again for land.
+
+After some consultation between the earl and the captain of the lost
+ship it was determined to make for Rhodes. This had been settled as a
+halting point for the fleet, and the earl thought it probable that the
+greater portion of those scattered by the storm would rendezvous there.
+
+So it proved; after a voyage, which although not very long was tedious,
+owing to the number of men cramped up in so small a craft, they came
+within sight of the port of Rhodes, and were greatly pleased at seeing a
+perfect forest of masts there, showing that at least the greater portion
+of the fleet had survived the storm.
+
+This was indeed the fact, and a number of other single ships dropped in
+during the next day or two.
+
+There was great astonishment on the part of the fleet when the long,
+swift galley was seen approaching, and numerous conjectures were offered
+as to what message the pirates could be bringing--for there was no
+mistaking the appearance of the long, dangerous-looking craft.
+
+When, upon her approach, the standard of the Earl of Evesham was seen
+flying on the bow, a great shout of welcome arose from the fleet; and
+King Richard himself, who happened to be on the deck of the royal ship,
+shouted to the earl to come on board and tell him what masquerading he
+was doing there. The earl of course obeyed the order, anchoring near the
+royal vessel, and going on board in a small boat, taking with him his
+page and squire.
+
+The king heard with great interest the tale of the adventures of the
+Rose; and when the Earl of Evesham said that it was to Cuthbert that was
+due the thought of the stratagem by which the galley was captured, and
+its crew saved from being carried away into hopeless slavery, the king
+patted the boy on the shoulder with such hearty force as nearly to throw
+Cuthbert off his feet.
+
+"By St. George!" said the monarch, "you are fated to be a very pink of
+knights. You seem as thoughtful as you are brave; and whatever your age
+may be, I declare that the next time your name is brought before me I
+will call a chapter of knights, and they shall agree that exception
+shall be made in your favor, and that you shall at once be admitted to
+the honorable post. You will miss your page, Sir Walter; but I am sure
+you will not grudge him that."
+
+"No, no, sire," said the earl. "The lad, as I have told your majesty, is
+a connection of mine--distant it is true, but one of the nearest I
+have--and it will give me the greatest pleasure to see him rising so
+rapidly, and on a fair way to distinguish himself so highly. I feel
+already as proud of him as if he were my own son."
+
+The fleet remained some two or three weeks at Rhodes, for many of the
+vessels were sorely buffeted and injured, masts were carried away as
+well as bulwarks battered in, and the efforts of the crews and of those
+of the whole of the artificers of Rhodes were called into requisition.
+Light sailing craft were sent off in all directions, for the king was in
+a fever of anxiety. Among the vessels still missing was that which bore
+the Queen of Navarre and the fair Berengaria.
+
+One day a solitary vessel was seen approaching. "Another of our lost
+sheep," the earl said, looking out over the poop.
+
+She proved, however, to be a merchant ship of Greece, and newly come
+from Cyprus.
+
+Her captain went on board the royal ship, and delivered a message to the
+king, to the effect that two of the vessels had been cast upon the coast
+of Cyprus, that they had been plundered by the people, the crews
+ill-treated and made prisoners by the king, and that the Queen of
+Navarre and the princess were in their hands.
+
+This roused King Richard into one of his furies. "Before I move a step
+toward the Holy Land," he said, "I will avenge these injuries upon this
+faithless and insolent king. I swear that I will make him pay dearly for
+having laid a hand upon these ladies."
+
+At once the signal was hoisted for all the vessels in a condition to
+sail to take on board water and provisions, and to prepare to sail for
+Cyprus; and the next morning at daybreak the fleet sailed out, and made
+their way toward that island, casting anchor off the harbor of
+Famagosta.
+
+King Richard sent a messenger on shore to the king, ordering him at once
+to release the prisoners; to make the most ample compensation to them;
+to place ships at their service equal to those which had been destroyed;
+and to pay a handsome sum of money as indemnity.
+
+The King of Cyprus, however, an insolent and haughty despot, sent back
+a message of defiance. King Richard at once ordered the anchors to be
+raised, and all to follow the royal ship.
+
+The fleet entered the harbor of Famagosta; the English archers began the
+fight by sending a flight of arrows into the town. This was answered
+from the walls by a shower of stones and darts from the machines.
+
+There was no time wasted. The vessels were headed toward the shore, and
+as the water was deep, many of them were able to run close alongside the
+rocky wharves. In an instant, regardless of the storm of weapons poured
+down by the defenders, the English leaped ashore.
+
+The archers kept up so terrible a rain of missiles against the
+battlements that the defenders could scarcely show themselves for an
+instant there, and the men-at-arms, placing ladders against them,
+speedily mounted, and putting aside all opposition, poured into the
+town. The effeminate Greek soldiers of the monarch could offer no
+effectual resistance whatever, and he himself fled from the palace and
+gained the open country, followed by a few adherents. The English gained
+a considerable booty, for in those days a town taken by assault was
+always looked upon as the property of the captors. The Queen of Navarre
+and the princess were rescued.
+
+King Richard, however, was not satisfied with the success he had gained,
+and was determined to punish this insolent little king. Accordingly the
+English were set in motion into the interior, and town after town
+speedily fell, or opened their gate to him. The king, deserted by his
+troops, and detested by his people for having brought so terrible a
+scourge upon them by his reckless conduct, now sued for peace; but King
+Richard would give him no terms except dethronement, and this he was
+forced to accept. He was deprived of his crown, and banished from the
+island.
+
+The king now, to the surprise of his barons, announced his intention of
+at once marrying the Princess Berengaria.
+
+Popular as he was, there was yet some quiet grumbling among his troops;
+as they said, with justice, they had been waiting nearly six months in
+the island of Sicily, and the king might well have married there,
+instead of a fresh delay being caused when so near their place of
+destination.
+
+However, the king as usual had his own way, and the marriage was
+solemnized amid great rejoicing and solemnity.
+
+It was a brilliant scene indeed in the cathedral of Limasol. There were
+assembled all the principal barons of England, together with a great
+number of the nobles of Cyprus.
+
+Certainly no better matched pair ever stood at the altar together, for
+as King Richard was one of the strongest and bravest men of his own or
+any other time, so Berengaria is admitted to have been one of the
+loveliest maidens.
+
+The air was rent with the acclamations of the assembled English host
+and of the numerous inhabitants of Limasol as they emerged from the
+cathedral. For a fortnight the town was given up to festivity;
+tournaments, joustings, banquets succeeded each other day after day, and
+the islanders, who were fond of pleasure, and indeed very wealthy, vied
+with the English in the entertainments which they gave in honor of the
+occasion.
+
+The festivities over, the king gave the welcome order to proceed on
+their voyage. They had now been joined by all the vessels left behind at
+Rhodes, and it was found that only a few were missing, and that the
+great storm, terrible as it had been, had inflicted less damage upon the
+fleet than was at first feared.
+
+Two days' sail brought them within sight of the white walls of Acre, and
+it was on June 8, 1191, that the fleet sailed into the port of that
+town. Tremendous acclamations greeted the arrival of the English army by
+the host assembled on the shores.
+
+Acre had been besieged for two years, but in vain; and even the arrival
+of the French army under Philip Augustus had failed to turn the scale.
+The inhabitants defended themselves with desperate bravery; every
+assault upon the walls had been repulsed with immense slaughter; and at
+no great distance off the Sultan Saladin, with a large army, was
+watching the progress of the siege.
+
+The fame of King Richard and the English was so great, however, that the
+besiegers had little doubt that his arrival would change the position of
+things; and even the French, in spite of the bad feeling which had
+existed in Sicily, joined with the knights and army of the King of
+Jerusalem in acclaiming the arrival of the English.
+
+Philip Augustus, the French king, was of a somewhat weak and wavering
+disposition. It would have been thought that after his dispute with King
+Richard he would have gladly done all in his power to carry Acre before
+the arrival of his great rival. To the great disappointment of the
+French, however, he declared that he would take no step in the general
+assault until the arrival of Richard; and although the French had given
+some assistance to the besiegers, the army had really remained passive
+for many weeks.
+
+Now, however, that the English had arrived, little time was lost; for
+the moment the dissensions and jealousies between the monarchs were
+patched up, the two hosts naturally imitated the example of their
+sovereigns, and French and English worked side by side in throwing up
+trenches against the walls, in building movable towers for the attack,
+and in preparing for the great onslaught.
+
+The French were the first to finish their preparations, and they
+delivered a tremendous assault upon the walls. The besieged, however,
+did not lose heart, and with the greatest bravery repulsed every
+attempt. The scaling ladders were hurled backward, the towers were
+destroyed by Greek fire; boiling oil was hurled down upon the men who
+advanced under the shelter of machines to undermine the walls; and
+after desperate fighting the French fell back, baffled and beaten.
+
+There was some quiet exultation in the English lines at the defeat of
+the French, for they believed that a better fortune would crown their
+own efforts. Such, however, to their surprise and mortification, was not
+the case. When their preparations were completed they attacked with
+splendid bravery. They were fighting under the eyes of their king and in
+sight of the French army, who had a few days before been baffled; and if
+bravery and devotion could have carried the walls of Acre, assuredly
+King Richard's army would have accomplished the task.
+
+It was, however, too great for them, and with vast loss the army fell
+back to its camp, King Richard raging like a wounded lion. Many of his
+barons had been killed in the assault, and the pikemen and men-at-arms
+had suffered heavily. The Earl of Evesham had been wounded; Cuthbert had
+taken no part in the assault, for the earl, knowing his bravery, had
+forbidden his doing so, as he foresaw the struggle would be of the most
+desperate character; and as it was not usual for pages to accompany
+their lords on the battlefield, Cuthbert could not complain of his being
+forbidden to take part in the fight.
+
+The earl, however, permitted him to accompany Cnut and the bowmen, who
+did great service by the accuracy of their aim, preventing by their
+storm of arrows the men on the battlements from taking steady aim and
+working their machines, and so saved the Earl of Evesham's troop and
+those fighting near him from suffering nearly as heavy loss as some of
+those engaged in other quarters.
+
+But while successful in beating off all assaults, the defenders of Acre
+were now nearly at the end of their resources. The Emperor Saladin,
+although he had collected an army of two hundred thousand men, yet
+feared to advance and give battle to the Crusaders in their own
+lines--for they had thrown up round their camp strong intrenchments to
+prevent the progress of the siege being disturbed by forces from
+without.
+
+The people of Acre seeing the time pass and no sign of a rescuing force,
+their provisions being utterly exhausted, and pestilence and fever
+making frightful ravages in the city, at last determined to surrender.
+
+For over two years they had made a resistance of the most valiant
+description, and now, despairing of success or rescue, and seeing the
+hosts of their besiegers increasing day by day, they hoisted a flag upon
+the walls and sent a deputation to the kings, asking for terms if they
+submitted. They would have done well had they submitted upon the arrival
+of the French and English reinforcements. For the monarchs, annoyed by
+the defeat of their forces and by the heavy losses they had sustained,
+and knowing that the besieged were now at their last crust, were not
+disposed to be merciful.
+
+However, the horrors which then attended the capture of cities in a war
+in which so little quarter was given on either side were avoided. The
+city was to be surrendered; the much-prized relic contained within its
+walls--said to be a piece of the true cross which had been captured by
+the Saracens at the battle of Tiberias, in which they had almost
+annihilated the Christian armies a few years before--was to be
+surrendered; the Christian prisoners in their hands were to be given up
+unharmed; and the inhabitants undertook to pay two hundred thousand
+pieces of gold to the kings within forty days, under the condition that
+the fighting men now taken prisoners were to be put to death should this
+ransom not be paid.
+
+The conquest of Acre was hailed throughout Christendom as a triumph of
+the highest importance. It opened again the gates of the Holy Land; and
+so tremendous was the strength of the fortress that it was deemed that
+if this stronghold were unable to resist effectually the arms of the
+Crusaders, and that if Saladin with so great an army did not dare to
+advance to its rescue, then the rest of the Holy Land would speedily
+fall under the hands of the invading army.
+
+With the fall of Acre, however, the dissensions between the two kings,
+which had for awhile been allowed to rest while the common work was to
+be done, broke out again with renewed intensity. The jealousy of Philip
+Augustus was raised to the highest point by the general enthusiasm of
+the combined armies for the valiant King of England, and by the
+authority which that monarch exercised in the councils. He therefore
+suddenly announced his intention of returning to France.
+
+This decision at first occasioned the greatest consternation in the
+ranks of the Crusaders; but this feeling was lessened when the king
+announced that he should leave a large portion of the French army
+behind, under the command of the Duke of Burgundy. The wiser councilors
+were satisfied with the change. Although there was a reduction of the
+total fighting force, yet the fact that it was now centered under one
+head, and that King Richard would now be in supreme command, was deemed
+to more than counterbalance the loss of a portion of the French army.
+
+Before starting on the march for Jerusalem King Richard sullied his
+reputation by causing all the defenders of Acre to be put to death,
+their ransom not having arrived at the stipulated time.
+
+Then the allied army set out upon their journey. The fleet cruised along
+near them, and from it they obtained all that was requisite for their
+wants, and yet, notwithstanding these advantages, the toil and fatigue
+were terrible. Roads scarcely existed, and the army marched across the
+rough and broken country. There was no straggling, but each kept his
+place; and if unable to do so, fell and died. The blazing sun poured
+down upon them with an appalling force; the dust which rose when they
+left the rocks and came upon flat, sandy ground almost smothered them.
+Water was only obtainable at the halts, and then was frequently
+altogether insufficient for the wants of the army; while in front, on
+flank, and in rear hovered clouds of the cavalry of Saladin.
+
+At times King Richard would allow parties of his knights to detach
+themselves from the force to drive off these enemies. But it was the
+chase of a lion after a hare. The knights in their heavy armor and
+powerful steeds were left behind as if standing still, by the fleet
+Bedouins on their desert coursers; and the pursuers, exhausted and worn
+out, were always glad to regain the ranks of the army.
+
+These clouds of cavalry belonging to the enemy did not content
+themselves with merely menacing and cutting off stragglers. At times,
+when they thought they saw an opening, they would dash in and attack the
+column desperately, sometimes gaining temporary advantages, killing and
+wounding many, then fleeing away again into the desert.
+
+Finding that it was impossible to catch these wary horsemen, King
+Richard ordered his bowmen to march outside his cavalry, so that when
+the enemy's horse approached within bowshot they should open upon them
+with arrows; then, should the horsemen persist in charging, the archers
+were at once to take refuge behind the lines of the knights.
+
+Day after day passed in harassing conflicts. The distance passed over
+each day was very small, and the sufferings of the men from thirst,
+heat, and fatigue enormous. Cuthbert could well understand now what he
+had heard of great armies melting away, for already men began to succumb
+in large numbers to the terrible heat, and the path traversed by the
+army was scattered with corpses of those who had fallen victims to
+sunstroke. Not even at night did the attacks of the enemy cease, and a
+portion of the harassed force was obliged to keep under arms to repel
+assaults.
+
+So passed the time until the army arrived at Azotus, and there, to the
+delight of the Crusaders, who only longed to get at their foes, they
+beheld the whole force of Saladin, two hundred thousand strong, barring
+their way. Had it not been for the stern discipline enforced by King
+Richard the knights of England and France would have repeated the
+mistake which had caused the extermination of the Christian force at
+Tiberias, and would have leveled their lances and charged recklessly
+into the mass of their enemies. But the king, riding round the flanks
+and front of the force, gave his orders in the sternest way, with the
+threat that any man who moved from the ranks should die by his hand.
+
+The army was halted, the leaders gathered round the king, and a hasty
+consultation was held. Richard insisted upon the fight being conducted
+upon the same principles as the march--that the line of archers should
+stand outside the knights, and should gall the advancing force with
+arrows till the last moment, and then retire among the cavalry, only to
+sally out again as the Bedouins fell back from the steel wall of
+horsemen.
+
+Cuthbert had now for the first time donned full armor, and rode behind
+the Earl of Evesham as his esquire, for the former esquire had been left
+behind, ill with fever at Acre.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+THE ACCOLADE.
+
+
+It was now a year since they had left England, and Cuthbert had much
+grown and widened out in the interval, and had never neglected an
+opportunity of practicing with arms; and the earl was well aware that he
+should obtain as efficient assistance from him in time of need as he
+could desire.
+
+This was the first time that Cuthbert, and indeed the great proportion
+of those present in the Christian host, had seen the enemy in force, and
+they eagerly watched the vast array. It was picturesque in the extreme,
+with a variety and brightness of color rivaling that of the Christian
+host. In banners and pennons the latter made a braver show; but the
+floating robes of the infidel showed a far brighter mass of color than
+the steel armor of the Christians.
+
+Here were people drawn from widely separated parts of Saladin's
+dominions. Here were Nubians from the Nile, tall and powerful men, jet
+black in skin, with lines of red and white paint on their faces, giving
+a ghastly and wild appearance to them. On their shoulders were skins of
+lions and other wild animals. They carried short bows, and heavy clubs
+studded with iron. By them were the Bedouin cavalry, light, sinewy men,
+brown as berries, with white turbans and garments. Near these were the
+cavalry from Syria and the plains of Assyria--wild horsemen with
+semi-barbarous armor and scarlet trappings. Here were the solid lines of
+the Egyptian infantry, steady troops, upon whom Saladin much relied.
+Here were other tribes, gathered from afar, each distinguished by its
+own particular marks. In silence did this vast array view awhile the
+solid mass of the Christians. Suddenly a strange din of discordant music
+from thousands of musical instruments--conches and horns, cymbals and
+drums, arose in wild confusion. Shouts of defiance in a dozen tongues
+and from two hundred thousand throats rose wild and shrill upon the air,
+while clear above all the din were heard the strange vibratory cries of
+the warriors from the Egyptian highlands.
+
+"One would think," said Cnut grimly to Cuthbert, "that the infidels
+imagine we are a flock of antelopes to be frightened by an outcry. They
+would do far better to save their wind for future use. They will want
+it, methinks, when we get fairly among them. Who would have thought that
+a number of men, heathen and infidel though they be, could have made so
+foul an outcry?"
+
+Cuthbert laughed.
+
+"Every one fights according to his own method, Cnut; and I am not sure
+that there is not some thing to be said for this outcry, for it is
+really so wild and fearful that it makes my blood almost curdle in my
+veins; and were it not that I know the proved valor of our knights and
+footmen, I should feel shaken by this terrible introduction to the
+fight."
+
+"I heed it no more," said Cnut, "than the outcry of wild fowl, when one
+comes upon them suddenly on a lake in winter. It means no more than
+that; and I reckon that they are trying to encourage themselves fully as
+much as to frighten us. However, we shall soon see. If they can fight as
+well as they can scream, they certainly will get no answering shouts
+from us. The English bulldog fights silently, and bite as hard as he
+will, you will hear little beyond a low growl. Now, my men," he said,
+turning to his archers, "methinks the heathen are about to begin in
+earnest. Keep steady; do not fire until you are sure that they are
+within range. Draw your bows well to your ears, and straightly and
+steadily let fly. Never heed the outcry or the rush, keep steady to the
+last moment. There is shelter behind you, and fierce as the attack may
+be, you can find a sure refuge behind the line of the knights."
+
+Cnut with his archers formed part of the line outside the array of
+English knights, and the arrows of the English bowmen fell fast as bands
+of the Bedouin horse circled round them in the endeavor to draw the
+Christians on to the attack. For some time Saladin persisted in these
+tactics. With his immense superiority of force he reckoned that if the
+Christian chivalry would but charge him, the victory of Tiberias would
+be repeated. Hemmed in by numbers, borne down by the weight of armor and
+the effects of the blazing sun, the knights would succumb as much to
+fatigue as to the force of their foes. King Richard's orders, however,
+were well obeyed, and at last the Moslem chief, urged by the entreaties
+of his leading emirs, who felt ashamed that so large a force should
+hesitate to attack one so vastly inferior in numbers, determined upon
+taking the initiative, and forming his troops in a semicircle round the
+Christian army, launched his horsemen to the attack. The instant they
+came within range a cloud of arrows from the English archers fell among
+them, but the speed at which the desert horses covered the ground
+rendered it impossible for the archers to discharge more than one or two
+shafts before the enemy were upon them. Quickly as they now slipped back
+and sought refuge under the lances of the knights, many of them were
+unable to get back in time, and were cut down by the Saracens. The rest
+crept between the horses or under their bellies into the rear, and there
+prepared to sally out again as soon as the enemy retired. The Christian
+knights sat like a wall of steel upon their horses, their lances were
+leveled, and brave as the Bedouin horsemen were, they felt to break this
+massive line was impossible. The front line, however, charged well up to
+the points of the lances, against which they hewed with their sharp
+scimiters, frequently severing the steel top from the ashpole, and then
+breaking through and engaging in hand-to-hand conflict with the knights.
+Behind the latter sat their squires, with extra spears and arms ready to
+hand to their masters; and in close combat, the heavy maces with their
+spike ends were weapons before which the light-clad horsemen went down
+like reeds before a storm.
+
+Hour after hour the Arab horsemen persisted in their attack, suffering
+heavily, but determined to conquer if possible. Then Saladin suddenly
+ordered a retreat, and at seeing their enemy fly, the impetuosity of the
+Crusaders at last broke out. With a shout they dashed after the foe.
+King Richard, knowing that his followers had already shown a patience
+far beyond what he could have expected, now headed the onslaught,
+performing prodigies of valor with his single arm, and riding from point
+to point to see that all was well.
+
+The early resistance of the infidel host was comparatively slight. The
+heavy mass of the Christian cavalry, with their leveled lances, swept
+through the ranks of the light horsemen, and trampled them down like
+grass beneath their feet; but every moment the resistance became more
+stubborn.
+
+Saladin, knowing the Christians would sooner or later assume the
+offensive, had gathered his troops line in line behind the front ranks,
+and as the force of the Crusaders' charge abated, so did the number of
+foes in their front multiply. Not only this, but upon either side chosen
+bands swept down, and ere long the Christians were brought to a stand,
+and all were fighting hand to hand with their enemies. The lances were
+thrown away now, and with ax and mace each fought for himself.
+
+The Earl of Evesham was one of a group of knights whom King Richard had
+that day ordered to keep close to his person, and around this group the
+fight raged most furiously.
+
+Saladin, aware of the extreme personal valor and warlike qualities of
+King Richard, set the greatest value upon his death or capture, and had
+ordered a large number of his best troops to devote their whole
+attention to attacking the King of England.
+
+The royal standard carried behind the king was a guide to their
+onslaught, and great as was the strength and valor of King Richard, he
+with difficulty was able to keep at bay the hosts that swept around him.
+
+Now that the lance had been abandoned for battle-ax, Cuthbert was able
+to take an active part in the struggle, his duties consisting mainly in
+guarding the rear of his master, and preventing his being overthrown by
+any sudden attack on the flank or from behind.
+
+King Richard was bent not only on defending himself from the attacks of
+his foes, but on directing the general course of the battle; and from
+time to time he burst, with his own trusty knights, through the ring of
+foes, and rode from point to point of the field, calling the knights
+together, exhorting them to steadiness, and restoring the fight where
+its fortunes seemed doubtful. At one time the impetuosity of the king
+led him into extreme danger. He had burst through the enemy surrounding
+him, and these, by order of their captain, allowed him to pass through
+their ranks, and then threw themselves together in his rear, to cut him
+off from the knights who rode behind. The maneuver was successful. The
+rush of horsemen fairly carried away the Christian knights, and one or
+two alone were able to make their way through.
+
+Amid the wild confusion that raged, where each man was fighting for his
+own life, and but little view of what was passing could be obtained
+through the barred visor, the fact that the king was separated from them
+was known to but few. Sir Walter himself was engaged fiercely in a
+hand-to-hand fight with four Bedouins who surrounded him, when Cuthbert
+shouted:
+
+"The king, Sir Walter! the king! He is cut off and surrounded! For
+heaven's sake ride to him. See! the royal standard is down."
+
+With a shout the earl turned, brained one of his foes with a sweep of
+his heavy ax, and, followed by Cuthbert, dashed to the assistance of the
+king. The weight of his horse and armor cleft through the crowd, and in
+a brief space he penetrated to the side of King Richard, who was borne
+upon by a host of foes. Just as they reached them a Bedouin who had been
+struck from his horse crawled beneath the noble charger of King Richard,
+and drove his scimiter deep into its bowels. The animal reared high in
+its sudden pain, and then fell on the ground, carrying the king, who was
+unable to disengage himself quickly enough.
+
+[Illustration: WITH A SHOUT THE EARL TURNED, FOLLOWED BY CUTHBERT, AND
+DASHED TO THE ASSISTANCE OF THE KING.]
+
+In an instant the Earl of Evesham had leaped from his horse and with his
+broad triangular shield extended, sought to cover him from the press of
+enemies. Cuthbert imitated his lord, and strove to defend the latter
+from attacks from the rear. For a moment or two the sweep of the earl's
+heavy ax and Cuthbert's circling sword kept back the foe, but this could
+not last. King Richard in vain strove to extricate his leg from beneath
+his fallen steed. Cuthbert saw at a glance that the horse still lived,
+and with a sudden slash of his sword he struck it on the hind quarter.
+Goaded by the pain the noble animal made a last effort to rise, but only
+to fall back dead. The momentary action was, however, sufficient for
+King Richard, who drew his leg from under it, and with his heavy
+battle-ax in hand, rose with a shout, and stood by the side of the earl.
+
+In vain did the Bedouins strive to cut down and overpower the two
+champions; in vain did they urge their horses to ride over them. With
+each sweep of his ax the king either dismounted a foe or clove in the
+head of his steed, and a wall of slain around them testified to the
+tremendous power of their arms. Still, even such warriors as these could
+not long sustain the conflict. The earl had already received several
+desperate wounds, and the king himself was bleeding from some severe
+gashes with the keen-edged scimiters. Cuthbert was already down, when a
+shout of "St. George!" was heard, and a body of English knights clove
+through the throng of Saracens and reached the side of King Richard.
+Close behind these in a mass pressed the British footmen with bill and
+pike, the enemy giving way foot by foot before their steady discipline.
+
+The king was soon on horseback again, and rallying his troops on, led
+them for one more great and final charge upon the enemy.
+
+The effect was irresistible. Appalled by the slaughter which they had
+suffered, and by the tremendous strength and energy of the Christian
+knights, the Saracens broke and fled; and the last reserves of Saladin
+gave way as the king, shouting his war-cry of "God help the holy
+sepulcher!" fell upon them. Once, indeed, the battle still seemed
+doubtful, for a fresh band of the enemy at that moment arrived and
+joined in the fray. The Crusaders were now, however, inspired with such
+courage and confidence that they readily obeyed the king's war-cry,
+gathered in a firm body, and hurled themselves upon this new foe. Then
+the Saracens finally turned and fled, and the Christian victory was
+complete.
+
+It was one of the features of this war that however thorough the
+victories of the Christians, the Saracens very speedily recovered from
+their effects. A Christian defeat was crushing and entire; the knights
+died as they stood, and defeat meant annihilation. Upon the other hand,
+the Saracens and Bedouins, when they felt that their efforts to win the
+battle were unsuccessful, felt no shame or humiliation in scattering
+like sheep. On their fleet horses and in their light attire they could
+easily distance the Christians, who never, indeed, dreamed of pursuing
+them. The day after the fight the enemy would collect again under their
+chiefs, and be as ready as before to renew their harassing warfare.
+
+On his return from the field the king assembled many of his principal
+knights and leaders, and summoned the Earl of Evesham, with the message
+that he was to bring his esquire with him. When they reached the tent
+the king said:
+
+"My lords, as some of you may be aware, I have this day had a narrow
+escape from death. Separated from you in the battle, and attended only
+by my standard-bearer, I was surrounded by the Saracens. I should
+doubtless have cleft my way through the infidel dogs, but a foul peasant
+stabbed my charger from below, and the poor brute fell with me. My
+standard-bearer was killed, and in another moment my nephew Arthur would
+have been your king, had it not been that my good lord here, attended by
+this brave lad, appeared. I have seen a good deal of fighting, but never
+did I see a braver stand than they made above my body. The Earl of
+Evesham, as you all know, is one of my bravest knights, and to him I can
+simply say, 'Thanks; King Richard does not forget a benefit like this.'
+But such aid as I might well look for from so stout a knight as the Earl
+of Evesham I could hardly have expected on the part of a mere boy like
+this. It is not the first time that I have been under a debt of
+gratitude to him; for it was his watchfulness and bravery which saved
+Queen Berengaria from being carried off by the French in Sicily. I
+deemed him too young then for the order of knighthood--although, indeed,
+bravery has no age; still for a private benefit, and that performed
+against allies, in name at least, I did not wish so far to fly in the
+face of usage as to make him a knight. I promised him then, however,
+that the first time he distinguished himself against the infidel he
+should win his spurs. I think that you will agree with me, my lords,
+that he has done so. Not only did he stand over me, and with great
+bravery defend Sir Walter from attacks from behind, but his ready wit
+saved me when even his sword and that of Sir Walter would have failed to
+do so. Penned down under poor Robin I was powerless to move until our
+young esquire, in an interval of slashing at his assailants, found time
+to give a sharp blow together with a shout to Robin. The poor beast
+tried to rise, and the movement, short as it was, enabled me to draw my
+leg from under him, and then with my mace I was enabled to make a stand
+until you arrived at my side. I think, my lords, that you will agree
+with me that Cuthbert, the son of Sir William de Lance, is fit for the
+honor of knighthood."
+
+A general chorus of approval arose from the assembly, and the king,
+bidding Cuthbert kneel before him, drew his sword and laid it across his
+shoulders, dubbing him Sir Cuthbert de Lance. When he had risen the
+great barons of England pressed round to shake his hand, and Cuthbert,
+who was a modest young fellow, felt almost ashamed at the honors which
+were bestowed upon him. The usual ceremonies and penances which young
+knights had to undergo before admission into the body--and which in
+those days were extremely punctilious, and indeed severe, consisting,
+among other things, in fasting, in watching the armor at night, in
+seclusion and religious services--were omitted when the accolade was
+bestowed for bravery in the field.
+
+The king ordered his armorer at once to make for Cuthbert a suit of the
+finest armor, and authorized him to carry on his shield a sword raising
+a royal crown from the ground, in token of the deed for which the honor
+of knighthood had been bestowed upon him.
+
+Upon his return to the earl's camp the news of his new dignity spread at
+once among the followers of Sir Walter, and many and hearty were the
+cheers that went up from the throats of the Saxon foresters, led by
+Cnut. These humble friends were indeed delighted at his success, for
+they felt that to him they owed very much; and his kindness of manner
+and the gayety of heart which he had shown during the hardships they had
+undergone since their start had greatly endeared him to them.
+
+Cuthbert was now to take rank among the knights who followed the banner
+of the earl. A tent was erected for him, an esquire assigned to him, and
+the lad as he entered his new abode felt almost bewildered at the
+change which had taken place in one short day--that he, at the age of
+sixteen, should have earned the honor of knighthood, and the approval of
+the King of England, expressed before all the great barons of the realm,
+was indeed an honor such as he could never have hoped for; and the
+thought of what his mother would say should the news reach her in her
+quiet Saxon home brought the tears into his eyes. He had not gone
+through the usual religious ceremonies, but he knelt in his tent alone,
+and prayed that he might be made worthy of the honors bestowed upon him;
+that he might fulfill the duties of a Christian knight fearlessly and
+honorably; that his sword might never be raised but for the right; that
+he might devote himself to the protection of the oppressed, and the
+honor of God; that his heart might be kept from evil; and that he might
+carry through life unstained his new escutcheon.
+
+If the English had thought that their victory would have gained them
+immunity from the Saracen attacks they were speedily undeceived. The
+host, indeed, which had barred their way had broken up; but its
+fragments were around them, and the harassing attacks began again with a
+violence and persistency even greater than before. The Crusaders,
+indeed, occupied only the ground upon which they stood. It was death to
+venture one hundred yards from the camp unless in a strong body; and the
+smallest efforts to bring in food from the country round were instantly
+met and repelled. Only in very strong bodies could the knights venture
+from camp even to forage for their horses, and the fatigues and
+sufferings of all were in no way relieved by the great victory of
+Azotus.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+IN THE HANDS OF THE SARACENS.
+
+
+The English had hoped that after one pitched battle they should be able
+to advance upon Jerusalem, but they had reckoned without the climate and
+illness.
+
+Although unconquered in the fray, the Christian army was weakened by its
+sufferings to such an extent that it was virtually brought to a
+standstill. Even King Richard, with all his impetuosity, dared not
+venture to cut adrift from the seashore and to march direct upon
+Jerusalem; that city was certainly not to be taken without a long siege,
+and this could only be undertaken by an army strong enough, not only to
+carry out so great a task, but to meet and defeat the armies which
+Saladin would bring up to the rescue, and to keep open the line down to
+Joppa, by which alone provisions and the engines necessary for the siege
+could be brought up. Hence the war resolved itself into a series of
+expeditions and detached fights.
+
+The British camp was thoroughly fortified, and thence parties of the
+knights sallied out and engaged in conflicts with the Saracens, with
+varying success. On several of these expeditions Cuthbert attended the
+earl, and behaved with a bravery which showed him well worthy of the
+honors which he had received.
+
+Upon one occasion the news reached camp that a party of knights, who had
+gone out to guard a number of footmen cutting forage and bringing it
+into camp, had been surrounded and had taken refuge in a small town,
+whose gates they had battered in when they saw the approach of an
+overwhelming host of the enemy. King Richard himself headed a strong
+force and advanced to their assistance. Their approach was not seen
+until within a short distance of the enemy, upon whom the Crusaders fell
+with the force of a thunderbolt, and cleft their way through their
+lines. After a short pause in the little town they prepared to again cut
+their way through, joined by the party who had there been besieged. The
+task was now, however, far more difficult; for the footmen would be
+unable to keep up with the rapid charge of the knights, and it was
+necessary not only to clear the way, but to keep it open for their exit.
+King Richard himself and the greater portion of his knights were to lead
+the charge; another party were to follow behind the footmen, who were
+ordered to advance at the greatest speed of which they were capable,
+while their rearguard by charges upon the enemy kept them at bay. To
+this latter party Cuthbert was attached.
+
+The Saracens followed their usual tactics, and this time with great
+success. Dividing as the king with his knights charged them, they
+suffered these to pass through with but slight resistance, and then
+closed in upon their track, while another and still more numerous body
+fell upon the footmen and their guard. Again and again did the knights
+charge through the ranks of the Moslems, while the billmen stoutly kept
+together and resisted the onslaughts of the enemy's cavalry. In spite of
+their bravery, however, the storm of arrows shot by the desert horsemen
+thinned their ranks with terrible rapidity. Charging up to the very
+point of the spears, these wild horsemen fired their arrows into the
+faces of their foe, and although numbers of them fell beneath the more
+formidable missiles sent by the English archers, their numbers were so
+overwhelming that the little band melted away. The small party of
+knights, too, were rapidly thinned, although performing prodigious deeds
+of valor. The Saracens when dismounted or wounded still fought on foot,
+their object being always to stab or hough the horses, and so dismount
+the riders. King Richard and his force, though making the most desperate
+efforts to return to the assistance of the rearguard, were baffled by
+the sturdy resistance of the Saracens, and the position of those in the
+rear was fast becoming hopeless.
+
+One by one the gallant little band of knights fell, and a sea of turbans
+closed over the fluttering plumes. Cuthbert, after defending himself
+with extreme bravery for a long time, was at last separated from the
+small remainder of his comrades by a rush of the enemy's horse, and when
+fighting desperately he received a heavy blow at the back of the head
+from the mace of a huge Nubian soldier, and fell senseless to the
+ground.
+
+When he recovered his consciousness the first impression upon his mind
+was the stillness which had succeeded to the din of battle; the shouts
+and war-cries of the Crusaders, the wild yells of the Moslems were
+hushed, and in their place was a quiet chatter in many unknown tongues,
+and the sound of laughter and feasting. Raising his head and looking
+round, Cuthbert saw that he and some ten of his comrades were lying
+together in the midst of a Saracen camp, and that he was a prisoner to
+the infidels. The sun streamed down with tremendous force upon them;
+there was no shelter; and though all were wounded and parched with
+thirst, the Saracens of whom they besought water, pointing to their
+mouths and making signs of their extreme thirst, laughed in their faces,
+and signified by a gesture that it was scarcely worth the trouble to
+drink when they were likely so soon to be put to death.
+
+It was late in the afternoon before any change was manifest. Then
+Cuthbert observed a stir in the camp; the men ran to their horses,
+leaped on their backs, and with wild cries of "Welcome!" started off at
+full speed. Evidently some personage was about to arrive, and the fate
+of the prisoners would be solved. A few words were from time to time
+exchanged between these, each urging the other to keep up his heart and
+defy the infidel. One or two had succumbed to their wounds during the
+afternoon, and only six were able to stand erect when summoned to do so
+by some of their guard, who made signs to them that a great personage
+was coming. Soon the shouts of the horsemen and other sounds announced
+that the great chief was near at hand, and the captives gathered from
+the swelling shouts of the Arabs that the new arrival was Sultan
+Suleiman--or Saladin, for he was called by both names--surrounded by a
+bodyguard of splendidly-dressed attendants. The emir, who was himself
+plainly attired, reined up his horse in front of the captives.
+
+"You are English," he said, in the _lingua-franca_, which was the medium
+of communication between the Eastern and Western peoples in those days.
+"You are brave warriors, and I hear that before you were taken you
+slaughtered numbers of my people. They did wrong to capture you and
+bring you here to be killed. Your cruel king gives no mercy to those who
+fall into his hands. You must not expect it here, you who without a
+pretense of right invade my country, slaughter my people, and defeat my
+armies. The murder of the prisoners of Acre has closed my heart to all
+mercy. There, your king put ten thousand prisoners to death in cold
+blood, a month after the capture of the place, because the money at
+which he had placed their ransom had not arrived. We Arabs do not carry
+huge masses of gold about with us; and although I could have had it
+brought from Egypt, I did not think that so brave a monarch as Richard
+of England could have committed so cruel an action in cold blood. When
+we are fresh from battle, and our wounds are warm, and our hearts are
+full of rage and fury, we kill our prisoners; but to do so weeks after a
+battle is contrary to the laws alike of your religion and of ours.
+However, it is King Richard who has sealed your doom, not I. You are
+knights, and I do not insult you with the offer of turning from your
+religion and joining me. Should one of you wish to save his life on
+these conditions, I will, however, promise him a place of position and
+authority among us."
+
+None of the knights moved to accept the offer, but each, as the eye of
+the emir ran along the line, answered with an imprecation of contempt
+and hatred. Saladin waved his hand, and one by one the captives were led
+aside, walking as proudly to their doom as if they had been going to a
+feast. Each wrung the hand of the one next to him as he turned, and then
+without a word followed his captors. There was a dull sound heard, and
+one by one the heads of the knights rolled in the sand.
+
+Cuthbert happened to be last in the line, and as the executioners laid
+hands upon him and removed his helmet, the eye of the sultan fell upon
+him, and he almost started at perceiving the extreme youth of his
+captive. He held his hand aloft to arrest the movements of the
+executioners, and signaled for Cuthbert to be brought before him again.
+
+"You are but a boy," he said. "All the knights who have hitherto fallen
+into my hands have been men of strength and power; how is it that I see
+a mere youth among their ranks, and wearing the golden spurs of
+knighthood?"
+
+"King Richard himself made me a knight," Cuthbert said proudly, "after
+having stood across him when his steed had been foully stabbed at the
+battle of Azotus, and the whole Moslem host were around him."
+
+"Ah!" said the emir, "were you one of the two who, as I have heard,
+defended the king for some time against all assaults? It were hard
+indeed to kill so brave a youth. I doubt me not that at present you are
+as firmly determined to die a Christian knight as those who have gone
+before you? But time may change you. At any rate for the present your
+doom is postponed."
+
+He turned to a gorgeously dressed noble next to him, and said:
+
+"Your brother, Ben Abin, is Governor of Jerusalem, and the gardens of
+the palace are fair. Take this youth to him as a present, and set him to
+work in his gardens. His life I have spared, in all else Ben Abin will
+be his master."
+
+Cuthbert heard without emotion the words which changed his fate from
+death to slavery. Many, he knew, who were captured in these wars were
+carried away as slaves to different parts of Asia, and it did not seem
+to him that the change was in any way a boon. However, life is dear, and
+it was but natural that a thought should leap into his heart that soon
+either the Crusaders might force a way into Jerusalem and there rescue
+him, or that he himself might in some way escape.
+
+The sultan having thus concluded the subject, turned away, and galloped
+off surrounded by his bodyguard.
+
+Those who had captured the Christians now stripped off the armor of
+Cuthbert; then he was mounted on a barebacked steed, and with four
+Bedouins, with their long lances, riding beside him, started for
+Jerusalem. After a day of long and rapid riding the Arabs stopped
+suddenly on the crest of a hill, with a shout of joy, and throwing
+themselves from their horses bent with their foreheads to the earth at
+the sight of their holy city.
+
+Cuthbert, as he gazed at the stately walls of Jerusalem, and the noble
+buildings within, felt bitterly that it was not thus that he had hoped
+to see the holy city. He had dreamed of arriving before it with his
+comrades, proud and delighted at their success so far, and confident in
+their power soon to wrest the town before them from the hands of the
+Moslems. Instead of this he was a slave--a slave to the infidel, perhaps
+never more to see a white face, save that of some other unfortunate like
+himself.
+
+Even now in its fallen state no city is so impressive at first sight as
+Jerusalem; the walls, magnificent in height and strength, and
+picturesque in their deep embattlements, rising on the edge of a deep
+valley. Every building has its name and history. Here is the church
+built by the first Crusaders; there the mighty mosque of Suleiman on the
+site of the Temple; far away on a projecting ridge the great building
+known as the Tomb of Moses; on the right beyond the houses rise the
+towers on the Roman walls; the Pool of Bethsaida lies in the hollow; in
+the center are the cupolas of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Among
+all the fairest cities of the world, there are none which can compare in
+stately beauty with Jerusalem. Doubtless it was a fairer city in those
+days, for long centuries of Turkish possession have reduced many of the
+former stately palaces to ruins. Then, as now, the banner of the Prophet
+floated over the high places; but whereas at present the population is
+poor and squalid, the city in those days contained a far larger number
+of inhabitants, irrespective of the great garrison collected for its
+defense.
+
+The place from which Cuthbert had his first sight of Jerusalem is that
+from which the best view is to be obtained--the crest of the Mount of
+Olives. After a minute or two spent in looking at the city the Arabs
+with a shout continued their way down into the valley. Crossing this
+they ascended the steep road to the walls, brandishing their lances and
+giving yells of triumph; then riding two upon each side of their
+prisoner, to protect him from any fanatic who might lay a hand upon him,
+they passed under the gate known as the Gate of Suleiman into the city.
+
+The populace thronged the streets; and the news brought by the horsemen
+that a considerable portion of the Christian host had been defeated and
+slain passed from mouth to mouth, and was received with yells of
+exultation. Execrations were heaped upon Cuthbert, who rode along with
+an air as quiet and composed as if he were the center of an ovation
+instead of that of an outburst of hatred.
+
+He would, indeed, speedily have been torn from his guards, had not these
+shouted that he was placed in their hands by Saladin himself for conduct
+to the governor. As the emir was as sharp and as ruthless with his own
+people as with the prisoners who fell into his hands, the name acted as
+a talisman, and Cuthbert and his escort rode forward without molestation
+until they reached the entrance to the palace.
+
+Dismounting, Cuthbert was now led before the governor himself, a stern
+and grave-looking man, sitting cross-legged on a divan surrounded by
+officers and attendants. He heard in silence the account given him by
+the escort, bowed his head at the commands of Suleiman, and, without
+addressing a word to Cuthbert, indicated to two attendants that he was
+to be removed into the interior of the house. Here the young knight was
+led to a small dungeon-like room; bread and dates with a cruse of water,
+were placed before him; the door was then closed and locked without, and
+he found himself alone with his thoughts.
+
+No one came near him that night, and he slept as soundly as he would
+have done in his tent in the midst of the Christian host. He was
+resolved to give no cause for ill-treatment or complaint to his captors,
+to work as willingly, as cheerfully, as was in his power, and to seize
+the first opportunity to make his escape, regardless of any risk of his
+life which he might incur in doing so.
+
+In the morning the door opened, and a black slave led him into the
+garden, which was surrounded by a very high and lofty wall. It was
+large, and full of trees and flowers, and far more beautiful than any
+garden that Cuthbert had seen in his native land. There were various
+other slaves at work; and an Arab, who appeared to be the head of the
+gardeners, at once appointed to Cuthbert the work assigned to him. A
+guard of Arabs with bow and spear watched the doings of the slaves.
+
+With one glance round, Cuthbert was assured that escape from this
+garden, at least, was not to be thought of, and that for the present
+patience alone was possible. Dismissing all ideas of that kind from his
+mind, he set to work with a steady attention to his task. He was very
+fond of flowers, and soon he became so absorbed in his work as almost to
+forget that he was a slave. It was not laborious--digging, planting,
+pruning and training the flowers, and giving them copious draughts of
+water from a large fountain in the center of the garden.
+
+The slaves were not permitted to exchange a word with each other. At the
+end of the day's work they were marched off to separate chambers, or,
+as they might be called, dungeons. Their food consisted of water, dried
+dates, and bread, and they had little to complain of in this respect;
+indeed, the slaves in the gardens of the governor's house at Jerusalem
+enjoyed an exceptionally favored existence. The governor himself was
+absorbed in the cares of the city. The head gardener happened to be a
+man of unusual humanity, and it was really in his hands that the comfort
+of the prisoners was placed.
+
+Sometimes in the course of the day veiled ladies would issue in groups
+from the palace, attended by black slaves with drawn scimiters. They
+passed without unveiling across the point where the slaves were at work,
+and all were forbidden on pain of death to look up, or even to approach
+the konak or pavilion, where the ladies threw aside their veils, and
+enjoyed the scent and sight of the flowers, the splash of murmuring
+waters, and the strains of music touched by skillful hands.
+
+Although Cuthbert wondered in his heart what these strange wrapped-up
+figures might look like when the veils were thrown back, he certainly
+did not care enough about the matter to run any risk of drawing the
+anger of his guards upon himself by raising his eyes toward them; nor
+did he ever glance up at the palace, which was also interdicted to the
+slaves. From the lattice casements during the day the strains of music
+and merry laughter often came down to the captives; but this, if
+anything, only added to the bitterness of their position, by reminding
+them that they were shut off for life from ever hearing the laughter of
+the loved ones they had left behind.
+
+For upward of a month Cuthbert remained steadily at work, and during
+that time no possible plan of escape had occurred to him, and he had
+indeed resigned himself to wait, either until, as he hoped, the city
+would be taken by the Christians, or until he himself might be removed
+from his present post and sent into the country, where, although his lot
+would doubtless be far harder, some chance of escape might open before
+him.
+
+One night, long after slumber had fallen upon the city, Cuthbert was
+startled by hearing his door open. Rising to his feet, he saw a black
+slave, and an old woman beside him. The latter spoke first in the
+_lingua-franca_:
+
+"My mistress, the wife of the governor, has sent me to ask your story.
+How is it that, although but a youth, you are already a knight? How is
+it that you come to be a slave to our people? The sultan himself sent
+you to her lord. She would fain hear through me how it has happened. She
+is the kindest of ladies, and the sight of your youth has touched her
+heart."
+
+With thanks to the unknown lady who had felt an interest in him,
+Cuthbert briefly related the events which had led to his captivity. The
+old woman placed on the ground a basket containing some choice fruit and
+white bread, and then departed with the negro as quietly as she had
+come, leaving Cuthbert greatly pleased at what had taken place.
+
+"Doubtless," he said to himself, "I shall hear again; and it may be that
+through the pity of this lady some means of escape may open to me."
+
+Although for some little time no such prospect appeared, yet the visits
+of the old woman, which were frequently repeated, were of interest to
+him, and seemed to form a link between him and the world.
+
+After coming regularly every night for a week she bade the young knight
+follow her, holding her finger to her lips in sign that caution must be
+observed. Passing through several passages, he was at length led into a
+room where a lady of some forty years of age, surrounded by several
+slaves and younger women, was sitting. Cuthbert felt no scruple in
+making a deep obeisance to her; the respect shown to women in the days
+of chivalry was very great, and Cuthbert, in bowing almost to the ground
+before the lady who was really his mistress, did not feel that he was
+humiliating himself.
+
+"Young slave," she said, "your story has interested us. We have
+frequently watched from the windows, and have seen how willingly and
+patiently you have worked; and it seems strange indeed that one so young
+should have performed such feats of bravery as to win the honor of
+knighthood from the hand of that greatest of warriors, Richard of
+England. What is it, we would fain learn from your lips, that stirs up
+the heart of the Christian world that they should launch their armies
+against us, who wish but to be left alone, and who have no grudge
+against them? This city is as holy to us as it is to you; and as we
+live around it, and all the country for thousands of miles is ours, is
+it likely that we should allow it to be wrested from us by strangers
+from a distance?"
+
+This was spoken in some Eastern language of which Cuthbert understood no
+word, but its purport was translated to him by the old woman who had
+hitherto acted as his mistress' messenger.
+
+Cuthbert reported the circumstances of the fight at Azotus, and
+endeavored to explain the feelings which had given rise to the Crusade.
+He then, at the orders of the lady, related the incidents of his voyage
+out, and something of his life at home, which was more interesting even
+than the tale of his adventures to his hearers, as to them the home-life
+of these fierce Christian warriors was entirely unknown.
+
+After an audience of two hours Cuthbert was conducted back to his cell,
+his mistress assuring him of her good-will, and promising to do all in
+her power to make his captivity as light as possible.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM.
+
+
+Two or three nights afterward the old woman again came to Cuthbert, and
+asked him, in her mistress' name, if in any way he could suggest a
+method of lightening his captivity, as his extreme youth and bravery of
+demeanor had greatly pleased her.
+
+Cuthbert replied that nothing but freedom could satisfy his longings;
+that he was comfortable and not over-worked, but that he pined to be
+back again with his friends.
+
+The old woman brought him on the following night a message to the effect
+that his mistress would willingly grant him his liberty, but as he was
+sent to her husband by the sultan, it would be impossible to free him
+openly.
+
+"From what she said," the old woman continued, "if you could see some
+plan of making your escape, she would in no way throw difficulties in
+your path; but it must not be known that the harem in any way connived
+at your escape, for my lord's wrath would be terrible, and he is not a
+man to be trifled with."
+
+Looking round at the high walls that surrounded the garden, Cuthbert
+said that he could think of no plan whatever for escaping from such a
+place; that he had often thought it over, but that it appeared to him to
+be hopeless. Even should he manage to scale these walls, he would only
+find himself in the town beyond, and his escape from that would be
+altogether hopeless. "Only," he said, "if I were transported to some
+country palace of the governor could I ever hope to make my escape." The
+next night the messenger brought him the news that his mistress was
+disposed to favor his escape in the way he had pointed out, and that she
+would in two or three days ask the governor for permission to pay a
+visit to their palace beyond the walls, and that with her she would take
+a number of gardeners--among them Cuthbert--to beautify the place.
+Cuthbert returned the most lively and hearty thanks to his patroness for
+her kind intentions, and hope began to rise rapidly in his heart.
+
+It is probable, however, that the black guards of the harem heard
+something of the intentions of their mistress, and that they feared the
+anger of the governor should Cuthbert make his escape, and should it be
+discovered that this was the result of her connivance. Either through
+this or through some other source the governor obtained an inkling that
+the white slave sent by the sultan was receiving unusual kindness from
+the ladies of the harem.
+
+Two nights after Cuthbert had begun to entertain bright hopes of his
+liberty, the door of the cell was softly opened. He was seized by four
+slaves, gagged, tied hand and foot, covered with a thick burnous, and
+carried out from his cell. By the sound of their feet he heard that they
+were passing into the open air, and guessed that he was being carried
+through the garden; then a door opened and was closed after them; he was
+flung across a horse like a bale of goods, a rope or two were placed
+around him to keep him in that position, and then he felt the animal put
+in motion, and heard by the trampling of feet that a considerable number
+of horsemen were around him. For some time they passed over the rough,
+uneven streets of the city; then there was a pause and exchange of
+watchword and countersign, a creaking of doors, and a lowering of a
+drawbridge, and the party issued out into the open country. Not for very
+long did they continue their way; a halt was called, and Cuthbert was
+taken off his horse.
+
+On looking round, he found that he was in the middle of a considerable
+group of men. Those who had brought him were a party of the governor's
+guards; but he was now delivered over to a large band of Arabs, all of
+whom were mounted on camels. One of these creatures he was ordered to
+mount, the bonds being loosed from his arms and feet. An Arab driver,
+with lance, bows, and arrows, and other weapons, took his seat on the
+neck of the animal, and then with scarcely a word the caravan marched
+off with noiseless step, and with their faces turned southward.
+
+It seemed to Cuthbert almost as a dream. A few hours before he had been
+exalted with the hope of freedom; now he was being taken away to a
+slavery which would probably end but with his life. Although he could
+not understand any of his captors, the repetition of a name led him to
+believe that he was being sent to Egypt as a present to some man in high
+authority there; and he doubted not that the Governor of Jerusalem,
+fearing that he might escape, and dreading the wrath of the sultan
+should he do so, had determined to transfer the troublesome captive to a
+more secure position and to safer hands.
+
+For three days the journey continued; they had now left the fertile
+lowlands of Palestine, and their faces were turned west. They were
+entering upon that sandy waste which stretches between the southern
+corner of Palestine and the land of Egypt, a distance which can be
+traveled by camels in three days, but which occupied the children of
+Israel forty years.
+
+At first the watch had been very sharply kept over the captive; but now
+that they had entered the desert the Arabs appeared to consider that
+there was no chance of an attempt to escape. Cuthbert had in every way
+endeavored to ingratiate himself with his guard. He had most willingly
+obeyed their smallest orders, had shown himself pleased and grateful for
+the dates which formed the staple of their repasts. He had assumed so
+innocent and quiet an appearance that the Arabs had marveled much among
+themselves, and had concluded that there must have been some mistake in
+the assertion of the governor's guard who had handed the prisoner over
+to them, that he was one of the terrible knights of King Richard's army.
+
+Cuthbert's heart had not fallen for a moment. He knew well that if he
+once reached Cairo all hope of escape was at an end; and it was before
+reaching that point that he determined if possible to make an effort for
+freedom. He had noticed particularly the camel which appeared to be the
+fleetest of the band; it was of lighter build than the rest, and it was
+with difficulty that its rider had compelled it to accommodate itself to
+the pace of the others. It was clear from the pains he took with it, by
+the constant patting and the care bestowed upon its watering and
+feeding, that its rider was extremely proud of it; and Cuthbert
+concluded that if an escape was to be made, this was the animal on which
+he must accomplish it.
+
+Upon arriving at the end of each day's journey the camels were allowed
+to browse at will, a short cord being tied between one of their hind and
+one of their fore-feet. The Arabs then set to work to collect sticks and
+to make a fire--not for cooking, for their only food was dried dates and
+some black bread, which they brought with them--but for warmth, as the
+nights were damp and somewhat chilly, as they sat round the fire,
+talked, and told stories. Before finally going off to rest each went out
+into the bushes and brought in his camel; these were then arranged in a
+circle around the Arabs, one of the latter being mounted as sentry to
+prevent any sudden surprise--not indeed that they had the smallest fear
+of the Christians, who were far distant; but then, as now, the Arabs of
+the desert were a plundering race, and were ever ready to drive off each
+other's camels or horses. Cuthbert determined that if flight was
+possible, it must be undertaken during the interval after the arrival at
+the halting-place and before the bringing in of the camels. Therefore,
+each day upon the halt he had pretended great fatigue from the rough
+motion of the camel, and had, after hastily eating the dates handed to
+him, thrown himself down, covered himself with his Arab robe, and
+feigned instant sleep. Thus they had in the three days from starting
+come to look upon his presence sleeping close to them as a matter of
+course.
+
+The second day after entering the desert, however, Cuthbert threw
+himself down by the side of an uprooted shrub of small size and about
+his own length. He covered himself as usual with his long, dark-blue
+robe, and pretended to go to sleep. He kept his eyes, however, on the
+alert through an aperture beneath his cloth, and observed particularly
+the direction in which the camel upon which he had set his mind wandered
+into the bushes. The darkness came on a very few minutes after they had
+halted, and when the Arabs had once settled round their fire Cuthbert
+very quietly shifted the robe from himself to the long low bush near
+him, and then crawled stealthily off into the darkness.
+
+He had no fear of his footfall being heard upon the soft sand, and was
+soon on his feet, looking for the camels. He was not long in finding
+them, or in picking out the one which he had selected. The bushes were
+succulent, and close to the camping-ground; indeed, it was for this that
+the halting-places were always chosen. It was not so easy, however, to
+climb into the high wooden saddle, and Cuthbert tried several times in
+vain. Then he repeated in a sharp tone the words which he had heard the
+Arabs use to order their camels to kneel, striking the animal at the
+same moment behind the fore-legs with a small switch. The camel
+immediately obeyed the order to which he was accustomed, and knelt down,
+making, however, as he did so, the angry grumble which those creatures
+appear to consider it indispensable to raise when ordered to do
+anything. Fortunately this noise is so frequently made, and the camels
+are so given to quarrel among themselves that although in the still air
+it might have been heard by the Arabs sitting a short hundred yards
+away, it attracted no notice, and Cuthbert, climbing into the seat,
+shook the cord that served as a rein, and the animal, rising, set off at
+a smooth, steady swing in the direction in which his head was
+turned--that from which they had that day arrived.
+
+Once fairly away from the camping-ground, Cuthbert, with blows of his
+stick, increased the speed of the camel to a long shuffling trot, and
+the fire in the distance soon faded out into the darkness.
+
+Cuthbert trusted to the stars as guides. He was not unarmed, for as he
+crawled away from his resting-place he had picked up one of the Arabs'
+spears and bow and arrows, and a large bag of dates from the spot where
+they had been placed when their owner dismounted. He was already clad in
+Eastern garb, and was so sunburnt and tanned that he had no fear
+whatever of any one at a distance detecting that he was a white man.
+
+Steering his course by the stars, he rode all night without stopping. He
+doubted not that he would have at least three hours' start, for the
+Arabs were sure to have sat that time round the fires before going out
+to bring in their camels. Even then they would suppose for some time
+that the animal upon which he was seated had strayed, and no pursuit
+would be attempted until it was discovered that he himself had made his
+escape, which might not be for a long time, as the Arabs would not think
+of looking under the cloth to see if he were there. He hoped, therefore,
+that he would reach the cultivated land long before he was overtaken. He
+had little fear but that he should then be able to journey onward
+without attracting attention.
+
+A solitary Arab when traveling rides straight, and his communications to
+those whom he meets are confined to the set form of two or three words,
+"May Allah protect you!" the regular greeting of Moslems when they meet.
+
+When morning broke Cuthbert, even when ascending to the top of a
+somewhat lofty mound, could see no signs of pursuers in the vast stretch
+of desert behind him. In front the ground was already becoming dotted
+here and there with vegetation, and he doubted not that after a few
+hours' ride he should be fairly in the confines of cultivated country.
+He gave his camel a meal of dates, and having eaten some himself, again
+set the creature in motion. These camels, especially those of good
+breed, will go on for three or four days with scarcely a halt; and there
+was no fear of that on which he rode breaking down from fatigue, for the
+journeys hitherto had been comparatively short.
+
+By midday Cuthbert had reached the cultivated lands of Palestine. Here
+and there over the plain villages were dotted, and parties of men and
+camels were to be seen. Cuthbert now arranged his robes carefully in
+Arab fashion, slung the long spear across his shoulders, and went boldly
+forward at a slinging trot, having little fear that a passer-by would
+have any suspicion whatever as to his being other than an Arab bent upon
+some rapid journey. He soon found that his hopes were justified. Several
+times he came upon parties of men whom he passed with the salute, and
+who scarcely raised their eyes as he trotted by them. The plain was an
+open one, and though cultivated here and there, there were large tracts
+lying unworked. There was no occasion therefore to keep to the road; so
+riding across country, and avoiding the villages as far as possible,
+stopping only at a stream to give his camel water, Cuthbert rode without
+ceasing until nightfall. Then he halted his camel near a wood, turned it
+in to feed on the young foliage, and wrapping himself in his burnous was
+soon asleep, for he ached from head to foot with the jolting motion
+which had now been continued for so many hours without an interval. He
+had little fear of being overtaken by the party he had left behind; they
+would, he was convinced, be many hours behind, and it was extremely
+improbable that they would hit upon the exact line which he had
+followed, so that even if they succeeded in coming up to him, they would
+probably pass him a few miles either to the right or left.
+
+So fatigued was he with his long journey that the next day he slept
+until after the sun had risen. He was awakened suddenly by being seized
+by a party of Arabs, who, roughly shaking him, questioned him as to
+where he came from, and what he was doing there. He saw at a glance that
+they were not with the party from which he had escaped, and he pointed
+to his lips to make signs that he was dumb. The Arabs evidently
+suspected that something was wrong. They examined the camel, and then
+the person of their captive. The whiteness of his skin at once showed
+them that he was a Frank in disguise, and without more ado or
+questioning, they tied him hand and foot, flung him across the camel,
+and, mounting their own animals, rode rapidly away.
+
+From the position of the sun Cuthbert saw that they were making their
+course nearly due east, and therefore that it could not be their
+intention to take him to Jerusalem, which was to the north of the line
+they were following. A long day's journey, which to Cuthbert seemed
+interminable, found them on the low spit of sand which runs along by the
+side of the Dead Sea. Behind, lofty rocks rose almost precipitously, but
+through a cleft in these the Arabs had made their way. Cuthbert saw at
+once that they belonged to some desert tribe over whom the authority of
+Suleiman was but nominal. When summoned for any great effort, these
+children of the desert would rally to his armies and fight for a short
+time; but at the first disaster, or whenever they became tired of the
+discipline and regularity of the army, they would mount their camels and
+return to the desert, generally managing on the way to abstract from the
+farms of those on their route either a horse, cattle, or some other
+objects which would pay them for the labors they had undergone.
+
+They were now near the confines of their own country, and apparently had
+no fear whatever of pursuit. They soon gathered some of the dead wood
+cast on the shores of the sea, and with these a fire was speedily
+lighted, and an earthenware pot was taken down from among their baggage:
+it was filled with water from a skin, and then grain having been placed
+in it, it was put among the wood ashes. Cuthbert, who was weary and
+aching in every limb from the position in which he had been placed on
+the camel, asked them by signs for permission to bathe in the lake. This
+was given principally apparently from curiosity, for but very few Arabs
+were able to swim; indeed, as a people they object so utterly to water
+that the idea of any one bathing for his amusement was to them a matter
+of ridicule.
+
+Cuthbert, who had never heard of the properties of the Dead Sea, was
+perfectly astonished upon entering the water to find that instead of
+wading in it up to the neck before starting to swim, as he was
+accustomed to do at home, the water soon after he got waist-deep took
+him off his feet, and a cry of astonishment burst from him as he found
+himself on rather than in the fluid. The position was so strange and
+unnatural that with a cry of alarm he scrambled over on to his feet, and
+made the best of his way to shore, the Arabs indulging in shouts of
+laughter at his astonishment and alarm. Cuthbert was utterly unable to
+account for the strange sensations he had experienced; he perceived that
+the water was horribly salt, and that which had got into his mouth
+almost choked him. He was, however, unaware that saltness adds to the
+weight of water, and so to the buoyancy of objects cast into it. The
+saltness of the fluid he was moreover painfully conscious of by the
+smarting of the places on his wrists and ankles where the cords had been
+bound that fastened him to the camel. Goaded, however, by the laughter
+of the Arabs, he determined once more to try the experiment of entering
+this strange sheet of water, which from some unaccountable cause
+appeared to him to refuse to allow anybody to sink in it. This time he
+swam about for some time, and felt a little refreshed. When he returned
+to the shore he soon re-attired himself in his Bedouin dress, and seated
+himself a little distance from his captors, who were now engaged in
+discussing the materials prepared by themselves. They made signs to
+Cuthbert that he might partake of their leavings, for which he was not a
+little grateful, for he felt utterly exhausted and worn out with his
+cruel ride and prolonged fasting.
+
+The Arabs soon wrapped themselves in their burnouses, and feeling
+confident that their captive would not attempt to escape from them in a
+place where subsistence would be impossible, paid no further attention
+to him beyond motioning to him to lie down at their side.
+
+Cuthbert, however, determined to make another effort to escape; for
+although he was utterly ignorant of the place in which he found himself,
+or of the way back, he thought that anything would be better than to be
+carried into helpless slavery into the savage country beyond the Jordan.
+An hour, therefore, after his captors were asleep he stole to his feet,
+and fearing to arouse them by exciting the wrath of one of the camels by
+attempting to mount him, he struck up into the hills on foot. All night
+he wandered, and in the morning found himself at the edge of a strange
+precipice falling abruptly down to a river, which, some fifty feet wide,
+ran at its foot. Upon the opposite side the bank rose with equal
+rapidity, and to Cuthbert's astonishment he saw that the cliffs were
+honeycombed by caves.
+
+Keeping along the edge for a considerable distance, he came to a spot
+where it was passable, and made his way down to the river bank. Here he
+indulged in a long drink of fresh water, and then began to examine the
+caves which perforated the rocks. These caves Cuthbert knew had formerly
+been the abode of hermits. It was supposed to be an essentially sacred
+locality, and between the third and fourth centuries of Christianity
+some twenty thousand monks had lived solitary lives on the banks of that
+river. Far away he saw the ruins of a great monastery, called Mar Saba,
+which had for a long time been the abode of a religious community, and
+which at the present day is still tenanted by a body of monks. Cuthbert
+made up his mind at once to take refuge in these caves. He speedily
+picked out one some fifty feet up the face of the rock, and
+approachable only with the greatest difficulty and by a sure foot. First
+he made the ascent to discover the size of the grotto, and found that
+although the entrance was but four feet high and two feet wide, it
+opened into an area of considerable dimensions. Far in the corner, when
+his eyes became accustomed to the light, he discovered a circle of
+ashes, and his conjectures that these caves had been the abode of men
+were therefore verified. He again descended, and collected a large
+bundle of grass and rushes for his bed. He discovered growing among the
+rocks many edible plants, whose seeds were probably sown there centuries
+before, and gathering some of these he made his way back to the cavern.
+The grass furnished him with an excellent bed, and he was soon asleep.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+A HERMIT'S TALE.
+
+
+The next day he discovered on his excursions plenty of eatable berries
+on the bushes; and now that he had no longer fear of hunger he resolved
+to stay for some little time, until his wounds, which had festered
+badly, had recovered, before making an attempt to rejoin the Christian
+army.
+
+One day when employed in gathering berries he was surprised by meeting a
+wild-looking figure, who appeared suddenly from one of the caves. It was
+that of a very old man, with an extremely long white beard flowing to
+his waist; his hair, which was utterly unkempt, fell to the same point.
+He was thin to an extraordinary extent, and Cuthbert wondered how a man
+could have been reduced to such a state of starvation, with so plentiful
+a supply of fruit and berries at hand.
+
+The old man looked at Cuthbert attentively, and then made the sign of
+the cross. Cuthbert gave a cry of joy, and repeated the sign. The old
+man at once came down from his cavern, and looked at him with surprise
+and astonishment, and then addressed him in the French language.
+
+"Are you a Christian truly; and if so, whence do you come?"
+
+Cuthbert at once explained that he had been taken prisoner when with
+King Richard's army, and had effected his escape. He also told the old
+man that he had been remaining for the last four days in a cave higher
+up the stream. The hermit--for he was one--beckoned him to follow him,
+and Cuthbert found himself in a cave precisely similar to that which he
+himself inhabited. There were no signs of comfort of any kind; a
+bed-place made of great stones stood in one corner, and Cuthbert,
+remembering the comforts of his own grassy couch, shuddered at the
+thought of the intense discomfort of such a sleeping-place. In another
+corner was an altar, upon which stood a rough crucifix, before which the
+hermit knelt at once in prayer, Cuthbert following his example. Rising
+again, the hermit motioned to him to sit down, and then began a
+conversation with him.
+
+It was so long since the hermit had spoken to any living being that he
+had almost lost the use of his tongue, and his sentences were slow and
+ill-formed. However, Cuthbert was able to understand him, and he to
+gather the drift of what Cuthbert told him. The old man then showed him
+that by touching a stone in the corner of his cave the apparently solid
+rock opened, and revealed an entrance into an inner cave, which was lit
+by a ray of light which penetrated from above.
+
+"This," he said, "was made centuries ago, and was intended as a refuge
+from the persecutors of that day. The caves were then almost all
+inhabited by hermits, and although many recked not of their lives, and
+were quite ready to meet death through the knife of the infidel, others
+clung to existence, and preferred to pass many years of penance on earth
+for the sake of atoning for their sins before called upon to appear
+before their Maker. If you are pursued it will be safer for you to take
+up your abode here. I am known to all the inhabitants of this country,
+who look upon me as mad, and respect me accordingly. None ever interfere
+with me, or with the two or three other hermits, the remains of what was
+once almost an army, who now alone survive. I can offer you no
+hospitality beyond that of a refuge; but there is water in the river
+below, fruits and berries in abundance on the shrubs. What would you
+have more?"
+
+Cuthbert accepted the invitation with thanks; for he thought that even
+at the worst the presence of this holy man would be a protection to him
+from any Arabs who might discover him.
+
+For three or four days he resided with the hermit, who, although he
+stretched his long lean body upon the hard stones of his bed, and passed
+many hours of the night kneeling on the stone floor in front of his
+altar, yet had no objection to Cuthbert making himself as comfortable as
+he could under the circumstances.
+
+At the end of the fourth day Cuthbert asked him how long he had been
+there, and how he came to take up his abode in so desolate and fearsome
+a place. The hermit was silent for a time, and then said:
+
+"It is long indeed since my thoughts have gone back to the day when I
+was of the world. I know not whether it would not be a sin to recall
+them; but I will think the matter over to-night, and if it appears to me
+that you may derive good from my narrative, I will relate it to you
+to-morrow."
+
+The next day Cuthbert did not renew the request, leaving it to the
+hermit to speak should he think fit. It was not until the evening that
+he alluded to the subject; and then taking his seat on a bank near the
+edge of the river, he motioned to Cuthbert to sit beside him, and began:
+
+"My father was a peer of France, and I was brought up at the court.
+Although it may seem strange to you, looking upon this withered frame,
+sixty-five years back I was as bold and comely a knight as rode in the
+train of the king, for I am now past ninety, and for sixty years I have
+resided here. I was a favorite of the king's, and he loaded me with
+wealth and honor. He, too, was young, and I joined with him in the mad
+carousals and feastings of the court. My father resided for the most
+part at one of his castles in the country, and I, an only son, was left
+much to myself. I need not tell you that I was as wild and as wicked as
+all those around me; that I thought little of God, and feared neither
+Him nor man.
+
+"It chanced that one of the nobles--I need not mention his name--whose
+castle lay in the same province as that of my father, had a lovely
+daughter, who, being an only child, would be his heiress. She was
+considered one of the best matches in France, and reports of her
+exceeding beauty had reached the court. Although my allowance from my
+father, and from the estates which the king had given me personally,
+should have been more than enough for my utmost wants, gambling and
+riotous living swallowed up my revenue faster than it came in, and I was
+constantly harassed by debt.
+
+"Talking one night at supper with a number of bold companions as to the
+means we should take for restoring our wasted fortunes, some said in
+jest that the best plan would be for one of us to marry the beauty of
+Dauphiny. I at once said that I would be the man to do it; the idea was
+a wild one, and a roar of laughter greeted my words. Her father was
+known to be a stern and rigid man, and it was certain that he would not
+consent to give his daughter to a spendthrift young noble like myself.
+When the laughter had subsided I repeated my intention gravely, and
+offered to wager large sums with all around the table that I would
+succeed.
+
+"On the morrow I packed up a few of my belongings, put in my valise the
+dress of a wandering troubadour, and taking with me only a trusty
+servant, started for Dauphiny. It would be tedious to tell you the
+means I resorted to to obtain the affections of the heiress. I had been
+well instructed in music and could play on the lute, and knew by heart
+large numbers of ballads, and could myself, in case of necessity, string
+verses together with tolerable ease. As a troubadour I arrived at the
+castle gate, and craved permission to enter to amuse its occupants.
+Troubadours then, as now, were in high esteem in the south, and I was at
+once made a welcome guest.
+
+"Days passed, and weeks; still I lingered at the castle, my heart being
+now as much interested as my pride in the wager which I had undertaken.
+Suffice it to say that my songs, and perhaps my appearance--for I cannot
+be accused of vanity now in saying nature had been bountiful to me--won
+my way to her heart. Troubadours were licensed folk, and even in her
+father's presence there was naught unseemly in my singing songs of love.
+While he took them as the mere compliments of a troubadour, the lady, I
+saw, read them as serious effusions of my heart.
+
+"It was only occasionally that we met alone; but ere long she confessed
+that she loved me. Without telling her my real name, I disclosed to her
+that I was of her own rank and that I had entered upon the disguise I
+wore in order to win her love. She was romantic, and was flattered by my
+devotion. I owned to her that hitherto I had been wild and reckless; and
+she told me at once that her father destined her for the son of an old
+friend of his, to whom it appeared she had been affianced while still a
+baby. She was positive that nothing would move her father. For the man
+she was to marry she entertained no kind of affection, and indeed had
+never seen him, as she had been brought up in a convent to the age of
+fifteen; and just before she had returned thence he had gone to finish
+his education at Padua.
+
+"She trembled when I proposed flight; but I assured her that I was
+certain of the protection of the king, and that he would, I was sure,
+when the marriage was once celebrated, use his influence with her father
+to obtain his forgiveness.
+
+"The preparations for her flight were not long in making. I purchased a
+fleet horse in addition to my own, and ordered my servant to bring it to
+a point a short distance from the castle gate. I had procured a long
+rope with which to lower her down from her lattice to the moat below,
+which was at present dry, intending myself to slide after her. The night
+chosen was one when I knew that the count was to have guests, and I
+thought that they would probably, as is the custom, drink heavily, and
+that there would be less fear of any watch being kept.
+
+"The guests arrived just at nightfall. I had feigned illness, and kept
+my room. From time to time I heard through the windows of the banqueting
+hall bursts of laughter. These gradually ceased; and at last when all
+was still I, after waiting some time, stole from my room with a rope in
+my hand to the apartment occupied by her. A slight tap at the door, as
+arranged, was at once answered, and I found her ready cloaked and
+prepared for the enterprise. She trembled from head to foot, but I
+cheered her to the best of my power, and at last she was in readiness to
+be lowered. The window was at a considerable height from the ground; but
+the rope was a long one, and I had no fear of its reaching the bottom.
+Fastening it round her waist, I began to lower her from the window.
+
+"The night was a windy one, and she swung backward and forward as she
+went down. By what chance it was I know not--for I had examined the rope
+and found it secure--but methinks in swaying backward and forward it
+may have caught a sharp stone, maybe it was a punishment from Heaven
+upon me for robbing a father of his child--but suddenly I felt there was
+no longer a weight on my arms. A fearful shriek rang through the air,
+and, looking out, I saw far below a white figure stretched senseless in
+the mud!
+
+"For a minute I stood paralyzed. But the cry had aroused others, and,
+turning round, I saw a man at the door with a drawn sword. Wild with
+grief and despair, and thinking, not of making my escape, or of
+concealing my part in what had happened, but rushing without an
+instant's delay to the body of her I loved so well, I drew my sword, and
+like a madman rushed upon him who barred the door. The combat was brief
+but furious, and nerved by the madness of despair I broke down his guard
+and ran him through the body. As he fell back, his face came in the full
+light of the moon, which streamed through the open door of the passage,
+and to my utter horror and bewilderment I saw that I had slain my
+father.
+
+"What happened after that night I know not. I believe that I made my
+escape from the castle and rushed round to the body of her whose life I
+had destroyed, and that there finding her dead, I ran wildly across the
+country. When I came to my senses months had passed, and I was the
+inmate of an asylum for men bereaved of their senses, kept by noble
+monks. Here for two years I remained, the world believing that I was
+dead. None knew that the troubadour whose love had cost the lady her
+life, who had slain the guest of her father, and had then disappeared,
+was the unhappy son of that guest. My friends in Paris when they heard
+of the tragedy of course associated it with me, but they all kept
+silent. The monks, to whom I confessed the whole story, were shocked
+indeed, but consoled me in my grief and despair by the assurance that
+however greatly I had sinned, the death of the lady had been accidental,
+and that if I were a parricide it was at least unintentionally.
+
+"My repentance was deep and sincere; and after awhile, under another
+name, I joined the army of the Crusaders, to expiate my sin by warring
+for the holy sepulcher. I fought as men fight who have no wish to live;
+but while all around me fell by sword and disease, death kept aloof from
+me. When the Crusade had failed I determined to turn forever from the
+world, and to devote my life to prayer and penance; and so casting aside
+my armor I made my way here, and took up my abode in a cave in this
+valley, where at that time were many thousands of other hermits--for the
+Saracens, while they gained much money from fines and exactions from
+pilgrims who came to Jerusalem, and fought stoutly against those who
+sought to capture that city, were in the main tolerant, and offered no
+hindrance to the community of men whom they looked upon as mad.
+
+"Here, my son, for more than sixty years have I prayed, with much
+fasting and penance. I trust now that the end is nearly at hand, and
+that my long life of mortification may be deemed to have obliterated the
+evil deeds which I did in my youth. Let my fate be a warning to you.
+Walk steadily in the right way; indulge not in feasting and evil
+companionship; and above all, do not enter upon evil deeds, the end of
+which no man can see."
+
+The hermit was silent, and Cuthbert, seeing that his thoughts had again
+referred to the past, wandered away, and left him sitting by the river
+side. Some hours later he returned and found the hermit kneeling before
+the altar; and the next morning the latter said:
+
+"I presume, my son, you do not wish to remain here as a hermit, as I
+have done? Methinks it were well that we made our arrangements for your
+return to the Christian host, who will, I hope, ere long be at the gates
+of Jerusalem."
+
+"I should like nothing better," Cuthbert said. "But ignorant as I am of
+the nature of the country, it seems to be nigh impossible to penetrate
+through the hosts of the Saracens to reach the camp of King Richard."
+
+"The matter is difficult and not without danger," the hermit said. "As
+to the nature of the country, I myself know but little, for my dealings
+with the natives have been few and simple. There are, however, several
+Christian communities dwelling among the heathen. They are poor, and are
+forced to live in little-frequented localities. Their Christianity may
+be suspected by their neighbors, but as they do no man harm, and carry
+on their worship in secret, they are little interfered with. There is
+one community among the hills between this and Jerusalem, and I can give
+you instructions for reaching this, together with a token which will
+secure you hospitality there, and they will no doubt do their best to
+forward you to another station. When you approach the flat country where
+the armies are maneuvering you must doubtless trust to yourself; but as
+far as the slopes extend, methinks that our friends will be able to pass
+you without great difficulty."
+
+Cuthbert's heart rose greatly at the prospect of once again entering
+upon an active life, and the next evening, with many thanks for his
+kindness, he knelt before the aged hermit to receive his blessing.
+
+With the instructions given him he had no difficulty in making his way
+through the mountains, until after some five hours' walk he found
+himself at a little village situated in a narrow valley.
+
+Going to the door of the principal hut he knocked, and upon entering
+showed the owner--who opened the door--a rosette of peculiar beads and
+repeated the name of Father Anselm. The peasant at once recognized it
+and bade Cuthbert welcome. He knew but a few words of French, although
+doubtless his ancestors had been of European extraction. In the morning
+he furnished Cuthbert with the sheepskin and short tunic which formed
+the dress of a shepherd, and dyeing his limbs and face a deep brown he
+himself started with Cuthbert on his journey to the next Christian
+community.
+
+This was a small one consisting of two huts only, built almost on the
+summit of a mountain, the inhabitants living partly on the milk and
+cheese of their goats and partly upon the scanty vegetables which grew
+around the huts.
+
+His welcome was as cordial as that of the night before; and the next
+morning, his former guide taking leave of him, the peasant in whose
+house he had slept again conducted him forward to another community.
+This was the last station and stood in a narrow gorge on the face of the
+hills looking down over the plain, beyond which in the far distance a
+faint line of blue sea was visible.
+
+This community was far more prosperous and well-to-do than those at
+which the previous nights had been passed. The head of the village
+appeared to be a personage of some importance; and although clinging in
+secret to his Christian faith, he and his belongings had so far adopted
+the usages of the Mussulmen that apparently no thought of their
+Christianity entered into the minds of the authorities. He was the owner
+of two or three horses and of some extensive vineyards and olive
+grounds. He was also able to speak French with some degree of fluency.
+
+At considerable length he explained to Cuthbert the exact position of
+the Christian army, which had moved some distance along the coast since
+Cuthbert had left it. It was, he said, exposed to constant attacks by
+the Saracens, who harassed it in every way, and permitted it no repose.
+He said that the high hopes which had been raised by the defeat of the
+Saracens at Azotus had now fallen, and that it was feared the Christians
+would not be able to force their way forward to Jerusalem. The great
+portion of their animals had died, and the country was so eaten up by
+the Saracen hosts that an advance upon Jerusalem without a large baggage
+train was next to impossible; and indeed if the Christians were to
+arrive before that city, they could effect nothing without the aid of
+the heavy machines necessary for battering the walls or effecting an
+escalade.
+
+Cuthbert was vastly grieved when he heard of the probable failure of the
+expedition, and he burned with eagerness to take his part again in the
+dangers and difficulties which beset the Christian army. His host
+pointed out to him the extreme difficulty and danger of his crossing the
+enemy's lines, but at the same time offered to do all in his power to
+assist him. After two days' stay at the village, and discussing the pros
+and cons of all possible plans, it was decided that the best chance lay
+in a bold effort. The host placed at his disposal one of his horses,
+together with such clothes as would enable him to ride as an Arab chief
+of rank and station; a long lance was furnished him, a short and heavy
+mace, and scimitar; a bag of dates was hung at the saddlebow; and with
+the sincerest thanks to his protector, and with a promise that should
+the Christian host win their way to Jerusalem the steed should be
+returned with ample payment, Cuthbert started on his journey.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+A FIGHT OF HEROES.
+
+
+The horse was a good and spirited one, and when he had once descended to
+the plains, Cuthbert rode gayly along, exulting in his freedom, and in
+once again possessing arms to defend himself should it be needed. His
+appearance was so exactly that of the horsemen who were continually
+passing and repassing that no observation whatever was attracted by it.
+Through villages, and even through camps, Cuthbert rode fearlessly, and
+arrived, without having once been accosted, near the main camp of the
+Saracens, which extended for miles parallel to the sea. But at a
+distance of some three leagues beyond could be seen the white tents of
+the Christian host, and Cuthbert felt that the time of trial was now at
+hand.
+
+He dismounted for an hour to allow his steed to rest itself, fed it with
+dates from his wallet, and gave it a drink of water at the stream. Then,
+when he felt that it had thoroughly recovered its strength and
+freshness, he remounted, and rode briskly on as before. He passed
+unchallenged, attracting no more notice than a person nowadays would do
+in walking along a crowded street. Without hesitation he passed through
+the tents and started across the open country. Bands of horsemen were
+seen here and there, some going, and some coming from the direction of
+the Christian camp. As it was doubtless supposed that he was on his way
+to join some band that had gone on in advance, the passage of the
+solitary horseman excited no comment until he approached within about
+two miles of the Christian camp. There were now, so far as he could see,
+no enemies between him and the point he so longed to gain. But at this
+minute a group of Arab horsemen, gathered, apparently on the lookout
+against any movement of the Christians, shouted to him "Halt!" demanding
+whither he was going.
+
+Up to this point Cuthbert had ridden at a gentle canter; but at the
+challenge he put spurs into his steed and made across the plain at full
+speed. With a wild yell the Arabs started in pursuit. They lay at first
+some two hundred yards on his right, and he had therefore a considerable
+start of them. His horse was fairly fresh, for the journey that he had
+made had only been about fifteen miles--an inconsiderable distance to an
+Arab steed. For half a mile he did not think that his pursuers gained
+much upon him, riding as they had done sideways. They had now gathered
+in his rear, and the nearest was some one hundred and fifty yards behind
+him. A quarter of a mile further he again looked around, and found that
+two of the Arabs, far better mounted than the others, had come within
+half the distance which separated them from him when he last glanced
+back. His horse was straining to the utmost, and he felt that it could
+do no more; he therefore prepared himself for a desperate fight should
+his pursuers overtake him. In another quarter of a mile they were but a
+short distance behind, and an arrow whizzing by Cuthbert's ear told him
+they had betaken themselves to their bows.
+
+Half a mile ahead he saw riding toward him a group of Christian knights;
+but he felt that it was too late for him to hope to reach them, and that
+his only chance now was to boldly encounter his pursuers. The main body
+of the Arabs was fully two hundred yards behind--a short distance when
+going at a gallop--which left him but little time to shake off the
+pursuit of the two immediately behind him.
+
+A sharp stinging pain in his leg told him that it was time to make his
+effort; and checking his horse, he wheeled suddenly round. The two Arabs
+with a yell rode at him with pointed lance. With his right hand Cuthbert
+grasped the short heavy mace which hung at his saddlebow, and being well
+practiced in the hurling of this weapon--which formed part of the
+education of a good knight--he cast it with all his force at the chest
+of the Arab approaching on that side. The point of the spear was within
+a few yards of his breast as he flung the mace; but his aim was true,
+for it smote the Saracen full on the chest, and hurled him from his
+horse as if struck with a thunderbolt. At the same instant Cuthbert
+threw himself flat on the neck of his steed and the lance of the Arab
+who came up on the other side passed harmlessly between his shoulders,
+tearing his clothes as it went. In an instant Cuthbert had wheeled his
+horse, and before the Arab could turn his steed Cuthbert, coming up from
+behind, had run him through the body.
+
+Short as the delay had been, the main body of the pursuers were scarcely
+fifty yards away; but Cuthbert now continued his flight toward the
+knights, who were galloping forward at full speed; and a moment
+afterward glancing back, he saw that his pursuers had turned and were in
+full flight.
+
+With a shout of joy he rode forward to the party who had viewed with
+astonishment this conflict between what appeared to be three of the
+infidels. Even louder than his first shout of exultation was the cry of
+joy which he raised at seeing among the party to whom he rode up the
+Earl of Evesham, who reined in his horse in astonishment, and drew his
+sword as the supposed enemy galloped toward him.
+
+"My lord, my lord!" Cuthbert said. "Thank Heaven I am safe with you
+again."
+
+The earl lowered his sword in astonishment.
+
+"Am I mad," he said, "or dreaming, or is this really Sir Cuthbert?"
+
+"It is I, sure enough," Cuthbert exclaimed, "although truly I look more
+like a Bedouin soldier than a Christian knight."
+
+"My dear boy!" exclaimed the earl, galloping forward and throwing his
+arms around Cuthbert's neck, "we thought you were dead. But by what
+wonderful fortune have you succeeded in escaping?"
+
+In a few words Cuthbert related the principal incidents of his
+adventures, and he was heartily congratulated by the assembled knights.
+
+There was, however, no time for long explanations. Large bodies of the
+Saracen horse were already sweeping down to capture, if possible, this
+small band of knights who had ventured so far from the camp; and as King
+Richard's orders were that none should venture upon conflicts except by
+his orders, the party reluctantly turned their horses and galloped back
+to the camp.
+
+Great as had been the earl's joy, it was, if possible, exceeded by that
+of Cnut on discovering in the Arab chief who rode up alongside the earl
+the lad he loved so well. Loud and hearty were the cheers which rang out
+from the earl's camp as the news spread, and Cuthbert was compelled to
+shake hands with the whole party before entering the earl's tent, to
+refresh himself and give the narrative of what had happened.
+
+Cuthbert, retiring to his tent with the Earl of Evesham, inquired of him
+what had taken place during his absence.
+
+"For," he said, "although but a short three days' march from here, I
+have been as one of the dead, and have heard nothing whatever of what
+has taken place."
+
+"Nothing could have gone worse," the earl said. "We have had nothing but
+dissensions and quarrels. First, the king fell out with the Archduke of
+Austria."
+
+"On what ground did this happen?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"For once," the earl said, "the king our master was wholly in the wrong,
+which is not generally the case. We had just taken Ascalon, and were
+hard at work fortifying the place. King Richard with his usual zeal, in
+order to encourage the army, seized heavy stones and himself bore them
+into their place. The archduke stood near with some of his knights: and
+it may be that the haughty Austrian looked somewhat superciliously at
+our king thus laboring.
+
+"'Why do you not make a show of helping?' King Richard said, going up to
+him. 'It would encourage the men, and show that the labor upon which we
+are engaged can be undertaken by all without derogation.'
+
+"To this the archduke replied:
+
+"'I am not the son of a mason!'
+
+"Whereupon Richard, whose blood no doubt had been excited by the air of
+the Austrian, struck him with his hand a fierce blow across the face. We
+nearly betook ourselves to our swords on both sides; but King Richard
+himself could have scattered half the Austrians, and these, knowing that
+against his impetuous valor they could do nothing, simply withdrew from
+our camp, and sailed the next day for home. Then the king, in order to
+conciliate some at least of his allies, conferred the crown of Jerusalem
+upon Conrad of Montferat. No sooner had he done this than Conrad was
+mysteriously wounded. By whom it was done none knew. Some say that it
+was by emissaries of the Old Man of the Mountain. Others affirm that it
+was the jealousy of some of the knights of the holy orders. But be that
+as it may, he died. Some of the French, ever jealous of the valor of our
+king, ascribed it to his orders. This monstrous accusation coming to the
+ears of King Richard, he had hot words with the Duke of Burgundy. In
+this I blame him not, for it is beyond all reason that a man like the
+king, whose faults, such as they are, arise from too much openness, and
+from the want of concealment of such dislikes as he may have, should
+resort to poison to free himself of a man whom he himself had but a day
+or two before appointed King of Jerusalem. However it be, the
+consequences were most unfortunate, for the result of the quarrel was
+that the Duke of Burgundy and his Frenchmen followed the example of the
+Austrians, and we were left alone. Before this we had marched upon
+Jerusalem. But the weather had been so bad, and our train was so
+insufficient to carry the engines of war, that we had been forced to
+fall back again. King Richard again advanced, and with much toil we went
+as far as the village of Bethany."
+
+"Why," Cuthbert exclaimed, "I passed through that village, and it is but
+three miles from the holy city."
+
+"That is so," the earl said; "and many of us, ascending the hill in
+front, saw Jerusalem. But even then it was certain that we must again
+retrace our steps; and when we asked King Richard to come to the crest
+of the hill to see the holy city, he refused to do so, saying, 'No;
+those who are not worthy of conquering Jerusalem should not look at it!'
+This was but a short time since, and we are now retracing our steps to
+Acre, and are treating with Saladin for a peace."
+
+"Then," Cuthbert said sadly, "all our hopes and efforts are thrown away;
+all this blood has been shed for nothing; and after the three great
+powers of Europe have engaged themselves solemnly in the war, we are
+baffled, and have to fall back before the hordes of the infidels."
+
+"Partly before them," the earl said, "partly as the result of our own
+jealousies and passions. Had King Richard been a lesser man than he is,
+we might have conquered Jerusalem. But he is so extraordinary a warrior
+that his glory throws all others into the shade. He is a good general,
+perhaps the best in Europe; and had he done nothing but lead, assuredly
+we should have carried out our purpose. See how ably he maneuvered the
+army at the fight of Azotus. Never was a more complete defeat than that
+which he inflicted there upon the Saracens; and although the fact that
+his generalship achieved this, might have caused some jealousy to the
+other commanders, this might have died away could he between the battles
+have been a general, and nothing more. But, alas! he is in addition a
+knight-errant--and such a knight-errant as Europe has never seen before.
+Wherever there is danger, Richard will plunge into the midst. There are
+brave men in all the three armies; but the strongest and bravest are as
+children to King Richard. Alone he can dart into ranks of the infidels,
+and cut a lane for himself by the strength of his right arm. More than
+this, when danger has threatened he has snatched up his battle-ax and
+dashed into the fray without helm or cuirass, performing such prodigies
+of valor and strength that it has been to his prowess alone that victory
+was to be ascribed. Hence he is the idol of all the soldiers, whatever
+their nationality; for he is as ready to rush to the rescue of a French
+or Austrian knight when pressed as to that of his own men. But the
+devotion which the whole army felt for him was as gall and wormwood to
+the haughty Austrian and the indolent Frenchman; and the retirement of
+the King of France, which left Richard in supreme command, was in every
+way unfortunate."
+
+Upon the following day the army again marched, and Cuthbert could not
+but notice the difference, not only in number but in demeanor, from the
+splendid array which had left Acre a few months before. There was little
+now of the glory of pennon and banner; the bright helms and cuirasses
+were rusted and dinted, and none seemed to care aught for bravery of
+show. The knights and men-at-arms were sunburnt and thin, and seemed but
+half the weight that they had been when they landed. Fatigue, hardship,
+and the heat had done their work; disease had swept off vast numbers.
+But the remains of the army were so formidable in their fighting powers
+that the Saracens, although following them at a distance in vast
+numbers, did not venture an attack upon them.
+
+A few days after their arrival at Acre, the king gave orders for the
+embarkation of the troops. Just as they were preparing to enter the
+ships a small vessel was seen entering the harbor. It drew up to the
+shore, and a knight leaped from it, and, inquiring where King Richard
+was to be found, made his way to the king, who was standing
+superintending the embarkation of some of the horses.
+
+"The Saracens, sire!" he exclaimed. "The Saracens are besieging Jaffa,
+and the place must be lost unless assistance arrives in a day or two."
+
+The king leaped on board the nearest ship, shouted to his leading
+officers to follow him, and gave orders to others to bring down the
+troops with all possible speed, to waste not a moment, and to see that
+all was done, and then, in five minutes after the receipt of the news he
+started for Jaffa. The Earl of Evesham and Cuthbert had been standing
+near the king when the order was given, and followed him at once on
+board the bark which he had chosen.
+
+"Ah, my gallant young knight," the king exclaimed, "I am right glad to
+see you with me. We shall have more fighting before we have done, and I
+know that that suits your mood as well as my own."
+
+The king's vessel was far in advance of any of the others, when early
+the following morning it arrived at Jaffa.
+
+"Your eyes are better than mine," the king said to Cuthbert. "Tell me
+what is that flag flying on the top of the town."
+
+Cuthbert looked at it earnestly.
+
+"I fear, sire, that it is the crescent. We have arrived too late."
+
+"By the holy cross," said King Richard, "that shall not be so; for if
+the place be taken, we will retake it."
+
+As the vessel neared the shore a monk ran out into the water up to his
+shoulders, and said to the king that the citadel still held out, and
+that even now the Saracens might be driven back. Without delay the king
+leaped into the water, followed by the knights and men-at-arms, and
+entering the gate, threw himself upon the infidels within, who, busy
+plundering, had not noticed the arrival of the ship.
+
+The war cry of "St. George! St. George!" which the king always shouted
+in battle, struck panic among the infidels; and although the king was
+followed but by five knights and a few men-at-arms, the Saracens, to the
+number of three thousand, fled before him, and all who tarried were
+smitten down. The king followed them out upon the plain, driving them
+before him as a lion would drive a flock of sheep, and then returned
+triumphant into the city.
+
+The next day, some more ships having arrived, King Richard found that in
+all, including the garrison, he could muster two thousand combatants.
+The enemy renewed the attack in great numbers, and the assaults upon
+the walls were continuous and desperate. King Richard, who loved
+fighting in the plain rather than behind walls, was impatient at this,
+and at one time so fierce was the attack that he resolved to sally out.
+Only ten horses remained in the town, and King Richard, mounting one,
+called upon nine of the knights to mount and sally out with him. The
+little band of ten warriors charged down upon the host of the Saracens
+and swept them before them. It was a marvelous sight indeed to see so
+small a group of horsemen dashing through a crowd of Saracen warriors.
+These, although at first beaten back, yet rallied, and the ten knights
+had great difficulty in fighting their way back to the town. When near
+the walls the Christians again made a stand, and a few knights sallied
+out from the town on foot and joined them. Among these was Cuthbert, the
+Earl of Evesham having accompanied King Richard in his charge. In all,
+seventeen knights were now rallied round the king. So fierce was the
+charge of the Saracens that the king ordered those on horseback to
+dismount, and with their horses in the center, the little body knelt
+with their lances opposed to the Saracens. Again and again the wild
+cavalry swept down upon this little force, but in vain did they attempt
+to break their ranks. The scene was indeed an extraordinary one. At last
+the king, seeing that the enemy were losing heart, again ordered the
+knights to mount, and these dashing among the enemy, completed their
+defeat.
+
+While this had been going on news came to the king that the Saracens
+from another side had made their way into Jaffa, and were massacring the
+Christians. Without, an instant's delay he flew to their succor,
+followed only by two knights and a few archers, the rest being so worn
+by their exertions as to be unable to move. The Mamelukes, the chosen
+guard of Saladin, had headed the attack; but even these were driven out
+from the town, and Richard dashed out from the city in their pursuit.
+One Saracen emir, distinguished for his stature and strength, ventured
+to match himself against the king, and rode boldly at him. But with one
+blow Richard severed his head, and his right shoulder and arm, from his
+body. Then having, by his single arm, put to rout the Saracens at this
+point, he dashed through them to the aid of the little band of knights
+who had remained on the defensive when he left them at the alarm of the
+city being entered. These were almost sinking with fatigue and wounds;
+but King Richard opened a way around them by slaying numbers of the
+enemy, and then charged again alone into the midst of the Mussulman
+host, and was lost to the sight of his companions. All thought that they
+would never see him again. But he soon reappeared, his horse covered
+with blood, but himself unwounded; and the attack of the enemy ceased.
+
+From the hour of daybreak, it is said, Richard had not ceased for a
+moment to deal out his blows, and the skin of his hand adhered to the
+handle of his battle-ax. This narration would appear almost fabulous,
+were it not that it is attested in the chronicles of several
+eye-witnesses, and for centuries afterward the Saracen women hushed
+their babes when fractious by threatening them with Malek-Rik, the name
+which they gave to King Richard.
+
+Glorious as was the success, it was a sad one, for several of the most
+devoted of the followers of King Richard were wounded badly, some few to
+death. Among these last, to the terrible grief of Cuthbert, was his
+friend and patron, the Earl of Evesham. The king, on taking off his
+armor, hurried to his tent.
+
+"The glory of this day is marred indeed," he said to the wounded knight,
+"if I am to lose you, Sir Walter."
+
+"I fear that it must even be so, my lord," the dying earl said. "I am
+glad that I have seen this day, for never did I think to witness such
+feats as those which your majesty has performed; and though the Crusade
+has failed, and the holy city remains in the hands of the infidel, yet
+assuredly no shadow of disgrace has fallen upon the English arms, and,
+indeed, great glory has accrued to us. Whatever may be said of the Great
+Crusade, it will at least be allowed by all men, and for all time, that
+had the princes and soldiers of other nations done as your majesty and
+your followers have done, the holy city would have fallen into our hands
+within a month of our putting foot upon the soil. Your majesty, I have a
+boon to ask."
+
+"You have but to name it, Sir Walter, and it is yours."
+
+"Sir Cuthbert, here," he said, pointing to the young knight, who was
+sorrowfully kneeling by his bedside, "is as a son to me. The
+relationship by blood is but slight, but by affection it is as close as
+though he were mine own. I have, as your majesty knows, no male heirs,
+and my daughter is but young, and will now be a royal ward. I beseech
+your majesty to bestow her in marriage, when the time comes, upon Sir
+Cuthbert. They have known each other as children, and the union will
+bring happiness, methinks, to both, as well as strength and protection
+to her; and further, if it might be, I would fain that you should bestow
+upon him my title and dignity."
+
+"It shall be so," the king said. "When your eyes are closed, Sir Walter,
+Sir Cuthbert shall be Earl of Evesham, and, when the time comes, the
+husband of your daughter."
+
+Cuthbert was too overwhelmed with grief to feel a shadow of exaltation
+at the gracious intimation of the king; although, even then, a thought
+of future happiness in the care of the fair young lady Marguerite passed
+before his mind. For the last time the king gave his hand to his
+faithful servant, who pressed it to his lips, and a few minutes
+afterward breathed his last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+AN ALPINE STORM.
+
+
+The tremendous exertions which King Richard had made told upon him, and
+attacks of fever succeeded each other at short intervals. This, however,
+mattered the less, since negotiations were now proceeding between him
+and Saladin. It was impossible, with the slight means at his disposal,
+for Richard further to carry on the Crusade alone. Moreover, pressing
+news had arrived from his mother in England, urging him to return, as
+his brother John was intriguing against him, and had already assumed all
+but the kingly title. Saladin was equally desirous of peace. His wild
+troops were, for the most part, eager to return to their homes, and the
+defeats which they had suffered, and the, to them, miraculous power of
+King Richard's arm, had lowered their spirit and made them eager to be
+away. Therefore he consented without difficulty to the terms proposed.
+By these, the Christians were to surrender Ascalon, but were to keep
+Jaffa, Tyre, and the fortresses along the coast. All hostilities were to
+be suspended on both sides for the space of three years, three months,
+three weeks, three days, and three hours, when Richard hoped to return
+again and to recommence the struggle.
+
+Between the sultan and King Richard a feeling approaching that of
+friendship had sprung up during the campaign. Saladin was himself brave
+in the extreme, and exposed his life as fearlessly as did his Christian
+rival, and the two valiant leaders recognized the great qualities of
+each other. Several times during the campaign when Richard had been ill,
+the emir had sent him presents of fruit and other matters, to which
+Richard had responded in the same spirit. An interview had taken place
+between them which further cemented their friendship; and when Richard
+promised to return again at the end of the truce with a far larger army,
+and to accomplish the rescue of the holy city, the sultan smiled, and
+said that it appeared that valor alone was not sufficient to conquer in
+the Holy Land, but that if Jerusalem were to fall into the hands of the
+Christians, it could fall into no worthier hands than those of
+Malek-Rik.
+
+So, with many mutual courtesies, the great rivals separated, and soon
+after King Richard and the little remnant of his army embarked on board
+ship, and set sail for England.
+
+It was on October 11, 1192, that Richard Coeur de Lion left Palestine.
+Soon after they started a storm suddenly burst upon them, and dispersed
+them in various directions. The ship in which Queen Berengaria was
+carried arrived safely in Sicily; but that in which King Richard was
+borne was missing, and none of his fellow-voyagers knew what had become
+of him. Sir Cuthbert was in the same vessel as the king, and the bark
+was driven upon the Island of Corfu. All reached shore in safety, and
+King Richard then hired three small vessels, in which he sailed to the
+port of Zara, whence he hoped to reach the domains of his nephew, Otho
+of Saxony, the son of his sister Matilda. The king had with him now but
+two of his knights, Baldwin of Béthune, and Cuthbert of Evesham. Cnut
+was with his feudal chief--for such Cuthbert had now, by his accession
+to the rank of Earl of Evesham, become--and three or four English
+archers.
+
+"I fear, my lords," the king said to his knights as he sat in a little
+room in an inn at Zara, "that my plight is a bad one. I am surrounded by
+enemies, and, alas! I can no longer mount my steed and ride out as at
+Jaffa to do battle with them. My brother, John Lackland, is scheming to
+take my place upon the throne of England. Philip of France, whose mind
+is far better at such matters than at setting armies in the field, is in
+league with him. The Emperor Henry has laid claim to the throne of
+Sicily. Leopold of Austria has not forgiven me the blow I struck him in
+the face at Ascalon, and the friends of Conrad of Montferat are
+spreading far and wide the lie that I was the instigator of his murder.
+Sure never had a poor king so many enemies, and few have ever had so
+small a following as I have now. What think you, my lords? What course
+would you advise that I should adopt? If I can reach Saxony doubtless
+Otho will aid me. But hence to Dresden is a long journey indeed. I have
+neither credit nor funds to hire a ship to take us by sea. Nor would
+such a voyage be a safe one, when so many of my enemies' ships are on
+the main. I must needs, I think, go in disguise, for my way lies wholly
+through the country of my enemies."
+
+"Surely," Cuthbert said, "no potentate could for very shame venture to
+detain your majesty on your way from the Holy Land, where you have
+wrought such great deeds. Were I in your place, I would at once proclaim
+myself, mount my horse, have my banner carried before me, and ride
+openly on. You have, too, another claim, namely, that of being
+shipwrecked, and even in war-time nations respect those whom the force
+of God has thrown upon their shores."
+
+"I fear me, Sir Cuthbert," Sir Baldwin said, "that you overrate the
+chivalry of our master's enemies. Had we been thrown on the shores of
+France, Philip perhaps would hesitate to lay hands upon the king; but
+these petty German princelings have no idea of the observances of true
+chivalry. They are coarse and brutal in their ways; and though in
+outward form following the usage of knighthood, they have never been
+penetrated with its spirit. If the friends of Conrad of Montferat lay
+hands upon King Richard I fear that no scruples will prevent them from
+using their advantage to the utmost. Even their emperor I would not
+trust. The course which you advise would no doubt be in accordance with
+the spirit of King Richard; but it would be madness for him to judge
+other people's spirit by his own, and it would be rushing into the
+lion's den to proclaim himself here. I should recommend, if I might
+venture to do so, that his majesty should assume a false name, and that
+we should travel in small parties so as to attract no attention, each
+making his way to Saxony as best he may."
+
+There was silence for a minute or two, and then the king with a sigh
+said:
+
+"I fear that you are right, Sir Baldwin, and that there is no chivalry
+among these swinish German lords. You shall accompany me. Not, Sir
+Cuthbert," he observed kindly, noticing a look of disappointment upon
+the face of the young knight, "that I estimate your fidelity one whit
+lower than that of my brave friend; but he is the elder and the more
+versed in European travel, and may manage to bring matters through
+better than you would do. You will have dangers enough to encounter
+yourself, more even than I shall, for your brave follower, Cnut, can
+speak no language but his own, and your archers will be hard to pass as
+any other than what they are. You must be my messenger to England,
+should you arrive there without me. Tell my mother and wife where you
+left me, and that, if I do not come home I have fallen into the hands
+of one or other of my bitter foes. Bid them bestir themselves to hold
+England for me against my brother John, and, if needs be, to move the
+sovereigns of Europe to free me from the hands of my enemies. Should a
+ransom be needed, I think that my people of England will not grudge
+their goods for their king."
+
+The following day the king bade farewell to his faithful followers,
+giving his hand to kiss, not only to Sir Cuthbert, but to Cnut and his
+archers.
+
+"You have done me brave service," he said, "and I trust may yet have
+occasion to do it again. These are bad times when Richard of England has
+naught wherewith to reward his friends. But," he said, taking a gold
+chain from his neck and breaking it with his strong fingers into five
+fragments, "that is for you, Cnut, and for your four archers, in
+remembrance of King Richard."
+
+The men, albeit hardened by many scenes of warfare, yet shed tears
+plenteously at parting with the king.
+
+"We had better," Cuthbert said to them when they were alone, "delay here
+for a few days. If we are taken, the news that some Englishmen have been
+captured making their way north from Zara will spread rapidly, and may
+cause the enemies of Richard to be on the lookout for him, suspecting
+that the ship which bore us may also have carried him; for the news that
+he is missing will spread rapidly through Europe, and will set all his
+enemies on the alert."
+
+In accordance with this plan they delayed for another ten days at Zara,
+and then, hiring a small boat, were landed some thirty miles further
+along the coast. Cuthbert had obtained for Cnut the dress of a palmer,
+as in this he would pass almost unquestioned, and his silence might be
+accounted for on the ground that he had taken a vow of silence. He
+himself had placed on his coat armor a red cross, instead of the white
+cross borne by the English knights, and would now pass as a French
+knight. Similar changes were made in the dress of his followers, and he
+determined to pass as a French noble who had been wrecked on his way
+home, and who was returning through Germany to France. The difficulties
+in his own case would not be serious, as his French would pass muster
+anywhere in Germany. The greatest difficulty would be with his
+attendants; but he saw no way of avoiding this.
+
+Cuthbert's object, when with his little party he separated from King
+Richard, was to make his way to Verona, thence cross by Trent into
+Bavaria, and so to journey to Saxony. Fortunately he had at the storming
+of Acre become possessed of a valuable jewel, and this he now sold, and
+purchased a charger for himself. He had little fear of any trouble in
+passing through the north of Italy, for this was neutral ground, where
+knights of all nations met, and where, neither as an English nor a
+French Crusader, would he attract either comment or attention.
+
+It was a slow journey across the northern plains, as of course he had to
+accommodate his pace to that of his men. Cnut and the archers had
+grumbled much at the change of the color of the cross upon their
+jerkins; and, as Cnut said, would have been willing to run greater
+perils under their true colors than to affect to belong to any other
+nationality. On their way they passed through Padua, and there stopped a
+few days. Cuthbert could but feel, in looking at the splendor of this
+Italian city, the courteous manner of its people, and the university,
+which was even then famous, how far in advance were those stately cities
+of Italy to Western Europe. His followers were as much surprised as
+himself at the splendors of the city. Here they experienced no trouble
+or annoyance whatever, for to the cities of Italy knights of all
+nations resorted, learned men came to study, philosophers to dispute,
+and as these brought their attendants with them, you might in the
+streets of Padua and its sister cities hear every language in Europe
+spoken.
+
+From Padua they journeyed to Verona, marveling greatly at the richness
+of the country. The footmen, however, grumbled at the flatness of the
+plain, and said that it was as bad as marching in the Holy Land. On
+their right, however, the slopes of the Alps, thickly clad with forests,
+reached down nearly to the road, and Cuthbert assured them that they
+would have plenty of climbing before they had done. At Verona they
+tarried again, and wondered much at the great amphitheater, then almost
+perfect. Cuthbert related to Cnut and the archers how men had there been
+set to fight while the great stone benches round were thronged with men
+and women looking on at their death struggles, and said that not
+unfrequently British captives were brought hither and made to contend in
+the arena. The honest fellows were full of indignation and horror at the
+thought of men killing themselves to give sport to others. They were
+used to hard knocks, and thought but little of their life, and would
+have betaken themselves to their bows and bills without hesitation in
+case of a quarrel. But to fight in cold blood for amusement seemed to
+them very terrible.
+
+Cuthbert would then have traveled on to Milan, at that time next to Rome
+the richest city in Europe, but he longed to be back in England, and was
+the more anxious as he knew that King Richard would be passing through
+great dangers, and he hoped to meet him at the court of Saxony. His
+money, too, was fast running out, and he found that it would be beyond
+his slender means to extend his journey so far. At Verona, then, they
+turned their back on the broad plains of Lombardy, and entered the
+valley of the Trent.
+
+So far no observation whatever had been excited by the passage of the
+English knight. So many Crusaders were upon their way home, many in
+grievous plight, that the somewhat shabby retinue passed unnoticed. But
+they were now leaving Italy, and entering a country where German was
+spoken. Trent, in those days an important city, was then, and is still,
+the meeting place of Italy and Germany. Both tongues are here spoken;
+but while the Italian perhaps preponderates, the customs, manners, and
+mode of thought of the people belong to those of the mountaineers of the
+Tyrol rather than of the dwellers on the plains.
+
+"You are choosing a stormy time," the landlord of the hostelry where
+they put up said to Cuthbert. "The winter is now at hand, and storms
+sweep across the passes with terrible violence. You had better, at the
+last village you come to in the valley, obtain the services of a guide,
+for should a snowstorm come on when you are crossing, the path will be
+lost, and nothing will remain but a miserable death. By daylight the
+road is good. It has been cut with much trouble, and loaded mules can
+pass over without difficulty. Poles have been erected at short distances
+to mark the way when the snow covers it. But when the snowstorms sweep
+across the mountains it is impossible to see ten paces before you, and
+if the traveler leaves the path he is lost."
+
+"But I suppose," Cuthbert said, "that even in winter travelers pass
+over?"
+
+"They do," the host said. "The road is as open in winter as in summer,
+although, of course, the dangers are greater. Still, there is nothing to
+prevent vigorous men from crossing over when the storms come on. Now,
+too, with the snow already lying in the upper forests, the wolves are
+abroad, and should you be attacked by one of those herds, you will find
+it hard work to defend your lives. Much has been done to render the
+road safe. At the distance of every league stone houses have been
+erected, where travelers can find shelter either from the storm or from
+the attacks of wolves or bears, for these, too, abound in the forests,
+and in summer there is fine hunting among them. You are, as I see,
+returning from the Holy Land, an are therefore used to heat rather than
+cold, so I should advise you before you leave this city to buy some
+rough cloaks to shield you from the cold. You can obtain them for your
+followers very cheaply, made of the mountain goat or of sheepskins, and
+even those of bearskin well dressed are by no means dear."
+
+Obtaining the address of a merchant who kept these things, Cuthbert
+proceeded thither; and purchased five cloaks of goatskin with hoods to
+pull over their heads for his followers while for himself he obtained
+one of rather finer material.
+
+Another two days' journey brought them to the foot of the steep ascent,
+and here they hired the services of a guide. The ascent was long and
+difficult, and in spite of the praises which the host had bestowed upon
+the road, it was so steep that Cuthbert was, for the most part, obliged
+to walk, leading his steed, whose feet slipped on the smooth rock, and
+as in many places a false step would have thrown them down many hundreds
+of feet into the valley below, Cuthbert judged it safer to trust himself
+to his own feet. He disincumbered himself of his helmet and gorget, and
+placed these upon the horse's back. At nightfall they had attained a
+very considerable height, and stopped at one of the small refuges of
+which the landlord had spoken.
+
+"I like not the look of the weather," the guide said in the morning--at
+least that was what Cuthbert judged him to say, for he could speak no
+word of the man's language. His actions, however, as he looked toward
+the sky, and shook his head, spoke for themselves, and Cuthbert, feeling
+his own powerlessness in a situation so novel to him, felt serious
+misgivings at the prospect.
+
+The scenery was now very wild. On all sides crags and mountain tops
+covered with snow glistened in the sun. The woods near the path were
+free of snow; but higher up they rose black above the white ground. The
+wind blew keenly, and all rejoiced in the warm cloaks which they had
+obtained; for even with the protection of these they had found the cold
+bitter during the night.
+
+"I like not this country," Cnut said. "We grumbled at the heat of
+Palestine, but I had rather march across the sand there than in this
+inhospitable frozen region. The woods look as if they might contain
+specters. There is a silence which seems to be unnatural, and my
+courage, like the warmth of my body, is methinks oozing out from my
+fingers."
+
+Cuthbert laughed.
+
+"I have no doubt that your courage would come again much quicker than
+the warmth, Cnut, if there were any occasion for it. A brisk walk will
+set you all right again, and banish these uneasy fancies. To-night we
+shall be at the highest point, and to-morrow begin to descend toward
+Germany."
+
+All day the men kept steadily on. The guide from time to time looked
+apprehensively at the sky; and although in the earlier part of the day
+Cuthbert's inexperienced eye saw nothing to cause the slightest
+uneasiness, toward the afternoon the scene changed. Light clouds began
+to gather on the top of all the hills and to shut the mountain peaks
+entirely from view. The wind moaned between the gorges and occasionally
+swept along in such sudden gusts that they could with difficulty retain
+their feet. The sky became gradually overcast, and frequently light
+specks of snow, so small as to be scarcely perceptible, were driven
+along on the blast, making their faces smart by the force with which
+they struck them.
+
+"It scarcely needs our guide's face," Cuthbert said, "to tell us that a
+storm is at hand, and that our position is a dangerous one. As for me, I
+own that I feel better pleased now that the wind is blowing, and the
+silence is broken, than at the dead stillness which prevailed this
+morning. After all, methinks that a snowstorm cannot be more dreaded
+than a sandstorm, and we have faced those before now."
+
+Faster and faster the snow came down, until at last the whole air seemed
+full of it, and it was with difficulty that they could stagger forward.
+Where the path led across open places the wind swept away the snow as
+fast as it fell, but in the hollows the track was already covered; and
+feeling the difficulty of facing the blinding gale, Cuthbert now
+understood the urgency with which his host had insisted upon the danger
+of losing the track. Not a word was spoken among the party as they
+plodded along. The guide kept ahead, using the greatest caution wherever
+the path was obliterated by the snow, sometimes even sounding with his
+iron-shod staff to be sure that they were upon the level rock. In spite
+of his warm cloak Cuthbert felt that he was becoming chilled to the
+bone. His horse could with difficulty keep his feet; and Cnut and the
+archers lagged behind.
+
+"You must keep together, lads," he shouted. "I have heard that in these
+mountains when sleepiness overpowers the traveler, death is at hand.
+Therefore, come what may, we must struggle on."
+
+Many times the gale was so violent that they were obliged to pause and
+take shelter under the side of a rock or precipice until the fury of the
+blast had passed; and Cuthbert eagerly looked out for the next refuge.
+At last they reached it, and the guide at once entered. It was not that
+in which he had intended to pass the night, for this lay still higher;
+but it would have been madness to attempt to go further in the face of
+such a gale. He signed to Cuthbert that it was necessary at once to
+collect firewood, and he himself proceeded to light some brands which
+had been left by previous travelers. Cuthbert gave directions to Cnut
+and the archers; and these, feeling that life depended upon a good fire
+being kept up, set to with a will, cutting down shrubs and branches
+growing in the vicinity of the hut. In half an hour a huge fire blazed
+in the refuge; and as the warmth thawed their limbs, their tongues were
+unloosened, and a feeling of comfort again prevailed.
+
+"If this be mountaineering, my lord," Cnut said, "I trust that never
+again may it be my fortune to venture among the hills. How long, I
+wonder, do the storms last here? I was grumbling all the way up the hill
+at the load of provisions which the guide insisted that each of us
+should bring with him. As it was to be but a three days' journey before
+we reached a village on the other side, I wondered why he insisted upon
+our taking food enough to last us at least for a week. But I understand
+now, and thank him for his foresight; for if this storm goes on we are
+assuredly prisoners here for so long as it may continue."
+
+The horse had to be brought into the hut, for it would have been death
+for it to have remained outside.
+
+"What is that?" Cnut said presently, as a distant howl was heard between
+the lulls of the storm. The guide muttered some word which Cuthbert did
+not understand. But he said to Cnut, "I doubt not that it is wolves.
+Thank God that we are safe within this refuge, for here not even the
+most ravenous beasts could make their way."
+
+"Pooh!" Cnut said contemptuously. "Wolves are no bigger than dogs. I
+have heard my grandfather say that he shot one in the forest, and that
+it was no bigger than a hound. We should make short work of them."
+
+"I know not," Cuthbert said. "I have heard tales of these animals which
+show that they must be formidable opponents. They hunt in great packs,
+and are so furious that they will attack parties of travelers; many of
+these have perished miserably, horses and men, and nothing but their
+swords and portions of their saddles have remained to tell where the
+battle was fought."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+SENTENCED TO DEATH.
+
+
+Just before arriving at the refuge they had passed along a very steep
+and dangerous path. On one side the rock rose precipitously, ten feet
+above their heads. On the other was a fall into the valley below. The
+road at this point was far wider than usual.
+
+Presently the howl of a wolf was heard near, and soon the solitary call
+was succeeded by the howling of great numbers of animals. These speedily
+surrounded the hut, and so fierce were their cries that Cnut changed his
+opinion as to the ease with which they could be defeated, and allowed
+that he would rather face an army of Saracens than a troop of these
+ill-conditioned animals. The horse trembled in every limb at the sound
+of the howling of the wolves; and cold as was the night, in spite of the
+great fire that blazed on the hearth, his coat became covered with the
+lather of fear. Even upon the roof above the trampling of the animals
+could be heard; and through the open slits of the windows which some
+travelers before them had stuffed with straw, they could hear the fierce
+breathing and snorting of the savage beasts, who scratched and tore to
+make an entrance.
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that we might launch a few arrows through
+these loopholes. The roof appears not to be over strong; and should some
+of them force an entrance, the whole pack might follow."
+
+Dark as was the night, the black bodies were visible against the white
+snow, and the archers shot several arrows forth, each stretching a wolf
+dead on the ground. Those killed were at once pounced upon by their
+comrades and torn to pieces; and this mark of savageness added to the
+horror which those within felt of the ferocious animals. Suddenly there
+was a pause in the howling around the hut, and then Cnut, looking forth
+from the loophole, declared that the whole body had gone off at full
+speed along the path by which they had reached the refuge. Almost
+immediately afterward a loud shout for help was heard, followed by the
+renewed howling and yelping of the wolves.
+
+"Good heavens!" Cuthbert exclaimed. "Some traveler coming after us is
+attacked by these horrible beasts. Let us sally out, Cnut. We cannot
+hear a Christian torn to pieces by these beasts, without lending him a
+hand."
+
+In spite of the angry shouts and entreaties of the guide, the door was
+thrust open, and the party, armed with their axes and bows, at once
+rushed out into the night. The storm had for the moment abated and they
+had no difficulty in making their way along the track. In fifty yards
+they came to a bend of the path, and saw, a little distance before them,
+a black mass of animals covering the road, and congregated round a
+figure who stood with his back to the rock. With a shout of
+encouragement they sprang forward, and in a few moments were in the
+midst of the savage animals, who turned their rage against them at once.
+They had fired two or three arrows apiece, as they approached, into
+them; and now throwing down their bows, the archers betook themselves to
+their swords, while Cuthbert with his heavy battle-axe hewed and cut at
+the wolves as they sprang toward him. In a minute they had cleared their
+way to the figure, which was that of a knight in complete armor. He
+leaned against the rock completely exhausted, could only mutter a word
+of thanks through his closed visor. At a short distance off a number of
+the wolves were gathered, rending and tearing the horse of the knight;
+but the rest, soon recovering from their surprise, attacked with fury
+the little party. The thick cloaks of the archers stood them in good
+stead against the animal's teeth, and standing in a group with their
+backs to the rock, they hewed and cut vigorously at their assailants.
+The numbers of these, however, appeared almost innumerable, and fresh
+stragglers continued to come along the road, and swell their body. As
+fast as those in front fell, their heads cleft with the axes of the
+party, fresh ones sprang forward; and Cuthbert saw that in spite of the
+valor and strength of his men, the situation was well-nigh desperate. He
+himself had been saved from injury by his harness, for he still had on
+his greaves and leg pieces.
+
+"Keep together," he shouted to his men, "and each lend aid to the other
+if he sees him pulled down. Strike lustily for life, and hurry not your
+blows, but let each toll." This latter order he gave perceiving that
+some of the archers, terrified by this furious army of assailants with
+gaping mouths and glistening teeth, were striking wildly, and losing
+their presence of mind.
+
+The combat, although it might have been prolonged, could yet have had
+but one termination, and the whole party would have fallen. At this
+moment, however, a gust of wind, more furious than any which they had
+before experienced, swept along the gorge, and the very wolves had to
+crouch on their stomachs to prevent themselves being hurled by its fury
+into the ravine below. Then even above the storm a deep roar was heard.
+It grew louder and louder. The wolves, as if struck with terror, leaped
+to their feet, and scattered on either way along the path at full
+speed.
+
+"What sound can this be?" Cnut exclaimed in an awe-struck voice. "It
+sounds like thunder; but it is regular and unbroken; and, my lord,
+surely the earth quakes under our feet!"
+
+Louder and louder grew the roar.
+
+"Throw yourselves down against the wall of rock," Cuthbert shouted,
+himself setting the example.
+
+A moment afterward, from above a mighty mass of rock and snow poured
+over like a cascade, with a roar and sound which nigh stunned them. For
+minutes--it seemed for hours to them--the deluge of snow and rock
+continued. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it ceased, and a silence
+as of death reigned over the place.
+
+"Arise," Cuthbert said; "the danger, methinks, is past. It was what men
+call an avalanche--a torrent of snow slipping down from the higher
+peaks. We have had a narrow escape indeed."
+
+By this time the knight whom they had rescued was able to speak, and
+raising his visor, he returned his deepest thanks to those who had come
+so opportunely to his aid.
+
+"I was well-nigh exhausted," he said, "and it was only my armor which
+saved me from being torn to pieces. A score of them had hold of me; but
+fortunately my mail was of Milan proof, and even the jaws and teeth of
+these enormous beasts were unable to pierce it."
+
+"The refuge is near at hand," Cuthbert said. "It is but a few yards
+round yonder point. It is well that we heard your voice. I fear that
+your horse has fallen a victim."
+
+Assisting the knight, who in spite of his armor was sorely bruised and
+exhausted, they made their way back to the refuge. Cnut and the archers
+were all bleeding freely from various wounds inflicted upon them in the
+struggle, breathless and exhausted from their exertions, and thoroughly
+awe-struck by the tremendous phenomenon of which they had been
+witnesses, and which they had only escaped from their good fortune in
+happening to be in a place so formed that the force of the avalanche had
+swept over their heads. The whole of the road, with the exception of a
+narrow piece four feet in width, had been carried away. Looking upward,
+they saw that the forest had been swept clear, not a tree remaining in a
+wide track as far as they could see up the hill. The great bowlders
+which had strewn the hillside, and many of which were as large as
+houses, had been swept away like straws before the rush of snow, and for
+a moment they feared that the refuge had also been carried away. Turning
+the corner, however, they saw to their delight that the limits of the
+avalanche had not extended so far, the refuges, as they afterward
+learned, being so placed as to be sheltered by overhanging cliffs from
+any catastrophe of this kind.
+
+They found the guide upon his knees, muttering his prayers before a
+cross, which he had formed of two sticks laid crosswise on the ground
+before him; and he could scarce believe his eyes when they entered, so
+certain had he considered it that they were lost. There were no longer
+any signs of the wolves. The greater portion, indeed, of the pack had
+been overwhelmed by the avalanche, and the rest, frightened and scared,
+had fled to their fastnesses in the woods.
+
+The knight now removed his helmet, and discovered a handsome young man
+of some twenty-four or twenty-five years old.
+
+"I am," he said, "Baron Ernest of Kornstein. To whom do I owe my life?"
+
+"In spite of my red cross," Cuthbert said, "I am English. My name is Sir
+Cuthbert, and I am Earl of Evesham. I am on my return from the Holy Land
+with my followers; and as we are passing through countries where many
+of the people are hostile to England, we have thought it as well for a
+time to drop our nationality. But to you I do not hesitate to tell the
+truth."
+
+"You do well," the young knight said, "for, truth to say, the people of
+these parts bear but little love to your countrymen. You have saved my
+life when I was in the sorest danger. I had given myself up for lost,
+for even my armor could not have saved me long from these wretches; and
+my sword and life are at your disposal. You are young indeed," he said,
+looking with surprise at Cuthbert, who had now thrown back the hood of
+his cloak, "to have gained the honor of knighthood. You scarce look
+eighteen years of age, although, doubtless, you are older."
+
+"I am scarce seventeen," Cuthbert said; "but I have had the good fortune
+to attract the notice of King Richard, and to have received the
+knighthood from his sword."
+
+"None more worthy," said the young knight, "for although King Richard
+may be fierce and proud, he is the worthiest knight in Christendom, and
+resembles the heroes of romance rather than a Christian king."
+
+"He is my lord and master," Cuthbert said, "and I love him beyond all
+men, and would give my life for his. He is the kindest and best of
+masters; and although it be true that he brooks no opposition, yet is it
+only because his own bravery and eagerness render hateful to him the
+indolence and cowardice of others."
+
+They now took their seats round the fire. The archers, by the advice of
+the guide, rubbed their wounds with snow, and then applied bandages to
+them. The wallets were opened, and a hearty supper eaten; and all,
+wrapping themselves in their fur cloaks, were soon asleep.
+
+For four days the gale continued, keeping the party prisoners in the
+hut. On the fifth the force of the wind abated, and the snow ceased to
+fall. They were forced to take the door off its hinges to open it, for
+the snow had piled up so high that the chimney alone of the hut remained
+above its surface. With great difficulty and labor they cleared a way
+out, and then the guide again placing himself at their head, they
+proceeded on their way. The air was still and cold, and the sky of a
+deep, dark blue, which seemed even darker in contrast with the whiteness
+of the snow. At times they had great difficulty in struggling through
+the deep drifts; but for the most part the wind had swept the path
+clear. Where it was deepest, the tops of the posts still showed above
+the snow, and enabled the guide to direct their footsteps. They were,
+however, obliged to travel slowly, and it was three days before they
+gained the village on the northern slope of the mountains, having slept
+at refuges by the road.
+
+"What are your plans?" the knight asked Sir Cuthbert that night, as they
+sat by the fire of the hostelry. "I would warn you that the town which
+you will first arrive at is specially hostile to your people, for the
+baron, its master, is a relation of Conrad of Montferat, who is said to
+have been killed by order of your king."
+
+"It is false," Cuthbert said. "King Richard had appointed him King of
+Jerusalem; and, though he liked him not, thought him the fittest of
+those there to exercise sovereignty. He was the last man who would have
+had an enemy assassinated; for so open is he of disposition that he
+would have fought hand to hand with the meanest soldier of his army had
+he desired to kill him."
+
+"I doubt not that it is so, since you tell me," the knight said
+courteously. "But the people here have taken that idea into their minds,
+and it will be hard to disabuse them. You must therefore keep up your
+disguise as a French knight while passing through this neighborhood.
+Another week's journeying, and you will reach the confines of Saxony,
+and there you will, as you anticipate, be safe. But I would not answer
+for your life were you discovered here to be of English birth. And now
+tell me if there is aught that I can do for you. I will myself accompany
+you into the town, and will introduce you as a French knight, so that no
+suspicion is likely to lie upon you, and will, further, ride with you to
+the borders of Saxony. I am well known, and trust that my company will
+avert all suspicion from you. You have told me that your purse is
+ill-supplied; you must suffer me to replenish it. One knight need not
+fear to borrow of another; and I know that when you have returned to
+your home you will bestow the sum which I now give you upon some holy
+shrine in my name, and thus settle matters between us."
+
+Cuthbert without hesitation accepted the offer, and was well pleased at
+finding his purse replenished, for its emptiness had caused him serious
+trouble. Cuthbert's steed was led by one of the archers, and he himself
+walked gayly alongside of Sir Ernest, followed by his retainers. Another
+long day's march brought them down to Innsbruck, where they remained
+quietly for a week. Then they journeyed on until they emerged from the
+mountains, crossed the Bavarian frontier, and arrived at Fussen, a
+strong city, with well-built walls and defenses.
+
+They at once proceeded to the principal hostelry, where the young baron
+was well known, and where great interest was excited by the news of the
+narrow escape which he had had from the attack of the wolves. A journey
+across the Alps was in those days regarded as a very perilous enterprise
+in the winter season, and the fact that he should have been rescued from
+such a strait appeared almost miraculous. They stayed for two days
+quietly in the city, Cuthbert declining the invitation of the young
+noble to accompany him to the houses of his friends, as he did not wish
+that any suspicion should be excited as to his nationality, and
+preferred remaining quiet to having forced upon him the necessity of
+making false statements. As to his followers, there was no fear of the
+people among whom they mixed detecting that they were English. To the
+Bavarian inhabitants, all languages, save their native German, were
+alike unintelligible; and even had French been commonly spoken, the
+dialects of that tongue, such as would naturally be spoken by archers
+and men-at-arms, would have been a Greek to those accustomed only to
+Norman French.
+
+Upon the third day, however, an incident occurred which upset Cuthbert's
+calculations, and nearly involved the whole party in ruin. The town was,
+as the young baron had said, governed by a noble who was a near relation
+of Conrad of Montferat, and who was the bitter enemy of the English. A
+great _fête_ had been given in honor of the marriage of his daughter,
+and upon this day the young pair were to ride in triumph through the
+city. Great preparations had been made; masks and pageants of various
+kinds manufactured; and the whole townspeople, dressed in their holiday
+attire, were gathered in the streets. Cuthbert had gone out, followed by
+his little band of retainers, and taken their station to see the passing
+show. First came a large body of knights and men-at-arms, with gay
+banners and trappings. Then rode the bridegroom, with the bride carried
+in a litter by his side. After this came several allegorical
+representations. Among these was the figure of a knight bearing the arms
+of Austria. Underneath his feet, on the car, lay a figure clad in a
+royal robe, across whom was thrown a banner with the leopards of
+England. The knight stood with his foot on this figure.
+
+This representation of the dishonor of England at the hands of Austria
+elicited great acclamations from the crowd. Cuthbert clinched his teeth
+and grasped his sword angrily, but had the sense to see the folly of
+taking any notice of the insult. Not so with Cnut. Furious it the insult
+offered to the standard of his royal master, Cnut, with a bound, burst
+through the ranks of the crowd, leaped on to the car, and with a buffet
+smote the figure representing Austria into the road, and lifted the flag
+of England from the ground. A yell of indignation and rage was heard.
+The infuriated crowd rushed forward. Cnut, with a bound, sprang from the
+car, and, joining his comrades, burst through those who attempted to
+impede them, and darted down a by-street.
+
+Cuthbert, for the moment amazed at the action of his follower, had on
+the instant drawn his sword and joined the archers. In the crowd,
+however, he was for a second separated from them; and before he could
+tear himself from the hands of the citizens who had seized him, the
+men-at-arms accompanying the procession surrounded him, and he was led
+away by them to the castle, the guards with difficulty protecting him
+from the enraged populace. Even at this moment Cuthbert experienced a
+deep sense of satisfaction at the thought that his followers had
+escaped. But he feared that alone, and unacquainted with the language of
+the country, they would find it difficult indeed to escape the search
+which would be made for them, and to manage to find their way back to
+their country. For himself, he had little hopes of liberty, and scarcely
+more of life. The hatred of the baron toward the English would now be
+heightened by the daring act of insult to the arms of Austria, and this
+would give a pretext for any deed of violence which might be wrought.
+
+Cuthbert was, after a short confinement, brought before the lord baron
+of the place, in the great hall of the castle.
+
+"Who art thou, sir," the noble exclaimed, "who darest to disturb the
+marriage procession of my daughter, and to insult the standard of the
+emperor my master?"
+
+"I am Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, a baron of England," Cuthbert said
+fearlessly, "and am traveling homeward from the Holy Land. My garb as a
+Crusader should protect me from all interruption; and the heedless
+conduct of my retainer was amply justified by the insult offered to the
+arms of England. There is not one of the knights assembled round you who
+would not in like manner have avenged an insult offered to those of
+Austria; and I am ready to do battle in the lists with any who choose to
+say that the deed was a foul or improper one. In the Holy Land Austrians
+and English fought side by side; and it is strange indeed to me that on
+my return, journeying through the country of the emperor, I should find
+myself treated as an enemy, and see the arms of King Richard exposed to
+insult and derision by the burghers of this city."
+
+As Cuthbert had spoken he threw down his mailed glove, and several of
+the knights present stepped forward to pick it up. The baron, however,
+waved them back.
+
+"It is no question," he said, "of honorable fight. This is a follower of
+the murderer of my good cousin of Montferat, who died under the hands of
+assassins set upon him by Richard of England."
+
+"It is false!" Cuthbert shouted. "I denounce it as a foul lie, and will
+maintain it with my life."
+
+"Your life is already forfeited," the baron said, "both by your past
+connection with Richard of England and as the insulter of the arms of
+Austria. You die, and to-morrow at noon your head shall be struck off in
+the great square before my castle."
+
+Without another word Cuthbert was hurried off to his cell, and there
+remained, thinking moodily over the events of the day, until nightfall.
+He had no doubt that his sentence would be carried out, and his anxiety
+was rather for his followers than for himself. He feared that they would
+make some effort on his behalf, and would sacrifice their own lives in
+doing so, without the possibility of assisting him.
+
+The next morning he was led out to the square before the castle. It was
+a large flagged courtyard. Upon one side was the entrance to the castle,
+one of whose wings also formed a second side to the square. The side
+facing this was formed by the wall of the city, and the fourth opened
+upon a street of the town. This side of the square was densely filled
+with citizens, while the men-at-arms of the baron and a large number of
+knights were gathered behind a scaffold erected in the center. Upon this
+was a block, and by the side stood a headsman. As Cuthbert was led
+forward a thrill of pleasure ran through him at perceiving no signs of
+his followers, who he greatly feared might have been captured in the
+night, and brought there to share his fate.
+
+As he was led forward the young noble whose life he had saved advanced
+to the baron, and dropping on one knee before him, craved the life of
+Cuthbert, relating the event by which he had saved his life in the
+passage of the mountains. The baron frowned heavily.
+
+"Though he had saved the life of every noble in Bavaria," he said, "he
+should die. I have sworn an oath that every Englishman who fell into my
+hands should expiate the murder of my kinsman; and this fellow is,
+moreover, guilty of an outrage to the arms of Austria."
+
+The young Sir Ernest drew himself up haughtily.
+
+"My lord baron," he said, "henceforth I renounce all allegiance to you,
+and I will lay the case before the emperor, our common master, and will
+cry before him at the outrage which has thus been passed upon a noble
+gentleman. He has thrown down the glove, and challenged any of your
+knights, and I myself am equally ready to do battle in his cause."
+
+The baron grew red with passion, and he would have ordered the instant
+arrest of the young man, but as Sir Ernest was connected by blood with
+many present, and was indeed one of the most popular among the nobles of
+the province, the baron simply waved him aside, and ordered Cuthbert to
+be led to the block. The young Englishman was by the executioner
+divested of his armor and helmet, and stood in the simple attire worn by
+men of rank at that time. He looked around, and holding up his hand,
+conveying alike a farewell and a command to his followers to remain in
+concealment, he gazed round the crowd, thinking that he might see among
+them in some disguise or other the features of Cnut, whose tall figure
+would have rendered him conspicuous in a crowd. He failed, however, to
+see any signs of him, and turning to the executioner, signified by a
+gesture that he was ready.
+
+At this instant an arrow from the wall above pierced the brain of the
+man, and he fell dead in his tracks. A roar of astonishment burst from
+the crowd. Upon the city wall at this point was a small turret, and on
+this were five figures. The wall around was deserted, and for the moment
+these men were masters of the position.
+
+"Seize those insolent varlets!" the baron shouted, shaking his sword
+with a gesture of fury at them.
+
+His words, however, were arrested, for at the moment another arrow
+struck him in the throat, and he fell back into the arms of those around
+him.
+
+Quickly now the arrows of the English archers flew into the courtyard.
+The confusion which reigned there was indescribable. The citizens with
+shouts of alarm took to their heels. The men-at-arms were powerless
+against this rain of missiles, and the knights, hastily closing their
+visors, shouted contradictory orders, which no one obeyed.
+
+In the confusion no one noticed the prisoner. Seizing a moment when the
+attention of all was fixed upon the wall, he leaped from the platform,
+and making his way unnoticed through the excited crowd of men-at-arms,
+darted down a narrow lane that divided the castle from the wall. He ran
+along until, one hundred yards further, he came to a staircase by which
+access to the battlements was obtained. Running lightly up this, he kept
+along the wall until he reached the turret.
+
+"Thanks, my noble Cnut!" he exclaimed, "and you, my brave fellows. But I
+fear you have forfeited your lives. There is no escape. In a minute the
+whole force of the place will recover from their confusion, and be down
+upon us from both sides."
+
+"We have prepared for that," Cnut said. "Here is a rope hanging down
+into the moat."
+
+Glancing over, Cuthbert saw that the moat was dry; and after a final
+discharge of arrows into the crowd, the six men slid one after another
+down the rope and made their way at full speed across the country.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+DRESDEN.
+
+
+It was some ten minutes before the men-at-arms rallied sufficiently from
+their surprise to obey orders. Two bodies were then drawn up, and
+proceeded at a rapid pace toward the staircases leading to the wall, one
+on each side of the turret in which they believed that the little body
+of audacious assailants were still lying. Having reached the wall, the
+soldiers advanced, covering themselves with their shields, for they had
+learned the force with which an English clothyard shaft drawn by a
+strong hand flies. Many had been killed by these missiles passing
+through and through the cuirass and backpiece. No reply being obtained
+to the summons to surrender, they proceeded to break in with their
+battle-axes the door of the little turret. Rushing in with ax and pike,
+they were astonished to find the place empty. A glance over the wall
+showed the rope still hanging, and the manner of the escape became
+manifest. The fugitives were already out of sight, and the knights,
+furious at the escape of the men who had bearded them in the heart of
+the city with such audacity, and had slain the lord baron and several of
+his knights, gave orders that an instant pursuit should be organized. It
+was, however, a full half hour before the city gates were thrown open,
+and a strong troop of knights and mounted men issued out.
+
+Cuthbert had been certain that an instant pursuit would be set on foot,
+and the moment that he was out of sight of the battlements he changed
+the direction in which he had started, and turning at right angles,
+swept round the city, still keeping at a distance, until he reached the
+side next the mountains, and then plunged into the woods on the lower
+slopes of the hills.
+
+"They will," he said, as they halted breathless from their run, "follow
+the road toward the south, and scour the country for awhile before it
+occurs to their thick German skulls that we have doubled back on our
+tracks. Why, what is it, Cnut?"
+
+This exclamation was provoked by the forester throwing himself on his
+knees before Sir Cuthbert, and imploring his pardon for the dire strait
+into which his imprudence had drawn him.
+
+"It was a dire strait, certainly, Cnut. But if you got me into it, at
+least you have extricated me; and never say more about it, for I myself
+was near committing the imprudence to which you gave way, and I can well
+understand that your English blood boiled at the sight of the outrage to
+the flag of England. Now, let us waste no time in talk, but, keeping to
+the foot of this mountain, make along as far as we can to the west. We
+must cling to the hills for many days' march before we venture again to
+try to cross the plains. If possible, we will keep on this way until we
+reach the confines of the country of the Swiss, who will assuredly give
+us hospitality, and who will care little for any threats of these German
+barons, should they hear that we have reached their asylum."
+
+By nightfall they had already traveled many leagues, and making a fire
+in the wood, Cuthbert asked Cnut for an account of what had taken place
+on the previous day.
+
+"We ran for life, Sir Cuthbert, and had not noticed that you had been
+drawn into the fray. Had we done so, we would have remained, and sold
+our lives with yours; but hoping that you had passed unnoticed in the
+crowd, and that you would find some means to rejoin us we kept upon our
+way. After running down three streets we passed a place where a
+courtyard with stables ranged round it was open. There were none about,
+and we entered, and taking refuge in a loft hid ourselves beneath some
+provender. There we remained all night, and then borrowing some apparel
+which some of the stablemen had hung upon the walls, we issued into the
+town. As we neared the great square we saw some men employed in erecting
+a platform in the midst, and a suspicion that all might not be right,
+and that you might have fallen into the hands of these German dogs,
+beset our minds. After much consultation we determined to see what the
+affair meant, and making our way on to the walls which, indeed, were
+entirely deserted, we took refuge in that turret where you saw us.
+Seeing the crowd gather, and being still more convinced that some
+misfortune was about to occur, I again went back to the stables, where I
+had noticed a long rope used by the carters for fastening their loads to
+the wagons. With this I returned, for it was clear that if we had to
+mingle in this business it would be necessary to have a mode of escape.
+Of the rest you are aware. We saw the knights coming out of the castle,
+with that portly baron, their lord, at their head. We saw the block and
+the headsman upon the platform, and were scarcely surprised when you
+were led out, a prisoner, from the gates. We judged that what did happen
+would ensue. Seeing that the confusion wrought by a sudden attack from
+men perched up aloft as we were, commanding the courtyard, and being
+each of us able to hit a silver mark at the distance of one hundred
+yards, would be great indeed, we judged that you might be able to slip
+away unobserved, and were sure that your quick wit would seize any
+opportunity which might offer. Had you not been able to join us, we
+should have remained in the turret and sold our lives to the last, as,
+putting aside the question that we could never return to our homes,
+having let our dear lord die here, we should not, in our ignorance of
+the language and customs of the country, have ever been able to make our
+way across it. We knew, however, that before this turret was carried we
+could show these Germans how five Englishmen, when brought to bay, can
+sell their lives."
+
+They had not much difficulty in obtaining food in the forest, for game
+abounded, and they could kill as many deer as seemed fit to them. As
+Cnut said, it was difficult to believe that they were not back again in
+the forest near Evesham, so similar was their life to that which they
+had led three years before. To Cnut and the archers, indeed, it was a
+pleasanter time than any which they had passed since they had left the
+shores of England, and they blithely marched along, fearing little any
+pursuit which might be set on foot, and, indeed, hearing nothing of
+their enemies. After six days' travel they came upon a rude village, and
+here Cuthbert learned from the people--with much difficulty, however,
+and pantomime, for neither could understand a word spoken by the
+other--that they were now in one of the Swiss cantons, and therefore
+secure from all pursuit by the Germans. Without much difficulty Cuthbert
+engaged one of the young men of the village to act as their guide to
+Basle, and here, after four days' traveling, they arrived safely. Asking
+for the residence of the burgomaster, Cuthbert at once proceeded
+thither, and stated that he was an English knight on the return from the
+Crusades; that he had been foully entreated by the Lord of Fussen, who
+had been killed in a fray by his followers; and that he besought
+hospitality and refuge from the authorities of Basle.
+
+"We care little," the burgomaster said, "what quarrel you may have had
+with your neighbors. All who come hither are free to come and go as they
+list, and you, as a knight on the return from the Holy Land, have a
+claim beyond that of an ordinary traveler."
+
+The burgomaster was himself able to speak French, and summoning several
+of the councilors of the town, he requested Cuthbert to give a narrative
+of his adventures; which he did. The councilors agreed with the
+burgomaster that Cuthbert must be received hospitably; but the latter
+saw that there was among many of them considerable doubt as to the
+expediency of quarreling with a powerful neighbor. He therefore said to
+the burgomaster:
+
+"I have no intention, honorable sir, of taking up any prolonged
+residence here. I only ask to be furnished with a charger and arms, and
+in payment of these I will leave this gold chain, the gift of King
+Richard himself, as a gage, and will on my return to my country forward
+to you the value of the arms and horse, trusting that you will return
+the chain to me."
+
+The burgomaster, however, said that the city of Basle was not so poor
+that it need take the gage of an honorable knight, but that the arms and
+charger he required should be given him in a few hours, and that he
+might pay the value in London to a Jew merchant there who had relations
+with one at Basle. Full instructions were given to him, and he resolved
+to travel down upon the left bank of the Rhine, until he reached
+Lorraine, and thence to cross into Saxony. The same afternoon the
+promised horse and arms were provided, and Cuthbert, delighted again to
+be in harness, and thanking courteously the burgomaster and council for
+their kindness, started with his followers on his journey north. These
+latter had been provided with doublets and other garments suitable to
+the retinue of a knight, and made a better show than they had done since
+they first left England.
+
+Leaving Basle, they traveled along the left side of the Rhine by easy
+stages. The country was much disturbed, owing to the return and
+disbandment of so many of the troops employed in the Crusades. These,
+their occupation being gone, scattered over the country, and France and
+Germany alike were harassed by bands of military robbers. The wild
+country between the borders of Switzerland and Lorraine was specially
+vexed, as the mountains of the Vosges afforded shelter, into which the
+freebooters could not be followed by the troops of the duke.
+
+Upon the evening of the third day they reached a small inn standing in a
+lonely position near the foot of the mountains.
+
+"I like not the look of this place," Cuthbert said; "but as we hear that
+there is no other within a distance of another ten miles, we must e'en
+make the best of it."
+
+The host received them with extreme and even fawning civility, which by
+no means raised him in the estimation of Cuthbert or Cnut. A rough meal
+was taken, and they then ascended to the rude accommodation which had
+been provided. It was one large room barely furnished. Upon one side
+straw was thickly littered down--for in those days beds among the common
+people were unknown. In a sort of alcove at the end was a couch with a
+rough mattress and coverlet. This Cuthbert took possession of, while his
+followers stretched themselves upon the straw.
+
+"Methinks," Cnut said, "that it were well that one should keep watch at
+the door. I like not the look of our host, and we are near the spot
+where the bands of the robbers are said to be busy."
+
+Toward morning the archer on guard reported that he could hear the sound
+of many approaching footsteps. All at once sprang to their feet, and
+betook themselves to their arms. Looking from the window they saw a
+large party of rough men, whose appearance at once betokened that they
+were disbanded soldiers--a title almost synonymous in those days with
+that of robber. With the united strength of the party the truckle bed
+was carried from the alcove and placed against the door. Cuthbert then
+threw open the window, and asked in French what they wanted. One of the
+party, who appeared to be the leader, said that the party had better
+surrender immediately. He promised them good treatment, and said that
+the knight would be put to ransom, should it be found that the valuables
+upon his person were not sufficient to pay the worshipful company
+present for the trouble which they had taken in waiting upon him. This
+sally was received with shouts of laughter. Cuthbert replied quietly
+that he had no valuables upon his person; that if they took him there
+were none would pay as much as a silver mark for the ransom of them all;
+and that the only things that they had to give were sharp arrows and
+heavy blows.
+
+"You talk bravely, young sir," the man said. "But you have to do with
+men versed in fight, and caring but little either for knocks or for
+arrows. We have gone through the Crusades, and are therefore held to be
+absolved from all sin, even that so great as would be incurred in the
+cutting of your knightly throat."
+
+"But we have gone through the Crusades also," Cuthbert said, "and our
+persons are sacred. The sin of slitting our weazands, which you speak
+of, would therefore be so great that even the absolution on which you
+rely would barely extend to it."
+
+"We know most of those who have served in the Holy Land," the man said
+more respectfully than he had yet spoken, "and would fain know with whom
+we speak."
+
+"I am an Englishman, and a follower of King Richard," Cuthbert said,
+"and am known as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham. As I was the youngest among
+the knights who fought for the holy sepulcher, it may be that my
+appearance is known to you?"
+
+"Ah," the other said, "you are he whom they called the Boy Knight, and
+who was often in the thick of the fray, near to Richard himself. How
+comes it, Sir Cuthbert, that you are here?"
+
+"The fleet was scattered on its return," Cuthbert replied, "and I landed
+with my followers, well-nigh penniless, at Zara, and have since made my
+way across the Tyrol. I have, then, as you may well suppose, neither
+silver nor gold about my person; and assuredly neither Philip of France
+nor John of Austria would give a noble for my ransom; and it would be
+long, methinks, to wait ere John of England would care to ransom one of
+King Richard's followers."
+
+The brigands spoke for awhile among themselves, and then the leader
+said:
+
+"You speak frankly and fairly, Sir Knight, and as you have proved
+yourself indeed a doughty giver of hard blows, and as I doubt not that
+the archers with you can shoot as straight and as fast as the rest of
+the Saxon breed, we will e'en let you go on your way, for your position
+is but little better than ours, and dog should not rob dog."
+
+"Thanks, good fellow," Cuthbert said. "We trust that in any case we
+might have made a strong defense against you; but it would be hard if
+those who have fought together in the Holy Land should slay each other
+in this lonely corner of Lorraine."
+
+"Are you seeking adventures or employment, Sir Knight? For if so,
+myself and comrades here would gladly take service with you; and it may
+be that with a clump of spears you might obtain engagement, either under
+the Duke of Lorraine or he of Cleves."
+
+"Thanks for your offer," Cuthbert replied; "but at present my face is
+turned toward England. King Richard needs all his friends; and there is
+so little chance of sack or spoil, even should we have--which God
+forfend--civil war, that I fear I could ill reward the services which
+you offer me."
+
+The leader and his men shouted an adieu to Cuthbert and departed for the
+mountains, leaving the latter well pleased with his escape from a fight
+of which the result was doubtful.
+
+Journeying on without further adventure, they came to Nancy, and were
+there kindly received by the duke, who was not at that time upon good
+terms with Philip of France, and was therefore well disposed toward the
+English. Cuthbert inquired from him whether any news had been heard of
+King Richard? but received as a reply that the duke had heard nothing of
+him since he sailed from Palestine.
+
+"This is strange," Cuthbert said, "for I myself have journeyed but
+slowly, and have met with many delays. King Richard should long ere this
+have reached Saxony; and I fear much that some foul treatment has
+befallen him. On our way we found how bitter was the feeling among those
+related to Conrad of Montferat against him; and the Archduke John is
+still smarting from the blow which King Richard struck him at Ascalon.
+But surely they would not be so unknightly as to hinder so great a
+champion of Christendom as King Richard on his homeward way?"
+
+"The Archduke John is crafty and treacherous," the duke said; "and the
+emperor himself would, I think, be not sorry to lay hand upon the King
+of England, were it only to do pleasure to Philip of France. Assuredly,
+however the anger and indignation of all Christendom will be aroused
+should the king's passage be interrupted, for it were indeed a gross
+breach of hospitality to seize upon a man who has the double claim of
+being a champion of Christendom and a shipwrecked man. However, it is
+early yet to be uneasy, and it may be that in a few days we may have
+news of the arrival of the king in Saxony. He may have encountered
+difficulties similar to those which you yourself have met with. The
+country is everywhere disturbed, and it is not only in my forests that
+bands of outlawed men are to be met with. At present there is peace in
+Europe. It may last indeed but a short time. But so long as it
+continues, so long must the mountains and woods be full of desperate
+men. Were war declared between any two princes these would flock to the
+banners of him who would pay them highest, and a war which could end in
+the entire destruction of the armies of both combatants would be a
+blessing to Europe."
+
+After entertaining Cuthbert courteously for three days, the Duke of
+Lorraine bade him adieu, and gave him an escort of men-at-arms to the
+borders of the Rhine, where he would find the way open to the domains of
+the Duke of Saxony. Without adventure Cuthbert and his followers arrived
+at Dresden, and he immediately presented himself at the castle of the
+duke. The instant that he sent in his name as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, a
+knight of King Richard, he was conducted to the presence of the duke and
+of his wife, the sister of King Richard.
+
+"Are you bearer of news of my brother Richard?" the duke said, advancing
+a step to meet the young knight as he entered the hall.
+
+"Alas! my lord duke, I am not," Cuthbert said; "but had hoped to gain
+tidings from you."
+
+"From me?" the duke said in surprise. "What should lead you to believe
+that I have any news of King Richard later than that which others have
+received? The last I heard of him was upon the day of his departure from
+the Holy Land, before the storm arose which scattered his fleet, and I
+am ignorant whether he has foundered at sea, or whether, as some
+suppose, his vessel may have been taken captive by the Moors."
+
+"I bear you later tidings," Cuthbert said, "than those you have
+received. I was on board the ship with King Richard. We were wrecked
+upon the Island of Corfu and there hiring a small ship, we proceeded to
+Zara. King Richard determined to make his way across the Tyrol to this
+place; but he thought that it would attract attention to him were he
+accompanied by so large a party. Therefore he, with Sir Baldwin of
+Béthune, and a few followers, started north, while I with my men kept
+west through the north of Italy, and then crossed by the pass over
+Trent."
+
+"How long is it since you left my brother?" the duchess asked anxiously.
+
+"It is now over a month since I bade him adieu," Cuthbert answered.
+
+"Then he should have been heard of long since," the duchess said. "What
+fate can have befallen him?"
+
+"Judging from my own experience," Cuthbert said, "I fear that he may
+have come to harm at the hands of the friends of Conrad of Montferat,
+who falsely allege that the death of their kinsman was caused by King
+Richard. The Archduke John, too, owes him no good-will; and even the
+emperor is evilly disposed toward him. The king traveled under an
+assumed name; but it might well be that he would be recognized upon the
+way. His face was known to all who fought in the East; and his lordly
+manner and majestic stature could ill be concealed beneath a merchant's
+garb. Still, lady, as I have been so long in making my way across, it
+may be that King Richard has been similarly delayed without danger
+befalling him, and it could hardly be that so important a man as the
+King of England would be detained, or come to any misfortune, without
+the news being bruited abroad."
+
+In spite of Cuthbert's reassuring words, the duke and duchess were
+greatly alarmed at the news of King Richard's disappearance, although
+indeed consoled to find that their previous fears, that he had been
+drowned in the storm or captured by the Moorish corsairs, were
+unfounded.
+
+They now requested from Cuthbert the story of what had befallen him
+since he left the king; and this he related at some length. The duke was
+greatly interested, and begged Cuthbert at least to remain at his court
+until some news might arrive of King Richard.
+
+For a month Cuthbert tarried at the castle of the Duke of Saxony, where
+he was nobly entertained, and treated as a guest of much honor. Cnut and
+the archers were delighted at the treatment they received, for never in
+their lives had they been so royally entertained. Their Saxon tongue was
+nigh enough akin to the language spoken here to be understood; and their
+tales of adventure in the Holy Land rendered them as popular among the
+retainers of the duke as their master became with the duke and duchess.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+UNDER THE GREENWOOD.
+
+
+At the end of a month, news came from England that Sir Baldwin of
+Béthune had returned there, bearing the news that the king had been
+arrested at Gortz, only two days' journey north of the Adriatic--that he
+had been recognized, and at once captured. He had offered no resistance,
+finding indeed that it would be hopeless so to do. Sir Baldwin had been
+permitted to depart without molestation. He believed that the folk into
+whose hands he had fallen were retainers of the Archduke John. This
+news, although sad in itself, was yet in some degree reassuring to the
+duke and his wife; for they felt that while the followers of Conrad of
+Montferat would not hesitate to put King Richard to death should he fall
+into their hands, the Archduke John would not dare to bring upon himself
+the indignation of Europe by such treatment of his royal captive.
+Cuthbert at once determined to return to England to see Sir Baldwin, and
+to ascertain what steps were being taken for the discovery of the prison
+in which King Richard was confined, and for his release therefrom; and
+also to establish himself in his new dignity as Earl of Evesham.
+Therefore, bidding adieu to the duke and duchess, he started north. The
+duke furnished him with letters of introduction to the princes through
+whose countries he would travel; and again crossing the Rhine, he
+journeyed through the territories of the Dukes of Cleves and Brabant,
+and reached the mouth of Scheldt without interruption. There taking
+ship, he sailed for London.
+
+It was a long and stormy passage between the mouth of the Scheldt and
+London. The vessel in which Cuthbert had shipped was old and somewhat
+unseaworthy, and several times in the force of the gale all on board
+gave up hope for their lives. At last, however, they reached the mouth
+of the Thames, and dropping up with the tide, reached London eight days
+after their embarkation. The noble charger which the King of Saxony had
+presented to Cuthbert had suffered greatly, and he feared at one time
+that the poor animal would succumb to the effects of the tempest.
+However, after entering into smooth water it recovered itself, and on
+landing near the Tower he found that it was able to support his weight.
+Cnut and the archers were, like Cuthbert, delighted to have their feet
+again upon English soil; and although London did not now strike them
+with the same wonder which it would have done had they first visited it
+before starting on their journey--for in many respects it was greatly
+behind some of the continental cities--yet the feeling of home, and the
+pleasure of being able to understand the conversation of those around
+them, made the poor fellows almost beside themselves with joy. Beyond
+the main political incidents Cuthbert had heard little of what had
+passed in England since his departure; and putting up at a hostelry, he
+inquired of the host whether Sir Baldwin of Béthune was in London, or
+whether he was away on his estates. The landlord did not know. There
+were, he said, but few nobles at court, and London was never so dull as
+at present. As Cuthbert did not wish his coming home to be known to John
+until he had learned something of the position of affairs, he dispatched
+Cnut to the Tower to inquire privately of some of the officials about
+the place whether Sir Baldwin was there. Cnut soon returned with the
+news that he had not been at the court since his return from the Holy
+Land, and that he was living at his castle down in Dorsetshire. After
+some hesitation Cuthbert resolved to set out to see his friend, and
+after six days' travel he arrived at the castle of the knight.
+
+Sir Baldwin received him with immense joy. He had not heard of him since
+they parted at Zara, and he feared that a fate similar to that which had
+befallen King Richard had overtaken Cuthbert, even if he were still
+alive.
+
+"Have you seen aught of the king, our master?" the good knight inquired.
+
+"Nothing," Cuthbert said. "I know no more than yourself. Indeed, I hoped
+to have learned something from you as to the king."
+
+"I was separated from him at Gortz, and while he was taken a prisoner to
+the archduke, I was allowed to pursue my way. I had many difficulties
+and dangers, and was some weeks in finding my way back. Nothing was
+known of the king when I returned. Indeed, I was the first bearer of any
+definite news concerning him since the day when he sailed from Acre.
+Three weeks ago, as you may have learned, the news came that he is now
+detained in captivity by the emperor, who demanded his delivery by the
+Archduke John, into whose hands he first fell. But where he is no one
+exactly knows. The news has created an immense excitement in the
+kingdom, and all are resolved to sacrifice any of their treasures which
+may be demanded in order to satisfy the ransom which the recreant
+emperor has placed upon the king. Shame is it indeed that a Christian
+sovereign should hold another in captivity. Still more, when that other
+was returning through his dominions as a Crusader coming from the Holy
+Land, when his person should be safe, even to his deadliest enemy. It
+has long been suspected that he was in the hands either of the emperor
+or of the archduke, and throughout Europe the feeling of indignation has
+been strong; and I doubt not, now that the truth is known, this feeling
+will be stronger than ever."
+
+"But now that it is known," Cuthbert said, "I suppose there will be no
+delay in ransoming the king."
+
+"There will be no delay in raising the ransom," Sir Baldwin said. "But
+the kingdom is very impoverished by war, by the exactions of Prince
+John, and by those of Langley, who held it for King Richard. He was a
+loyal servant of the king, but an exacting and rapacious prelate.
+However, I doubt not that the rents of the English nobles will soon be
+charged with sums sufficient for the ransom; and if this avail not, not
+one of them will grudge their silver flagons and vessels to melt down to
+make the total required. But we must not flatter ourselves that he will
+obtain his liberty so soon as the money is raised. Prince John has long
+been yearning for sovereignty. He has long exercised the real, if not
+the nominal, power, and he has been intriguing with the pope and Philip
+of France for their support for his seizing the crown. He will throw
+every obstacle in the way, as, we may be sure, will Philip of France,
+Richard's deadly enemy. And now about yourself, Sir Cuthbert; tell me
+what has befallen you since we last met."
+
+Cuthbert related the adventures which had befallen him, and heard those
+of Sir Baldwin.
+
+"You have not, I suppose," the latter remarked, "as yet seen Prince
+John?"
+
+"No," Cuthbert replied, "I thought it better to come down to ask you to
+advise me on the position of affairs before I attempted to see him."
+
+"You did well," Sir Baldwin said. "When I arrived, I found that the
+proper officials had, according to King Richard's instructions, draw up
+the patent conferring upon you the lands and title of Earl of Evesham,
+before leaving Acre, and had received the king's signature to it. This
+was attested by several of the nobles who were with us and who returned
+safely to England. Prince John, however, declared that he should not
+give any heed to the document; that King Richard's power over this realm
+had ceased before he made it; and that he should bestow the earldom upon
+whomsoever he chose. As a matter of fact, it has been given to Sir
+Rudolph Fleming, a Norman knight and a creature of the prince. The king
+has also, I hear, promised to him the hand of the young Lady Margaret,
+when she shall become of marriageable age. At present she is placed in a
+convent in Worcester. The abbess is, I believe, a friend of the late
+earl, and the girl had been with her for some time previously. Indeed
+she went there, I think, when her father left England. This lady was
+ordered to give up her charge to the guardianship of Sir Rudolph; but
+she refused to do so, saying that it would not be convenable for a young
+lady to be under the guardianship of a bachelor knight having no lady at
+the head of his establishment, and that therefore she should retain her,
+in spite of the orders of the prince. Prince John, I hear, flew into a
+fury at this; but he did not dare to provoke the anger of the whole of
+the clergy by ordering the convent to be violated. And indeed, not only
+would the clergy have been indignant, but many of the great nobles would
+also have taken their part, for there can be no doubt that the
+contention of the abbess was reasonable; and there is among all the
+friends of King Richard a very strong feeling of anger at your having
+been deprived of the earldom. This, however, has so far not found much
+vent in words, for as it was uncertain whether you would ever return to
+claim your rights, it was worth no one's while to embroil himself
+unnecessarily with the prince on such a subject. God knows that there
+are subjects enough of dispute between John Lackland and the English
+barons without any fresh ones arising. The kingdom is in a state of
+disturbance. There have been several risings against Prince John's
+authority; but those have been, so far, suppressed. Now that we know
+where King Richard is, and hope for his return ere very long, it is
+probable that peace will be maintained; but should treachery prevail,
+and King Richard's return be prevented, you may be sure that John will
+not be permitted to mount the throne without the determined resistance
+of a large number of the nobles."
+
+"But," Cuthbert said, "John is not the successor to the throne. Prince
+Arthur of Brittany was named by King Richard from the first as his
+successor. He is so by blood and by right, and John can have no pretense
+to the throne so long as he lives."
+
+"That is so," Sir Baldwin said. "But unhappily in England at present
+might makes right, and you may be sure that at King Richard's death, be
+it when it may, Prince John will make a bold throw for the throne, and,
+aided as he will be by the pope and by Philip of France, methinks that
+his chances are better than those of the young prince. A man's power, in
+warlike times, is more than a boy's. He can intrigue and promise and
+threaten, while a boy must be in the hands of partisans. I fear that
+Prince Arthur will have troubled times indeed before he mounts the
+throne of England. Should Richard survive until he becomes of age to
+take the field himself and head armies, he may succeed, for all speak
+well of him as a boy of singular sweetness of disposition, while Prince
+John is detested by all save those who flatter and live by him. But
+enough for the present of politics, Cuthbert; let us now to table. It is
+long since we two feasted together; and, indeed, such meals as we took
+in the Holy Land could scarcely have been called feasts. A boar's head
+and a good roasted capon are worthy all the strange dishes that we had
+there. I always misdoubted the meat, which seemed to me to smack in
+flavor of the Saracens, and I never could bring myself to inquire whence
+that strange food was obtained. A stoup of English ale, too, is worth
+all the Cyprus wines, especially when the Cyprus wines are half-full of
+the sand of the desert. Pah! it makes my throat dry to think of those
+horrible meals. So you have brought Cnut and your four archers safely
+back with you?"
+
+"Yes," Cuthbert said, smiling. "But they were, I can assure you, a heavy
+weight on me, in spite of their faithfulness and fidelity. Their
+ignorance of the language brought most of my troubles upon me, and Cnut
+had something of the nature of a bull in him. There are certain things
+which he cannot stomach, and when he seeth them he rageth like a wild
+beast, regardless altogether of safety or convenience."
+
+In the evening the two knights again talked over the course which
+Cuthbert should adopt. The elder knight's opinion was that his young
+friend had best formally claim the title by writing to the king-at-arms,
+and should also announce his return to Prince John, signing himself "Sir
+Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham;" but that, in the present state of things, it
+would be unwise for him to attempt to regain his position, should, as
+was certain to be the case, Prince John refuse to recognize him.
+
+"You are very young yet," Sir Baldwin said, "not eighteen, I think, and
+can afford to wait, at any rate, to see whether King Richard returns.
+Should he come back, he will see all these wrongs are righted; and one
+of his first cares would assuredly be to cast this usurper out of his
+stolen dignities. How old is the Lady Margaret?"
+
+"She is fifteen," Cuthbert said. "She was three years younger than I."
+
+"I wish she had been younger," Sir Baldwin said. "At fifteen she is not
+by custom fairly marriageable; but men can strain these points when they
+choose; and I fear that the news of your coming will hasten both the
+prince and Sir Rudolph in their determination to strengthen the claim of
+this usurper by marriage with the heiress of Evesham. The Lady Margaret
+and her friends can of course claim that she is a royal ward, and that
+as such the king alone can dispose of her person and estates. But
+unfortunately force overrides argument."
+
+"But surely," Cuthbert said, "they will never venture to take her by
+force from the convent?"
+
+"They venture a great many strange things in England now," Sir Baldwin
+said; "and Worcester is perilously near to Evesham. With a clump of
+twenty spears, Sir Rudolph might break into the convent and carry off
+the young lady, and marry her by force; and although the Church might
+cry out, crying would be of little avail when the deed was done; and a
+handsome present on the part of Sir Rudolph might go far to shut the
+mouths of many of the complainants, especially as he will be able to say
+that he has the king's sanction for what he did."
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that if such be the case it would be
+perilous indeed to wait for King Richard's return. Assuredly Sir Rudolph
+would not tarry until she attained the age of seventeen, and it may well
+be that two years may yet pass before King Richard comes back. It seems
+to me the wiser part will be that I should give Prince John no notice
+that I am in England. As you say, such notice would be of no avail in
+recovering my lands and title, but it would put the prince upon his
+guard; and assuredly he and his minions would press forward their
+measures to obtain possession of the person of the Lady Margaret;
+while, on the other hand, no harm can come of my maintaining silence."
+
+"I think that you are right, Sir Cuthbert. It were indeed best that your
+enemies should suppose you either dead or in some dungeon in the Tyrol.
+What would you then do?"
+
+"I would return to my old home," Cuthbert said. "My lady mother is, I
+trust, still alive. But I will not appear at her house, but will take
+refuge in the forest there. Cnut, and the archers with him, were all at
+one time outlaws living there, and I doubt not that there are many good
+men and true still to be found in the woods. Others will assuredly join
+when they learn that Cnut is there, and that they are wanted to strike a
+blow for my rights. I shall then bide my time. I will keep a strict
+watch over the castle and over the convent. As the abbess is a friend
+and relative of Lady Margaret's, I may obtain an interview with her, and
+warn her of the dangers that await her, and ask if she be willing to
+fulfill the promise of her father and King Richard's will, in accepting
+me as her husband when due time shall arrive, and whether she will be
+willing that I should take such steps as I may to deliver her from the
+persecution of Sir Rudolph. If, as I trust, she assents to this, I will
+keep a watch over the convent as well as the castle, and can then either
+attack the latter or carry her off from the former, as the occasion may
+appear to warrant. There are plenty of snug cottages round the forest,
+where she can remain in concealment in the care of some good farmer's
+wife for months, and we shall be close at hand to watch over her. With
+the aid of the forest men, Sir Walter took the castle of Sir John of
+Wortham; and although Evesham is a far grander pile than that, yet
+methinks it could be carried by a sudden assault; and we know more of
+war now than we did then. Prince John may deny me the right of being
+the Earl of Evesham; but methinks before many months I can, if I choose,
+become its master."
+
+"Be not too hasty in that matter," Sir Baldwin said. "You might capture
+the castle with the aid of your outlaws; but you could scarcely hold it.
+The prince has, ere now, with the aid of those faithful to him and his
+foreign mercenaries, captured stronger holds than that of Evesham; and
+if you turn his favorite out, you would have a swarm of hornets around
+you such as the walls of Evesham could not keep out. It would therefore
+be worse than useless for you to attempt what would be something like an
+act of rebellion against Prince John's authority, and would give him
+what now he has no excuse for, a ground for putting a price upon your
+head--and cutting it off if he got the opportunity. You might now
+present yourself boldly at court, and although he might refuse to
+recognize your title of earl, yet, as a knight and a Crusader who has
+distinguished himself greatly in the Holy Land, he dare not interfere
+with your person, for this would be resented by the whole of the
+chivalry of England. Still, I agree with you that your best course is to
+keep your return a secret. You will then be unwatched and unnoticed, and
+your enemies will take their time in carrying their designs into
+effect."
+
+Two days later Cuthbert, attended by his faithful retainers, left Sir
+Baldwin's castle, and traveled by easy stages through Wiltshire and the
+confines of Gloucestershire up to Worcester. He had been supplied by Sir
+Baldwin with suitable attire for himself and his followers, and now rode
+as a simple knight, without arms or cognizance, journeying from one part
+to another. All the crosses and other crusading signs were laid aside,
+and there was nothing to attract any attention to him upon his passage.
+Cuthbert had at first thought of going direct to the convent of
+Worcester, and asking for an interview with Lady Margaret; but he
+reflected that it might be possible that some of the myrmidons of Sir
+Rudolph might be keeping a watch over that building to see that Lady
+Margaret was not secretly removed to some other place of refuge, and
+that the appearance of a knight before its doors would excite comment
+and suspicion. He therefore avoided the town, and journeyed straight to
+the forest, where he had so often roamed with Cnut and the outlaws.
+
+Here he found that matters had but little changed since he was last
+there. Many of those who had fought with him in the Holy Land, and who
+had returned by sea, had again taken to the forest, joined by many new
+men whom the exactions of Sir Rudolph had already goaded into revolt.
+Cnut was received with enthusiasm, and when he presented Cuthbert to
+them as the rightful heir of Evesham and the well-known friend of the
+foresters, their enthusiasm knew no bounds. They at once accepted him as
+their lord and master, and promised to obey his orders, and to lay down
+their lives, if necessary, in his cause, as they knew that it was he who
+had formerly obtained the pardon of the forest band, and who had fought
+with them in their attack on Wortham Castle.
+
+To Cuthbert's great delight he heard that his mother was in good health,
+although she had for some months been grievously fretting over his
+disappearance and supposed death. Cuthbert hesitated whether he should
+proceed at once to see her; but he feared that the shock of his
+appearance might be too much for her, and that her expressions of joy
+might make the retainers and others aware of his arrival, and the news
+might in some way reach the ears of those at the castle. He therefore
+dispatched Cnut to see her, and break the news to her cautiously, and to
+request her to arrange for a time when she would either see Cuthbert at
+some place at a distance from the house, or would so arrange that the
+domestics should be absent and that he would have an interview with her
+there unobserved.
+
+Cnut was absent some hours, and on his return told Cuthbert that he had
+seen Dame Editha, and that her joy on hearing of her son's safe arrival
+had caused her no harm, but rather the reverse. The news that King
+Richard had bestowed upon him the title and lands of Evesham was new to
+her, and she was astonished indeed to hear of his elevation. Having
+heard much of the character of the pretending earl, she had great fears
+for the safety of Cuthbert, should his residence in the neighborhood get
+to his ears; and although sure of the fidelity of all her retainers, she
+feared that in their joy at their young master's return they might let
+slip some incautious word which would come to the ears of some of those
+at the castle. She therefore determined to meet him at a distance. She
+had arranged that upon the following day she would give out that she
+intended to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Dunstan, which lay at
+the edge of the forest, to thank him for her recovery from illness, and
+to pray for the safety of her son. She would be carried thither in a
+litter, and her journey would excite no comment whatever. She would take
+with her four of her most trusted retainers, and would on her arrival at
+the shrine send them to a distance, in order to pay her devotions
+undisturbed. Cuthbert was to be near, and the moment he saw them depart,
+to enter.
+
+This arrangement was carried out, and the joy of Dame Editha at again
+meeting her son was deep indeed. He had left her a lad of fifteen. He
+now returned a youth of nearly eighteen, stout and strong beyond his
+age, and looking far older than he was, from the effect of the hot sun
+of Syria and of the hardships through which he had gone. That he should
+win his spurs upon the first opportunity the earl had promised her, and
+she doubted not that he would soon attain the rank which his father had
+held. But that he should return to her a belted earl was beyond her
+wildest thoughts. This, however, was but little in her mind then. It was
+her son, and not the Earl of Evesham, whom she clasped in her arms.
+
+As the interview must necessarily be a short one, Cuthbert gave her but
+a slight outline of what had happened since they parted, and the
+conversation then turned upon the present position, and upon the steps
+which had best be taken.
+
+"Your peril is, I fear, as great here as when you were fighting the
+infidels in the Holy Land," she said. "Sir Rudolph has not been here
+long; but he has proved himself a cruel and ruthless master. He has
+driven forth many of the old tenants and bestowed their lands upon his
+own servants and retainers. The forest laws he carries out to the
+fullest severity, and has hung several men who were caught infringing
+them. He has laid such heavy burdens on all the tenants that remain that
+they are fairly ruined, and if he stay here long he will rule over a
+desert. Did he dream of your presence here, he would carry fire and
+sword through the forest. It is sad indeed to think that so worthless a
+knave as this should be a favorite of the ruler of England. But all men
+say that he is so. Thus were you to attack him, even did you conquer and
+kill him, you would have the enmity of Prince John to contend with; and
+he spareth none, man or woman, who stand in his way. It will be a bad
+day indeed for England should our good King Richard not return. I will,
+as you wish me, write to my good cousin, the Lady Abbess of St. Anne's,
+and will ask that you may have an interview with the Lady Margaret, to
+hear her wishes and opinions concerning the future, and will pray her to
+do all that she can to aid your suit with the fair young lady, and to
+keep her at all events safe from the clutches of the tyrant of Evesham."
+
+Three days later a boy employed as a messenger by Dame Editha brought a
+note to Cuthbert, saying that she had heard from the Abbess of St.
+Anne's, who would be glad to receive a visit from Cuthbert. The abbess
+had asked his mother to accompany him; but this she left for him to
+decide. Cuthbert sent back a message in reply that he thought it would
+be dangerous for her to accompany him, as any spy watching would report
+her appearance, and inquiries were sure to be set on foot as to her
+companion. He said that he himself would call at the convent on the
+following evening after nightfall, and begged her to send word to the
+abbess to that effect, in order that he might, when he presented
+himself, be admitted at once.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+
+
+Upon the following evening Cuthbert proceeded to Worcester. He left his
+horse some little distance outside the town, and entered on foot. Having
+no apprehension of an attack, he had left all his pieces of armor
+behind, and was in the quiet garb of a citizen. Cnut attended him--for
+that worthy follower considered himself as responsible that no harm of
+any sort should befall his young master. The consequences of his own
+imprudence in the Tyrol were ever before his mind, and he determined
+that from henceforth there should be no want of care on his part. He
+accompanied Cuthbert to within a short distance of the convent, and took
+up his position in the shade of a house, whence he could watch should
+any one appear to be observing Cuthbert's entrance.
+
+Upon ringing the bell Cuthbert told the porteress, as had been arranged,
+that he had called on a message from Dame Editha, and he was immediately
+ushered into the parlor of the convent, where, a minute or two later, he
+was joined by the lady abbess. He had when young been frequently to the
+convent, and had always been kindly received.
+
+"I am indeed glad to see you, Sir Cuthbert," she said, "though I
+certainly should not have recognized the lad who used to come here with
+my cousin in the stalwart young knight I see before me. You are indeed
+changed and improved. Who would think that my gossip Editha's son would
+come to be the Earl of Evesham! The Lady Margaret is eager to see you;
+but I think that you exaggerate the dangers of her residence here. I
+cannot think that even a minion of Prince John would dare to violate the
+sanctity of a convent."
+
+"I fear, good mother," Cuthbert said, "that when ambition and greed are
+in one scale, reverence for the holy church will not weigh much in the
+other. Had King Richard been killed upon his way home, or so long as
+nothing was heard of him, Sir Rudolph might have been content to allow
+matters to remain as they were, until at least Lady Margaret attained an
+age which would justify him in demanding that the espousal should be
+carried out. But the news which has now positively been ascertained,
+that the king is in the hands of the emperor, and the knowledge that
+sooner or later his freedom will be obtained, will hasten the friends of
+the usurper to make the most of their advantage. He knows that the king
+would at once upon his return annul the nomination of Sir Rudolph to the
+earldom which had previously been bestowed upon me. But he may well
+think that if before that time he can secure in marriage the person of
+the late earl's daughter, no small share of the domains may be allotted
+to him as her dowry, even if he be obliged to lay by his borrowed
+honors. You will, unless I am greatly mistaken, hear from him before
+long."
+
+The abbess looked grave.
+
+"There is much in what you say, Sir Cuthbert; and indeed a certain
+confirmation is given to it by the fact that only yesterday I received a
+letter from Sir Rudolph, urging that now the Lady Margaret is past the
+age of fifteen, and may therefore be considered marriageable, the will
+of the prince should be carried into effect, and that she should for the
+present be committed to the charge of the Lady Clara Boulger, who is
+the wife of a friend and associate of Sir Rudolph. He says that he
+should not wish to press the marriage until she attains the age of
+sixteen, but that it were well that his future wife should become
+accustomed to the outside world, so as to take her place as Castellan of
+Evesham with a dignity befitting the position. I wrote at once to him
+saying that in another year it would, in my poor judgment, be quite time
+to think about such worldly matters; that at the present the Lady
+Margaret was receiving an education suitable to her rank; that she was
+happy here; and that unless constrained by force--of which, I said, I
+could not suppose that any possibility existed--I should not surrender
+the Lady Margaret into any hands whatsoever, unless, indeed, I received
+the commands of her lawful guardian, King Richard."
+
+"You said well, holy mother," Sir Cuthbert said. "But you see the hawks
+scent the danger from afar, and are moving uneasily already. Whether
+they consider it so pressing that they will dare to profane the convent,
+I know not. But I am sure that should they do so, they will not hesitate
+a moment at the thought of the anger of the church. Prince John has
+already shown that he is ready, if need be, to oppose the authority of
+the holy father, and he may well, therefore, despise any local wrath
+that might be excited by an action which he can himself disavow, and for
+which, even at the worst, he need only inflict some nominal punishment
+upon his vassal. Bethink thee, lady, whether it would not be safer to
+send the Lady Margaret to the care of some person, where she may be
+concealed from the search of Sir Rudolph."
+
+"I would gladly do so," the abbess said, "did I know of such a person or
+such a place. But it is difficult indeed, for a young lady of rank to be
+concealed from such sharp searchers as Sir Rudolph would be certain to
+place upon her track. Your proposal that she should take refuge in the
+house of some small franklin near the forest, I cannot agree to. In the
+first place, it would demean her to be so placed; and in the second, we
+could never be sure that the report of her residence there might not
+reach the ears of Sir Rudolph. As a last resource, of course, such a
+step would be justifiable, but not until at least overt outrages have
+been attempted. Now I will call Lady Margaret in."
+
+The young girl entered with an air of frank gladness, but was startled
+at the alteration which had taken place in her former playfellow, and
+paused and looked at the abbess, as if inquiring whether this could be
+really the Cuthbert she had known. Lady Margaret was fifteen in years;
+but she looked much younger. The quiet seclusion in which she had lived
+in the convent had kept her from approaching that maturity which as an
+earl's daughter, brought up in the stir and bustle of a castle, she
+would doubtless have attained.
+
+"This is indeed Sir Cuthbert," the abbess said, "your old playfellow,
+and the husband destined for you by your father and by the will of the
+king."
+
+Struck with a new timidity, the girl advanced, and, according to the
+custom of the times, held up her cheek to be kissed. Cuthbert was almost
+as timid as herself.
+
+"I feel, Lady Margaret," he said, "a deep sense of my own unworthiness
+of the kindness and honor which the dear lord your father bestowed upon
+me; and were it not that many dangers threaten, and that it were
+difficult under the circumstances to find one more worthy of you, I
+would gladly resign you into the hands of such a one were it for your
+happiness. But believe me that the recollection of your face has
+animated me in many of the scenes of danger in which I have been placed;
+and although even in fancy my thoughts scarcely ventured to rise so
+high, yet I felt as a true knight might feel for the lady of his love."
+
+"I always liked you, Sir Cuthbert," the girl said frankly, "better than
+any one else next to my father, and gladly submit myself to his will. My
+own inclinations indeed, so far as is maidenly, go with his. These are
+troubled times," she said anxiously, "and our holy mother tells me that
+you fear some danger is overhanging me."
+
+"I trust that the danger may not be imminent," Cuthbert answered. "But
+knowing the unscrupulous nature of the false Earl of Evesham, I fear
+that the news that King Richard is found will bestir him to early
+action. But you can rely, dear lady, on a careful watch being kept over
+you night and day; and should any attempt be made to carry you away, or
+to put force upon you, be assured that assistance will be at hand. Even
+should any attempt succeed, do not lose heart, for rescue will certainly
+be attempted; and I must be dead, and my faithful followers crushed,
+before you can become the bride of Sir Rudolph."
+
+Then turning to other subjects, he talked to her of the life he had led
+since he last saw her. He told her of the last moments of her father,
+and of the gallant deeds he had done in the Holy Land.
+
+After waiting for two hours, the abbess judged that the time for
+separation had arrived; and Cuthbert, taking a respectful adieu of his
+young mistress, and receiving the benediction of the abbess, departed.
+
+He found Cnut on guard at the point where he had left him.
+
+"Have you seen aught to give rise to suspicion?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Yes," Cnut said, "the place is undoubtedly watched. Just after you had
+entered a man came from that house yonder and went up to the gate, as if
+he would fain learn by staring at its iron adornments the nature of him
+who had passed in. Then he re-entered his house, and if I mistake not is
+still on the watch at that casement. If we stand here for a minute or
+two, perchance he may come out to see what delays you in this dark
+corner, in which case I may well give him a clout with my ax which will
+settle his prying."
+
+"Better not," Cuthbert said. "We can retire round this corner and so
+avoid his observation; and were his body found slain here, suspicion
+would be at once excited in the mind of his employer. At present he can
+have no ground for any report which may make the knight uneasy, for he
+can but know that a gentleman has entered, and remained for two hours at
+the convent, and he will in no way connect my visit with the Lady
+Margaret."
+
+They had just turned the corner which Cuthbert indicated, when a man
+came up rapidly behind them and almost brushed them as he passed,
+half-turning round and trying to gaze into their faces. Cnut at once
+assumed the aspect of an intoxicated person, and stretching forth his
+foot, with a dexterous shove pushed the stranger into the gutter. The
+latter rose with a fierce cry of anger; but Cnut with a blow of his
+heavy fist again stretched him on the ground, this time to remain quiet
+until they had walked on and passed out of sight.
+
+"A meddling fool," Cnut grumbled. "He will not, methinks, have much to
+report to Sir Rudolph this time. Had I thought that he had seen your
+face, I would have cleft his skull with no more hesitation than I send
+an arrow into the brain of a stag in the forest."
+
+As they journeyed along Cuthbert informed Cnut of what the abbess had
+told him; and the latter agreed that a watch must be placed on the
+convent, and that a force must be kept as near as possible at hand so
+as to defeat any attempt which might be made.
+
+The next day one of the forest men who had been a peaceable citizen, but
+who had been charged with using false weights and had been condemned to
+lose his ears, repaired to Worcester. His person was unknown there, as
+he had before lived at Gloucester. He hired a house in the square in
+which the convent was situated, giving out that he desired to open a
+house of business for the sale of silks, and for articles from the Low
+Countries. As he paid down earnest-money for the rent no suspicion
+whatever was excited. He at once took up his abode there, having with
+him two stout serving-men, and a 'prentice boy; and from that time two
+sets of watchers observed without ceasing what passed at the Convent of
+St. Anne.
+
+At a distance of half a mile from the road leading between Worcester and
+Evesham stood a grange, which had for some time been disused, the ground
+belonging to it having been sequestrated and given to the lord of an
+adjoining estate, who did not care to have the grange occupied. In this
+ten men, headed by Cnut, took up their residence, blocking up the window
+of the hall with hangings, so that the light of the fire kindled within
+would not be observed.
+
+Two months passed on without any incident of importance. The feeling
+between the outlaws in the forest and the retainers of the false Earl of
+Evesham was becoming much imbittered. Several times the foresters of the
+latter, attempting pursuit of men charged with breaking the game laws,
+were roughly handled. These on making their report were sent back again,
+supported by a force of footmen; but these, too, were driven back, and
+the authority of Sir Rudolph was openly defied.
+
+Gradually it came to his ears that the outlaws were commanded by a man
+who had been their leader in times gone by, but who had been pardoned,
+and had, with a large number of his band, taken service in the army of
+the Crusaders; also, that there was present a stranger, whose manner and
+the deference paid to him by Cnut proclaimed him to be of gentle blood.
+This news awakened grave uneasiness on the part of Sir Rudolph. The
+knight caused inquiries to be made, and ascertained that Cnut had been
+especially attached to the young Cuthbert, and that he had fought under
+the Earl of Evesham's banner. It seemed possible then that with him had
+returned the claimant for the earldom; and in that case Sir Rudolph felt
+that danger menaced him, for the bravery of the Earl of Evesham's
+adopted son had been widely spoken of by those who had returned from the
+Holy Land.
+
+Sir Rudolph was a man of forty, tall and dark, with Norman features. He
+held the Saxons in utter contempt, and treated them as beings solely
+created to till the land for the benefit of their Norman lords. He was
+brave and fearless, and altogether free from the superstition of the
+times. Even the threats of the pope, which although Prince John defied
+them yet terrified him at heart, were derided by his follower, who
+feared no one thing in the world, save, perhaps, the return of King
+Richard from captivity.
+
+No sooner had the suspicion that his rival was in the neighborhood
+possessed him than he determined that one of two things must be carried
+out: either Sir Cuthbert must be killed, or the Lady Margaret must be
+carried off and forced to accept him as her husband. First he endeavored
+to force Sir Cuthbert to declare himself and to trust to his own arm to
+put an end to his rival. To that end he caused a proclamation to be
+written, and to be affixed to the door of the village church at the fair
+of Evesham.
+
+Cnut and several of his followers were there, all quietly dressed as
+yeomen. Seeing a crowd round the door of the church, he pressed forward.
+Being himself unable to read writing, he asked one of the burgesses what
+was written upon the paper which caused such excitement.
+
+"It is," the burgess said, "in the nature of a cartel or challenge from
+our present lord, Sir Rudolph. He says that it having come to his ears
+that a Saxon serf, calling himself Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, is
+lurking in the woods and consorting with outlaws and robbers, he
+challenges him to appear, saying that he will himself, grievously
+although he would demean himself by so doing, yet condescend to meet him
+in the lists with sword and battle-ax, and to prove upon his body the
+falseness of his averments. Men marvel much," the burgess continued, "at
+this condescension on the earl's part. We have heard indeed that King
+Richard, before he sailed for England, did, at the death of the late
+good earl, bestow his rank and the domains of Evesham upon Sir Cuthbert,
+the son of the Dame Editha. Whether it be true or not, we cannot say;
+but it seems strange that such honor should have been bestowed upon one
+so young. In birth indeed he might aspire to the rank, since his father,
+Sir Walter, was a brave knight, and the mother, Dame Editha, was of good
+Saxon blood, and descended from those who held Evesham before the
+arrival of the Normans."
+
+Cnut's first impulse was to stride forward and to tear down the
+proclamation. But the remembrance of his solemn determination not in
+future to act rashly came across him, and he decided to take no steps
+until he had reported the facts to his master, and taken his counsel
+thereon.
+
+Cuthbert received the news with much indignation.
+
+"There is naught that I should like better," he said, "than to try my
+strength against that of this false traitor. But although I have proved
+my arm against the Saracens, I think not that it is yet strong enough to
+cope against a man who, whatsoever be his faults, is said to be a
+valiant knight. But that would not deter me from attempting the task. It
+is craftily done on the part of Sir Rudolph. He reckons that if I appear
+he will kill me; that if I do not appear, I shall be branded as a
+coward, and my claims brought into disrepute. It may be, too, that it is
+a mere ruse to discover if I be in the neighborhood. Some rumors thereof
+may have reached him, and he has taken this course to determine upon
+their truth. He has gone too far, and honest men will see in the cartel
+itself a sign that he misdoubts him that my claims are just; for were I,
+as he says, a Saxon serf, be sure that he would not condescend to meet
+me in the lists as he proposes. I trust that the time will come when I
+may do so. But at present I will submit to his insult rather than
+imperil the success of our plans, and, what is of far greater
+importance, the safety and happiness of the Lady Margaret, who, did
+aught befall me, would assuredly fall into his hands."
+
+After some thought, however, Cuthbert drew up an answer to the knight's
+proclamation. He did not in this speak in his own name, but wrote as if
+the document were the work of Cnut. It was worded as follows: "I, Cnut,
+a free Saxon and a leader of bowmen under King Richard in the Holy Land,
+do hereby pronounce and declare the statements of Sir Rudolph, miscalled
+the Earl of Evesham, to be false and calumnious. The earldom was, as
+Rudolph well knows, and as can be proved by many nobles and gentlemen of
+repute who were present with King Richard, granted to Sir Cuthbert, King
+Richard's true and faithful follower. When the time shall come Sir
+Cuthbert will doubtless be ready to prove his rights. But at present
+right has no force in England, and until the coming of our good King
+Richard must remain in abeyance. Until then, I support the title of Sir
+Cuthbert, and do hereby declare Sir Rudolph a false and perjured knight;
+and warn him that if he falls into my hands it will fare but badly with
+him, as I know it will fare but badly with me should I come into his."
+
+At nightfall the cartel of Sir Rudolph was torn down from the church and
+that of Cnut affixed in its place. The reading thereof caused great
+astonishment in Evesham, and the rage of Sir Rudolph, when the news came
+to his ears, was very great. Cuthbert was sure that this affair would
+quicken the intentions of Sir Rudolph with regard to the Lady Margaret,
+and he received confirmation of this in a letter which the abbess sent
+him, saying that she had received another missive from Sir Rudolph,
+authoritatively demanding in the king's name the instant surrender of
+Lady Margaret to him. That night forty archers stole, one by one,
+quietly into Worcester, entering the town before the gates were shut,
+and so mingling with the citizens that they were unobserved. When it was
+quite dark they quietly took their way, one by one, to the square in
+which stood the convent, and were admitted into the shop of Master
+Nicholas, the silk mercer.
+
+The house was a large one, with its floors overhanging each the one
+beneath it, as was the custom of the time, and with large casements
+running the whole width of the house.
+
+The mercer had laid by a goodly store of provisions, and for three days
+the troop, large as it was, was accommodated there. Cuthbert himself was
+with them, Cnut remaining at the grange with the ten men originally sent
+there.
+
+On the third day Sir Rudolph, with a number of knights and men-at-arms,
+arrived in the town, giving out that he was passing northward, but he
+would abide that night at the hostelry. A great many of his men-at-arms
+did, as those on the watch observed, enter one by one into the town. The
+people of Worcester were somewhat surprised at this large accompaniment
+of the earl, but thought no harm. The Abbess of St. Anne's, however, was
+greatly terrified, as she feared that some evil design might be intended
+against her. She was, however, reassured in the evening by a message
+brought by a boy, to the effect that succor would be near, whatsoever
+happened.
+
+At midnight a sudden uproar was heard in the streets of Worcester.
+
+A party of men fell upon the burgesses guarding the gate of the town,
+disarmed them, and took possession of it. At the same time those who had
+put up at the hostelry with Sir Rudolph suddenly mounted their horses,
+and with a great clatter rode down the streets to the convent of St.
+Anne. Numbers of men on foot also joined, and some sixty in all suddenly
+appeared before the great gate of the convent. With a thundering noise
+they knocked at the door, and upon the grating being opened Sir Rudolph
+himself told the porteress who looked through it that she was to go at
+once to the abbess and order her to surrender the body of the Lady
+Margaret to him, in accordance with the order of Prince John; adding,
+that if within the space of five minutes the order was not complied
+with, he would burst in the gates of the convent and take her for
+himself. In another minute a casement opened above, and the abbess
+herself appeared.
+
+"Rash man," she said to Sir Rudolph, "I warn you against committing the
+sin of sacrilege. Neither the orders of Prince John nor of any other
+potentate can override the rights of the holy church; and should you
+venture to lay the hand of force upon this convent you will be placed
+under the anathema of the church, and its spiritual terrors will be
+directed against you."
+
+"I am prepared to risk that, holy mother," Sir Rudolph said, with a
+laugh. "So long as I am obeying the orders of my prince, I care naught
+for those of any foreign potentate, be he pope or be he emperor. Three
+minutes of the time I gave you have elapsed, and unless within two more
+the Lady Margaret appears at the gate I will batter it down; and you may
+think yourself lucky if I do not order my men to set light to it and to
+smoke you out of your hole."
+
+The abbess closed the window, and as she did so the long row of
+casements in the house of Master Nicholas were opened from top to
+bottom, and a volley of sixty clothyard arrows was poured into the group
+closely standing round the gate. Many fell, killed outright, and shouts
+of rage and pain were heard arising.
+
+Furious at this unexpected attack, Sir Rudolph turned and commanded
+those with him to attack the house whence this volley of missiles had
+come. But even while he spoke another flight of arrows, even more deadly
+than the last, was poured forth. One of the knights standing by the side
+of Sir Rudolph fell, shot through the brain. Very many of the common
+men, undefended by harness, fell shot through and through; and an arrow
+piercing the joint of the armor of Sir Rudolph wounded him in the
+shoulder. In vain the knight stormed and raged and ordered his men to
+advance. The suddenness of the attack seemed to his superstitious
+followers a direct answer from heaven to the words of the abbess. Their
+number was already seriously lessened, and those who were in case to do
+so at once took flight and scattered through the city, making for the
+gate, which had already been seized by Sir Rudolph's men.
+
+Finding himself alone with only a few of his knights and principal
+men-at-arms remaining, while the storm of arrows continued unabated, Sir
+Rudolph was forced to order his men to retreat with many fierce threats
+of the vengeance which he would hereafter take.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM.
+
+
+The return of Sir Rudolph's party to Evesham was not unmarked by
+incident, for as they passed along the road, from an ambush in a wood
+other archers, whose numbers they could not discover, shot hard upon
+them, and many fell there who had escaped from the square at Worcester.
+When the list was called upon the arrival at the castle, it was found
+that no less than thirty of those who had set out were missing, while
+many others were grievously wounded.
+
+The noise of the tumult in the square of the convent aroused the whole
+town of Worcester. Alarm bells were rung; and the burgesses, hastily
+arming themselves, poured into the streets. Directed by the sound, they
+made their way to the square, and were astonished at finding it entirely
+deserted, save for some twenty men, lying dead or dying in front of the
+gate of the convent, pierced with long arrows. They speedily found that
+Sir Rudolph and his troop had departed; and further inquiry revealed the
+fact that the burgher guard at one of the gates had been overpowered and
+were prisoners in the watchroom. These could only say that they were
+suddenly seized, all being asleep save the one absolutely on guard. They
+knew nothing more than that a few minutes later there was a great
+clatter of horsemen and men on foot leaving the city. Unable to find any
+solution to this singular circumstance, but satisfied that Sir Rudolph
+had departed, and that no more disturbance was likely to arise that
+night, the burgesses again betook themselves to their beds, having
+closed the gates and placed a strong guard over them, determining next
+morning to sift the affair to the bottom.
+
+In the morning the leading burgesses met in council, and finding none
+who could give them any information, the mayor and two of the councilors
+repaired to the convent, where they asked for an interview with the lady
+abbess. Mightily indignant were they at hearing that Sir Rudolph had
+attempted to break into the convent, and to carry off a boarder residing
+there. But the abbess herself could give them no further news. She said
+that after she retired from the window she heard great shouts and cries,
+and that almost immediately afterward the whole of the party in front
+hastily retired.
+
+That Sir Rudolph had been attacked by a party of archers was evident;
+but whence they had shot, or how they had come upon the spot at the
+time, or whither they had gone, were mysteries that could not be solved.
+In the search which the authorities made, however, it was discovered
+that the house of the draper, Master Nicholas, was closed. Finding that
+summonses to open were unanswered, the door was broken in, and the
+premises were found in confusion. No goods of any kind were discovered
+there, but many bales filled with dried leaves, bark of trees, and other
+worthless matters. Such goods as had been displayed in the window had
+clearly been carried away. Searching the house, they found signs that a
+considerable number of men had been concealed there, and although not
+knowing whence the body of archers could have come, they concluded that
+those who defeated the attempt of Sir Rudolph must have been hidden in
+the draper's house. The singularity of this incident gave rise to great
+excitement; but the indignation against Sir Rudolph was in no way
+lessened by the fact that his attempt had been defeated, not by the
+townsmen themselves, but by some unknown force.
+
+After much consultation on the part of the council, it was resolved that
+a deputation, consisting of the mayor and the five senior councilors,
+should resort to London, and there demand from the prince redress for
+the injury put upon their town by Sir Rudolph. These worthy merchants
+betook themselves to London by easy stages, and upon their arrival there
+were kept for some days before they could obtain an interview with King
+John. When they appeared before him and commenced telling their story
+the prince fell into sudden rage.
+
+"I have heard of this matter before," he said, "and am mightily angry
+with the people of Worcester, inasmuch as they have dared to interfere
+to prevent the carrying out of my commands. The Earl of Evesham has
+written to me, that thinking to scare the abbess of St. Anne's into a
+compliance with the commands which I had laid upon her, and to secure
+the delivery of a contumacious ward of the crown, he had pretended to
+use force, having, however, no idea of carrying his threats into effect.
+When, as he doubted not, the abbess was on the point of yielding up the
+ward, the good knight was suddenly set upon by the rascals of the town,
+who slew some of his companions and followers, and did grievously
+ill-treat the remainder. This," said the prince, "you now pretend was
+done by a party of men of whose presence in the town you had no
+cognizance. Your good sense must be small, if you think that I should
+believe such a tale as this. It is your rascaldom at Worcester which
+interfered to prevent my will being carried out, and I have a goodly
+mind to order the troop of Sir Charles Everest, which is now marching
+toward Evesham, to sack the town, as a punishment for its rebellion. As,
+however, I am willing to believe that you and the better class of
+burgesses were in ignorance of the doings of the rougher kind, I will
+extend mercy toward the city, and will merely inflict a fine of three
+thousand golden marks upon it."
+
+The mayor attempted humbly to explain and to entreat; but the prince was
+seized with a sudden passion, and threatened if he said more he would at
+once cast him and his fellows into durance. Therefore, sadly crestfallen
+at the result of their mission, the mayor and councilors returned to
+Worcester, where their report caused great consternation. This was
+heightened by the fact that upon the following day Sir Charles Everest,
+with five hundred mercenaries of the prince, together with Sir Rudolph
+and his following, and several other barons favorable to the cause of
+the prince, were heard to be approaching the town.
+
+Worcester was capable of making a stout defense, but seeing that no help
+was likely to be forthcoming, and fearing the utter ruin of the town
+should it be taken by storm, the council, after sitting many hours in
+deliberation, determined to raise the money required to pay the fine
+inflicted by the prince. The bolder sort were greatly averse to this
+decision, especially as a letter had been received, signed "Cuthbert,
+Earl of Evesham," offering, should the townspeople decide to resist the
+unjust demands of Prince John, to enter the town with one hundred and
+fifty archers to take part in its defense. With this force, as the more
+ardent spirits urged, the defeat of any attempt to carry it by storm
+would be assured. But the graver men argued that even if defeated for
+the first time further attempts would be made, and as it was likely that
+King Richard would not return for a long time, and that Prince John
+might become sovereign of England, sooner or later the town must be
+taken, and, in any case, its trade would for a long time be destroyed,
+and great suffering inflicted upon all; therefore, that it was better to
+pay the fine now than to risk all these evils, and perhaps the
+infliction of a heavier impost upon them.
+
+The abbess was kept informed by friends in the council of the course of
+the proceedings. She had in the meantime had another interview with Sir
+Cuthbert and had determined, seeing that Prince John openly supported
+the doings of his minion, it would be better to remove the Lady Margaret
+to some other place, as no one could say how the affair might terminate;
+and with five hundred mercenaries at his back, Sir Rudolph would be so
+completely master of the city that he would be able in broad daylight,
+did he choose, to force the gates of the convent and carry off the
+king's ward.
+
+Accordingly, two days before the arrival of the force before the walls
+of Worcester, Lady Margaret left the convent by a postern gate in the
+rear, late in the evening. She was attended by two of the sisters, both
+of whom, as well as herself, were dressed as country women. Mules were
+in readiness outside the city gates, and here Sir Cuthbert, with an
+escort of archers, was ready to attend them. They traveled all night,
+and arrived in the morning at a small convent situated five miles from
+the city of Hereford. The abbess here was a cousin of the Superior of
+St. Anne's, and had already consented to receive Lady Margaret. Leaving
+her at the door, and promising that, as far as possible, he would keep
+watch over her, and that even in the worst she need never despair, Sir
+Cuthbert left her and returned to the forest.
+
+The band there assembled varied considerably in numbers, for provisions
+could not be found continually for a large body of men. The forest was
+indeed very extensive, and the number of deer therein large. Still, for
+the feeding of one hundred and fifty men many animals are required, and
+other food. The franklins in the neighborhood were all hostile to Sir
+Rudolph, whom they regarded as a cruel tyrant, and did their utmost in
+the way of supplies for those in the forest. Their resources, however,
+were limited, and it was found necessary to scatter the force, and for a
+number of them to take up their residence in places a short distance
+away, forty only remaining permanently on guard.
+
+Sir Rudolph and his friends entered Worcester, and there received with
+great hauteur the apologies of the mayor and council, and the assurance
+that the townspeople were in nowise concerned in the attack made upon
+him. To this he pretended disbelief. The fine demanded was paid, the
+principal portion in gold, the rest in bills signed by the leading
+merchants of the place; for after every effort it had been found
+impossible to collect such a sum within the city.
+
+The day after he arrived he again renewed his demand to the abbess for
+the surrender of the Lady Margaret; this time, however, coming to her
+attended only by two squires, and by a pursuivant bearing the king's
+order for the delivery of the damsel. The abbess met him at the gate,
+and informed him that the Lady Margaret was no longer in her charge.
+
+"Finding," she said in a fearless tone, "that the holy walls of this
+convent were insufficient to restrain lawless men, and fearing that
+these might be tempted to acts of sacrilege, which might bring down upon
+them the wrath of the church and the destruction of their souls, I have
+sent her away."
+
+"Whither has she gone?" Sir Rudolph demanded, half-mad with passion.
+
+"That I decline to say," the lady abbess replied. "She is in good hands;
+and when King Richard returns his ward shall be delivered to him at
+once."
+
+"Will you take oath upon the Bible that she is not within these walls?"
+Sir Rudolph exclaimed.
+
+"My word is sufficient," the lady abbess replied calmly. "But should it
+be necessary, I should be ready to swear upon the relics that she is not
+here."
+
+A few hours later Sir Rudolph, attended by his own party and by one
+hundred of Sir Charles Everest's mercenaries, returned to his castle.
+
+Three days afterward, as Cuthbert was sitting at a rude but hearty meal
+in the forest, surrounded by Cnut and his followers, a hind entered
+breathless. Cuthbert at once recognized him as one of the servitors of
+his mother.
+
+"What is it?" he exclaimed, leaping to his feet.
+
+"Terrible news, Master Cuthbert, terrible news!" exclaimed the man. "The
+wicked earl came down this morning, with fifty of his men, set fire to
+the house, and all its buildings and stacks, and has carried off the
+lady, your mother, a prisoner to the castle, on a charge, as he said, of
+harboring traitors."
+
+A cry of fury broke from Cnut and his men.
+
+"The false traitor shall bitterly regret this outrage," Cuthbert
+exclaimed.
+
+He had in the first excitement seized his arms, and his followers
+snatched up their bows, as if for instant warfare. A few moments'
+reflection, however, showed to Cuthbert the impossibility of his
+attacking a fortress like Evesham, garrisoned by a strong body of
+well-armed men, with only the archers of the forest, without implements
+necessary for such an assault.
+
+"Send at once, Cnut," he said, "and call in all the band. We cannot take
+the castle; but we will carry fire and sword round its walls. We will
+cut off all communication from within or from without. If attacked by
+large forces, we will retire upon the wood, returning to our posts
+without the walls as soon as the force is withdrawn. These heavily armed
+men can move but slowly, while we can run at full speed. There cannot be
+more than some twenty horsemen in the castle; and methinks with our
+arrows and pikes we can drive these back if they attempt to fall upon
+us."
+
+Cnut at once sent off swift-footed messengers to carry out Cuthbert's
+orders, and on the following day the whole of the band were again
+assembled in the woods. Just as Cuthbert was setting them in motion a
+distant blast of a horn was heard.
+
+"It is," Cuthbert exclaimed, "the note calling for a parley. Do you,
+Cnut, go forward, and see what is demanded. It is probably a messenger
+from Sir Rudolph."
+
+After half an hour's absence Cnut returned, bringing with him a
+pursuivant or herald. The latter advanced at once toward Cuthbert, who,
+now in his full knightly armor, was evidently the leader of the party.
+
+"I bear to you, Sir Cuthbert, falsely calling yourself Earl of Evesham,
+a message from Sir Rudolph. He bids me tell you that the traitress, Dame
+Editha, your mother, is in his hands, and that she has been found guilty
+of aiding and abetting you in your war against Prince John, the regent
+of this kingdom. For that offense she has been condemned to die."
+
+Here he was interrupted by a cry of rage which broke from the assembled
+foresters. Continuing unmoved, he said:
+
+"Sir Rudolph, being unwilling to take the life of a woman, however
+justly forfeited by the law, commands me to say that if you will deliver
+yourself up to him by to-morrow at twelve the Dame Editha shall be
+allowed to go free. But that if by the time the dial points to noon you
+have not delivered yourself up, he will hang her over the battlements of
+the castle."
+
+Cuthbert was very pale, and he waved his hand to restrain the fury which
+animated the outlaws.
+
+"This man," he said to them, "is a herald, and, as such, is protected by
+all the laws of chivalry. Whatsoever his message, it is none of his. He
+is merely the mouthpiece of him who sent him." Then, turning to the
+herald, he said, "Tell the false knight, your master, on my part, that
+he is a foul ruffian, perjured to all the vows of knighthood; that this
+act of visiting upon a woman the enmity he bears her son will bring upon
+him the execration of all men; and that the offer which he makes me is
+as foul and villainous as himself. Nevertheless, knowing his character,
+and believing that he is capable of keeping his word, tell him that by
+to-morrow at noon I will be there; that the lady, my mother, is to leave
+the castle gates as I enter them; and that though by his foul device he
+may encompass my death, yet that the curse of every good man will light
+upon him, that he will be shunned as the dog he is, and that assuredly
+Heaven will not suffer that deeds so foul should bring with them the
+prize he seeks to gain."
+
+The herald bowed, and, escorted by two archers to the edge of the
+forest, returned to Evesham Castle.
+
+After his departure an animated council took place. Cnut and the
+outlaws, burning with indignation, were ready to attempt anything. They
+would, had Cuthbert given the word, have attacked the castle that very
+night. But Cuthbert pointed out the absolute impossibility of their
+carrying so strong a place by such an assault, unprovided with engines
+for battering down the gates. He said that surprise would be impossible,
+as the knight would be sure to take every precaution against it; and
+that in the event of such an attack being attempted, he would possibly
+carry his threat into execution, and murder Dame Editha before their
+eyes. Cnut was like a madman, so transported with fury was he; and the
+archers were also beside themselves. Cuthbert alone retained his
+calmness. Retiring apart from the others, he paced slowly backward and
+forward among the trees, deliberating upon the best course to be
+pursued. The archers gathered round the fire and passed the night in
+long and angry talk, each man agreeing that in the event of their
+beloved leader being sacrificed by Sir Rudolph, they would one and all
+give their lives to avenge him by slaying the oppressor whensoever he
+ventured beyond the castle gates.
+
+After a time, Cuthbert called Cnut to him, and the two talked long and
+earnestly. Cnut returned to his comrades with a face less despairing
+than that he had before worn, and sent off at once a messenger with all
+speed to a franklin near the forest to borrow a stout rope some fifty
+feet in length, and without telling his comrades what the plans of Sir
+Cuthbert were, bade them cheer up, for that desperate as the position
+was, all hope was not yet lost.
+
+"Sir Cuthbert," he said, "has been in grievous straits before now, and
+has gone through them. Sir Rudolph does not know the nature of the man
+with whom he has to deal, and we may trick him yet."
+
+At eleven o'clock the next day from the walls of Evesham Castle a body
+of archers one hundred and fifty strong were seen advancing in solid
+array.
+
+"Think you, Sir Rudolph," one of his friends, Sir Hubert of Gloucester,
+said to him, "that these varlets think of attacking the castle?"
+
+"They might as well think of scaling heaven," Sir Rudolph said. "Evesham
+could resist a month's siege by a force well equipped for the purpose;
+and were it not that good men are wanted for the king's service, and
+that these villains shoot straight and hard, I would open the gates of
+the castle and launch our force against them. We are two to one as
+strong as they, and our knights and mounted men-at-arms could alone
+scatter that rabble."
+
+Conspicuous upon the battlements a gallows had been erected.
+
+The archers stopped at a distance of a few hundred yards from the
+castle, and Sir Cuthbert advanced alone to the edge of the moat.
+
+"Sir Rudolph of Eresby, false knight and perjured gentleman," he shouted
+in a loud voice, "I, Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, do denounce you as
+foresworn and dishonored, and do challenge you to meet me here before
+the castle in sight of your men and mine, and decide our quarrel as
+Heaven may judge with sword and battle-ax."
+
+Sir Rudolph leaned over the battlements, and said: "It is too late,
+varlet. I condescended to challenge you before, and you refused. You
+cannot now claim what you then feared to accept. The sun on the dial
+approaches noon, and unless you surrender yourself before it reaches the
+mark, I will keep my word, and the traitress, your mother, shall swing
+from that beam."
+
+Making a sign to two men-at-arms, these brought forward Dame Editha and
+so placed her on the battlements that she could be seen from below. Dame
+Editha was still a very fair woman, although nigh forty years had rolled
+over her head. No sign of fear appeared upon her face, and in a firm
+voice she cried to her son:
+
+"Cuthbert, I beg--nay, I order you to retire. If this unknightly lord
+venture to carry out his foul threats against me, let him do so. England
+will ring with the dastardly deed, and he will never dare show his face
+again where Englishmen congregate. Let him do his worst. I am prepared
+to die."
+
+A murmur rose from the knights and men-at-arms standing round Sir
+Rudolph. Several of his companions had from the first, wild and
+reckless as they were, protested against Sir Rudolph's course, and it
+was only upon his solemn assurance that he intended but to frighten Sir
+Cuthbert into surrender, and had no intention of carrying his threats
+against the lady into effect, that they had consented to take part in
+the transaction. Even now, at the fearless words of the Saxon lady
+several of them hesitated, and Sir Hubert of Gloucester stepped forward
+to Sir Rudolph.
+
+"Sir knight," he said, "you know that I am your true comrade and the
+faithful servant of Prince John. Yet in faith would I not that my name
+should be mixed up in so foul a deed. I repent me that I have for a
+moment consented to it. But the shame shall not hang upon the escutcheon
+of Hubert of Gloucester that he stood still when such foul means were
+tried. I pray you, by our long friendship, and for the sake of your own
+honor as a knight, to desist from this endeavor. If this lady be guilty,
+as she well may be of aiding her son in his assaults upon the soldiers
+of Prince John, then let her be tried, and doubtless the court will
+confiscate her estates. But let her son be told that her life is in no
+danger, and that he is free to go, being assured that harm will not come
+to her."
+
+"And if I refuse to consent to allow my enemy, who is now almost within
+my hand, to escape," Sir Rudolph said, "what then?"
+
+"Then," said the knight, "I and my following will at once leave your
+walls, and will clear ourselves to the brave young knight yonder of all
+hand in this foul business."
+
+A murmur of agreement from several of those standing round showed that
+their sentiments were in accordance with those of Sir Hubert.
+
+"I refuse," said Rudolph passionately. "Go, if you will. I am master of
+my actions, and of this castle."
+
+Without a word, Sir Hubert and two others of the knights present turned,
+and briefly ordering their men-at-arms to follow them, descended the
+staircase to the courtyard below. Their horses were brought out, the men
+fell into rank, and the gates of the castle were thrown open.
+
+"Stand to arms!" Sir Cuthbert shouted to the archers. "They are going to
+attempt a sortie." And hastily he retired to the main body of his men.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+THE FALSE AND PERJURED KNIGHT.
+
+
+As the band of knights and their retainers issued from the gate a
+trumpeter blew a parley, and the three knights advanced alone toward the
+group of archers.
+
+"Sir Cuthbert de Lance," Sir Hubert said, "in the name of myself and my
+two friends here we ask your pardon for having so far taken part in this
+foul action. We did so believing only that Sir Rudolph intended the
+capture of your lady mother as a threat. Now that we see he was in
+earnest, we wash our hands of the business; and could we in any way
+atone for our conduct in having joined him, we would gladly do so
+consistently only with our allegiance to the prince regent."
+
+Cuthbert bowed courteously.
+
+"Thanks for your words, Sir Hubert. I had always heard yourself and the
+knights here spoken of as brave and gallant gentlemen, whose sole fault
+was that they chose to take part with a rebel prince rather than with
+the King of England. I rejoice that you have cleared your name of so
+foul a blot as this would have placed upon it, and I acknowledge that
+your conduct now is knightly and courteous. But I can no more parley.
+The sun is within a few minutes of twelve, and I must surrender, to meet
+such fate as may befall me."
+
+So saying, with a bow he left them, and again advanced to the castle
+gate.
+
+"Sir Rudolph," he shouted, "the hour is at hand. I call upon you to
+deliver, outside the gate, the lady, my mother. Whether she wills it or
+not, I call upon you to place her beyond the gate, and I give you my
+knightly word that as she leaves it I enter it."
+
+Dame Editha would then have attempted resistance; but she saw that it
+would be useless. With a pale face she descended the steps, accompanied
+by the men-at-arms. She knew that any entreaty to Sir Rudolph would be
+vain, and with the courage of her race she mentally vowed to devote the
+rest of her life to vengeance for her son.
+
+As the gate opened and she was thrust forth, for a moment she found
+herself in the arms of her son.
+
+"Courage, mother!" he whispered; "all may yet be well."
+
+Cnut was waiting a few paces behind, and offering his hand to Dame
+Editha, he led her to the group of archers, while Cuthbert, alone,
+crossed the drawbridge and entered the portal, the heavy portcullis
+falling after him.
+
+Cnut, immediately ordering four of his men to escort Dame Editha to the
+wood with all speed, advanced with his men toward the walls. All had
+strung their bows and placed their arrows on the ground in front of them
+in readiness for instant use. Cnut himself, with two others carrying the
+rope, advanced to the edge of the moat. None observed their doings, for
+all within the castle were intent upon the proceedings there.
+
+In the courtyard Sir Rudolph had taken his post, with the captain of the
+mercenaries beside him, and the men-at-arms drawn up in order. He smiled
+sardonically as Cuthbert entered.
+
+"So, at last," he said, "this farce is drawing to an end. You are in my
+power, and for the means which I have taken to capture you, I will
+account to the prince. You are a traitor to him; you have attacked and
+slaughtered many of my friends; you are an outlaw defying the law; and
+for each of these offenses your head is forfeited."
+
+"I deny," Cuthbert said, standing before him, "your right to be my
+judge. By my peers only can I be tried. As a knight of England and as
+rightful lord of this castle, I demand to be brought before a jury of my
+equals."
+
+"I care nothing for rights or for juries," said Sir Rudolph. "I have the
+royal order for your execution, and that order I shall put into effect,
+although all the knights and barons in England objected."
+
+Cuthbert looked round to observe the exact position in which he was
+standing. He knew, of course, every foot of the castle, and saw that but
+a short distance behind a single row of armed men was the staircase
+leading to the battlements.
+
+"False and perjured knight," he said, taking a step forward, "I may die;
+but I would rather a thousand deaths than such a life as yours will be
+when this deed is known in England. But I am not yet dead. For myself, I
+could pardon you; but for the outrage to my mother--" and with a sudden
+movement he struck Sir Rudolph in the face with all his strength with
+his mailed hand.
+
+With the blood gushing from his nostrils, the knight fell backward, and
+Sir Cuthbert, with a bound, before the assembly could recover from their
+astonishment at the deed, burst through the line of men-at-arms, and
+sprang up the narrow staircase. A score of men-at-arms started in
+pursuit; but Sir Cuthbert gained the battlements first, and without a
+moment's hesitation sprang upon them and plunged forward, falling into
+the moat fifty feet below. Here he would have perished miserably, for in
+his heavy armor he was of course unable to swim a stroke, and his
+weight took him at once into the mud of the moat. At its margin,
+however, Cnut stood awaiting him, with one end of the rope in his hand.
+In an instant he plunged in, and diving to the bottom grasped Cuthbert
+by the body, and twisted the rope round him. The two archers on the bank
+at once hauled upon it, and in a minute Sir Cuthbert was dragged to the
+bank.
+
+By this time a crowd of men-at-arms appeared upon the battlements. But
+as they did so the archers opened a storm of arrows upon them, and
+quickly compelled them to find shelter. Carried by Cnut and the men with
+him--for he was insensible--Sir Cuthbert was quickly conveyed to the
+center of the outlaws, and these at once in a compact body began their
+retreat to the wood. Cuthbert quickly recovered consciousness, and was
+soon able to walk. As he did so the gates of the castle were thrown
+open, and a crowd of men-at-arms, consisting of the retainers of the
+castle and the mercenaries of Prince John, sallied forth. So soon as
+Cuthbert was able to move the archers started at a brisk run, several of
+them carrying Cuthbert's casque and sword, and others assisting him to
+hurry along. The rear ranks turned as they ran and discharged flights of
+arrows at the enemy, who, more heavily armed and weighted, gained but
+slowly upon them.
+
+Had not Sir Rudolph been stunned by the blow dealt him by Cuthbert he
+would himself have headed the pursuit, and in that case the foresters
+would have had to fight hard to make their retreat to their fastness.
+The officer in command of the mercenaries, however, had no great stomach
+for the matter. Men were hard to get, and Prince John would not have
+been pleased to hear that a number of the men whom he had brought with
+such expense from foreign parts had been killed in a petty fray.
+Therefore after following for a short time he called them off, and the
+archers fell back into the forest.
+
+Here they found Dame Editha, and for three days she abode among them,
+living in a small hut in the center of the forest. Then she left, to
+take up her abode until the troubles were past with some kin who lived
+in the south of Gloucestershire.
+
+Although the lady abbess had assured Cuthbert that the retreat of Lady
+Margaret was not likely to be found out, he himself, knowing how great a
+stake Sir Rudolph had in the matter, was still far from being easy. It
+would not be difficult for the latter to learn through his agents that
+the lady superior of the little convent near Hereford was of kin to her
+of St. Anne's, and, close as a convent is, yet the gossiping of the
+servants who go to market was certain to let out an affair so important
+as the arrival of a young lady to reside under the charge of the
+superior. Cuthbert was not mistaken as to the acuteness of his enemy.
+The relationship between the two lady superiors was no secret, and after
+having searched all the farmhouses and granges near the forest, and
+being convinced that the lady abbess would have sent her charge rather
+to a religious house than to that of a franklin, Sir Rudolph sought
+which of those within the circuit of a few miles would be likely to be
+the one selected. It was not long before he was enabled to fix upon that
+near Hereford, and spies going to the spot soon found out from the
+country people that it was a matter of talk that a young lady of rank
+had been admitted by the superior. Sir Rudolph hesitated whether to go
+himself at the head of a strong body of men and openly to take her, or
+to employ some sort of device. It was not that he himself feared the
+anathema of the church; but he knew Prince John to be weak and
+vacillating, at one time ready to defy the thunder of the pope, the next
+cringing before the spiritual authority. He therefore determined to
+employ some of his men to burst into the convent and carry off the
+heiress, arranging that he himself, with some of his men-at-arms, should
+come upon them in the road, and make a feigned rescue of her, so that,
+if the lady superior laid her complaint before the pope's legate he
+could deny that he had any hand in the matter, and could even take
+credit for having rescued her from the men who had profaned the convent.
+That his story would be believed mattered but little. It would be
+impossible to prove its falsity, and this was all that he cared for.
+
+This course was followed out. Late one evening the lady superior was
+alarmed by a violent knocking at the door. In reply to questions asked
+through the grill, the answer was given, "We are men of the forest, and
+we are come to carry the Lady Margaret of Evesham off to a secure
+hiding-place. The Lord of Evesham has discovered her whereabouts, and
+will be here shortly, and we would fain remove her before he arrives."
+
+"From whom have you warrant?" the lady superior said. "I surrender her
+to no one, save to the lady abbess of St. Anne's. But if you have a
+written warrant from Sir Cuthbert, the rightful Lord of Evesham, I will
+lay the matter before the Lady Margaret, and will act as it may seem fit
+to her."
+
+"We have no time for parleying," a rough voice said. "Throw open the
+gate at once, or we will break it down."
+
+"Ye be no outlaws," the lady superior said, "for the outlaws are men who
+fear God and respect the church. Were ye what ye say, ye would be
+provided with the warrants that I mention. I warn you, therefore, that
+if you use force, you will be excommunicated, and placed under the ban
+of the church."
+
+The only answer was a thundering assault upon the gate, which soon
+yielded to the blows. The sisters and novices ran shrieking through the
+corridors at this rude uproar. The lady superior, however, stood calmly
+awaiting the giving way of the gate.
+
+"Where is the Lady Margaret?" the leader of the party, who were dressed
+in rough garb, and had the seeming of a band of outlaws, demanded.
+
+"I will say nothing," she said, "nor do I own that she is here."
+
+"We will soon take means to find out," the man exclaimed. "Unless in
+five minutes she is delivered to us, we will burn your place to the
+ground."
+
+The lady abbess was insensible to the threat; but the men rushing in,
+seized some sisters, who, terrified out of their wits by this irruption,
+at once gave the information demanded, and the men made their way to the
+cell where the Lady Margaret slept.
+
+The girl had at once risen when the tumult commenced, doubting not in
+her mind that this was another attempt upon the part of her enemy to
+carry her off. When, therefore, she heard heavy footsteps approaching
+along the gallery--having already hastily attired herself--she opened
+the door and presented herself.
+
+"If you seek the Lady Margaret of Evesham," she said calmly, "I am she.
+Do not harm any of the sisters here. I am in your power, and will go
+with you at once. But I beseech you add not to your other sins that of
+violence against holy women."
+
+The men, abashed by the calm dignity of this young girl, abstained from
+laying hands upon her, but merely motioned to her to accompany them.
+Upon their way they met the man who appeared to be their leader, and he,
+well pleased that the affair was over, led the way to the courtyard.
+
+"Farewell, my child," the abbess exclaimed. "God will deliver you from
+the power of these wicked men. Trust in Him, and keep up your courage.
+Wickedness will not be permitted to triumph upon the earth; and be
+assured that the matter shall be brought to the ears of the pope's
+legate, and of Prince John himself."
+
+She could say no more, for the men, closing round the weeping girl,
+hurried her out from the convent. A litter awaited them without, and in
+this the young lady was placed, and, borne upon the shoulders of four
+stout men, she started at a fast pace, surrounded closely by the rest of
+the band.
+
+It was a dark night, and the girl could not see the direction in which
+she was being taken; but she judged from the turn taken upon leaving the
+convent that it was toward Evesham. They had proceeded some miles, when
+a trampling of horses was heard, and a body of armed men rode up. For a
+moment Lady Margaret's heart gave a leap, for she thought that she had
+been rescued by her friends. There was a loud and angry altercation, a
+clashing of swords, and a sound of shouting and cries outside the
+litter. Then it was placed roughly on the ground, and she heard the
+sound of the footsteps of her first captors hurrying away. Then the
+horsemen closed round the litter, and the leader dismounted.
+
+"I am happy indeed, Lady Margaret," he said, approaching the litter, "to
+have been able to save you from the power of these villains.
+Fortunately, word came to me that the outlaws in the forest were about
+to carry you off, and that they would not hesitate even to desecrate the
+walls of the convent. Assembling my men-at-arms, I at once rode to your
+rescue, and am doubly happy to have saved you, first, as a gentleman,
+secondly, as being the man to whom our gracious prince has assigned you
+as a wife. I am Sir Rudolph, Earl of Evesham."
+
+As from the first the girl had been convinced that she had fallen into
+the power of her lawless suitor, this came upon her as no surprise.
+
+"Whether your story is true, Sir Rudolph," she said, "or not, God knows,
+and I, a poor weak girl, will not pretend to venture to say. It is
+between you and your conscience. If, as you say, you have saved me from
+the power of the outlaws, I demand that, as a knight and a gentleman,
+you return with me at once to the convent from which I was taken by
+force."
+
+"I cannot do that," Sir Rudolph said. "Fortune has placed you in my
+hands, and has enabled me to carry out the commands of the prince.
+Therefore, though I would fain yield to your wishes and so earn your
+good-will, which above all things I wish to obtain, yet my duty toward
+the prince commands me to utilize the advantage which fate has thrown in
+my hands."
+
+"You must do as you will, Sir Rudolph," the girl said with dignity. "I
+believe not your tale. You sought before, in person, to carry me off,
+but failed, and you have now employed other means to do so. The tale of
+your conduct to Dame Editha has reached my ears, and I hold you a
+foresworn knight and a dishonored man, and as such I would rather die
+than become your wife, although as yet I am but a child, and have no
+need to talk of weddings for years to come."
+
+"We need not parley here," the knight said coldly. "We shall have plenty
+of time when at my castle."
+
+The litter was now lifted, placed between two horses, and proceeded
+rapidly on its journey. Although the hope was but faint, yet until the
+gates of the castle closed upon them the Lady Margaret still hoped that
+rescue might reach her. But the secret had been too well kept, and it
+was not until the following day that the man who had been placed in a
+cottage near the convent arrived in all haste in the forest, to say that
+it was only in the morning that he had learned that the convent had been
+broken open by men disguised as archers, and the Lady Margaret carried
+off.
+
+Four days elapsed before Sir Rudolph presented himself before the girl
+he had captured. So fearfully was his face bruised and disfigured by the
+blow from the mailed hand of Cuthbert three weeks before, that he did
+not wish to appear before her under such unfavorable circumstances, and
+the captive passed the day gazing from her casement in one of the rooms
+in the upper part of the keep, toward the forest whence she hoped rescue
+would come.
+
+Within the forest hot discussions were going on as to the best course to
+pursue. An open attack was out of the question, especially as upon the
+day following the arrival there of Lady Margaret three hundred more
+mercenaries had marched in from Worcester, so that the garrison was now
+raised to five hundred men.
+
+"Is there no way," Cnut exclaimed furiously, "by which we might creep
+into this den, since we cannot burst into it openly?"
+
+"There is a way from the castle," Cuthbert said, "for my dear lord told
+me of it one day when we were riding together in the Holy Land. He said
+then that it might be that he should never return, and that it were well
+that I should know of the existence of this passage, which few besides
+the earl himself knew of. It is approached by a very heavy slab of stone
+in the great hall. This is bolted down, and as it stands under the great
+table passes unnoticed, and appears part of the ordinary floor. He told
+me the method in which, by touching a spring, the bolts were withdrawn
+and the stone could be raised. Thence a passage a quarter of a mile
+long leads to the little chapel standing in the hollow, and which, being
+hidden among the trees, would be unobserved by any party besieging the
+castle. This of course was contrived in order that the garrison, or any
+messenger thereof, might make an exit in case of siege."
+
+"But if we could escape," Cnut asked, "why not enter by this way?"
+
+"The stone is of immense weight and strength," Cuthbert replied, "and
+could not be loosed from below save with great labor and noise. There
+are, moreover, several massive doors in the passage, all of which are
+secured by heavy bolts within. It is therefore out of the question that
+we could enter the castle by that way. But were we once in, we could
+easily carry off the lady through this passage."
+
+The large force which Sir Rudolph had collected was not intended merely
+for the defense of the castle, for the knight considered that with his
+own garrison he could hold it against a force tenfold that which his
+rival could collect. But he was determined if possible to crush out the
+outlaws of the forest, for he felt that so long as this formidable body
+remained under an enterprising leader like Sir Cuthbert, he would never
+be safe for a moment, and would be a prisoner in his own castle.
+
+Cuthbert had foreseen that the attack was likely to be made, and had
+strengthened his band to the utmost. He felt, however, that against so
+large a force of regularly armed men, although he might oppose a stout
+resistance and kill many, yet that in the end he must be conquered.
+Cnut, however, suggested to him a happy idea, which he eagerly grasped.
+
+"It would be a rare sport," Cnut said, "when this armed force comes out
+to attack us, if we could turn the tables by slipping in, and taking
+their castle."
+
+"The very thing," Cuthbert exclaimed. "It is likely that he will use the
+greater portion of his forces, and that he will not keep above fifty or
+sixty men, at the outside, in the castle. When they sally out we will at
+first oppose a stout resistance to them in the wood, gradually falling
+back. Then, at a given signal, all save twenty men shall retire hastily,
+and sweeping round make for the castle. Their absence will not be
+noticed, for in this thick wood it is difficult to tell whether twenty
+men or two hundred are opposing you among the bushes; and the twenty who
+remain must shoot thick and fast to make believe that their numbers are
+great, retiring sometimes, and leading the enemy on into the heart of
+the wood."
+
+"But supposing, Sir Cuthbert, that they should have closed the gates and
+lifted the drawbridge? We could not gain entrance by storming, even if
+only twenty men held the walls, until long after the main body would
+have returned."
+
+Cuthbert thought for some time, and then said, "Cnut, you shall
+undertake this enterprise. You shall fill a cart high with faggots, and
+in it shall conceal a dozen of your best men. You, dressed as a serf,
+shall drive the oxen, and when you reach the castle shall say, in answer
+to the hail of the sentry, that you are bringing in the tribute of wood
+of your master the franklin of Hopeburn. They will then lower the
+drawbridge and open the gates; and when you have crossed the bridge and
+are under the portcullis, spring out suddenly, cut loose the oxen so
+that they will not draw the cart further in, cut the chains of the
+drawbridge so that it cannot be drawn off, and hold the gate for a
+minute or two until we arrive."
+
+"The plan is capital," Cnut exclaimed. "We will do the proud Norman yet.
+How he will storm when he finds us masters of his castle! What then
+will you do, Sir Cuthbert?"
+
+"We can hold the castle for weeks," Cuthbert said, "and every day is in
+our favor. If we find ourselves forced to yield to superior numbers, we
+can at last retire through the passage I have spoken of, and must then
+scatter and each shift for himself until these bad days be past."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM CASTLE.
+
+
+Upon the day before starting out to head the expedition against the
+outlaws, Sir Rudolph sent word to the Lady Margaret that she must
+prepare to become his wife at the end of the week. He had provided two
+tiring maids for her by ordering two of the franklins to send in their
+daughters for that purpose, and these mingled their tears with
+Margaret's at the situation in which they were placed. She replied
+firmly to the messenger of the knight that no power on earth could
+oblige her to marry him. He might drive her to the altar; but though he
+killed her there, her lips should refuse to say the words which would
+unite them.
+
+The following morning, early, the castle rang with the din of
+preparation. The great portion of the mercenaries were encamped in tents
+outside the walls, for, spacious as it was, Evesham could hardly contain
+four hundred men in addition to its usual garrison. The men-at-arms were
+provided with heavy axes to cut their way through the bushes. Some
+carried bundles of straw, to fire the wood should it be found
+practicable to do so; and as it was now summer and the wind was blowing
+high, Sir Rudolph hoped that the dry grass and bushes would catch, and
+would do more even than his men-at-arms in clearing the forest of those
+whom he designated the villains infesting it. They had, too, with them
+several fierce dogs trained to hunting the deer, and these, the knight
+hoped, would do good service in tracking the outlaws. He and the knights
+and the men-at-arms with him were all dismounted, for he felt that
+horses would in the forest be an incumbrance, and he was determined
+himself to lead the way to the men-at-arms.
+
+When they reached the forest they were saluted by a shower of arrows;
+but as all were clad in mail, these at a distance effected but little
+harm. As they came closer, however, the clothyard arrows began to pierce
+the coarse and ill-made armor of the foot soldiers, although the finer
+armor of the knights kept out the shafts which struck against it. Sir
+Rudolph and his knights leading the way, they entered the forest and
+gradually pressed their invisible foe backward through the trees. The
+dogs did good service, going on ahead and attacking the archers; but,
+one by one, they were soon shot, and the assailants left to their own
+devices. Several attempts were made to fire the wood. But these failed,
+the fire burning but a short time and then dying out of itself. In
+addition to the fighting men, Sir Rudolph had impressed into the service
+all the serfs of his domain, and these, armed with axes, were directed
+to cut down the trees as the force proceeded, Sir Rudolph declaring that
+he would not cease until he had leveled the whole forest, though it
+might take him months to do so.
+
+The assailants gained ground steadily, the resistance being less severe
+than Sir Rudolph had anticipated. Several small huts and clearings in
+the forest which had been used by the outlaws, and round which small
+crops had been planted, were destroyed, and all seemed to promise well
+for the success of the enterprise.
+
+It was about two hours after they had left the castle, when a heavy cart
+filled with fagots was seen approaching its gates. The garrison, who had
+not the least fear of any attack, paid no attention to it until it
+reached the edge of the moat. Then the warder, seeing that it contained
+fagots, lowered the drawbridge without question, raised the portcullis,
+and opened the gates.
+
+"From whom do you bring this wood?" he asked as the man driving the oxen
+began to cross the bridge.
+
+"From the franklin of Hopeburn."
+
+"It is well," said the warder, "for he is in arrear now, and should have
+sent in the firewood two months since. Take it to the woodhouse at the
+other end of the court."
+
+The heavy wagon crossed the drawbridge, but as it was entering the gate
+it came suddenly to a stop. With a blow of his ox goad Cnut leveled the
+warder to the ground, and cutting the cords of the bullocks, drove them
+into the yard ahead. As he did so the pile of fagots fell asunder, and
+twelve men armed with bow and pike leaped out. The men-at-arms standing
+near, lounging in the courtyard, gave a shout of alarm, and the
+garrison, surprised at this sudden cry, ran to their arms. At first they
+were completely panic-stricken. But seeing after a time how small was
+the number of their assailants, they took heart and advanced against
+them. The passage was narrow, and the twelve men formed a wall across
+it. Six of them with their pikes advanced, the other six with bent bows
+standing behind them and delivering their arrows between their heads.
+The garrison fought stoutly, and although losing many, were pressing the
+little band backward. In vain the assistant-warder tried to lower the
+portcullis, or to close the gates. The former fell on to the top of the
+wagon, and was there retained. The gates also were barred by the
+obstacle. The chains of the drawbridge had at once been cut. Cnut
+encouraged his followers by his shouts, and armed with a heavy ax, did
+good service upon the assailants. But four of his party had fallen, and
+the rest were giving way, when a shout was heard, and over the
+drawbridge poured Cuthbert and one hundred and fifty of the outlaws of
+the forest. Struck with terror at this attack, the garrison drew back,
+and the foresters poured into the yard. For a few minutes there was a
+fierce fight; but the defenders of the castle, disheartened and taken by
+surprise, were either cut down or, throwing down their arms, cried for
+quarter.
+
+Ten minutes after the wagon had crossed the drawbridge the castle was
+safely in possession of Sir Cuthbert. The bridge was raised, the wagon
+removed, the portcullis lowered, and to the external eye all remained as
+before.
+
+Cuthbert at once made his way to the chamber where the Lady Margaret was
+confined, and her joy at her deliverance was great indeed. So unlimited
+was her faith in Sir Cuthbert that she had never lost confidence; and
+although it did not seem possible that in the face of such disparity of
+numbers he could rescue her from the power of Sir Rudolph, yet she had
+not given up hope. The joy of the farmers' daughters who had been
+carried off to act as her attendants was little inferior to her own; for
+once in the power of this reckless baron, the girls had small hopes of
+ever being allowed to return again to their parents.
+
+The flag of Sir Rudolph was thrown down from the keep, and that of the
+late earl hoisted in its stead; for Cuthbert himself, although he had
+assumed the cognizance which King Richard had granted him, had not yet
+any flag or pennon emblazoned with it.
+
+No words can portray the stupefaction and rage of Sir Rudolph when a man
+who had managed to slip unobserved from the castle at the time of its
+capture bore the news to him in the forest. All opposition there had
+ceased, and the whole of the troops were engaged in aiding the peasants
+in cutting wide roads through the trees across the forest, so as to make
+it penetrable by horsemen in every direction. It was supposed that the
+outlaws had gradually stolen away through the thickets and taken to the
+open country, intending to scatter to their homes, or other distant
+hiding-places; and the news that they had by a ruse captured the castle
+came as a thunder-clap.
+
+Sir Rudolph's first impulse was to call his men together and to march
+toward the castle. The drawbridge was up and the walls bristled with
+armed men. It was useless to attempt a parley; still more useless to
+think of attacking the stronghold without the proper machines and
+appliances. Foaming with rage, Sir Rudolph took possession of a cottage
+near, camped his men around and prepared for a siege.
+
+There were among the mercenaries many men accustomed to the use of
+engines of war. Many, too, had aided in making them; and these were at
+once set to work to construct the various machines in use at that time.
+Before the invention of gunpowder, castles such as those of the English
+barons were able to defy any attack by an armed force for a long period.
+Their walls were so thick that even the balistas, casting huge stones,
+were unable to breach them except after a very long time. The moats
+which surrounded them were wide and deep, and any attempt at storming by
+ladders was therefore extremely difficult; and these buildings were
+consequently more often captured by famine than by other means. Of
+provisions, as Sir Rudolph knew, there was a considerable supply at
+present in the castle, for he had collected a large number of bullocks
+in order to feed the strong body who had been added to the garrison. The
+granaries, too, were well stored; and with a groan Sir Rudolph thought
+of the rich stores of French wines which he had collected in his
+cellars.
+
+After much deliberation with the knights with him and the captain of the
+mercenaries, it was agreed in the first instance to attempt to attack
+the place by filling up a portion of the moat and ascending by scaling
+ladders. Huge screens of wood were made, and these were placed on
+wagons; the wagons themselves were filled with bags of earth, and a
+large number of men getting beneath them shoved the ponderous machines
+forward to the edge of the moat. The bags of stones and earth were then
+thrown in, and the wagons pushed backward to obtain a fresh supply. This
+operation was of course an exceedingly slow one, a whole day being
+occupied with each trip of the wagons. They were not unmolested in their
+advance, for, from the walls, mangonels and other machines hurled great
+stones down upon the wooden screens, succeeding sometimes, in spite of
+their thickness, in crashing through them, killing many of the men
+beneath. The experiment was also tried of throwing balls of Greek fire
+down upon the wood; but as this was green and freshly felled it would
+not take fire, but the flames dropping through, with much boiling pitch
+and other materials, did grievously burn and scald the soldiers working
+below it. Upon both sides every device was tried. The crossbowmen among
+the mercenaries kept up a fire upon the walls to hinder the defenders
+from interfering with the operations, while the archers above shot
+steadily, and killed many of those who ventured within range of their
+bows.
+
+After ten days' labor a portion of the moat some twenty yards in length
+was filled with bags of earth, and all was ready for the assault. The
+besiegers had prepared great numbers of strong ladders, and these were
+brought up under shelter of the screens. Then, all being ready, the
+trumpets sounded for the assault, and the troops moved forward in a
+close body, covering themselves with their shields so that no man's head
+or body was visible, each protecting the one before him with his shield
+held over him. Thus the body presented the appearance of a great
+scale-covered animal. In many respects, indeed, the warfare of those
+days was changed in no way from that of the time of the Romans. In the
+twelve hundred years which had elapsed between the siege of Jerusalem
+and the days of the Crusades there had been but little change in arms or
+armor, and the operations which Titus undertook for the reduction of the
+Jewish stronghold differed but little from those which a Norman baron
+employed in besieging his neighbor's castle.
+
+Within Evesham Castle all was contentment and merriment during these
+days. The garrison had no fear whatever of being unable to repel the
+assault when it should be delivered. Huge stones had been collected in
+numbers on the walls, caldrons of pitch, beneath which fires kept
+simmering, stood there in readiness. Long poles with hooks with which to
+seize the ladders and cut them down were laid there; and all that
+precaution and science could do was prepared.
+
+Cuthbert passed much of the day, when not required upon the walls,
+chatting with the Lady Margaret, who, attended by her maidens, sat
+working in her bower. She had learned to read from the good nuns of the
+convent--an accomplishment which was by no means general, even among the
+daughters of nobles; but books were rare, and Evesham boasted but few
+manuscripts. Here Margaret learned in full all the details of Cuthbert's
+adventures since leaving England, and the fondness with which as a child
+she had regarded the lad grew gradually into the affection of a woman.
+
+The courage of the garrison was high, for although they believed that
+sooner or later the castle might be carried by the besiegers, they had
+already been told by Cnut that there was a means of egress unknown to
+the besiegers, and that when the time came they would be able to escape
+unharmed. This, while it in no way detracted from their determination to
+defend the castle to the last, yet rendered their task a far lighter and
+more agreeable one than it would have been had they seen the gallows
+standing before them as the end of the siege.
+
+As the testudo, as it was called in those days, advanced toward the
+castle, the machines upon the walls--catapults, mangonels and
+arbalasts--poured forth showers of stones and darts upon it, breaking up
+the array of shields and killing many; and as these openings were made,
+the archers, seizing their time, poured in volleys of arrows. The
+mercenaries, however, accustomed to war, advanced steadily, and made
+good their footing beneath the castle wall, and proceeded to rear their
+ladders. Here, although free from the action of the machines, they were
+exposed to the hand missiles, which were scarcely less destructive. In
+good order, and with firmness, however, they reared the ladders, and
+mounted to the assault, covering themselves as well as they could with
+their shields. In vain, however, did they mount. The defenders poured
+down showers of boiling pitch and oil, which penetrated the crevices of
+their armor and caused intolerable torment. Great stones were toppled
+over from the battlements upon them; and sometimes the ladders, seized
+by the poles with hooks, were cast backward, with all upon them, on the
+throng below. For half an hour, encouraged by the shouts of Sir Rudolph
+and their leaders, the soldiers strove gallantly; but were at last
+compelled to draw off, having lost nigh one hundred men, without one
+gaining a footing upon the walls.
+
+That evening another council of war was held without. Already some large
+machines for which Sir Rudolph had sent had arrived. In anticipation of
+the possibility of failure, two castles upon wheels had been prepared,
+and between these a huge beam with an iron head was hung. This was upon
+the following day pushed forward on the newly-formed ground across the
+moat. Upon the upper part of each tower were armed men who worked
+machines casting sheaves of arrows and other missiles. Below were those
+who worked the ram. To each side of the beam were attached numerous
+cords, and with these it was swung backward and forward, giving heavy
+blows each stroke upon the wall. The machines for casting stones, which
+had arrived, were also brought in play, and day and night these
+thundered against the walls; while the ram repeated its ceaseless blows
+upon the same spot, until the stone crumbled before it.
+
+Very valiantly did the garrison oppose themselves to these efforts. But
+each day showed the progress made by the besiegers. Their forces had
+been increased, Prince John having ordered his captain at Gloucester to
+send another one hundred men to the assistance of Sir Rudolph. Other
+towers had now been prepared. These were larger than the first, and
+overtopped the castle walls. From the upper story were drawbridges, so
+formed as to drop from the structures upon the walls, and thus enable
+the besiegers to rush upon them. The process was facilitated by the fact
+that the battlements had been shot away by the great stones, and there
+was a clear space on which the drawbridges could fall. The attack was
+made with great vigor; but for a long time the besieged maintained their
+post, and drove back the assailants as they poured out across the
+drawbridges on to the wall. At last Cuthbert saw that the forces opposed
+to him were too numerous to be resisted, and gave orders to his men to
+fall back upon the inner keep.
+
+Making one rush, and clearing the wall of those who had gained a
+footing, the garrison fell back hastily, and were safely within the
+massive keep before the enemy had mustered in sufficient numbers upon
+the wall to interfere with them. The drawbridge was now lowered, and the
+whole of the assailants gained footing within the castle. They were
+still far from having achieved a victory. The walls of the keep were
+massive and strong, and its top far higher than the walls, so that from
+above a storm of arrows poured down upon all who ventured to show
+themselves. The keep had no windows low enough down for access to be
+gained; and those on the floors above were so narrow, and protected by
+bars, that it seemed by scaling the walls alone could an entry be
+effected. This was far too desperate an enterprise to be attempted, for
+the keep rose eighty feet above the courtyard. It was upon the door,
+solid and studded with iron, that the attempt had to be made.
+
+Several efforts were made by Sir Rudolph, who fought with a bravery
+worthy of a better cause, to assault and batter down the door. Protected
+by wooden shields from the rain of missiles from above, he and his
+knights hacked at the door with their battle-axes. But in vain. It had
+been strengthened by beams behind, and by stones piled up against it.
+Then fire was tried. Fagots were collected in the forest, and brought;
+and a huge pile having been heaped against the door, it was lighted. "We
+could doubtless prolong the siege for some days, Lady Margaret," said
+Cuthbert, "but the castle is ours; and we wish not, when the time comes
+that we shall again be masters of it, that it should be a mere heap of
+ruins. Methinks we have done enough. With but small losses on our side,
+we have killed great numbers of the enemy, and have held them at bay for
+a month. Therefore, I think that to-night it will be well for us to
+leave the place."
+
+Lady Margaret was rejoiced at the news that the time for escape had
+come, for the perpetual clash of war, the rattling of arrows, the
+ponderous thud of heavy stones caused a din very alarming to a young
+girl; and although the room in which she sat, looking into the inner
+court of the castle, was not exposed to missiles, she trembled at the
+thought that brave men were being killed, and that at any moment a shot
+might strike Cuthbert, and so leave her without a friend or protector.
+
+Content with having destroyed the door, the assailants made no further
+effort that evening, but prepared in the morning to attack it, pull down
+the stones filled behind it, and force their way into the keep. There
+was, with the exception of the main entrance, but one means of exit, a
+small postern door behind the castle, and throughout the siege a strong
+body of troops had been posted here, to prevent the garrison making a
+sortie. Feeling secure therefore that upon the following day his enemies
+would fall into his power, Sir Rudolph retired to rest.
+
+An hour before midnight the garrison assembled in the hall. The table
+was removed, and Cuthbert having pressed the spring, which was at a
+distance from the stone and could not be discovered without a knowledge
+of its existence, the stone turned aside by means of a counterpoise, and
+a flight of steps was seen. Torches had been prepared. Cnut and a chosen
+band went first; Cuthbert followed, with Lady Margaret and her
+attendants; and the rest of the archers brought up the rear, a trusty
+man being left in charge at last with orders to swing back the stone
+into its place, having first hauled the table over the spot, so that
+their means of escape should be unknown.
+
+The passage was long and dreary, the walls were damp with wet, and the
+massive doors so swollen by moisture that it was with the greatest
+difficulty they could be opened. At last, however, they emerged into
+the little friary in the wood. It was deserted, the priest who usually
+dwelt there having fled when the siege began. The stone which there, as
+in the castle, concealed the exit, was carefully closed, and the party
+then emerged into the open air. Here Cuthbert bade adieu to his
+comrades. Cnut had very anxiously begged to be allowed to accompany him
+and share his fortunes, and Cuthbert had promised him that if at any
+time he should again take up arms in England, he would summon him to his
+side, but that at present as he knew not whither his steps would be
+turned, it would be better that he should be unattended. The archers had
+all agreed to scatter far and wide through the country, many of them
+proceeding to Nottingham and joining the bands in the forest of
+Sherwood.
+
+Cuthbert himself had determined to make his way to the castle of his
+friend, Sir Baldwin, and to leave the Lady Margaret in his charge. Cnut
+hurried on at full speed to the house of a franklin, some three miles
+distant. Here horses were obtained and saddled, and dresses prepared;
+and when Cuthbert with Lady Margaret arrived there, no time was lost.
+Dressed as a yeoman, with the Lady Margaret as his sister, he mounted a
+horse, with her behind him on a pillion. The other damsels also mounted,
+as it would not have been safe for them to remain near Evesham. They
+therefore purposed taking refuge in a convent near Gloucester for the
+present. Bidding a hearty adieu to Cnut, and with thanks to the franklin
+who had aided them, they set forward on their journey. By morning they
+had reached the convent, and here the two girls were left, and Cuthbert
+continued his journey. He left his charge at a convent a day's ride
+distant from the castle of Sir Baldwin, as he wished to consult the
+knight first as to the best way of her entering the castle without
+exciting talk or suspicion.
+
+Sir Baldwin received him with joy. He had heard something of his doings,
+and the news of the siege of Evesham had been noised abroad. He told him
+that he was in communication with many other barons, and that ere long
+they hoped to rise against the tyranny of Prince John, but that at
+present they were powerless, as many, hoping that King Richard would
+return ere long, shrank from involving the country in a civil war. When
+Cuthbert told him that the daughter of his old friend was at a convent
+but a day's ride distant, and that he sought protection for her, Sir
+Baldwin instantly offered her hospitality.
+
+"I will," he said, "send my good wife to fetch her. Some here know your
+presence, and it would be better therefore that she did not arrive for
+some days, as her coming will then seem to be unconnected with yourself.
+My wife and I will, a week hence, give out that we are going to fetch a
+cousin of my wife's to stay here with her; and when we return no
+suspicion will be excited that she is other than she seems. Should it be
+otherwise, I need not say that Sir Baldwin of Béthune will defend his
+castle against any of the minions of Prince John. But I have no fear
+that her presence here will be discovered. What think you of doing in
+the meantime?"
+
+"I am thinking," Cuthbert said, "of going east. No news has been
+obtained of our lord the king save that he is a prisoner in the hands of
+the emperor; but where confined, or how, we know not. It is my intent to
+travel to the Tyrol, and to trace his steps from the time that he was
+captured. Then, when I obtain knowledge of the place where he is kept, I
+will return, and consult upon the best steps to be taken. My presence in
+England is now useless. Did the barons raise the standard of King
+Richard against the prince, I should at once return and join them. But
+without land or vassals, I can do nothing here, and shall be indeed like
+a hunted hare, for I know that the false earl will move heaven and earth
+to capture me."
+
+Sir Baldwin approved of the resolution; but recommended Cuthbert to take
+every precaution not to fall himself into the hands of the emperor;
+"for," he said, "if we cannot discover the prison of King Richard, I
+fear that it would be hopeless indeed ever to attempt to find that in
+which a simple knight is confined."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+IN SEARCH OF THE KING.
+
+
+The following day, with many thanks, Cuthbert started from the castle,
+and in the first place visited the convent, and told Lady Margaret that
+she would be fetched in a few days by Sir Baldwin and his wife. He took
+a tender adieu of her, not without many forebodings and tears upon her
+part; but promising blithely that he would return and lead her back in
+triumph to her castle, he bade adieu and rode for London.
+
+He had attired himself as a merchant, and took up his abode at a
+hostelry near Cheapside. Here he remained quietly for some days, and,
+mixing among the people, learned that in London as elsewhere the
+rapacity of Prince John had rendered him hateful to the people, and that
+they would gladly embrace any opportunity of freeing themselves from his
+yoke. He was preparing to leave for France, when the news came to him
+that Prince John had summoned all the barons faithful to him to meet him
+near London, and had recalled all his mercenaries from different parts
+of the country, and was gathering a large army; also, that the barons
+faithful to King Richard, alarmed by the prospect, had raised the royal
+standard, and that true men were hurrying to their support. This
+entirely destroyed the plans that he had formed. Taking horse again, and
+avoiding the main road, by which he might meet the hostile barons on
+their way to London, he journeyed down to Nottingham. Thence riding
+boldly into the forest, he sought the outlaws, and was not long ere he
+found them. At his request he was at once taken before their leader, a
+man of great renown both for courage and bowmanship, one Robin Hood.
+This bold outlaw had long held at defiance the sheriff of Nottingham,
+and had routed him and all bodies of troops who had been sent against
+him. With him Cuthbert found many of his own men; and upon hearing that
+the royal standard had been raised, Robin Hood at once agreed to march
+with all his men to join the royal force. Messengers were dispatched to
+summon the rest of the forest band from their hiding-places, and a week
+later Cuthbert, accompanied by Robin Hood and three hundred archers, set
+out for the rendezvous. When they arrived there they found that Sir
+Baldwin had already joined with his retainers, and was by him most
+warmly received, and introduced to the other barons in the camp, by whom
+Cuthbert was welcomed as a brother. The news that Prince John's army was
+approaching was brought in a fortnight after Cuthbert had joined the
+camp, and the army in good order moved out to meet the enemy.
+
+The forces were about equal. The battle began by a discharge of arrows;
+but Robin Hood and his men shot so true and fast that they greatly
+discomfited the enemy; and King John's mercenaries having but little
+stomach for the fight, and knowing how unpopular they were in England,
+and that if defeated small mercy was likely to be shown to them, refused
+to advance against the ranks of the loyal barons, and falling back
+declined to join in the fray. Seeing their numbers so weakened by this
+defection, the barons on the prince's side hesitated, and surrounding
+the prince advised him to make terms with the barons while there was yet
+time. Prince John saw that the present was not a favorable time for him,
+and concealing his fury under a mask of courtesy, he at once acceded to
+the advice of his followers, and dispatched a messenger to the barons
+with an inquiry as to what they wanted of him. A council was held, and
+it was determined to demand the dismissal of the mercenaries and their
+dispatch back to their own country; also that John would govern only as
+his brother's representative; that the laws of the country should be
+respected; that no taxes should be raised without the assent of the
+barons; that all men who had taken up arms against his authority should
+be held free; and that the barons on Prince John's side should return
+peaceably home and disband their forces. Seeing, under the
+circumstances, that there was no way before him but to yield to these
+demands, Prince John accepted the terms. The mercenaries were ordered to
+march direct to London, and orders were given that ships should be at
+once prepared to take them across to Normandy, and the barons marched
+for their homes.
+
+Satisfied, now that the mercenaries were gone, that they could
+henceforth hold their ground against Prince John, the royal barons also
+broke up their forces. Robin Hood with his foresters returned to
+Sherwood; and Cuthbert, bidding adieu to Sir Baldwin, rode back to
+London, determined to carry out the plan which he had formed. He was the
+more strengthened in this resolution, inasmuch as in the royal camp he
+had met a friend from whom he parted last in the Holy Land. This was
+Blondel, the minstrel of King Richard, whose songs and joyous music had
+often lightened the evening after days of fighting and toil in
+Palestine. To him Cuthbert confided his intention, and the minstrel
+instantly offered to accompany him.
+
+"I shall," he said, "be of assistance to you. Minstrels are like
+heralds. They are of no nationality, and can pass free where a
+man-at-arms would be closely watched and hindered. Moreover, it may be
+that I might aid you greatly in discovering the prison of the king. So
+great is the secrecy with which this has been surrounded that I question
+if any inquiries you could make would enable you to trace him. My voice,
+however, can penetrate into places where we cannot enter. I will take
+with me my lute, and as we journey I will sing outside the walls of each
+prison we come to one of the songs which I sang in Palestine. King
+Richard is himself a singer and knows my songs as well as myself. If I
+sing a verse of some song which I wrote there and which, therefore,
+would be known only to him, if he hears it he may follow with the next
+verse, and so enable us to know of his hiding-place."
+
+Cuthbert at once saw the advantages which such companionship would bring
+him, and joyfully accepted the minstrel's offer, agreeing himself to go
+as serving man to Blondel. The latter accompanied him to London. Here
+their preparations were soon made, and taking ship in a merchantman
+bound for the Netherlands, they started without delay upon their
+adventure.
+
+The minstrels and troubadours were at that time a privileged race in
+Europe, belonging generally to the south of France, although produced in
+all lands. They traveled over Europe singing the lays which they
+themselves had composed, and were treated with all honor at the castles
+where they chose to alight. It would have been considered as foul a deed
+to use discourtesy to a minstrel as to insult a herald. Their persons
+were, indeed, regarded as sacred, and the knights and barons strove to
+gain their good-will by hospitality and presents, as a large proportion
+of their ballads related to deeds of war; and while they would write
+lays in honor of those who courteously entertained them, they did not
+hesitate to heap obloquy upon those who received them discourteously,
+holding them up to the gibes and scoffs of their fellows. In no way,
+therefore, would success be so likely to attend the mission of those who
+set out to discover the hiding-place of King Richard as under the guise
+of a minstrel and his attendant. No questions would be asked them; they
+could halt where they would, in castle or town, secure of hospitality
+and welcome. Blondel was himself a native of the south of France,
+singing his songs in the soft language of Languedoc. Cuthbert's Norman
+French would pass muster anywhere as being that of a native of France;
+and although when dressed as a servitor attention might be attracted by
+his bearing, his youth might render it probable that he was of noble
+family, but that he had entered the service of the minstrel in order to
+qualify himself some day for following that career. He carried a long
+staff, a short sword, and at his back the lute or small harp played upon
+by the troubadour. Blondel's attire was rich, and suitable to a person
+of high rank.
+
+They crossed to the Scheldt, and thence traveled by the right bank of
+the Rhine as far as Mannheim, sometimes journeying by boat, sometimes on
+foot. They were also hospitably entertained, and were considered to more
+than repay their hosts by the songs which Blondel sang.
+
+At Mannheim they purchased two horses, and then struck east for Vienna.
+
+The journey was not without danger, for a large portion of this part of
+Europe was under no settled government, each petty baron living in his
+own castle, and holding but slight allegiance to any feudal lord, making
+war upon his neighbor on his own account, levying blackmail from
+travelers, and perpetually at variance with the burghers of the towns.
+
+The hills were covered with immense forests, which stretched for many
+leagues in all directions, and these were infested by wolves, bears, and
+robbers.
+
+The latter, however, although men without pity or religion, yet held the
+troubadours in high esteem, and the travelers without fear entered the
+gloomy shades of the forest.
+
+They had not gone far when their way was barred by a number of armed
+men.
+
+"I am a minstrel," Blondel said; "and as such doubt not that your
+courtesy will be extended to me."
+
+"Of a surety," the leader said; "the gay science is as much loved and
+respected in the greenwood as in the castle; and moreover, the purses of
+those who follow it are too light to offer any temptation to us. We
+would pray you, however, to accompany us to our leader, who will
+mightily rejoice to see you, for he loves music, and will gladly be your
+host so long as you will stay with him."
+
+Blondel, without objection, turned his horse's head and accompanied the
+men, followed by Cuthbert. After half an hour's traveling they came to a
+building which had formerly been a shrine, but which was now converted
+to the robbers' headquarters. The robber chief, on hearing from his
+followers the news that a minstrel had arrived, came forward to meet
+him, and courteously bade him welcome.
+
+"I am Sir Adelbert, of Rotherheim," he said, "although you see me in so
+poor a plight. My castle and lands have been taken by my neighbor, with
+whom for generations my family have been at feud. I was in the Holy Land
+with the emperor, and on my return found that the baron had taken the
+opportunity of my absence, storming my castle and seizing my lands. In
+vain I petitioned the emperor to dispossess this traitorous baron of my
+lands, which by all the laws of Christendom should have been respected
+during my absence. The emperor did indeed send a letter to the baron to
+deliver them up to me; but his power here is but nominal, and the baron
+contemptuously threw the royal proclamation into the fire and told the
+messenger that what he had taken by the sword he would hold by the
+sword; and the emperor having weightier matters on hand than to set
+troops in motion to redress the grievances of a simple knight, gave the
+matter no further thought. I have therefore been driven to the forest,
+where I live as best I may with my followers, most of whom were
+retainers upon my estate, and some my comrades in the Holy Land. I make
+war upon the rich and powerful, and beyond that do harm to no man. But,
+methinks," he continued, "I know your face, gentle sir."
+
+"It may well be so, Sir Adelbert," the minstrel said, "for I too was in
+the Holy Land. I followed the train of King Richard, and mayhap at some
+of the entertainments given by him you have seen my face. My name is
+Blondel."
+
+"I remember now," the knight said. "It was at Acre that I first saw you,
+and if I remember rightly you can wield the sword as well as the lute."
+
+"One cannot always be playing and singing," Blondel said, "and in lack
+of amusement I was forced to do my best against the infidel, who indeed
+would have but little respected my art had I fallen into his hands. The
+followers of the prophet hold minstrels but in slight reverence."
+
+"What is the news of King Richard?" the knight said. "I have heard that
+he was lost on the voyage homeward."
+
+"It is not so," Blondel said. "He landed safely on the coast, and was
+journeying north with a view of joining his sister at the court of
+Saxony, when he was foully seized and imprisoned by the Archduke John."
+
+"That were gross shame indeed," the knight said, "and black treachery on
+the part of Duke John. And where is the noble king imprisoned?"
+
+"That," said Blondel, "no man knows. On my journey hither I have
+gathered that the emperor claimed him from the hand of the archduke, and
+that he is imprisoned in one of the royal fortresses, but which I know
+not. And indeed, sir knight, since you are well disposed toward him, I
+may tell you that the purport of my journey is to discover if I can the
+place of his confinement. He was a kind and noble master, and however
+long my search may be, I will yet obtain news of him."
+
+The knight warmly applauded the troubadour's resolution, and was turning
+to lead him into his abode, when his eye fell upon Cuthbert.
+
+"Methinks I know the face of your attendant as well as your own; though
+where I can have seen him I know not. Was he with you in the Holy Land?"
+
+"Yes," Blondel said, "the youth was also there; and doubtless you may
+have noticed him, for he is indeed of distinguished and of good family."
+
+"Then let him share our repast," the knight said, "if it seems good to
+you. In these woods there is no rank, and I myself have long dropped my
+knightly title, and shall not reassume it until I can pay off my score
+to the Baron of Rotherheim, and take my place again in my castle."
+
+The minstrel and Cuthbert were soon seated at the table with the knight
+and one or two of his principal companions. A huge venison pasty formed
+the staple of the repast, but hares and other small game were also upon
+the table. Nor was the generous wine of the country wanting.
+
+The knight had several times glanced at Cuthbert, and at last exclaimed,
+"I have it now. This is no attendant, sir minstrel, but that valiant
+young knight who so often rode near King Richard in battle. He is, as I
+guess, your companion in this quest; is it not so?"
+
+"It is," Cuthbert replied frankly. "I am, like yourself, a disinherited
+knight, and my history resembles yours. Upon my return to England I
+found another in possession of the land and titles that belonged to the
+noble I followed, and which King Richard bestowed upon me. The Earl of
+Evesham was doubtless known to you, and before his death King Richard,
+at his request, bestowed upon me as his adopted son--although but a
+distant connection--his title and lands and the hand of his daughter.
+Prince John, who now rules in England, had however granted these things
+to one of his favorites, and he having taken possession of the land and
+title, though not, happily, of the lady, closed his door somewhat
+roughly in my face. I found means, however, to make my mark upon him;
+but as our quarrel could not be fought out to the end, and as the false
+knight had the aid of Prince John, I am forced for awhile to postpone
+our settlement, and meeting my good friend the minstrel, agreed to join
+him in his enterprise to discover our lord the king."
+
+The knight warmly grasped Cuthbert's hand.
+
+"I am glad," he said, "to meet so true and valiant a knight. I have
+often wondered at the valor with which you, although so young, bore
+yourself; and there were tales afloat of strange adventures which you
+had undergone in captivity for a time among the infidels."
+
+At Sir Adelbert's request Cuthbert related the story of his adventures
+among the Saracens; and then Blondel, tuning his lute, sang several
+canzonets which he had composed in the Holy Land, of feats of arms and
+adventure.
+
+"How far are you," Cuthbert asked presently, when Blondel laid his lute
+aside, "from the estates which were wrongfully wrested from you?"
+
+"But twenty leagues," the knight said. "My castle was on the Rhine,
+between Coblentz and Mannheim."
+
+"Does the baron know that you are so near?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Methinks that he does not," the knight replied, "but that he deems me
+to have gone to the court of the emperor to seek for redress--which, he
+guesses, I shall certainly fail to obtain."
+
+"How many men have you with you?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Fifty men, all good and true," the knight said.
+
+"Has it never entered your thoughts to attempt a surprise upon his
+castle?" Cuthbert said.
+
+The knight was silent for a minute.
+
+"At times," he said at length, "thoughts of so doing have occurred to
+me; but the castle is strong, and a surprise would be difficult indeed."
+
+"If the baron is lulled in security at present," Cuthbert said, "and
+deems you afar off, the watch is likely to be relaxed, and with a sudden
+onslaught you might surely obtain possession. Blondel and myself are not
+pressed for time, and the delay of a few days can make but little
+difference. If, therefore, you think we could be of assistance to you in
+such an attempt, my sword, and I am sure that of my friend, would be at
+your disposal."
+
+The knight sat for some time in silence.
+
+"Thanks, generous knight," he said at last, "I am sorely tempted to
+avail myself of your offer; but I fear that the enterprise is hopeless.
+The aid, however, of your arm and knowledge of war would greatly add to
+my chances, and if it pleases you we will ride to-morrow to a point
+where we can obtain a sight of the baron's castle. When you see it you
+shall judge yourself how far such an enterprise as you propose is
+possible."
+
+"Is your own castle intact?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"The walls are standing," he said; "but a breach has been made in them,
+and at present it is wholly deserted."
+
+"Do you think," Cuthbert asked, "that if you succeeded in surprising and
+defeating the garrison of the castle that you could then regain your
+own, and hold it against your enemy?"
+
+"I think that I could," Sir Adelbert said. "The baron's domains are but
+little larger than my own. Many of my retainers still live upon the
+estate, and would, I am sure, gladly join me, if I were to raise my
+flag. The baron, too, is hated by his neighbors, and could I inflict a
+crushing blow upon him, methinks it would be so long a time before he
+could assemble a force, that I might regain my castle and put it in an
+attitude of defense before he could take the field against me."
+
+"If," Cuthbert said, "we could surprise the castle, it might well be
+that the baron would fall into your hands, and in that case you might be
+able to make your own terms with him. How strong a force is he likely to
+have in his castle?"
+
+"Some fifty or sixty men," the knight replied; "for with such a force he
+could hold the castle against an attack of ten times their number, and
+he could in twelve hours call in his retainers, and raise the garrison
+to three hundred or four hundred men."
+
+Blondel warmly assented to Cuthbert's scheme, and it was settled that at
+daybreak they should start to view the Castle of Rotherheim. At early
+dawn they were in the saddle, and the three rode all day, until toward
+sunset they stood on the crest of a hill looking down into the valley of
+the Rhine.
+
+The present aspect of that valley affords but a slight idea of its
+beauty in those days. The slopes are now clad with vineyards, which,
+although picturesque in idea, are really, to look at from a distance, no
+better than so many turnip fields. The vines are planted in rows and
+trained to short sticks, and as these rows follow the declivities of the
+hillside, they are run in all directions, and the whole mountain side,
+from the river far up, is cut up into little patches of green lines. In
+those days the mountains were clad with forests, which descended nearly
+to the riverside. Here and there, upon craggy points, were situate the
+fortalices of the barons. Little villages nestled in the woods, or stood
+by the river bank, and a fairer scene could not be witnessed in Europe.
+
+"That is Rotherheim," the knight said, pointing to a fortress standing
+on a crag, which rose high above the woods around it; "and that," he
+said, pointing to another some four miles away, similarly placed, "is my
+own."
+
+Cuthbert examined closely the fortress of Rotherheim. It was a large
+building, with towers at the angles, and seemed to rise almost abruptly
+from the edge of the rock. Inside rose the gables and round turrets of
+the dwelling-place of the baron, and the only access was by a steep
+winding path on the riverside.
+
+"It is indeed a strong place," Cuthbert said, "and difficult to take by
+surprise. A watch no doubt is always kept over the entrance, and there
+we can hope for no success. The only plan will be to scale the wall by
+means of a ladder; but how the ladder is to be got to so great a height,
+I own at present passes my comprehension." After much thought, Cuthbert
+went on, "It might, methinks, be practicable for an archer to approach
+the walls, and to shoot an arrow over the angle of the castle so that it
+would pass inside the turret there, and fall in the forest beyond. If to
+this arrow were attached a light cord, it could be gained by one on the
+other side, and a stronger cord hauled over. To this could be attached a
+rope ladder, and so this could be raised to the top of the wall. If a
+sentinel were anywhere near he might hear the rope pulled across the
+battlements; but if, as we may hope, a watch is kept only over the
+entrance, the operation might be performed without attracting notice."
+
+The knight was delighted with the project, which seemed perfectly
+feasible, and it was agreed that the attempt should be made.
+
+"It will need," Sir Adelbert said, "an archer with a strong arm indeed
+to shoot an arrow with a cord attached to it, however light, over the
+corner of the castle."
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that I can do that, for as a lad I was used
+to the strong bows of my country. The first thing, however, will be to
+obtain such a bow; but doubtless one can be purchased in one of the
+towns, which, if not so strong as those to which I was accustomed, will
+at any rate suffice for us."
+
+The party bivouacked in the woods for the night, for the horses had
+already done a very long journey, and needed rest before starting back
+for the Black Forest. At daybreak, however, they started, and at
+nightfall rejoined their band. These were delighted when they heard the
+scheme that had been set on foot, and all avowed their eagerness to join
+in the attempt to restore their lord to his rights.
+
+Two days later they set out, having already procured from the nearest
+town a strong bow, some arrows, a very light rope, and a stronger one
+from a portion of which they manufactured a rope ladder capable of
+reaching from the top of the wall to the rock below. The journey this
+time occupied two days, as the men on foot were unable to march at the
+pace at which the mounted party had traversed the ground. The evening
+of the second day, however, saw them in sight of the castle. By
+Cuthbert's advice, Sir Adelbert determined to give them twenty-four
+hours of rest, in order that they might have their full strength for
+undertaking the task before them. During the day Cuthbert, guided by the
+knight, made his way through the woods to the foot of the rocks on which
+the castle stood. They were extremely steep, but could be mounted by
+active men if unopposed from above. Cuthbert measured the height with
+his eye from the top of the castle wall to the place which he selected
+as most fitting from which to shoot the arrow, and announced to the
+knight that he thought there would be no difficulty in discharging an
+arrow over the angle.
+
+At nightfall the whole party made their way silently through the woods.
+Three men were sent round to the side of the castle opposite that from
+which Cuthbert was to shoot. The length of light string was carefully
+coiled on the ground, so as to unwind with the greatest facility, and so
+offer as little resistance to the flight of the arrow as might be. Then,
+all being in readiness, Cuthbert attached the end to an arrow, and
+drawing the bow to its full compass, let fly the arrow. All held their
+breath; but no sound followed the discharge. They were sure, therefore,
+that the arrow had not struck the wall, but that it must have passed
+clear over it. Half an hour elapsed before they felt that the cord was
+pulled, and knew that the men upon the other side had succeeded in
+finding the arrow and string attached. The stronger cord was now
+fastened to that which the arrow had carried, and this gradually
+disappeared in the darkness. A party now stole up the rock, and posted
+themselves at the foot of the castle wall. They took with them the coil
+of rope-ladder and the end of the rope. At length the rope tightened,
+and to the end they attached the ladder. This again ascended until the
+end only remained upon the ground, and they knew that it must have
+reached the top of the wall. They now held fast, and knew that those on
+the other side, following the instructions given them, would have
+fastened the rope to a tree upon the opposite side. They were now joined
+by the rest of the party, and Sir Adelbert leading the way, and followed
+by Cuthbert and Blondel, began cautiously to ascend the rope ladder.
+
+All this time no sound from the castle proclaimed that their intention
+was suspected, or that any alarm had been given, and in silence they
+gained the top of the wall. Here they remained quiet until the whole
+band were gathered there, and then made their way along until they
+reached the stairs leading to the courtyard. These they descended, and
+then, raising his war-cry, Sir Adelbert sprang upon the men who, round a
+fire, were sitting by the gate. These were cut down before they could
+leap to their feet, and the party then rushed at the entrance to the
+dwelling-house. The retainers of the castle, aroused by the sudden din,
+rushed from their sleeping places, but taken completely by surprise,
+were unable to offer any resistance whatever to the strong force which
+had, as if by magic, taken possession of the castle. The surprise was
+complete, and with scarce a blow struck they found themselves in
+possession. The baron himself was seized as he rose from his bed, and
+his rage at finding himself in the power of his enemy was so great as
+for some time to render him speechless. Sir Adelbert briefly dictated to
+him the conditions upon which only he should desist from using his power
+to hang him over his own gate. The baron was instantly to issue orders
+to all his own retainers and tenantry to lend their aid to those of Sir
+Adelbert in putting the castle of the latter into a state of defense and
+mending the breach which existed. A sum of money, equal to the revenues
+of which he had possessed himself, was to be paid at once, and the
+knight was to retain possession of Rotherheim and of the baron's person
+until these conditions were all faithfully carried out. The baron had no
+resource but to assent to these terms, and upon the following day
+Cuthbert and Blondel departed upon their way, overwhelmed with thanks by
+Sir Adelbert, and confident that he would now be able to regain and hold
+the possession of his estate.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO ENGLAND.
+
+
+Journeying onward, Blondel and his companion stopped at many castles,
+and were everywhere hospitably entertained. Arriving at Vienna they
+lingered for some time, hoping there to be able to obtain some
+information of the whereabouts of King Richard. Blondel in his songs
+artfully introduced allusions to the captive monarch and to the mourning
+of all Christendom at the imprisonment of its champion. These allusions
+were always well received, and he found that the great bulk of the
+nobles of the empire were indignant and ashamed at the conduct of the
+emperor in imprisoning his illustrious rival. The secret of his prison
+place, however, appeared to have been so well kept that no information
+whatever was obtainable.
+
+"We must carry out our original plan," he said at length, "and journey
+into the Tyrol. In one of the fortresses there he is most likely to be
+confined."
+
+Leaving the capital they wandered up into the mountains for weeks,
+visiting one castle after another. It was no easy matter in all cases to
+get so near to these prisons as to give a hope that their voice might be
+heard within, or an answer received without. More than once crossbow
+bolts were shot at them from the walls when they did not obey the
+sentinel's challenge and move further away. Generally, however, it was
+in the daytime that they sang. Wandering carelessly up, they would sit
+down within earshot of the castle, open their wallets, and take out
+provisions from their store, and then, having eaten and drunk, Blondel
+would produce his lute and sing, as if for his own pleasure. It needed,
+however, four visits to each castle before they could be sure that the
+captive was not there; for the song had to be sung on each side.
+Sometimes they would cheat themselves with the thought that they heard
+an answering voice; but it was not until the end of the fourth week,
+when singing outside the castle of Diernstein, that a full rich voice,
+when Blondel ceased, sang out the second stanza of the poem. With
+difficulty Blondel and Cuthbert restrained themselves from an
+extravagant exhibition of joy. They knew, however, that men on the
+prison wall were watching them as they sat singing, and Blondel, with a
+final strain taken from a ballad of a knight who, having discovered the
+hiding-place of his lady love, prepared to free her from her oppressors,
+shouldered his lute, and they started on their homeward journey.
+
+There was no delay now. At times they sang indeed at castles; but only
+when their store was exhausted, for upon these occasions Blondel would
+be presented with a handsome goblet or other solid token of the owner's
+approval, and the sale of this at the next city would take them far on
+their way. They thought it better not to pass through France, as Philip,
+they knew, was on the watch to prevent any news of King Richard reaching
+England. They therefore again passed through Brabant, and so by ship to
+England.
+
+Hearing that Longchamp, Bishop of Ely, one of Richard's vicegerents, was
+over in Normandy, and rightly deeming him the most earnest of his
+adherents, they at once recrossed the sea, and found the warlike prelate
+at Rouen. Greatly delighted was he at hearing that Richard's
+hiding-place had been discovered. He at once sent across the news to
+England, and ordered it to be published far and wide, and himself
+announced it to the barons of Normandy. Then with a gorgeous retinue,
+including Cuthbert and Blondel, he started for Vienna, and arriving
+there demanded an interview with the emperor.
+
+The news that it was now certain that Richard was imprisoned in a castle
+of the emperor had already spread through Europe, and the bishop had
+been received everywhere with tokens of sympathy; and so great was the
+feeling shown by the counts and barons of the empire that the Emperor
+Henry felt that he could no longer refuse to treat for the surrender of
+his captive. Therefore he granted the interview which Longchamp
+demanded. The English envoy was received by the emperor surrounded by
+his nobles. The prelate advanced with great dignity.
+
+"I come," he said, "in the name of the people of England to demand the
+restoration of King Richard, most unjustly and unknightly detained a
+prisoner in his passage through your dominions."
+
+"King Richard was my foe," the emperor said, "open and secret, and I was
+justified in detaining one who is alike my enemy and a scourge to Europe
+as a prisoner, when fortune threw him in my hands. I am, however,
+willing to put him to a ransom, and will upon the payment of one hundred
+and fifty thousand marks allow him to go free."
+
+"I deny your right to detain him or to put him to ransom," the bishop
+said. "But as you have the power, so my denial is useless. England is
+poor, impoverished with war and by the efforts which she made in the
+service of our holy religion. Nevertheless, poor as she is, she will
+raise the sum you demand. There is not an Englishman who will not
+furnish all he can afford for the rescue of our king. But once again, in
+the presence of your nobles, I denounce your conduct as base and
+unkingly."
+
+The emperor could with difficulty restrain his passion; but the sight of
+the somber visages of his nobles showed that they shared in no slight
+degree the feelings which the English envoy had so boldly announced.
+
+"Before, however," the emperor said, "I surrender King Richard, he must
+be tried by my peers of many and various crimes of which he is accused.
+Should he be found guilty of these, no gold can purchase his release.
+Should he, however, be acquitted, then as my word is given so shall it
+be."
+
+"Although," the prelate said, "I deny your right to try our king, and
+believe that he himself will refuse to accept your jurisdiction, yet I
+fear not the result if our lord be left in the hands of the nobles of
+the empire and not in yours. I can trust their honor and courtesy."
+
+And turning upon his heel, without another word he quitted the
+apartment.
+
+An hour later the bishop and his following took horse and rode with all
+speed to the north coast, and thence sailed for England. The news of the
+amount of ransom filled the people with consternation; but preparations
+were at once made for collecting the sum demanded. Queen Eleanor was
+unceasing in her efforts to raise the money for the release of her
+favorite son. The nobles contributed their jewels and silver; the people
+gave contributions of goods, for money was so scarce in England that few
+had the wherewithal to pay in coin. Prince John placed every obstacle in
+the way of the collection; but the barons had since their successful
+stand obtained the upper hand, and it was by intrigue only that he could
+hinder the collection.
+
+In the meantime, popular opinion throughout Europe was strong upon the
+side of King Richard. The pope himself wrote to the emperor on his
+behalf. The barons of the empire were indignant at the shame placed upon
+their country; and the emperor, although he would fain have thrown
+further delays in the way, was obliged at last to order the first step
+to be taken.
+
+A solemn diet was ordered to assemble at Worms. Here were collected all
+the nobles of the empire, and before them King Richard was brought. It
+was a grand assembly. Upon a raised throne on the daïs sat the emperor
+himself, and beside him and near him were the great feudatories of the
+empire, and along the sides of the walls were ranged in long rows the
+lesser barons. When the doors were opened and King Richard entered, the
+whole assembly, save the emperor, rose in respect to the captive
+monarch. Although pale from his long confinement, the proud air of
+Richard was in no way abated, and the eyes that had flashed so
+fearlessly upon the Saracens looked as sternly down the long lines of
+the barons of Germany. Of splendid stature and physique, King Richard
+was unquestionably the finest man of his time. He was handsome, with a
+frank face, but with a fierce and passionate eye. He wore his mustache
+with a short beard and closely-cut whisker. His short curly hair was
+cropped closely to his head, upon which he wore a velvet cap with gold
+coronet, while a scarlet robe lined with fur fell over his coat of mail,
+for the emperor had deemed it imprudent to excite the feeling of the
+assembly in favor of the prisoner by depriving him of the symbols of his
+rank.
+
+King Richard strode to the place prepared for him, and then turning to
+the assembly he said, in a voice which rang through the hall:
+
+"Counts and lords of the Empire of Germany, I, Richard, King of
+England, do deny your right to try me. I am a king, and can only be
+tried by my peers and by the pope, who is the head of Christendom. I
+might refuse to plead, refuse to take any part in this assembly, and
+appeal to the pope, who alone has power to punish kings. But I will
+waive my rights. I rely upon the honor and probity of the barons of
+Germany. I have done no man wrong, and would appear as fearlessly before
+an assembly of peasants as before a gathering of barons. Such faults as
+I may have, and none are without them, are not such as those with which
+I am charged. I have slain many men in anger, but none by treachery.
+When Richard of England strikes he strikes in the light of day. He
+leaves poison and treachery to his enemies, and I hurl back with
+indignation and scorn in the teeth of him who makes them the charges
+brought against me."
+
+So saying King Richard took his seat amid a murmur of applause from the
+crowded hall.
+
+The trial then commenced. The accusations against Richard were of many
+kinds. Chief among them was the murder of Conrad of Montferat; but there
+were charges of having brought the Crusade to naught by thwarting the
+general plans, by his arrogance in refusing to be bound by the decision
+of the other leaders, and by having made a peace contrary to the
+interests of the Crusaders. The list was a long one; but the evidence
+produced was pitiably weak. Beyond the breath of suspicion, no word of
+real evidence connecting him with the murder of Conrad of Montferat was
+adduced, and the other charges were supported by no better evidence.
+Many of the German barons who had been at the Crusades themselves came
+forward to testify to the falsity of these charges, and the fact that
+Richard had himself placed Conrad of Montferat upon the throne, and had
+no possible interest in his death, was alone more than sufficient to
+nullify the vague rumors brought against him. Richard himself in a few a
+scornful words disposed of this accusation. The accusation that he,
+Richard of England, would stoop to poison a man whom he could have
+crushed in an instant was too absurd to be seriously treated.
+
+"I am sure," the king said, "that not one person here believes this idle
+tale. That I did not always agree with the other leaders is true; but I
+call upon every one here to say whether, had they listened to me and
+followed my advice, the Crusade would not have had another ending. Even
+after Philip of France had withdrawn; even after I had been deserted by
+John of Austria, I led the troops of the Crusaders from every danger and
+every difficulty to within sight of the walls of Jerusalem. Had I been
+supported with zeal, the holy city would have been ours; but the apathy,
+the folly, and the weakness of the leaders brought ruin upon the army.
+They thought not of conquering Jerusalem, but of thwarting me; and I
+retort upon them the charge of having sacrificed the success of the
+Crusade. As to the terms of peace, how were they made? I, with some
+fifty knights and one thousand followers, alone remained in the Holy
+Land. Who else, I ask, so circumstanced, could have obtained any terms
+whatever from Saladin? It was the weight of my arm alone which saved
+Jaffa and Acre, and the line of seacoast, to the Cross. And had I
+followed the example set me by him of Austria and the Frenchman, not one
+foot of the Holy Land would now remain in Christian hands."
+
+The trial was soon over, and without a single dissentient the King of
+England was acquitted of all the charges brought against him. But the
+money was not yet raised, and King Richard was taken back into the
+heart of Germany. At length, by prodigious exertions, half the amount
+claimed was collected, and upon the solicitations of the pope and of the
+counts of his own empire, the emperor consented to release Richard upon
+receipt of this sum, and his royal promise that the remainder should be
+made up.
+
+Not as yet, however, were the intrigues at an end. Prince John and King
+Philip alike implored the emperor to retain his captive, and offered to
+him a larger sum than the ransom if he would still hold him in his
+hands. Popular opinion, was, however, too strong. When the news of these
+negotiations became bruited abroad the counts of the empire, filled with
+indignation, protested against this shame and dishonor being brought
+upon the country. The pope threatened him with excommunication; and at
+last the emperor, feeling that he would risk his throne did he further
+insist, was forced to open the prison gates and let the king free.
+Cuthbert, Blondel, and a few other trusty friends were at hand, and
+their joy at receiving their long-lost sovereign was indeed intense.
+Horses had been provided in readiness, and without a moment's delay the
+king started, for even at the last moment it was feared that the emperor
+might change his mind. This indeed was the case. The king had not
+started many hours, when the arrival of fresh messengers from Philip and
+John induced the emperor once more to change his intentions, and a body
+of men were sent in pursuit of the king. The latter fortunately made no
+stay on the way, but changing horses frequently--for everywhere he was
+received with honor and attention--he pushed forward for the coast of
+the North Sea, and arrived there two or three hours only before his
+oppressors. Fortunately it was night, and taking a boat he embarked
+without a moment's delay; and when the emissaries of the emperor arrived
+the boat was already out of sight, and in the darkness pursuit was
+hopeless.
+
+On landing at Dover, the first to present himself before him was Prince
+John, who, in the most abject terms besought pardon for the injuries he
+had inflicted. King Richard waved him contemptuously aside.
+
+"Go," he said, "and may I forget your injuries as speedily as you will
+forget my pardon."
+
+Then taking horse, he rode on to London, where he was received with the
+most lively acclamation by his subjects.
+
+The first step of King Richard was to dispossess all the minions of John
+from the castles and lands which had been taken from his faithful
+adherents. Some of these resisted; but their fortresses were speedily
+stormed. Sir Rudolph was not one of these. Immediately the news of King
+Richard's arrival in England reached him, feeling that all was now lost,
+he rode to the seacoast, took ship, and passed into France, and
+Cuthbert, on his arrival at Evesham, found himself undisputed lord of
+the place. He found that the hiding-place of his mother had not been
+discovered, and, after a short delay to put matters in train, he,
+attended by a gallant retinue, rode into Wiltshire to the castle of Sir
+Baldwin of Béthune. Here he found the Lady Margaret safe and sound, and
+mightily pleased to see him. She was now seventeen, and offered no
+objections whatever to the commands of King Richard that she should at
+once bestow her hand upon the Earl of Evesham. By the king's order, the
+wedding took place at London, the king himself bestowing the bride upon
+his faithful follower, whom we may now leave to the enjoyment of the
+fortune and wife he had so valiantly won.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 13354 ***
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+      The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
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+<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 13354 ***</div>
+    <div style="height: 8em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h1>
+      THE BOY KNIGHT.
+    </h1>
+    <h2>
+      A Tale Of The Crusades <br />
+    </h2>
+    <h2>
+      BY G.A. HENTY
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <b>CONTENTS</b>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> <b>THE BOY KNIGHT.</b> </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0001"> CHAPTER I. &mdash; THE OUTLAWS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0002"> CHAPTER II. &mdash; A RESCUE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0003"> CHAPTER III. &mdash; THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+      </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0004"> CHAPTER IV. &mdash; THE CRUSADES. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0005"> CHAPTER V. &mdash; PREPARATIONS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0006"> CHAPTER VI. &mdash; THE LISTS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0007"> CHAPTER VII. &mdash; REVENGE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0008"> CHAPTER VIII. &mdash; THE ATTACK. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0009"> CHAPTER IX. &mdash; THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0010"> CHAPTER X. &mdash; PIRATES. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0011"> CHAPTER XI. &mdash; IN THE HOLY LAND. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0012"> CHAPTER XII. &mdash; THE ACCOLADE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0013"> CHAPTER XIII. &mdash; IN THE HANDS OF THE
+      SARACENS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0014"> CHAPTER XIV. &mdash; AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0015"> CHAPTER XV. &mdash; A HERMIT'S TALE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0016"> CHAPTER XVI. &mdash; A FIGHT OF HEROES. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0017"> CHAPTER XVII. &mdash; AN ALPINE STORM. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0018"> CHAPTER XVIII. &mdash; SENTENCED TO DEATH. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0019"> CHAPTER XIX. &mdash; DRESDEN. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0020"> CHAPTER XX. &mdash; UNDER THE GREENWOOD. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0021"> CHAPTER XXI. &mdash; THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+      </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0022"> CHAPTER XXII. &mdash; A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0023"> CHAPTER XXIII. &mdash; THE FALSE AND PERJURED
+      KNIGHT. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0024"> CHAPTER XXIV. &mdash; THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM
+      CASTLE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0025"> CHAPTER XXV. &mdash; IN SEARCH OF THE KING. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0026"> CHAPTER XXVI. &mdash; KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO
+      ENGLAND. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h1>
+      THE BOY KNIGHT.
+    </h1>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0001" id="link2HCH0001"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER I. &mdash; THE OUTLAWS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was a bright morning in the month of August, when a lad of some fifteen
+      years of age, sitting on a low wall, watched party after party of armed
+      men riding up to the castle of the Earl of Evesham. A casual observer
+      glancing at his curling hair and bright open face, as also at the fashion
+      of his dress, would at once have assigned to him a purely Saxon origin;
+      but a keener eye would have detected signs that Norman blood ran also in
+      his veins, for his figure was lither and lighter, his features more
+      straightly and shapely cut, than was common among Saxons. His dress
+      consisted of a tight-fitting jerkin, descending nearly to his knees. The
+      material was a light-blue cloth, while over his shoulder hung a short
+      cloak of a darker hue. His cap was of Saxon fashion, and he wore on one
+      side a little plume of a heron. In a somewhat costly belt hung a light
+      short sword, while across his knees lay a crossbow, in itself almost a
+      sure sign of its bearer being of other than Saxon blood. The boy looked
+      anxiously as party after party rode past toward the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would give something," he said, "to know what wind blows these knaves
+      here. From every petty castle in the Earl's feu the retainers seem
+      hurrying here. Is he bent, I wonder, on settling once and for all his
+      quarrels with the Baron of Wortham? or can he be intending to make a clear
+      sweep of the woods? Ah! here comes my gossip Hubert; he may tell me the
+      meaning of this gathering."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaping to his feet, the speaker started at a brisk walk to meet a
+      jovial-looking personage coming down from the direction of the castle. The
+      newcomer was dressed in the attire of a falconer, and two dogs followed at
+      his heels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah, Master Cuthbert," he said, "what brings you so near to the castle? It
+      is not often that you favor us with your presence."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am happier in the woods, as you well know, and was on my way thither
+      but now, when I paused at the sight of all these troopers flocking in to
+      Evesham. What enterprise has Sir Walter on hand now, think you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The earl keeps his own counsel," said the falconer, "but methinks a
+      shrewd guess might be made at the purport of the gathering. It was but
+      three days since that his foresters were beaten back by the landless men,
+      whom they caught in the very act of cutting up a fat buck. As thou
+      knowest, my lord though easy and well-disposed to all, and not fond of
+      harassing and driving the people as are many of his neighbors, is yet to
+      the full as fanatical anent his forest privileges as the worst of them.
+      They tell me that when the news came in of the poor figure that his
+      foresters cut with broken bows and draggled plumes&mdash;for the varlets
+      had soused them in a pond of not over savory water&mdash;he swore a great
+      oath that he would clear the forest of the bands. It may be, indeed, that
+      this gathering is for the purpose of falling in force upon that
+      evil-disposed and most treacherous baron, Sir John of Wortham, who has
+      already begun to harry some of the outlying lands, and has driven off, I
+      hear, many heads of cattle. It is a quarrel which will have to be fought
+      out sooner or later, and the sooner the better, say I. Although I am no
+      man of war, and love looking after my falcons or giving food to my dogs
+      far more than exchanging hard blows, yet would I gladly don the buff and
+      steel coat to aid in leveling the keep of that robber and tyrant, Sir John
+      of Wortham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, good Hubert," said the lad. "I must not stand gossiping here. The
+      news you have told me, as you know, touches me closely, for I would not
+      that harm should come to the forest men."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Let it not out, I beseech thee, Cuthbert, that the news came from me, for
+      temperate as Sir Walter is at most times, he would, methinks, give me
+      short shift did he know that the wagging of my tongue might have given
+      warning through which the outlaws of the Chase should slip through his
+      fingers."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Fear not, Hubert; I can be mum when the occasion needs. Can you tell me
+      further, when the bands now gathering are likely to set forth?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In brief breathing space," the falconer replied. "Those who first arrived
+      I left swilling beer, and devouring pies and other provisions cooked for
+      them last night, and from what I hear, they will set forth as soon as the
+      last comer has arrived. Whichever be their quarry, they will try to fall
+      upon it before the news of their arrival is bruited abroad."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a wave of his hand to the falconer the boy started. Leaving the road,
+      and striking across the slightly undulated country dotted here and there
+      by groups of trees, the lad ran at a brisk trot, without stopping to halt
+      or breathe, until after half an hour's run he arrived at the entrance of a
+      building, whose aspect proclaimed it to be the abode of a Saxon franklin
+      of some importance. It would not be called a castle, but was rather a
+      fortified house, with a few windows looking without, and surrounded by a
+      moat crossed by a drawbridge, and capable of sustaining anything short of
+      a real attack. Erstwood had but lately passed into Norman hands, and was
+      indeed at present owned by a Saxon. Sir William de Lance, the father of
+      the lad who is now entering its portals, was a friend and follower of the
+      Earl of Evesham; and soon after his lord had married Gweneth, the heiress
+      of all these fair lands&mdash;given to him by the will of the king, to
+      whom by the death of her father she became a ward&mdash;Sir William had
+      married Editha, the daughter and heiress of the franklin of Erstwood, a
+      cousin and dear friend of the new Countess of Evesham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In neither couple could the marriage at first have been called one of
+      inclination on the part of the ladies, but love came after marriage.
+      Although the knights and barons of the Norman invasion would, no doubt, be
+      considered rude and rough in these days of broadcloth and civilization,
+      yet their manners were gentle and polished by the side of those of the
+      rough though kindly Saxon franklins; and although the Saxon maids were
+      doubtless as patriotic as their fathers and mothers, yet the female mind
+      is greatly led by gentle manners and courteous address. Thus, then, when
+      bidden or forced to give their hands to the Norman knights, they speedily
+      accepted their lot, and for the most part grew contented and happy enough.
+      In their changed circumstances it was pleasanter to ride by the side of
+      their Norman husbands, surrounded by a gay cavalcade, to hawk and to hunt,
+      than to discharge the quiet duties of mistress of a Saxon farmhouse. In
+      many cases, of course, their lot was rendered wretched by the violence and
+      brutality of their lords; but in the majority they were well satisfied
+      with their lot, and these mixed marriages did more to bring the peoples
+      together and weld them in one than all the laws and decrees of the Norman
+      sovereigns.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This had certainly been the case with Editha, whose marriage with Sir
+      William had been one of the greatest happiness. She had lost him three
+      years before the story begins, fighting in Normandy, in one of the
+      innumerable wars in which our first Norman kings were constantly involved.
+      On entering the gates of Erstwood Cuthbert had rushed hastily to the room
+      where his mother was sitting, with three or four of her maidens, engaged
+      in work.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I want to speak to you at once, mother," he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is it now, my son?" said his mother, who was still young and very
+      comely. Waving her hand to the girls they left her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Mother," he said, when they were alone, "I fear me that Sir Walter is
+      about to make a great raid upon the outlaws. Armed men have been coming in
+      all the morning from the castles round, and if it be not against the Baron
+      de Wortham that these preparations are intended, and methinks it is not,
+      it must needs be against the landless men."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What would you do, Cuthbert?" his mother asked anxiously. "It will not do
+      for you to be found meddling in these matters. At present you stand well
+      in the favor of the earl, who loves you for the sake of his wife, to whom
+      you are kin, and of your father, who did him good liegeman's service."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But, mother, I have many friends in the wood. There is Cnut, their chief,
+      your own first cousin, and many others of our friends, all good men and
+      true, though forced by the cruel Norman laws to refuge in the woods."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What would you do?" again his mother asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would take Ronald my pony and ride to warn them of the danger that
+      threatens."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You had best go on foot, my son. Doubtless men have been set to see that
+      none from the Saxon homesteads carry the warning to the woods. The
+      distance is not beyond your reach, for you have often wandered there, and
+      on foot you can evade the eye of the watchers; but one thing, my son, you
+      must promise, and that is, that in no case, should the earl and his bands
+      meet with the outlaws, will you take part in any fray or struggle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That will I willingly, mother," he said. "I have no cause for offense
+      against the castle or the forest, and my blood and my kin are with both. I
+      would fain save shedding of blood in a quarrel like this. I hope that the
+      time may come when Saxon and Norman may fight side by side, and I may be
+      there to see."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few minutes later, having changed his blue doublet for one of more sober
+      and less noticeable color, Cuthbert started for the great forest, which
+      then stretched to within a mile of Erstwood. In those days a large part of
+      the country was covered with forest, and the policy of the Normans in
+      preserving these woods for the chase tended to prevent the increase of
+      cultivation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The farms and cultivated lands were all held by Saxons, who although
+      nominally handed over to the nobles to whom William and his successors had
+      given the fiefs, saw but little of their Norman masters. These stood,
+      indeed, much in the position in which landlords stand to their tenants,
+      payment being made, for the most part, in produce. At the edge of the wood
+      the trees grew comparatively far apart, but as Cuthbert proceeded further
+      into its recesses, the trees in the virgin forest stood thick and close
+      together. Here and there open glades ran across each other, and in these
+      his sharp eye, accustomed to the forest, could often see the stags
+      starting away at the sound of his footsteps.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a full hour's journey before Cuthbert reached the point for which
+      he was bound. Here, in an open space, probably cleared by a storm ages
+      before, and overshadowed by giant trees, was a group of men of all ages
+      and appearances. Some were occupied in stripping the skin off a buck which
+      hung from the bough of one of the trees. Others were roasting portions of
+      the carcass of another deer. A few sat apart, some talking, others busy in
+      making arrows, while a few lay asleep on the greensward. As Cuthbert
+      entered the clearing several of the party rose to their feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah, Cuthbert," shouted a man of almost gigantic stature, who appeared to
+      be one of the leaders of the party, "what brings you here, lad, so early?
+      You are not wont to visit us till even, when you can lay your crossbow at
+      a stag by moonlight."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No, no, Cousin Cnut," Cuthbert said, "thou canst not say that I have ever
+      broken the forest laws, though I have looked on often and often, while you
+      have done so."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The abettor is as bad as the thief," laughed Cnut, "and if the foresters
+      caught us in the act, I wot they would make but little difference whether
+      it was the shaft of my longbow or the quarrel from thy crossbow which
+      brought down the quarry. But again, lad, why comest thou here? for I see
+      by the sweat on your face and by the heaving of your sides that you have
+      run fast and far."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have, Cnut; I have not once stopped for breathing since I left
+      Erstwood. I have come to warn you of danger. The earl is preparing for a
+      raid."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut laughed somewhat disdainfully.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He has raided here before, and I trow has carried off no game. The
+      landless men of the forest can hold their own against a handful of Norman
+      knights and retainers in their own home."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ay," said Cuthbert, "but this will be no common raid. This morning bands
+      from all the holds within miles round are riding in, and at least five
+      hundred men-at-arms are likely to do chase to-day."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is it so?" said Cnut, while exclamations of surprise, but not of
+      apprehension, broke from those standing round. "If that be so, lad, you
+      have done us good service indeed. With fair warning we can slip through
+      the fingers of ten times five hundred men, but if they came upon us
+      unawares, and hemmed us in, it would fare but badly with us, though we
+      should, I doubt not, give a good account of them before their battle-axes
+      and maces ended the strife. Have you any idea by which road they will
+      enter the forest, or what are their intentions?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not," Cuthbert said; "all that I gathered was that the earl
+      intended to sweep the forest, and to put an end to the breaches of the
+      laws, not to say of the rough treatment that his foresters have met with
+      at your hands. You had best, methinks, be off before Sir Walter and his
+      heavily-armed men are here. The forest, large as it is, will scarce hold
+      you both, and methinks you had best shift your quarters to Langholm Chase
+      until the storm has passed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "To Langholm be it, then," said Cnut, "though I love not the place. Sir
+      John of Wortham is a worse neighbor by far than the earl. Against the
+      latter we bear no malice, he is a good knight and a fair lord; and could
+      he free himself of the Norman notions that the birds of the air, and the
+      beasts of the field, and the fishes of the water, all belong to Normans,
+      and that we Saxons have no share in them, I should have no quarrel with
+      him. He grinds not his neighbors, he is content with a fair tithe of the
+      produce, and as between man and man is a fair judge without favor. The
+      baron is a fiend incarnate; did he not fear that he would lose by so
+      doing, he would gladly cut the throats, or burn, or drown, or hang every
+      Saxon within twenty miles of his hold. He is a disgrace to his order, and
+      some day, when our band gathers a little stronger, we will burn his nest
+      about his ears."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It will be a hard nut to crack," Cuthbert said, laughing. "With such arms
+      as you have in the forest the enterprise would be something akin to
+      scaling the skies."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ladders and axes will go far, lad, and the Norman men-at-arms have
+      learned to dread our shafts. But enough of the baron; if we must be his
+      neighbors for a time, so be it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have heard, my mates," he said, turning to his comrades gathered
+      around him, "what Cuthbert tells us. Are you of my opinion, that it is
+      better to move away till the storm is past than to fight against heavy
+      odds, without much chance of either booty or victory?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A general chorus proclaimed that the outlaws approved of the proposal for
+      a move to Langholm Chase. The preparations were simple. Bows were taken
+      down from the boughs on which they were hanging, quivers slung across the
+      backs, short cloaks thrown over the shoulders. The deer was hurriedly
+      dismembered, and the joints fastened to a pole slung on the shoulders of
+      two of the men. The drinking-cups, some of which were of silver, looking
+      strangely out of place among the rough horn implements and platters, were
+      bundled together, carried a short distance and dropped among some thick
+      bushes for safety; and then the band started for Wortham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a cordial farewell and many thanks to Cuthbert, who declined their
+      invitations to accompany them, the retreat to Langholm commenced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, not knowing in which direction the bands were likely to
+      approach, remained for awhile motionless, intently listening.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a quarter of an hour he heard the distant note of a bugle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was answered in three different directions, and Cuthbert, who knew
+      every path and glade of the forest, was able pretty accurately to surmise
+      those by which the various bands were commencing to enter the wood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Knowing that they were still a long way off, he advanced as rapidly as he
+      could in the direction in which they were coming. When by the sound of
+      distant voices and the breaking of branches he knew that one, at least, of
+      the parties was near at hand, he rapidly climbed a thick tree and
+      ensconced himself in the branches, and there watched, secure and hidden
+      from the sharpest eye, the passage of a body of men-at-arms fully a
+      hundred strong, led by Sir Walter himself, accompanied by some half dozen
+      of his knights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When they had passed Cuthbert again slipped down the tree and made at all
+      speed for home. He reached it, so far as he knew, without having been
+      observed by a single passer-by.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a brief talk with his mother he started for the castle, as his
+      appearance there would divert any suspicion that might arise; and it would
+      also appear natural that seeing the movements of so large a body of men,
+      he should go up to gossip with his acquaintances there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When distant a mile from Evesham he came upon a small party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On a white palfrey rode Margaret, the little daughter of the earl. She was
+      accompanied by her nurse and two retainers on foot.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert&mdash;who was a great favorite with the earl's daughter, for whom
+      he frequently brought pets, such as nests of young owlets, falcons, and
+      other creatures&mdash;was about to join the party when from a clump of
+      trees near burst a body of ten mounted men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a word they rode straight at the astonished group. The retainers
+      were cut to the ground before they had thought of drawing a sword in
+      defense.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The nurse was slain by a blow with a battle-ax, and Margaret, snatched
+      from her palfrey, was thrown across the saddlebow of one of the mounted
+      men, who then with his comrades dashed off at full speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0002" id="link2HCH0002"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER II. &mdash; A RESCUE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The whole of the startling scene of the abduction of the Earl of Evesham's
+      daughter occupied but a few seconds. Cuthbert was so astounded at the
+      sudden calamity that he remained rooted to the ground at the spot where,
+      fortunately for himself, unnoticed by the assailants, he had stood when
+      they first burst from their concealment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a short time he hesitated as to the course he should take.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men-at-arms who remained in the castle were scarce strong enough to
+      rescue the child, whose captors would no doubt be reinforced by a far
+      stronger party lurking near.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The main body of Sir Walter's followers were deep in the recesses of the
+      forest, and this lay altogether out of the line for Wortham, and there
+      would be no chance whatever of bringing them up in time to cut off the
+      marauders on their way back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There remained only the outlaws, who by this time would be in Langholm
+      Forest, perhaps within a mile or two of the castle itself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The road by which the horsemen would travel would be far longer than the
+      direct line across country, and he resolved at once to strain every nerve
+      to reach his friends in time to get them to interpose between the captors
+      of the Lady Margaret and their stronghold.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For an instant he hesitated whether to run back to Erstwood to get a
+      horse; but he decided that it would be as quick to go on foot, and far
+      easier so to find the outlaws.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These thoughts occupied but a few moments, and he at once started at the
+      top of his speed for his long run across the country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Had Cuthbert been running in a race of hare and hound, he would assuredly
+      have borne away the prize from most boys of his age. At headlong pace he
+      made across the country, every foot of which, as far as the edge of
+      Langholm Chase, he knew by heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The distance to the woods was some twelve miles, and in an hour and a half
+      from the moment of his starting Cuthbert was deep within its shades. Where
+      he would be likely to find the outlaws he knew not; and, putting a whistle
+      to his lips, he shrilly blew the signal, which would, he knew, be
+      recognized by any of the band within hearing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He thought that he heard an answer, but was not certain, and again dashed
+      forward, almost as speedily as if he had but just started.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Five minutes later a man stood in the glade up which he was running. He
+      recognized him at once as one of Cnut's party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Where are the band?" he gasped.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Half a mile or so to the right," replied the man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Guided by the man, Cuthbert ran at full speed, till, panting and scarce
+      able to speak, he arrived at the spot where Cnut's band were gathered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a few words he told them what had happened, and although they had just
+      been chased by the father of the captured child, there was not a moment of
+      hesitation in promising their aid to rescue her from a man whom they
+      regarded as a far more bitter enemy, both of themselves and their race.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear we shall be too late to cut them off," Cnut said, "they have so
+      long a start; but at least we will waste no time in gossiping."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Winding a horn to call together some of the members of the band who had
+      scattered, and leaving one at the meeting-place to give instructions to
+      the rest, Cnut, followed by those assembled there, went off at a swinging
+      trot through the glades toward Wortham Castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a rapid calculation of distances, and allowing for the fact that the
+      baron's men&mdash;knowing that Sir Walter's retainers and friends were all
+      deep in the forest, and even if they heard of the outrage could not be on
+      their traces for hours&mdash;would take matters quietly, Cnut concluded
+      that they had arrived in time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Turning off, they made their way along the edge of the wood, to the point
+      where the road from Evesham ran through the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scarcely had the party reached this point when they heard a faint clatter
+      of steel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here they come!" exclaimed Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut gave rapid directions, and the band took up their posts behind the
+      trees, on either side of the path.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Remember," Cnut said, "above all things be careful not to hit the child,
+      but pierce the horse on which she is riding. The instant he falls, rush
+      forward. We must trust to surprise to give us the victory."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three minutes later the head of a band of horsemen was seen through the
+      trees. They were some thirty in number, and, closely grouped as they were
+      together, the watchers behind the trees could not see the form of the
+      child carried in their midst.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When they came abreast of the concealed outlaws Cnut gave a sharp whistle,
+      and fifty arrows flew from tree and bush into the closely gathered party
+      of horsemen. More than half their number fell at once; some, drawing their
+      swords, endeavored to rush at their concealed foes, while others dashed
+      forward in the hope of riding through the snare into which they had
+      fallen. Cuthbert had leveled his crossbow, but had not fired; he was
+      watching with intense anxiety for a glimpse of the bright-colored dress of
+      the child. Soon he saw a horseman separate himself from the rest and dash
+      forward at full speed. Several arrows flew by him, and one or two struck
+      the horse on which he rode.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The animal, however, kept on its way.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert leveled his crossbow on the low arm of a tree, and as the rider
+      came abreast of him touched the trigger, and the steel-pointed quarrel
+      flew true and strong against the temple of the passing horseman. He fell
+      from his horse like a stone, and the well-trained animal at once stood
+      still by the side of his rider.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert leaped forward, and to his delight the child at once opened her
+      arms and cried in a joyous tone:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Cuthbert!"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fight was still raging fiercely, and Cuthbert, raising her from the
+      ground, ran with her into the wood, where they remained hidden until the
+      combat ceased, and the last survivors of the baron's band had ridden past
+      toward the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then Cuthbert went forward with his charge and joined the band of outlaws,
+      who, absorbed in the fight, had not witnessed the incident of her rescue,
+      and now received them with loud shouts of joy and triumph.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is a good day's work indeed for all," Cuthbert said; "it will make
+      of the earl a firm friend instead of a bitter enemy; and I doubt not that
+      better days are dawning for Evesham Forest."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A litter was speedily made with boughs; on this Margaret was placed, and
+      on the shoulders of two stout foresters started for home, Cnut and
+      Cuthbert walking beside, and a few of the band keeping at a short distance
+      behind, as a sort of rearguard, should the baron attempt to regain his
+      prey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was now no cause for speed, and Cuthbert in truth could scarce drag
+      one foot before another, for he had already traversed over twenty miles,
+      the greater portion of the distance at his highest rate of speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut offered to have a litter made for him also, but this Cuthbert
+      indignantly refused; however, in the forest they came upon the hut of a
+      small cultivator, who had a rough forest pony, which was borrowed for
+      Cuthbert's use.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was late in the afternoon before they came in sight of Evesham Castle.
+      From the distance could be seen bodies of armed men galloping toward it,
+      and it was clear that only now the party were returning from the wood, and
+      had learned the news of the disappearance of the earl's daughter, and of
+      the finding of the bodies of her attendants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently they met one of the mounted retainers riding at headlong speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have you heard or seen anything," he shouted, as he approached, "of the
+      Lady Margaret? She is missing, and foul play has taken place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here I am, Rudolph," cried the child, sitting up on the rude litter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The horseman gave a cry of astonishment and pleasure, and without a word
+      wheeled his horse and galloped past back at headlong speed toward the
+      castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert and the party approached the gate the earl himself, surrounded
+      by his knights and followers, rode out hastily from the gate and halted in
+      front of the little party. The litter was lowered, and as he dismounted
+      from his horse his daughter sprang out and leaped into his arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a few minutes the confusion and babble of tongues were too great for
+      anything to be heard, but Cuthbert, as soon as order was somewhat
+      restored, stated what had happened, and the earl was moved to fury at the
+      news of the outrage which had been perpetrated by the Baron of Wortham
+      upon his daughter and at the very gates of his castle, and also at the
+      thought that she should have been saved by the bravery and devotion of the
+      very men against whom he had so lately been vowing vengeance in the depths
+      of the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is not a time," he said to Cnut, "for talk or making promises, but
+      be assured that henceforth the deer of Evesham Chase are as free to you
+      and your men as to me. Forest laws or no forest laws, I will no more lift
+      a hand against men to whom I owe so much. Come when you will to the
+      castle, my friends, and let us talk over what can be done to raise your
+      outlawry and restore you to an honest career again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert returned home tired, but delighted with his day's work, and Dame
+      Editha was surprised indeed with the tale of adventure he had to tell. The
+      next morning he went over to the castle, and heard that a grand council
+      had been held the evening before, and that it had been determined to
+      attack Wortham Castle and to raze it to the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Immediately on hearing of his arrival, the earl, after again expressing
+      his gratitude for the rescue of his daughter, asked him if he would go
+      into the forest and invite the outlaws to join their forces with those of
+      the castle to attack the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert willingly undertook the mission, as he felt that this alliance
+      would further strengthen the position of the forest men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he arrived there was some considerable consultation and discussion
+      between the outlaws as to the expediency of mixing themselves in the
+      quarrels between the Norman barons. However, Cnut persuaded them that as
+      the Baron of Wortham was an enemy and oppressor of all Saxons, it was in
+      fact their own quarrel that they were fighting rather than that of the
+      earl, and they therefore agreed to give their aid, and promised to be at
+      the rendezvous outside the castle to be attacked soon after dawn next
+      morning. Cuthbert returned with the news which gave great satisfaction to
+      the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The castle was now a scene of bustle and business; armorers were at work
+      repairing headpieces and breastplates, sharpening swords and battle-axes,
+      while the fletchers prepared sheaves of arrows. In the courtyard a number
+      of men were engaged oiling the catapults, ballistas, and other machines
+      for hurling stones. All were discussing the chances of the assault, for it
+      was no easy matter which they had set themselves to do. Wortham Hold was
+      an extremely strong one, and it needed all and more than all the machines
+      at their disposal to undertake so formidable an operation as a siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The garrison, too, were strong and desperate; and the baron, knowing what
+      must follow his outrage of the day before, would have been sure to send
+      off messengers round the country begging his friends to come to his
+      assistance. Cuthbert had begged permission of his mother to ask the earl
+      to allow him to join as a volunteer, but she would not hear of it. Neither
+      would she suffer him to mingle with the foresters. The utmost that he
+      could obtain was that he might go as a spectator, with strict injunctions
+      to keep himself out of the fray, and as far as possible beyond bow-shot of
+      the castle wall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a force of some four hundred strong that issued from the wood early
+      next morning to attack the stronghold at Wortham. The force consisted of
+      some ten or twelve knights and barons, some one hundred and fifty or one
+      hundred and sixty Norman men-at-arms, a miscellaneous gathering of other
+      retainers, two hundred strong, and some eighty of the forest men. These
+      last were not to fight under the earl's banner, but were to act on their
+      own account. There were among them outlaws, escaped serfs, and some men
+      guilty of bloodshed. The earl then could not have suffered these men to
+      fight under his flag until purged in some way of their offenses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This arrangement suited the foresters well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Their strong point was shooting; and by taking up their own position, and
+      following their own tactics, under the leadership of Cnut, they would be
+      able to do far more execution, and that with less risk to themselves, than
+      if compelled to fight according to the fashion of the Normans.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As they approached the castle a trumpet was blown, and the herald
+      advancing, demanded its surrender, stigmatized the Baron of Wortham as a
+      false knight and a disgrace to his class and warned all those within the
+      castle to abstain from giving him aid or countenance, but to submit
+      themselves to the earl, Sir Walter of Evesham, the representative of King
+      Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The reply to the summons was a burst of taunting laughter from the walls;
+      and scarcely had the herald withdrawn than a flight of arrows showed that
+      the besieged were perfectly ready for the fray.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Indeed the baron had not been idle. Already the dispute between himself
+      and the earl had come to such a point that it was certain that sooner or
+      later open hostilities would break out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had therefore been for some time quietly accumulating a large store of
+      provisions and munitions of war, and strengthening the castle in every
+      way.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moat had been cleaned out, and filled to the brim with water. Great
+      quantities of heavy stones had been accumulated on the most exposed points
+      of the walls, in readiness to hurl upon any who might try to climb. Huge
+      sheaves of arrows and piles of crossbow bolts were in readiness, and in
+      all, save the number of men, Wortham had for weeks been prepared for the
+      siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the day when the attempt to carry off the earl's daughter had failed,
+      the baron, seeing that his bold stroke to obtain a hostage which would
+      have enabled him to make his own terms with the earl had been thwarted,
+      knew that the struggle was inevitable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fleet messengers had been sent in all directions. To Gloucester and
+      Hereford, Stafford, and even Oxford, men had ridden, with letters to the
+      baron's friends, beseeching them to march to his assistance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I can," he said, "defend my hold for weeks. But it is only by aid from
+      without that I can finally hope to break the power of this baggart
+      [Transcriber's note: sic] earl."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Many of those to whom he addressed his call had speedily complied with his
+      demand, while those at a distance might be expected to reply later to the
+      appeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were many among the barons who considered the mildness of the Earl
+      of Evesham toward the Saxons in his district to be a mistake, and who,
+      although not actually approving of the tyranny and brutality of the Baron
+      of Wortham, yet looked upon his cause to some extent as their own.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Castle of Wortham stood upon ground but very slightly elevated above
+      the surrounding country. A deep and wide moat ran round it, and this
+      could, by diverting a rivulet, be filled at will.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From the edge of the moat the walls rose high, and with strong flanking
+      towers and battlements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were strong works also beyond the moat opposite to the drawbridge;
+      while in the center of the castle rose the keep, from whose summit the
+      archers, and the machines for casting stones and darts, could command the
+      whole circuit of defense.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert, accompanied by one of the hinds of the farm, took his post
+      high up in a lofty tree, where at his ease he could command a view of the
+      proceedings, he marveled much in what manner an attack upon so fair a
+      fortress would be commenced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It will be straightforward work to attack the outwork," he said, "but
+      that once won, I see not how we are to proceed against the castle itself.
+      The machines that the earl has will scarcely hurl stones strong enough
+      even to knock the mortar from the walls. Ladders are useless where they
+      cannot be planted; and if the garrison are as brave as the castle is
+      strong, methinks that the earl has embarked upon a business that will keep
+      him here till next spring."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was little time lost in commencing the conflict.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The foresters, skirmishing up near to the castle, and taking advantage of
+      every inequality in the ground, of every bush and tuft of high grass,
+      worked up close to the moat, and then opened a heavy fire with their bows
+      against the men-at-arms on the battlements, and prevented their using the
+      machines against the main force now advancing to the attack upon the
+      outwork.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was stoutly defended. But the impetuosity of the earl, backed as it
+      was by the gallantry of the knights serving under him, carried all
+      obstacles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The narrow moat which encircled this work was speedily filled with great
+      bundles of brushwood, which had been prepared the previous night. Across
+      these the assailants rushed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Some thundered at the gate with their battle-axes, while others placed
+      ladders by which, although several times hurled backward by the defenders,
+      they finally succeeded in getting a footing on the wall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Once there, the combat was virtually over.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The defenders were either cut down or taken prisoners, and in two hours
+      after the assault began the outwork of Wortham Castle was taken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This, however, was but the commencement of the undertaking, and it had
+      cost more than twenty lives to the assailants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They were now, indeed, little nearer to capturing the castle than they had
+      been before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moat was wide and deep. The drawbridge had been lifted at the instant
+      that the first of the assailants gained a footing upon the wall. And now
+      that the outwork was captured, a storm of arrows, stones, and other
+      missiles was poured into it from the castle walls, and rendered it
+      impossible for any of its new masters to show themselves above it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Seeing that any sudden attack was impossible, the earl now directed a
+      strong body to cut down trees, and prepare a moveable bridge to throw
+      across the moat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This would be a work of fully two days; and in the meantime Cuthbert
+      returned to the farm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0003" id="link2HCH0003"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER III. &mdash; THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Upon his return home, after relating to his mother the events of the
+      morning's conflict, Cuthbert took his way to the cottage inhabited by an
+      old man who had in his youth been a mason.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have I not heard, Gurth," he said, "that you helped to build the Castle
+      of Wortham?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No, no, young sir," he said; "old as I am, I was a child when the castle
+      was built. My father worked at it, and it cost him, and many others, his
+      life."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And how was that, prithee?" asked Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He was, with several others, killed by the baron, the grandfather of the
+      present man, when the work was finished."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But why was that, Gurth?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We were but Saxon swine," said Gurth bitterly, "and a few of us more or
+      less mattered not. We were then serfs of the baron. But my mother fled
+      with me on the news of my father's death. For years we remained far away
+      with some friends in a forest near Oxford. Then she pined for her native
+      air, and came back and entered the service of the franklin."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But why should your mother have taken you away?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "She always believed, Master Cuthbert, that my father was killed by the
+      baron to prevent him giving any news of the secrets of the castle. He and
+      some others had been kept in the walls for many months, and were engaged
+      in the making of secret passages."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is just what I came to ask you, Gurth. I have heard something of
+      this story before, and now that we are attacking Wortham Castle, and the
+      earl has sworn to level it to the ground, it is of importance if possible
+      to find out whether any of the secret passages lead beyond the castle, and
+      if so, where. Almost all the castles have, I have been told, an exit by
+      which the garrison can at will make sorties or escape; and I thought that
+      maybe you might have heard enough to give us some clue as to the existence
+      of such a passage at Wortham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old man thought for some time in silence and then said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I may be mistaken, but methinks a diligent search in the copse near the
+      stream might find the mouth of the outlet."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What makes you think that this is so, Gurth?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I had been with my mother to carry some clothes to my father on the last
+      occasion on which I saw him. As we neared the castle I saw my father and
+      three other of the workmen, together with the baron, coming down from the
+      castle toward the spot. As my mother did not wish to approach while the
+      baron was at hand, we stood within the trees at the edge of the wood and
+      watched what was being done. The baron came with them down to the bushes,
+      and then they again came out, crossed the river, and one of them cut some
+      willows, peeled them, and erected the white staves in a line toward the
+      castle. They walked for a bit on each side, and seemed to be making
+      calculations. Then they went back into the castle, and I never saw my
+      father again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Why did you not go in at once according to your intention?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Because my mother said that she thought some important work was on hand,
+      and that maybe the baron would not like that women should know aught of
+      it, for he was of suspicious and evil mind. More than this I know not. The
+      castle had already been finished and most of the masons discharged. There
+      were, however, a party of serfs kept at work, and also some masons, and
+      rumor had it that they were engaged in making the secret passages. Whether
+      it was so or not I cannot say, but I know that none of that party ever
+      left the castle alive. It was given out that a bad fever had raged there,
+      but none believed it; and the report went about, and was I doubt not true,
+      that all had been killed, to preserve the secret of the passage."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert lost no time in making use of the information that he had gained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Early next morning, at daybreak, he started on his pony to Wortham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he did not wish the earl or his followers to know the facts that he had
+      learned until they were proved, he made his way round the camp of the
+      besiegers, and by means of his whistle called one of the foresters to him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Where is Cnut?" he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He is with a party occupied in making ladders."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Go to him," Cuthbert said, "and tell him to withdraw quietly and make his
+      way here. I have an important matter on which I wish to speak to him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut arrived in a few minutes, somewhat wondering at the message. He
+      brightened greatly when Cuthbert told him what he had learned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is indeed important," he said. "We will lose no time in searching
+      the copse you speak of. You and I, together with two of my most trusty
+      men, with axes to clear away the brush, will do. At present a thing of
+      this sort had best be kept between as few as may be."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They started at once and soon came down upon the stream.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It ran at this point in a little valley, some twenty or thirty feet deep.
+      On the bank not far from the castle grew a small wood, and it was in this
+      that Cuthbert hoped to find the passage spoken of by Gurth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trees and brushwood were so thick that it was apparent at once that if
+      the passage had ever existed it had been unused for some years.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The woodmen were obliged to chop down dozens of young saplings to make
+      their way up from the water toward the steeper part of the bank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The wood was some fifty yards in length, and as it was uncertain at which
+      point the passage had come out, a very minute search had to be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What do you think it would be like, Cnut?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Like enough to a rabbit-hole, or more likely still there would be no hole
+      whatever. We must look for moss and greenery, for it is likely that such
+      would have been planted, so as to conceal the door from any passer-by,
+      while yet allowing a party from inside to cut their way through it without
+      difficulty."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a search of two hours, Cnut decided that the only place in the copse
+      in which it was likely that the entrance to a passage could be hidden was
+      a spot where the ground was covered thickly with ivy and trailing plants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It looks level enough with the rest," Cuthbert said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ay, lad, but we know not what lies behind this thick screen of ivy.
+      Thrust in that staff."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the woodmen began to probe with the end of a staff among the ivy.
+      For some time he was met by the solid ground, but presently the butt of
+      the staff went through suddenly, pitching him on his head, amid a
+      suppressed laugh from his comrades.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here it is, if anywhere," said Cnut, and with their billhooks they at
+      once began to clear away the thickly grown creepers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Five minutes' work was sufficient to show a narrow cut, some two feet
+      wide, in the hillside, at the end of which stood a low door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here it is," said Cnut, with triumph, "and the castle is ours. Thanks,
+      Cuthbert, for your thought and intelligence. It has not been used lately,
+      that is clear," he went on. "These creepers have not been moved for years.
+      Shall we go and tell the earl of our discovery? What think you, Cuthbert?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think we had better not," Cuthbert said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We might not succeed in getting in, as the passage may have fallen
+      further along; but I will speak to him and tell him that we have something
+      on hand which may alter his dispositions for fighting to-morrow."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert made his way to the earl, who had taken possession of a small
+      cottage a short distance from the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What can I do for you?" Sir Walter said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I want to ask you, sir, not to attack the castle to-morrow until you see
+      a white flag waved from the keep."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But how on earth is a white flag to be raised from the keep?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It may be," Cuthbert said, "that I have some friends inside who will be
+      able to make a diversion in our favor. However, sir, it can do no harm if
+      you will wait till then, and may save many lives. At what hour do you mean
+      to attack ?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The bridges and all other preparations to assist us across the moat will
+      be ready to-night. We will advance then under cover of darkness, and as
+      soon after dawn as may be attack in earnest."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Very well, sir," Cuthbert said. "I trust that within five minutes after
+      your bugle has sounded the white flag will make its appearance on the
+      keep, but it cannot do so until after you have commenced an attack, or at
+      least a pretense of an attack."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two or three hours before daylight Cuthbert accompanied Cnut and
+      twenty-five picked men of the foresters to the copse. They were provided
+      with crowbars, and all carried heavy axes. The door was soon pried open.
+      It opened silently and without a creak.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It may be," Cnut said, "that the door has not been opened as you say for
+      years, but it is certain," and he placed his torch to the hinges, "that it
+      has been well oiled within the last two or three days. No doubt the baron
+      intended to make his escape this way, should the worst arrive. Now that we
+      have the door open we had better wait quiet until the dawn commences. The
+      earl will blow his bugle as a signal for the advance; it will be another
+      ten minutes before they are fairly engaged, and that will be enough for us
+      to break open any doors that there may be between this and the castle, and
+      to force our way inside."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed a long time waiting before the dawn fairly broke&mdash;still
+      longer before the earl's bugle was heard to sound the attack. Then the
+      band, headed by Cnut and two or three of the strongest of the party
+      entered the passage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had had some misgivings as to his mother's injunctions to take no
+      part in the fray, and it cannot be said that in accompanying the foresters
+      he obeyed the letter of her instructions. At the same time as he felt sure
+      that the effect of a surprise would be complete and crushing, and that the
+      party would gain the top of the keep without any serious resistance, he
+      considered the risk was so small as to justify him in accompanying the
+      foresters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The passage was some five feet high, and little more than two feet wide.
+      It was dry and dusty, and save the marks on the ground of a human foot
+      going and returning, doubtless that of the man who had oiled the lock the
+      day before, the passage appeared to have been unused from the time that it
+      left the hands of its builders.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Passing along for some distance they came to another strong oaken door.
+      This, like the last, yielded to the efforts of the crowbars of the
+      foresters, and they again advanced. Presently they came to a flight of
+      steps.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We must now be near the castle," Cnut said. "In fact, methinks I can hear
+      confused noises ahead."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mounting the steps, they came to a third door; this was thickly studded
+      with iron, and appeared of very great strength. Fortunately the lock was
+      upon their side, and they were enabled to shoot the bolt; but upon the
+      other side the door was firmly secured by large bolts, and it was fully
+      five minutes before the foresters could succeed in opening it. It was not
+      without a good deal of noise that they at last did so; and several times
+      they paused, fearing that the alarm must have been given in the castle.
+      As, however, the door remained closed, they supposed that the occupants
+      were fully engaged in defending themselves from the attacks of the earl's
+      party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the door gave way they found hanging across in front of them a very
+      thick arras, and pressing this aside they entered a small room in the
+      thickness of the wall of the keep. It contained the merest slit for light,
+      and was clearly unused. Another door, this time unfastened, led into a
+      larger apartment, which was also at present unoccupied. They could hear
+      now the shouts of the combatants without, the loud orders given by the
+      leaders on the walls, the crack, as the stones hurled by the mangonels
+      struck the walls, and the ring of steel as the arrows struck against steel
+      cap and cuirass.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is fortunate that all were so well engaged, or they would certainly
+      have heard the noise of our forcing the door, which would have brought all
+      of them upon us. As it is, we are in the heart of the keep. We have now
+      but to make a rush up these winding steps, and methinks we shall find
+      ourselves on the battlements. They will be so surprised that no real
+      resistance can be offered to us. Now let us advance."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying Cnut led the way upstairs, followed by the foresters, Cuthbert,
+      as before, allowing five or six of them to intervene between him and the
+      leader. He carried his short sword and a quarterstaff, a weapon by no
+      means to be despised in the hands of an active and experienced player.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently, after mounting some fifty or sixty steps, they issued on the
+      platform of the keep. Here were gathered some thirty or forty men, who
+      were so busied in shooting with crossbows, and in working machines casting
+      javelins, stones, and other missiles upon the besiegers, that they were
+      unaware of the addition to their numbers until the whole of the foresters
+      had gathered on the summit, and at the order of Cnut suddenly fell upon
+      them with a loud shout.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Taken wholly by surprise by the foe, who seemed to have risen from the
+      bowels of the earth by magic, the soldiers of the Baron of Wortham offered
+      but a feeble resistance. Some were cast over the battlement of the keep,
+      some driven down staircases, others cut down, and then, Cuthbert fastening
+      a small white flag he had prepared to his quarterstaff, waved it above the
+      battlements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Even now the combatants on the outer wall were in ignorance of what had
+      happened in the keep; so great was the din that the struggle which had
+      there taken place had passed unnoticed; and it was not until the
+      fugitives, rushing out into the courtyard, shouted that the keep had been
+      captured, that the besieged became aware of the imminence of the danger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      [Image: CUTHBERT FASTENED A SMALL WHITE FLAG TO HIS QUARTER-STAFF AND
+      WAVED IT ABOVE THE BATTLEMENTS.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hitherto the battle had been going well for the defenders of the castle.
+      The Baron of Wortham was indeed surprised at the feebleness of the
+      assault. The arrows which had fallen in clouds upon the first day's attack
+      upon the castle among his soldiers were now comparatively few and
+      ineffective. The besiegers scarcely appeared to push forward their bridges
+      with any vigor, and it seemed to him that a coldness had fallen upon them,
+      and that some disagreement must have arisen between the foresters and the
+      earl, completely crippling the energy of the attack.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he heard the words shouted from the courtyard below he could not
+      believe his ears. That the keep behind should have been carried by the
+      enemy appeared to him impossible. With a roar he called upon the bravest
+      of his men to follow, and rushing across the courtyard, rapidly ascended
+      the staircase. The movement was observed from the keep, and Cnut and a few
+      of his men stationed themselves with their battle-axes at the top of
+      various stairs leading below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The signal shown by Cuthbert had not passed unobserved. The earl, who had
+      given instructions to his followers to make a mere feint of attacking, now
+      blew the signal for the real onslaught. The bridges were rapidly run
+      across the moat, ladders were planted, and the garrison being paralyzed
+      and confused by the attack in their rear, as well as hindered by the
+      arrows which now flew down upon them from the keep above, offered but a
+      feeble resistance, and the assailants, led by Sir Walter himself, poured
+      over the walls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now there was a scene of confusion and desperate strife. The baron had
+      just gained the top of the stairs, and was engaged in a fierce conflict
+      with Cnut and his men, when the news reached him that the wall was carried
+      from without. With an execration he again turned and rushed down the
+      stairs, hoping by a vigorous effort to cast back the foe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was, however, all too late; his followers, disheartened and alarmed,
+      fought without method or order in scattered groups of threes and fours.
+      They made their last stand in corners and passages. They knew there was
+      but little hope of mercy from the Saxon foresters, and against these they
+      fought to the last. To the Norman retainers, however, of the earl they
+      offered a less determined resistance, throwing down their arms and
+      surrendering at discretion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron, when fiercely fighting, was slain by an arrow from the keep
+      above, and with his fall the last resistance ceased. A short time was
+      spent in searching the castle, binding the prisoners, and carrying off the
+      valuables that the baron had collected in his raids. Then a light was set
+      to the timbers, the granaries were fired, and in a few minutes the smoke
+      wreathing out of the various loopholes and openings told the country round
+      that the stronghold had fallen, and that they were free from the oppressor
+      at last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0004" id="link2HCH0004"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER IV. &mdash; THE CRUSADES.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Warm thanks and much praise were bestowed upon Cuthbert for his share in
+      the capture of the castle, and the earl, calling the foresters round him,
+      then and there bestowed freedom upon any of them who might have been serfs
+      of his, and called upon all his knights and neighbors to do the same, in
+      return for the good service which they had rendered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was willingly done, and a number of Cnut's party, who had before
+      borne the stigma of escaped serfs, were now free men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We are too apt to forget, in our sympathy with the Saxons, that, fond as
+      they were of freedom for themselves, they were yet severe masters, and
+      kept the mass of the people in a state of serfage. Although their laws
+      provided ample justice as between Saxon man and man, there was no justice
+      for the unhappy serfs, who were either the original inhabitants or
+      captives taken in war, and who were distinguished by a collar of brass or
+      iron round their neck.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut's party had indeed long got rid of these badges, the first act of a
+      serf when he took to the woods being always to file off his collar; but
+      they were liable when caught to be punished, even by death, and were
+      delighted at having achieved their freedom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And what can I do for you, Cuthbert?" Sir Walter said, as they rode
+      homeward. "It is to you that I am indebted: in the first place for the
+      rescue of my daughter, in the second for the capture of that castle, which
+      I doubt me much whether we should ever have taken in fair fight had it not
+      been for your aid."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, Sir Walter," the lad replied. "At present I need nothing, but
+      should the time come when you may go to the wars I would fain ride with
+      you as your page, in the hope of some day winning my spurs also in the
+      field."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So shall it be," the earl said, "and right willingly. But who have we
+      here?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he spoke a horseman rode up and presented a paper to the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is a notice," the earl said, after perusing it, "that King Richard
+      has determined to take up the cross, and that he calls upon his nobles and
+      barons to join him in the effort to free the holy sepulcher from the
+      infidels. I doubt whether the minds of the people are quite prepared, but
+      I hear that there has been much preaching by friars and monks in some
+      parts, and that many are eager to join in the war."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Think you that you will go to the war, Sir Walter?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not as yet; it must much depend upon the king's mood. For myself I
+      care not so greatly as some do about this question of the Holy Land. There
+      has been blood enough shed already to drown it, and we are no nearer than
+      when the first swarms of pilgrims made their way thither."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On Cuthbert's returning home and telling his mother all that had passed,
+      she shook her head, but said that she could not oppose his wishes to go
+      with the earl when the time should come, and that it was only right he
+      should follow in the footsteps of the good knight his father.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have heard much of these Crusades," he said; "canst tell me about
+      them?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In truth I know not much, my son; but Father Francis, I doubt not, can
+      tell you all the particulars anent the affair."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next time that Father Francis, who was the special adviser of Dame
+      Editha, rode over from the convent on his ambling nag, Cuthbert eagerly
+      asked him if he would tell him what he knew of the Crusades.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Hitherto, my son," he said, "the Crusades have, it must be owned, brought
+      many woes upon Europe. From the early times great swarms of pilgrims were
+      accustomed to go from all parts of Europe to the holy shrines.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "When the followers of the evil prophet took possession of the land, they
+      laid grievous burdens upon the pilgrims, heavily they fined them,
+      persecuted them in every way, and treated them as if indeed they were but
+      the scum of the earth under their feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So terrible were the tales that reached Europe that men came to think
+      that it would be a good deed truly to wrest the sepulcher of the Lord from
+      the hands of these heathens. Pope Urban was the first to give authority
+      and strength to the movement, and at a vast meeting at Claremont of thirty
+      thousand clergy and four thousand barons, it was decided that war must be
+      made against the infidel. From all parts of France men flocked to hear
+      Pope Urban preach there; and when he had finished his oration the vast
+      multitude, carried away by enthusiasm, swore to win the holy sepulcher or
+      to die.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Mighty was the throng that gathered for the First Crusade. Monks threw
+      aside their gowns and took to the sword and cuirass; even women and
+      children joined in the throng. What, my son, could be expected from a
+      great army so formed? Without leaders, without discipline, without
+      tactics, without means of getting food, they soon became a scourge of the
+      country through which they passed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Passing through Hungary, where they greatly ravaged the fields, they came
+      to Bulgaria. Here the people, struck with astonishment and dismay at this
+      great horde of hungry people who arrived among them like locusts, fell
+      upon them with the sword, and great numbers fell. The first band that
+      passed into that country perished miserably, and of all that huge
+      assembly, it may be said that, numbering at the start not less than two
+      hundred and fifty thousand persons, only about one hundred thousand
+      crossed into Asia Minor. The fate of these was no better than that of
+      those who had perished in Hungary and Bulgaria. After grievous suffering
+      and loss they at last reached Nicaea. There they fell into an ambuscade;
+      and out of the whole of the undisciplined masses who had followed Peter
+      the Hermit, it is doubtful whether ten thousand ever returned home.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This first attempt to rescue the holy sepulcher was followed by others
+      equally wild, misguided, and unfortunate. Some of them indeed began their
+      evil deeds as soon as they had left their home. The last of these bodies
+      fell upon the Jews, who are indeed enemies of the Christian faith, but who
+      have now, at least, nothing to do with the question of the holy sepulcher.
+      As soon as they entered into Germany the Crusaders put them to death with
+      horrible torture. Plunder and rapine indeed appeared to be the object of
+      the Crusaders. On this as well as on most other preceding bands, their
+      misdeeds drew down the vengeance of the people. At an early period of
+      their march, and as soon as they reached Hungary, the people fell upon
+      them, and put the greater portion to the sword.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thus, in these irregular expeditions no less than five hundred thousand
+      people are supposed to have perished. Godfrey de Bouillon was the first
+      who undertook to lead a Crusade according to the military knowledge of the
+      day. With him were his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, the Counts of Anault
+      and St. Paul, and many other nobles and gentlemen, with their retainers,
+      well armed and under good order; and so firm was the discipline of Duke
+      Godfrey that they were allowed to pass freely by the people of the
+      countries who had opposed the previous bands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Through Hungary, Bulgaria, and Thrace he made his way; and though he met
+      with many difficulties from Alexius, the crafty and treacherous Emperor of
+      the Greeks, he at last succeeded in crossing into Asia. There he was
+      joined by many from England, as well as from France and other countries.
+      Duke Robert, the son of our first William, led a strong band of Normans to
+      the war, as did the other great princes of France and Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The army which crossed the narrow passage of the Hellespont is estimated
+      at no less than seven hundred thousand fighting men. Of these one hundred
+      thousand were knights clad in complete armor, the remainder were
+      men-at-arms and bowmen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nicaea, the place which had been the scene of the massacre of Peter the
+      Hermit's hosts, was taken after a desperate conflict, lasting for many
+      weeks, and the Crusaders afterward defeated the Turks in a great battle
+      near the town of Doryleum. After these successes disputes arose among the
+      leaders, and Count Baldwin, brother of Duke Godfrey, left the main body
+      with about fifteen hundred men, and founded a kingdom for himself in
+      Mesopotamia.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The main body, slowly and painfully, and suffering from disease, famine,
+      and the heat, made its way south. Antioch, a city of great strength and
+      importance, was besieged, but it proved so strong that it resisted for
+      many months, and was at last only taken by treachery.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "After the capture of this place the sufferings of the Crusaders so far
+      from being diminished were redoubled. They themselves during the siege had
+      bought up all the food that could be brought from the surrounding country,
+      while the magazines of the town were found, when an entry was effected, to
+      be entirely deserted. The enemy, aided by a great Persian host, came down,
+      and those who had been the besiegers were now besieged. However, when in
+      the last strait the Christian army sallied out, and inspired with
+      supernatural strength, defeated the Turks and Persians, with a slaughter
+      of one hundred thousand men. Another slow movement to the south brought
+      them into the Holy Land, and pressing forward, they came at last within
+      sight of Jerusalem itself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So fearful had been the losses of the Crusaders that of seven hundred
+      thousand who crossed the Hellespont, not more than forty thousand reached
+      the end of the pilgrimage. This fragment of an army, which had appeared
+      before a very strongly fortified town, possessed no means of capturing the
+      place&mdash;none of the machines of war necessary for the purpose, no
+      provisions or munitions of any kind. Water was scarce also; and it
+      appeared as if the remnant of the great army of Godfrey de Bouillon had
+      arrived before Jerusalem only to perish there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Happily just at this time a further band of Crusaders from Genoa, who had
+      reached Jaffa, made their appearance. They were provided with stores, and
+      had skilled workmen capable of making the machines for the siege. On July
+      14, 1099, the attack was made, and after resistance gallant and desperate
+      as the assault, the Crusaders burst into the city, massacred the whole of
+      the defenders and inhabitants, calculated at seventy thousand in number,
+      and so became masters of the holy sepulcher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Sultan of Egypt was meanwhile advancing to the assistance of the
+      Mohammedans of Syria; but Godfrey, with twenty thousand of his best men,
+      advanced to meet the vast host, and scattered them as if they had been
+      sheep. Godfrey was now chosen King of Jerusalem, and the rest of his army&mdash;save
+      three hundred knights and two hundred soldiers, who agreed to remain with
+      him&mdash;returned to their home. The news of the victory led other armies
+      of Crusaders to follow the example of that of Godfrey; but as these were
+      almost as completely without organization or leadership as those of Peter
+      the Hermit, they suffered miserably on their way, and few indeed ever
+      reached the Holy Land. Godfrey died in 1100, and his brother Baldwin
+      succeeded him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The history of the last hundred years has been full of fresh efforts to
+      crush the Moslem power, but hitherto it cannot be said that fortune has
+      attended the efforts of the Christians. Had it not been indeed for the
+      devotion of the Knights of St. John and of the Templars, two great
+      companies formed of men who devoted their lives to the holding of the
+      sepulcher against the infidel, our hold of the Holy Land would have been
+      lost.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Gradually the Saracens have wrested post after post from our hands.
+      Edessa was taken in 1144, and the news of this event created an intense
+      excitement. The holy St. Bernard stirred up all France, and Louis VII.
+      himself took the vow and headed a noble army. The ways of God are not our
+      ways, and although the army of Germany joined that of France, but little
+      results came of this great effort.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Emperor Conrad, with the Germans, was attacked by the Turk Saladin of
+      Iconium, and was defeated with a loss of sixty thousand men. The King of
+      France, with his army, was also attacked with fury, and a large portion of
+      his force were slaughtered. Nothing more came of this great effort, and
+      while the first Crusade seemed to show that the men-at-arms of Europe were
+      irresistible, the second on the contrary gave proof that the Turks were
+      equal to the Christian knights. Gradually the Christian hold of the Holy
+      Land was shaken. In 1187, although fighting with extraordinary bravery,
+      the small army of Christian Knights of the Temple and of St. John were
+      annihilated, the King of Jerusalem was made prisoner, and the Christian
+      power was crushed. Then Saladin, who commanded the Turks, advanced against
+      Jerusalem, and forced it to capitulate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Such, my boy, is the last sad news which has reached us; and no wonder
+      that it has stirred the hearts of the monarchs of Europe, and that every
+      effort will be again made to recapture the holy sepulcher, and to avenge
+      our brethren who have been murdered by the infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But, Father Francis, from your story it would seem that Europe has
+      already sacrificed an enormous number of lives to take the holy sepulcher,
+      and that after all the fighting, when she has taken it, it is only to lose
+      it again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is so, my son; but we will trust that in future things will be
+      better managed. The Templars and Hospitalers now number so vast a number
+      of the best lances in Europe, and are grown to be such great powers, that
+      we may believe that when we have again wrested the holy sepulcher from the
+      hands of the infidels they will be able to maintain it against all
+      assaults. Doubtless the great misfortunes which have fallen upon the
+      Christian armies have been a punishment from heaven, because they have not
+      gone to work in the right spirit. It is not enough to take up lance and
+      shield, and to place a red cross upon the shoulder. Those who desire to
+      fight the battle of the Lord must cleanse their hearts, and go forth in
+      the spirit of pilgrims rather than knights. I mean not that they should
+      trust wholly to spiritual weapons&mdash;for in truth the infidel is a foe
+      not to be despised&mdash;but I mean that they should lay aside all
+      thoughts of worldly glory and rivalry one against another."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And think you, Father, that such is the spirit with which King Richard
+      and the other kings and nobles now preparing to go to the Holy Land are
+      animated?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis hesitated.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is not for me, my son, to judge motives, or to speak well or ill of
+      the instruments who have been chosen for this great work. It is of all
+      works the most praiseworthy, most holy. It is horrible to think that the
+      holy shrines of Jerusalem should be in the hands of men who believe not in
+      our Redeemer; and I hold it to be the duty of every man who can bear arms,
+      no matter what his rank or his station, to don his armor and to go forth
+      to battle in the cause. Whether success will crown the effort, or whether
+      God wills it otherwise, it is not for man to discuss; it is enough that
+      the work is there, and it is our duty to do it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And think you, Father, that it will do good to England?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That do I, my son, whether we gain the Holy Land or no. Methinks that it
+      will do good service to the nation that Saxon and Norman should fight
+      together under the holy cross. Hitherto the races have stood far too much
+      apart. They have seen each other's bad qualities rather than good; but
+      methinks that when the Saxon and the Norman stand side by side on the soil
+      of the Holy Land, and shout together for England, it must needs bind them
+      together, and lead them to feel that they are no longer Normans and
+      Saxons, but Englishmen. I intend to preach on the village green at Evesham
+      next Sunday morning on this subject, and as I know you are in
+      communication with the forest men, I would, Cuthbert, that you would
+      persuade them to come in to hear me. You were wondering what could be
+      found for these vagrants. They have many of them long since lost the
+      habits of honest labor. Many of them are still serfs, although most have
+      been freed by the good earl and the knights his followers. Some of those
+      who would fain leave the life in the woods still cling to it because they
+      think that it would be mean to desert their comrades, who being serfs are
+      still bound to lurk there; but methinks that this is a great opportunity
+      for them. They are valiant men, and the fact that they are fond of drawing
+      an arrow at a buck does not make them one whit the worse Christians. I
+      will do my best to move their hearts, and if they will but agree together
+      to take the cross, they would make a goodly band of footmen to accompany
+      the earl."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is the earl going?" Cuthbert asked eagerly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not for certain," said Father Francis; "but I think from what I
+      hear from his chaplain, Father Eustace, that his mind turns in that
+      direction."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then, Father, if he goes, I will go too," Cuthbert exclaimed. "He
+      promised to take me as his page the first time he went to war."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis shook his head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear me, Cuthbert, this is far from the spirit in which we awhile ago
+      agreed that men should go to the holy war."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert hung his head a little.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ay, Father Francis, men; but I am a boy," he said, "and after all, boys
+      are fond of adventure for adventure's sake. However, Father," he said,
+      with a smile, "no doubt your eloquence on the green will turn me mightily
+      to the project, for you must allow that the story you have told me this
+      morning is not such as to create any very strong yearning in one's mind to
+      follow the millions of men who have perished in the Holy Land."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Go to," said Father Francis, smiling, "thou art a pert varlet. I will do
+      my best on Sunday to turn you to a better frame of mind."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0005" id="link2HCH0005"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER V. &mdash; PREPARATIONS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Next Sunday a large number of people from some miles round were gathered
+      on the green at Evesham, to hear Father Francis preach on the holy
+      sepulcher. The forest men in their green jerkins mingled with the crowd,
+      and a look of attention and seriousness was on the faces of all, for the
+      news of the loss of the holy sepulcher had really exercised a great effect
+      upon the minds of the people in England as elsewhere.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Those were the days of pilgrimage to holy places, when the belief in the
+      sanctity of places and things was overwhelming, and when men believed that
+      a journey to the holy shrines was sufficient to procure for them a pardon
+      for all their misdeeds. The very word "infidel" in those days was full of
+      horror, and the thought that the holy places of the Christians were in the
+      hands of Moslems affected all Christians throughout Europe with a feeling
+      of shame as well as of grief.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the crowd were many of the Norman retainers from the castle and from
+      many of the holds around, and several knights with the ladies of their
+      family stood a little apart from the edge of the gathering; for it was
+      known that Father Francis would not be alone, but that he would be
+      accompanied by a holy friar who had returned from the East, and who could
+      tell of the cruelties which the Christians had suffered at the hands of
+      the Saracens.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis, at ordinary times a tranquil preacher, was moved beyond
+      himself by the theme on which he was holding forth. He did not attempt to
+      hide from those who stood around that the task to be undertaken was one of
+      grievous peril and trial; that disease and heat, hunger and thirst, must
+      be dared, as well as the sword of the infidel. But he spoke of the grand
+      nature of the work, of the humiliation to Christians, of the desecration
+      of the shrines, and of the glory which awaited those who joined the
+      Crusade, whether they lived or whether they died in the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His words had a strong effect upon the simple people who listened to him,
+      but the feelings so aroused were as naught to the enthusiasm which greeted
+      the address of the friar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Meager and pale, with a worn, anxious face as one who had suffered much,
+      the friar, holding aloft two pieces of wood from the Mount of Olives tied
+      together in the form of a cross, harangued the crowd. His words poured
+      forth in a fiery stream, kindling the hearts, and stirring at once the
+      devotion and the anger of his listeners.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He told of the holy places, he spoke of the scenes of Holy Writ, which had
+      there been enacted; and then he depicted the men who had died for them. He
+      told of the knights and men-at-arms, each of whom proved himself again and
+      again a match for a score of infidels. He spoke of the holy women, who,
+      fearlessly and bravely, as the knights themselves, had borne their share
+      in the horrors of the siege and in the terrible times which had preceded
+      it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He told them that this misfortune had befallen Christianity because of the
+      lukewarmness which had come upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What profited it," he asked, "if a few knights who remained to defend the
+      holy sepulcher were heroes? A few heroes cannot withstand an army. If
+      Christendom after making a mighty effort to capture the holy sepulcher had
+      not fallen away, the conquest which had been made with so vast an
+      expenditure of blood would not have been lost. This is a work in which no
+      mere passing fervor will avail; bravery at first, endurance afterward, are
+      needed. Many men must determine not only to assist to wrest the holy
+      sepulcher from the hands of the infidels, but to give their lives, so long
+      as they might last, to retaining it. It is scarce to be expected that men
+      with wives and families will take a view like this, indeed it is not to be
+      desired. But there are single men, men of no ties, who can devote their
+      whole lives, as did the Knights of the Orders of the Cross, to this great
+      object. When their life has come to an end doubtless others will take up
+      the banner that their hands can no longer hold. But for life it is,
+      indeed, that many of humble as well as of princely class must bind
+      themselves to take and defend to death the holy sepulcher."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, gradually raising the tone of his speech, the friar proceeded; until
+      at length by his intense earnestness, his wild gesticulations, his
+      impassioned words, he drew the whole of his listeners along with him; and
+      when he ceased, a mighty shout of "To the Holy Land!" burst from his
+      hearers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Falling upon their knees the crowd begged of him to give them the sign of
+      the cross, and to bestow his blessing upon their swords, and upon their
+      efforts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis had prepared, in contemplation of such a movement, a large
+      number of small white crosses of cloth. These he and the friar now
+      fastened to the shoulders of the men as they crowded up to receive it,
+      holding their hands aloft, kissing the cross that the friar extended to
+      them, and swearing to give their lives, if need be, to rescue the holy
+      shrines from the infidel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When all had received the holy symbol, Father Francis again ascended the
+      bank from which they had addressed the crowd:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Now go to your homes, my sons," he said. "Think of the oath that you have
+      taken, and of the course that lies open to you when the time comes. When
+      King Richard is prepared to start, then will you be called upon to fulfill
+      your vows. It may be that all who have sworn may not be called upon to go.
+      It needs that the land here should be tilled, it needs that there should
+      be protectors for the women and children, it needs that this England of
+      ours should flourish, and we cannot give all her sons, however willing
+      they might be to take the cross. But the willingness which you will, I am
+      sure, show to go if needs be, and to redeem your vows, will be sufficient.
+      Some must go and some must stay; these are matters to be decided
+      hereafter; for the time let us separate; you will hear when the hour for
+      action arrives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A fortnight later the Earl of Evesham, who had been on a long journey to
+      London, returned with full authority to raise and organize a force as his
+      contingent to the holy wars.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All was now bustle and activity in the castle. Father Francis informed him
+      of the willingness of such of the forest men as he deemed fit to enlist
+      under his banner; and the earl was much gratified at finding that the
+      ranks of heavily-armed retainers whom he would take with him were to be
+      swollen by the addition of so useful a contingent as that of one hundred
+      skillful archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was not long in asking for an interview with the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had indeed great difficulty in persuading Dame Editha that he was old
+      enough to share in the fatigues of so great an expedition, but he had
+      Father Francis on his side; and between the influence of her confessor,
+      and the importunities of her son, the opposition of the good lady fell to
+      the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was already, for his age, well trained to arms. Many of the old
+      soldiers at the castle who had known and loved his father had been ever
+      ready to give lessons in the use of arms to Cuthbert, who was enthusiastic
+      in his desire to prove as good a knight as his father had been. His
+      friends, the outlaws, had taught him the use of the bow and of the
+      quarterstaff; and Cuthbert, strong and well-built for his age, and having
+      little to do save to wield the sword and the bow, had attained a very
+      considerable amount of skill with each.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had too, which was unusual, a certain amount of book learning, although
+      this, true to say, had not been acquired so cheerfully or willingly as the
+      skill at arms. Father Francis had, however, taught him to read and to
+      write&mdash;accomplishments which were at that time rare, except in the
+      cloister. In those days if a knight had a firm seat in his saddle, a
+      strong arm, a keen eye, and high courage, it was thought to be of little
+      matter whether he could or could not do more than make his mark on the
+      parchment. The whole life of the young was given to acquiring skill in
+      arms; and unless intended for the convent, any idea of education would in
+      the great majority of cases have been considered as preposterous.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To do Cuthbert justice, he had protested with all his might against the
+      proposition of Father Francis to his mother to teach him some clerkly
+      knowledge. He had yielded most unwillingly at last to her entreaties,
+      backed as they were by the sound arguments and good sense of Father
+      Francis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham received Cuthbert's application very graciously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Certainly, Cuthbert," he said, "you shall accompany me; first, on account
+      of my promise to you; secondly, because from the readiness you displayed
+      both in the matter of my daughter and of the attack on Wortham, you will
+      be a notable aid and addition to my party; thirdly, from my friendship for
+      your father and Dame Editha."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This point being settled, Cuthbert at once assumed his new duties. There
+      was plenty for him to do&mdash;to see that the orders of the earl were
+      properly carried out; to bear messages to the knights who followed the
+      earl's fortunes, at their various holds; to stand by and watch the
+      armorers at work, and the preparation of the stores of arms and missiles
+      which would be necessary for the expedition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sometimes he would go round to summon the tenants of the various farms and
+      lands, who held from the earl, to come to the castle; and here Sir Walter
+      would, as far as might be without oppression, beg of them to contribute
+      largely to the expedition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In these appeals he was in no slight way assisted by Father Francis, who
+      pointed out loudly to the people that those who stayed behind were bound
+      to make as much sacrifice of their worldly goods as those who went to the
+      war might make of their lives. Life and land are alike at the service of
+      God. Could the land be sold, it would be a good deed to sell it; but as
+      this could not be, they should at least sell all that they could, and
+      pledge their property if they could find lenders, in order to contribute
+      to the needs of their lord, and the fitting out of this great enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The preparations were at last complete, and a gallant band gathered at the
+      castle ready for starting. It consisted of some two hundred men-at-arms
+      led by six knights, and of one hundred bowmen dressed in Lincoln green,
+      with quilted jerkins to keep out the arrows of the enemy. All the country
+      from around gathered to see the start. Dame Editha was there, and by her
+      side stood the earl's little daughter. The earl himself was in armor, and
+      beside him rode Cuthbert in the gay attire of a page.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Just at that moment, however, his face did not agree with his costume, for
+      although he strove his best to look bright and smiling, it was a hard task
+      to prevent the tears from filling his eyes at his departure from his
+      mother. The good lady cried unrestrainedly, and Margaret joined in her
+      tears. The people who had gathered round cheered lustily; the trumpets
+      blew a gay fanfaronade, and the squire threw to the wind the earl's
+      colors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was no mere pleasure trip on which they were starting, for all knew
+      that, of the preceding Crusades, not one in ten of those who had gone so
+      gladly forth had ever returned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must not be supposed that the whole of those present were animated by
+      any strong religious feeling. No doubt there existed a desire, which was
+      carefully fanned by the preaching of the priests and monks, to rescue the
+      holy sepulcher from the hands of the Saracens; but a far stronger feeling
+      was to be found in the warlike nature of the people in those days.
+      Knights, men-at-arms, and indeed men of all ranks were full of a combative
+      spirit. Life in the castle and hut was alike dull and monotonous, and the
+      excitement of war and adventure was greatly looked for, both as a means of
+      obtaining glory and booty, and for the change they afforded to the dreary
+      monotony of life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There is little to tell of the journey of the Earl of Evesham's band
+      through England to Southampton, at which place they took ship and crossed
+      to France&mdash;or rather to Normandy, for in those days Normandy was
+      regarded, as indeed it formed, a part of England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, as was natural to his age, was full of delight at all the
+      varying scenes through which they passed. The towns were to him an
+      especial source of wonder, for he had never visited any other than that of
+      Worcester, to which he had once or twice been taken on occasions of high
+      festival. Havre was in those days an important place, and being the
+      landing-place of a great portion of the English bands, it was full of
+      bustle and excitement. Every day ships brought in nobles and their
+      followings.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The King of England was already in Normandy hastening the preparations,
+      and each band, as it landed, marched down to the meeting-place on the
+      plains of Vezelay. Already they began to experience a taste of the
+      hardships which they were to endure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In those days there was no regular supply train for an army, but each
+      division or band supported itself by purchase or pillage, as the case
+      might be, from the surrounding country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the English troops were marching through a friendly country, pillage
+      was of course strictly forbidden; but while many of the leaders paid for
+      all they had, it must be owned that among the smaller leaders were many
+      who took anything that they required with or without payment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The country was eaten up.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The population in those days was sparse, and the movement of so large a
+      number of men along a certain route completely exhausted all the resources
+      of the inhabitants; and although willing to pay for all that his men
+      required, the Earl of Evesham had frequently to lie down on the turf
+      supperless himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If this is the case now," he said to Cuthbert, "what will it be after we
+      have joined the French army? Methinks whatever we may do if we reach the
+      Holy Land, that we have a fair chance of being starved before we sail."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a long succession of marches they arrived in sight of the great camp
+      at Vezelay. It was indeed rather a canvas town than a camp. Here were
+      gathered nearly one hundred thousand men, a vast host at any time, but in
+      those days far greater in proportion to the strength of the countries than
+      at present. The tents of the leaders, nobles, and other knights and
+      gentlemen rose in regular lines, forming streets and squares.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The great mass of troops, however, were contented to sleep in the open
+      air; indeed the difficulties of carriage were so great that it was only
+      the leaders who could carry with them their canvas abodes. Before each
+      tent stood the lance and colors of its owner, and side by side in the
+      center of the camp stood the royal pavilions of Philip of France and
+      Richard of England, round which could be seen the gonfalons of all the
+      nobles of Western Europe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nothing could be gayer than the aspect of this camp as the party rode into
+      it. They were rather late, and the great body of the host were already
+      assembled.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert gazed with delight at the varied colors, the gay dresses, the
+      martial knights, and the air of discipline and order which reigned
+      everywhere.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was indeed war in its most picturesque form, a form which, as far as
+      beauty is concerned, has been altogether altered, and indeed destroyed, by
+      modern arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In those days individual prowess and bravery went for everything. A
+      handful of armored knights were a match for thousands of footmen, and
+      battles were decided as much by the prowess and bravery of the leader and
+      his immediate following as by that of the great mass of the army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl had the day before sent on a messenger to state that he was
+      coming, and as the party entered the camp they were met by a squire of the
+      camp-marshal, who conducted them to the position allotted to them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl's tent was soon erected, with four or five grouped around it for
+      his knights, one being set aside for his squires and pages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When this was done Cuthbert strolled away to look at the varied sights of
+      the camp. A military officer in these days would be scandalized at the
+      scenes which were going on, but the strict, hard military discipline of
+      modern times was then absolutely unknown.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A camp was a moving town, and to it flocked the country people with their
+      goods; smiths and armorers erected their forges; minstrels and troubadours
+      flocked in to sing of former battles, and to raise the spirits of the
+      soldiers by merry lays of love and war; simple countrymen and women came
+      in to bring their presents of fowls or cakes to their friends in camp;
+      knights rode to and fro on their gayly caparisoned horses through the
+      crowd; the newly-raised levies, in many cases composed of woodmen and
+      peasants who had not in the course of their lives wandered a league from
+      their birthplaces, gaped in unaffected wonder at the sights around them;
+      while last, but by no means least, the maidens and good wives of the
+      neighborhood, fond then as now of brave men and gay dresses, thronged the
+      streets of the camp, and joined in, and were the cause of, merry laughter
+      and jest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here and there, a little apart from the main stream of traffic, the
+      minstrels would take up their position, and playing a gay air, the soldier
+      lads and lasses would fall to and foot it merrily to the strains.
+      Sometimes there would be a break in the gayety, and loud shouts, and
+      perhaps fierce oaths, would rise. Then the maidens would fly like startled
+      fawns, and men hasten to the spot; though the quarrel might be purely a
+      private one, yet should it happen between the retainers of two nobles, the
+      friends of each would be sure to strike in, and serious frays would arise
+      before the marshal of the camp with his posse could arrive to interfere.
+      Sometimes, indeed, these quarrels became so serious and desperate that
+      alliances were broken up and great intentions frustrated by the quarrels
+      of the soldiery.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here and there, on elevated platforms, or even on the top of a pile of
+      tubs, were friars occupied in haranguing the soldiers, and in inspiring
+      them with enthusiasm for the cause upon which they were embarked. The
+      conduct of their listeners showed easily enough the motives which had
+      brought them to war. Some stood with clasped hands and eager eyes,
+      listening to the exhortations of the priests, and ready, as might be seen
+      from their earnest gaze, to suffer martyrdom in the cause. More, however,
+      stood indifferently round, or, after listening to a few words, walked on
+      with a laugh or a scoff; indeed, preaching had already done all that lay
+      in its power. All those who could be moved by exhortations of this kind
+      were there, and upon the rest the discourses and sermons were thrown away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Several times in the course of his stroll round the camp Cuthbert observed
+      the beginnings of quarrels, which were in each case only checked by the
+      intervention of some knight or other person in authority coming past, and
+      he observed that these in every instance occurred between men of the
+      English and those of the French army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Between the Saxon contingent of King Richard's army and the French
+      soldiers there could indeed be no quarrel, for the Saxons understood no
+      word of their language; but with the Normans the case was different, for
+      the Norman-French, which was spoken by all the nobles and their retainers
+      in Britain, was as nearly as possible the same as that in use in France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed, however, to Cuthbert, watching narrowly what was going on, that
+      there existed by no means a good feeling between the men of the different
+      armies; and he thought that this divergence so early in the campaign boded
+      but little good for the final success of the expedition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he returned to the tent the earl questioned him as to what he had
+      seen, and Cuthbert frankly acknowledged that it appeared to him that the
+      feeling between the men of the two armies was not good.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have been," the earl said, "to the royal camp, and from what I hear,
+      Cuthbert, methinks that there is reason for what you say. King Richard is
+      the most loyal and gallant of kings, but he is haughty and hasty in
+      speech. The Normans, too, have been somewhat accustomed to conquer our
+      neighbors, and it may well be that the chivalry of France love us not.
+      However, it must be hoped that this feeling will die away, and that we
+      shall emulate each other only in our deeds on the battlefield."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0006" id="link2HCH0006"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER VI. &mdash; THE LISTS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The third day after the arrival of the Earl of Evesham there was a great
+      banquet given by the King of France to King Richard and his principal
+      nobles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among those present was the Earl of Evesham, and Cuthbert as his page
+      followed him to the great tent where the banquet was prepared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here, at the top of the tent, on a raised daïs, sat the King of France,
+      surrounded by his courtiers. The Earl of Evesham, having been conducted by
+      the herald to the daïs, paid his compliments to the king, and was saluted
+      by him with many flattering words.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sound of a trumpet was heard, and Richard of England, accompanied by
+      his principal nobles, entered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was the first time that Cuthbert had seen the king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Richard was a man of splendid stature and of enormous strength. His
+      appearance was in some respects rather Saxon than Norman, for his hair was
+      light and his complexion clear and bright. He wore the mustache and
+      pointed beard at that time in fashion; and although his expression was
+      generally that of frankness and good humor, there might be observed in his
+      quick motions and piercing glances signs of the hasty temper and unbridled
+      passion which went far to wreck the success of the enterprise upon which
+      he was embarked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Richard possessed most of the qualities which make a man a great king and
+      render him the idol of his subjects, especially in a time of
+      semi-civilization, when personal prowess is placed at the summit of all
+      human virtues. In all his dominions there was not one man who in personal
+      conflict was a match for his king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Except during his fits of passion, King Richard was generous, forgiving,
+      and royal in his moods. He was incapable of bearing malice. Although
+      haughty of his dignity, he was entirely free from any personal pride, and
+      while he would maintain to the death every right and privilege against
+      another monarch, he could laugh and joke with the humblest of his subjects
+      on terms of hearty good fellowship. He was impatient of contradiction,
+      eager to carry out whatever he had determined upon; and nothing enraged
+      him so much as hesitation or procrastination. The delays which were
+      experienced in the course of the Crusade angered him more than all the
+      opposition offered by the Saracens, or than the hardships through which
+      the Christian host had to pass.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At a flourish of trumpets all took their seats at dinner, their places
+      being marked for them by a herald, whose duty it was to regulate nicely
+      the various ranks and dignities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham was placed next to a noble of Brabant. Cuthbert took
+      his place behind his lord and served him with wines and meats, the Brabant
+      being attended by a tall youth, who was indeed on the verge of manhood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the dinner went on the buzz of conversation became fast and furious. In
+      those days men drank deep, and quarrels often arose over the cups. From
+      the time that the dinner began Cuthbert noticed that the manner of Sir de
+      Jacquelin Barras, Count of Brabant, was rude and offensive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It might be that he was accustomed to live alone with his retainers, and
+      that his manners were rude and coarse to all. It might be that he had a
+      special hostility to the English. At any rate, his remarks were calculated
+      to fire the anger of the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He began the conversation by wondering how a Norman baron could live in a
+      country like England, inhabited by a race but little above pigs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl at once fired up at this, for the Normans were now beginning to
+      feel themselves English, and to resent attacks upon a people for whom
+      their grandfathers had entertained contempt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He angrily repelled the attack upon them by the Brabant knight, and
+      asserted at once that the Saxons were every bit as civilized, and in some
+      respects superior to the Normans or French.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The ill-feeling thus began at starting clearly waxed stronger as dinner
+      went on. The Brabant knight drank deeply, and although his talk was not
+      clearly directed against the English, yet he continued to throw out
+      innuendos and side attacks, and to talk with a vague boastfulness, which
+      greatly irritated Sir Walter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently, as Cuthbert was about to serve his master with a cup of wine,
+      the tall page pushed suddenly against him, spilling a portion of the wine
+      over his dress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What a clumsy child!" he said scoffingly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are a rough and ill-mannered loon," Cuthbert said angrily. "Were you
+      in any other presence I would chastise you as you deserve."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The tall page burst into a mocking laugh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Chastise me!" he said. "Why, I could put you in my pocket for a little
+      hop-of-my-thumb as you are."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think," said Sir Jacquelin&mdash;for the boys' voices both rose loud&mdash;to
+      the earl, "you had better send that brat home and order him to be
+      whipped."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir count," said the earl, "your manners are insolent, and were we not
+      engaged upon a Crusade, it would please me much to give you a lesson on
+      that score."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Higher and higher the dispute rose, until some angry word caught the ear
+      of the king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Amid the general buzz of voices King Philip rose, and speaking a word to
+      King Richard, moved from the table, thus giving the sign for the breaking
+      up of the feast.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Immediately afterward a page touched the earl and Sir Jacquelin upon the
+      shoulder, and told them that the kings desired to speak with them in the
+      tent of the King of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The two nobles strode through the crowd, regarding each other with eyes
+      much like those of two dogs eager to fly at each other's throat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lords, my lords," said King Philip when they entered, "this is against
+      all law and reason. For shame, to be brawling at my table. I would not say
+      aught openly, but methinks it is early indeed for the knights and nobles
+      engaged in a common work to fall to words."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your majesty," said the Earl of Evesham, "I regret deeply what has
+      happened. But it seemed from the time we sat down to the meal that this
+      lord sought to pass a quarrel upon me, and I now beseech your majesty that
+      you will permit us to settle our differences in the lists."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard gave a sound of assent, but the King of France shook his head
+      gravely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Do you forget," he said, "the mission upon which you are assembled here?
+      Has not every knight and noble in these armies taken a solemn oath to put
+      aside private quarrels and feuds until the holy sepulcher is taken? Shall
+      we at this very going off show that the oath is a mere form of words?
+      Shall we show before the face of Christendom that the knights of the cross
+      are unable to avoid flying at each other's throats, even while on their
+      way to wrest the holy sepulcher from the infidel? No, sirs, you must lay
+      aside your feuds, and must promise me and my good brother here that you
+      will keep the peace between you until this war is over. Whose fault it was
+      that the quarrel began I know not. It may be that my Lord of Brabant was
+      discourteous. It may be that the earl here was too hot. But whichever it
+      be, it matters not."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The quarrel, sire," said Sir Jacquelin, "arose from a dispute between our
+      pages, who were nigh coming to blows in your majesty's presence. I desired
+      the earl to chide the insolence of his varlet, and instead of so doing he
+      met my remarks with scorn."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Pooh, pooh," said King Richard, "there are plenty of grounds for quarrel
+      without two nobles interfering in the squabbles of boys. Let them fight;
+      it will harm no one. By the bye, your Majesty," he said, turning to the
+      King of France with a laugh, "if the masters may not fight, there is no
+      reason in the world why the varlets should not. We are sorely dull for
+      want of amusement. Let us have a list to-morrow, and let the pages fight
+      it out for the honor of their masters and their nations."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It were scarce worth while to have the lists set for two boys to fight,"
+      said the King of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Oh, we need not have regular lists," said King Richard. "Leave that
+      matter in my hands. I warrant you that if the cockerels are well plucked,
+      they will make us sport. What say you, gentlemen?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Brabant noble at once assented, answering that he was sure that his
+      page would be glad to enter the lists; and the earl gave a similar assent,
+      for he had not noticed how great was the discrepancy between the size of
+      the future combatants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is agreed, then," said King Richard joyously. "I will have a piece
+      of ground marked out on the edge of the camp to-morrow morning. It shall
+      be kept by my men-at-arms, and there shall be a raised place for King
+      Philip and myself, who will be the judges of the conflict. Will they fight
+      on foot or on horse?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "On foot, on foot," said the King of France. "It would be a pity that
+      knightly exercises should be brought to scorn by any failure on their part
+      on horseback. On foot at least it will be a fair struggle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What arms shall they use?" the Brabant knight asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Oh, swords and battle-axes, of course," said King Richard with a laugh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Before you go," King Philip said, "you must shake hands, and swear to let
+      the quarrel between you drop, at least until after our return. If you
+      still wish to shed each other's blood, I shall offer no hindrance
+      thereto."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl and Count Jacquelin touched each other's hands in obedience to
+      the order, went out of the tent together, and strode off without a word in
+      different directions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear lad," the Earl of Evesham said on entering his tent where his
+      page was waiting him, "this is a serious business. The kings have ordered
+      this little count and myself to put aside our differences till after the
+      Crusade, in accordance with our oath. But as you have in no wise pledged
+      yourself in the same fashion, and as their majesties feel somewhat dull
+      while waiting here, it is determined that the quarrel between the count
+      and me, and between you and the count's page, shall be settled by a fight
+      between you two in the presence of the kings."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Well, sir," Cuthbert said, "I am glad that it should be, seeing the
+      varlet insulted me without any cause, and purposely upset the cup over
+      me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is he like?" the earl asked. "Dost think that you are a fair match?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I doubt not that we are fair match enough," Cuthbert said. "As you know,
+      sir, I have been well trained to arms of all kinds, both by my father and
+      by the men-at-arms at the castle, and could hold my own against any of
+      your men with light weapons, and have then no fear that this gawky loon,
+      twenty years old though he seems to be, will bring disgrace upon me or
+      discredit upon my nation."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If thou thinkest so," the earl said, "the matter can go on. But had it
+      been otherwise I would have gone to the king and protested that the
+      advantage of age was so great that it would be murder to place you in the
+      lists together."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is," Cuthbert said, "at most no greater difference between us than
+      between a strong man and a weak one, and these, in the ordeal of battle,
+      have to meet in the lists. Indeed I doubt if the difference is so great,
+      for if he be a foot taller than I, methinks that round the shoulders I
+      should have the advantage of him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Send hither my armorer," the earl said; "we must choose a proper suit for
+      you. I fear that mine would be of little use; but doubtless there are some
+      smaller suits among my friends."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The simpler and lighter the better," Cuthbert said. "I'd rather have a
+      light coat of mail and a steel cap than heavy armor and a helmet which
+      would press me down, and a visor through which I could scarce see. The
+      lighter the better, for after all if my sword cannot keep my head, sooner
+      or later the armor would fail to do so too."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The armorer speedily arrived, and the knights and followers of the earl
+      being called in and the case stated, there was soon found a coat of fine
+      linked mail, which fitted Cuthbert well. As to the steel cap there was no
+      difficulty whatever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must have a plume at least," the earl said, and took some feathers
+      from his own casque and fastened them in. "Will you want a light sword and
+      battle-ax?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No," Cuthbert said, "my arms are pretty well used to those of the
+      men-at-arms. I could wield my father's sword, and that was a heavy one."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The lightest of the earl's weapons were chosen, and it was agreed that all
+      was now ready for the conflict to-morrow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning there was a slight bustle in the camp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The news that a fight was to take place between an English and a Brabant
+      page, by the permission of the kings of England and France, that their
+      majesties were to be present, and that all was to be conducted on regular
+      rules, caused a stir of excitement and novelty in the camp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nowhere is life duller than among a large body of men kept together for
+      any time under canvas, and the thought of a combat of this novel kind
+      excited general interest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a meadow at a short distance from the camp a body of King Richard's
+      men-at-arms marked off an oval space of about an acre. Upon one side of
+      this a tent was pitched for the kings, and a small tent was placed at each
+      end for the combatants. Round the inclosure the men-at-arms formed the
+      ring, and behind them a dense body of spectators gathered, a place being
+      set aside for nobles, and others of gentle blood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the hour fixed the kings of England and France arrived together. King
+      Richard was evidently in a state of high good humor, for he preferred the
+      clash of arms and the sight of combat to any other pleasure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The King of France, on the other hand, looked grave. He was a far wiser
+      and more politic king than Richard; and although he had consented to the
+      sudden proposal, yet he felt in his heart that the contest was a foolish
+      one, and that it might create bad feeling among the men of the two
+      nationalities whichever way it went. He had reserved to himself the right
+      of throwing down the baton when the combat was to cease, and he determined
+      to avail himself of this right to put a stop to the conflict before either
+      party was likely to sustain any deadly injury.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the monarchs had taken their places the trumpeters sounded their
+      trumpets, and the two combatants advanced on foot from their ends of the
+      lists. A murmur of surprise and dissatisfaction broke from the crowd. "My
+      Lord of Evesham," the king said angrily to the earl, who with Count
+      Jacquelin was standing by the royal party, "thou shouldst have said that
+      the difference between the two was too great to allow the combat to be
+      possible. The Frenchman appears to be big enough to take your page under
+      his arm and walk off with him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The difference was indeed very striking. The French champion was arrayed
+      in a full suit of knightly armor&mdash;of course without the gold spurs
+      which were the distinguishing mark of that rank&mdash;and with his helmet
+      and lofty plume of feathers he appeared to tower above Cuthbert, who, in
+      his close-fitting steel cap and link armor seemed a very dwarf by the side
+      of a giant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is not size, sire, but muscle and pluck will win in a combat like
+      this. Your majesty need not be afraid that my page will disgrace me. He is
+      of my blood, though the kinship is not close. He is of mixed Saxon and
+      Norman strain, and will, believe me, do no discredit to either."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king's brow cleared, for in truth he was very proud of his English
+      nationality, and would have been sorely vexed to see the discomfiture of
+      an English champion, even though that champion were a boy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Brother Philip," he said, turning to the king, "I will wager my gold
+      chain against yours on yonder stripling."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks that it were robbery to take your wager," the King of France
+      said. "The difference between their bulk is disproportionate. However, I
+      will not balk your wish. My chain against yours."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The rule of the fight was that they were to commence with swords, but that
+      either could, if he chose, use his battle-aX. &mdash; The fight need
+      scarcely be described at length, for the advantage was all one way.
+      Cuthbert was fully a match in strength for his antagonist, although
+      standing nigh a foot shorter. Constant exercise, however, had hardened his
+      muscles into something like steel, while the teaching that he had received
+      had embraced all what was then known of the use of arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Science in those days there was but little of; it was a case rather of
+      hard, heavy hitting, than of what we now call swordsmanship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the sword Cuthbert gained but slight advantage over his adversary,
+      whose superior height enabled him to rain blows down upon the lad, which
+      he was with difficulty enabled to guard; but when the first paroxysm of
+      his adversary's attack had passed he took to the offensive, and drove his
+      opponent back step by step. With his sword, however, he was unable to cut
+      through the armor of the Frenchman, but in the course of the encounter,
+      guarding a severe blow aimed at him, his sword was struck from his hand,
+      and he then, seizing his ax, made such play with it that his foe dropped
+      his own sword and took to the same weapon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this the superior height and weight of his opponent gave him even a
+      greater advantage than with the sword, and Cuthbert knowing this, used his
+      utmost dexterity and speed to avoid the sweeping blows showered upon him.
+      He himself had been enabled to strike one or two sweeping strokes, always
+      aiming at the same place, the juncture of the visor with the helmet. At
+      last the Frenchman struck him so heavy a blow that it beat down his guard
+      and struck his steel cap from his head, bringing him to the knee. In an
+      instant he was up, and before his foe could be again on guard, he whirled
+      his ax round with all its force, and bringing it just at the point of the
+      visor which he had already weakened with repeated blows, the edge of the
+      ax stove clean through the armor, and the page was struck senseless to the
+      ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A great shout broke from the English portion of the soldiery as Cuthbert
+      leaned over his prostrate foe, and receiving no answer to the question "Do
+      you yield?" rose to his feet, and signified to the squire who had kept
+      near that his opponent was insensible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard ordered the pursuivant to lead Cuthbert to the royal
+      inclosure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thou art a brave lad and a lusty," the king said, "and hast borne thee in
+      the fight as well as many a knight would have done. Wert thou older, I
+      would myself dub thee knight; and I doubt not that the occasion will yet
+      come when thou wilt do as good deeds upon the bodies of the Saracens as
+      thou hast upon that long-shanked opponent of thine. Here is a gold chain;
+      take it as a proof that the King of England holds that you have sustained
+      well the honor of his country; and mark me, if at any time you require a
+      boon, bring or send me that chain, and thou shalt have it freely. Sir
+      Walter," he said, turning to the earl, "in this lad thou hast a worthy
+      champion, and I trust me that thou wilt give him every chance of
+      distinguishing himself. So soon as thou thinkest him fit for the knightly
+      rank I myself will administer the accolade."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0007" id="link2HCH0007"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER VII. &mdash; REVENGE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      After his interview with the king Cuthbert was led to his tent amid the
+      hearty plaudits of the English troops.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His own comrades flocked round him; the men of the greenwood, headed by
+      Cnut, were especially jubilant over his victory.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Who would have thought," said the tall forester, "that the lad who but a
+      short time ago was a child should now have sustained the honor of the
+      country? We feel proud of you, Cuthbert; and trust us some day or other to
+      follow wherever you may lead, and to do some deed which will attain for
+      you honor and glory, and show that the men of Evesham are as doughty as
+      any under King Richard's rule."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must be wary, Cuthbert," the earl said to him that evening. "Believe
+      me that you and I have made a foe, who, although he may not have the
+      power, has certainly the will to injure us to the death. I marked the eye
+      of Count Jacquelin during the fight, and again when you were led up to the
+      king. There was hatred and fury in his eye. The page too, I hear, is his
+      own nephew, and he will be the laughing-stock of the French camp at having
+      been conquered by one so much younger than himself. It will be well to
+      keep upon your guard, and not to go out at night unattended. Keep Cnut
+      near you; he is faithful as a watch-dog, and would give his life, I am
+      sure, for you. I will myself be also upon my guard, for it was after all
+      my quarrel, and the fury of this fierce knight will vent itself upon both
+      of us if the opportunity should come. I hear but a poor account of him
+      among his confréres. They say he is one of those disgraces to the name of
+      knight who are but a mixture of robber and soldier; that he harries all
+      the lands in his neighborhood; and that he has now only joined the Crusade
+      to avoid the vengeance which the cries of the oppressed people had invoked
+      from his liege lord. I am told indeed that the choice was given him to be
+      outlawed, or to join the Crusades with all the strength he could raise.
+      Naturally he adopted the latter alternative; but he has the instincts of
+      the robber still, and will do us an evil turn, if he have the chance."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days later the great army broke up its camp and marched south. After a
+      week's journeying they encamped near a town, and halted there two or three
+      days in order to collect provisions for the next advance; for the supplies
+      which they could obtain in the country districts were wholly insufficient
+      for so great a host of men. Here the armies were to separate, the French
+      marching to Genoa, the English to Marseilles, the town at which they were
+      to take ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One evening the earl sent Cuthbert with a message to another English lord,
+      staying in the town at the palace of the bishop, who was a friend of his.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut accompanied Cuthbert, for he now made a point of seldom letting him
+      out of his sight. It was light when they reached the bishop's palace, but
+      here they were delayed for some time, and night had fallen when they
+      sallied out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The town was already quiet, for the inhabitants cared not to show
+      themselves in the streets now that such a large army of fierce men were in
+      the neighborhood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The orders indeed of the monarchs were stringent, but discipline there was
+      but little of, and the soldiery in those days regarded peaceful citizens
+      as fair game; hence, when they came from the palace the streets of the
+      city were already hushed and quiet, for the orders of the king had been
+      peremptory that no men-at-arms, or others except those on duty, were to be
+      away from their camp after nightfall. This order had been absolutely
+      necessary, so many were the complaints brought in by country peasants and
+      farmers of the doings of bands of soldiers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut and Cuthbert proceeded along the streets unmolested for some
+      distance. Occasionally a solitary passer-by, with hooded cape, hurried
+      past. The moon was half full, and her light was welcome indeed, for in
+      those days the streets were unlighted, and the pavement so bad that
+      passage through the streets after dark was a matter of difficulty, and
+      even of danger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here and there before some roadside shrine a lamp dimly burned; before
+      these they paused, and, as good Catholics, Cnut and Cuthbert crossed
+      themselves. Just as they had passed one of these wayside shrines, a sudden
+      shout was heard, and a party of eight or ten men sprang out from a side
+      street and fell upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut and Cuthbert drew their swords and laid about them heartily, but
+      their assailants were too strong. Cnut was stricken to the ground, and
+      Cuthbert, seeing that defense was hopeless, took to his heels and ran for
+      his life. He was already wounded, but happily not so severely as in any
+      way to disable him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Seeing that it was speed, and speed alone, which now could save him, he
+      flung aside his belt and scabbard as he ran, and with rapid steps flew
+      along the streets, not knowing whither he went, and striving only to keep
+      ahead of his pursuers. They, more incumbered by arms and armor, were
+      unable to keep up with the flying footsteps of a lad clothed in the light
+      attire of a page; but Cuthbert felt that the blood running from his wound
+      was weakening him fast, and that unless he could gain some refuge his
+      course must speedily come to an end. Happily he saw at some little
+      distance ahead of him a man standing by a door. Just as he arrived the
+      door opened, and a glow of light from within fell on the road, showing
+      that the person entering was a monk.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a moment's hesitation Cuthbert rushed through the door, shouting
+      "Sanctuary!" and sank almost fainting on the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The monks, accustomed to wild pursuits and scenes of outrage in those
+      warlike days, hastily closed the door, barring it securely. In a moment
+      there was a rush of men against it from without.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the monks opened a lattice above the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What mean you," he said, "by this outrage? Know ye not that this is the
+      Monastery of St. John, and that it is sacrilege to lay a hand of violence
+      even against its postern? Begone," he said, "or we'll lodge a complaint
+      before the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The assailants, nothing daunted, continued to batter at the door; but at
+      this moment the monks, aroused from their beds, hastened to the spot, and
+      seizing bill and sword&mdash;for in those days even monks were obliged at
+      times to depend upon carnal weapons&mdash;they opened the door, and flung
+      themselves upon the assailants with such force that the latter, surprised
+      and discomfited, were forced to make a hasty retreat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The doors were then again barred, and Cuthbert was carried up to a cell in
+      the building, where the leech of the monastery speedily examined his
+      wound, and pronounced that although his life was not in danger by it, he
+      was greatly weakened by the loss of blood, that the wound was a serious
+      one and that it would be some time before the patient would recover.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      [Image: THE DOORS WERE AGAIN BARRED, AND CUTHBERT WAS CARRIED TO A CELL.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was two days before Cuthbert was sufficiently restored to be able to
+      speak. His first question to the monk was as to his whereabouts, and how
+      long he had been there. Upon being answered, he entreated that a messenger
+      might be dispatched to the camp of the Earl of Evesham, to beg that a
+      litter might be sent for him, and to inquire what had become of Cnut, whom
+      he had last seen stricken down.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The monk replied, "My son, I grieve to tell you that your request cannot
+      be complied with. The army moved away yesternoon, and is now some
+      twenty-five miles distant. There is nothing for you but patience, and when
+      restored you can follow the army, and rejoin your master before he embarks
+      at Marseilles. But how is it that a lad so young as you can have incurred
+      the enmity of those who sought your life? For it is clear from the
+      pertinacity with which they urged their attack that their object was not
+      plunder, of which indeed they would get but little from you, but to take
+      your life."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert recounted the circumstances which had led to the feud of the
+      Count of Brabant against him, for he doubted not that this truculent
+      knight was at the bottom of the attack.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "After what has happened," the monk said, "you will need have caution when
+      you leave here. The place where you have taken refuge is known to them,
+      and should this wild noble persist in his desire for vengeance against
+      you, he will doubtless leave some of his ruffians to watch the monastery.
+      We will keep a lookout, and note if any strangers are to be seen near the
+      gates; if we find that it is so, we shall consider what is best to be
+      done. We could of course appeal to the mayor for protection against them,
+      and could even have the strangers ejected from the town or cast into
+      prison; but it is not likely that we should succeed in capturing more than
+      the fellow who may be placed on the lookout, and the danger would be in no
+      wise lessened to yourself. But there is time to talk over this matter
+      before you leave. It will be another fortnight at least before you will be
+      able to pursue your journey."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert gained strength more rapidly than the monk had expected. He was
+      generously fed, and this and his good constitution soon enabled him to
+      recover from the loss of blood; and at the end of five days he expressed
+      his hope that he could on the following day pursue his journey. The monk
+      who attended him shook his head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thou mightst, under ordinary circumstances, quit us to-morrow, for thou
+      art well enough to take part in the ordinary pursuits of a page; but to
+      journey is a different thing. You may have all sorts of hardships to
+      endure; you may have even to trust for your life to your speed and
+      endurance; and it would be madness for you to go until your strength is
+      fully established. I regret to tell you that we have ascertained beyond a
+      doubt that the monastery is closely watched. We have sent some of the
+      acolytes out, dressed in the garbs of monks, and attended by one of our
+      elder brethren; and in, each case, a monk who followed at a distance of
+      fifty yards was able to perceive that they were watched. The town is full
+      of rough men, the hangers-on of the army; some, indeed, are followers of
+      laggard knights, but the greater portion are men who merely pursue the
+      army with a view to gain by its necessities, to buy plunder from the
+      soldiers, and to rob, and, if necessary, to murder should there be a hope
+      of obtaining gold. Among these men your enemies would have little
+      difficulty in recruiting any number, and no appeal that we could make to
+      the mayor would protect you from them when you have left the walls. We
+      must trust to our ingenuity in smuggling you out. After that, it is upon
+      your own strength and shrewdness that you must rely for an escape from any
+      snares that may be laid for you. You will see, then, that at least another
+      three or four days are needed before you can set forth. Your countrymen
+      are so far away that a matter of a few days will make but little
+      difference. They will in any case be delayed for a long time at Marseilles
+      before they embark; and whether you leave now or a month hence, you would
+      be equally in time to join them before their embarkation&mdash;that is,
+      supposing that you make your way through the snares which beset you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert saw the justice of the reasoning, and it was another week before
+      he announced himself as feeling absolutely restored to strength again, and
+      capable of bearing as much exertion as he could have done before his
+      attack.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A long consultation was held with the prior and a monk who had acted as
+      his leech, as to the best plan of getting Cuthbert beyond the walls of the
+      city. Many schemes were proposed and rejected. Every monk who ventured
+      beyond the walls had been closely scrutinized, and one or two of short
+      stature had even been jostled in the streets, so as to throw back their
+      hoods and expose a sight of their faces. It was clear, then, that it would
+      be dangerous to trust to a disguise. Cuthbert proposed that he should
+      leave at night, trusting solely to their directions as to the turnings he
+      should take to bring him to the city walls, and that, taking a rope, he
+      should there let himself down, and make the best of his way forward. This,
+      however, the monks would not consent to, assuring him that the watch was
+      so strictly kept round the monastery that he would inevitably be seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No," the prior said, "the method, whatever it is, must be as open as
+      possible; and though I cannot at this moment hit upon a plan, I will think
+      it over to-night, and putting my ideas with those of Father Jerome here,
+      and the sacristan, who has a shrewd head, it will be hard if we cannot
+      between us contrive some plan to evade the watch of those robber villains
+      who beset the convent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning, when the prior came in to see Cuthbert, the latter said:
+      "Good father, I have determined not to endeavor to make off in disguise. I
+      doubt not that your wit could contrive some means by which I should get
+      clear of the walls without observation from the scouts of this villain
+      noble. But once in the country, I should have neither horse nor armor, and
+      should have hard work indeed to make my way down through France, even
+      though none of my enemies were on my track. I will therefore, if it please
+      you, go down boldly to the mayor and claim a protection and escort. If he
+      will but grant me a few men-at-arms for one day's ride from the town, I
+      can choose my own route, and riding out in mail, can then take my chance
+      of finding my way down to Marseilles."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will go down with you, my son," the prior said, "to the mayor. Two of
+      my monks shall accompany us; and assuredly no insult will be offered to
+      you in the street thus accompanied." Shortly afterward Cuthbert started as
+      arranged, and soon arrived at the house of the mayor, Sir John de Cahors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the prior making known to this knight whom he had brought with him
+      the mayor exclaimed:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "<i>Peste!</i> young gentleman; you have caused us no small trouble and
+      concern. We have had ridings to and fro concerning you, and furious
+      messages from your fiery king. When in the morning a tall, stalwart knave
+      dressed in green was found, slashed about in various places, lying on the
+      pavement, the townsmen, not knowing who he was, but finding that he still
+      breathed, carried him to the English camp, and he was claimed as a
+      follower of the Earl of Evesham. There was great wrath and anger over
+      this; and an hour later the earl himself came down and stated that his
+      page was missing, and that there was reason to believe that he had been
+      foully murdered, as he had accompanied the man found wounded. Fortunately
+      the bulk of the armies had marched away at early dawn, and the earl had
+      only remained behind in consequence of the absence of his followers. I
+      assured the angry Englishman that I would have a thorough search made in
+      the town; and although in no way satisfied, he rode off after his king
+      with all his force, carrying with him the long-limbed man whom we had
+      picked up. Two days after a message came back from King Richard himself,
+      saying that unless this missing page were discovered, or if, he being
+      killed, his murderers were not brought to justice and punished, he would
+      assuredly on his return from the Holy Land burn the town over our ears.
+      Your king is not a man who minces matters. However, threatened men live
+      long, especially when the person who threatens is starting for a journey,
+      from which, as like as not, he may never return. However, I have had
+      diligent search made for you. All the houses of bad repute have been
+      examined and their inhabitants questioned. But there are so many
+      camp-followers and other rabble at present in the town that a hundred men
+      might disappear without our being able to obtain a clew. I doubted not
+      indeed that your body had been thrown in the river, and that we should
+      never hear more of you. I am right glad that you have been restored; not
+      indeed from any fear of the threats of the king your master, but because,
+      from what the Earl of Evesham said, you were a lad likely to come to great
+      fame and honor. The earl left in my charge your horse, and the armor which
+      he said you wore at a tournament lately, in case we should hear aught of
+      you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert gave an exclamation of pleasure. His purse contained but a few
+      pieces of silver, and being without arms except for his short dagger, or
+      means of locomotion, the difficulties of the journey down to Marseilles
+      had sorely puzzled him. But with his good horse between his knees, and his
+      suit of Milan armor on his back, he thought that he might make his way
+      through any dangers which threatened him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The prior now told the knight that circumstances had occurred which showed
+      that it was known to the assailants of Cuthbert that he had taken refuge
+      in the convent, over which a strict watch had been kept by Cuthbert's
+      enemies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If I could find the varlets I would hang them over the gates of the
+      town," the knight said wrathfully. "But as at the present moment there are
+      nearly as many rogues as honest men in the place it would be a wholesale
+      hanging indeed to insure getting hold of the right people. Moreover, it is
+      not probable that another attempt upon his life will be made inside our
+      walls; and doubtless the main body of this gang are somewhere without,
+      intending to assault him when he continues his journey, and they have left
+      but a spy or two here to inform them as to his movements. I will give you
+      any aid in my power, young sir. The army is by this time nigh Marseilles,
+      and, sooth to say, I have no body of men-at-arms whom I could send as your
+      escort for so long a distance. I have but a small body here, and they are
+      needed, and sorely, too, to keep order within the walls."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I thought, sir," Cuthbert said, "that if you could lend me a party of say
+      four men-at-arms to ride with me for the first day I could then trust to
+      myself, especially if you could procure me one honest man to act as guide
+      and companion. Doubtless they suppose that I should travel by the main
+      road south; but by going the first day's journey either east or west, and
+      then striking some southward road, I should get a fair start of them,
+      throw all their plans out, and perchance reach Marseilles without
+      interruption."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight willingly agreed to furnish four men-at-arms, and a trustworthy
+      guide who would at least take him as far south as Avignon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will," he said, "tell the men-at-arms off to-night. They shall be at
+      the western gate at daybreak, with the pass permitting them to ride
+      through. The guide shall be at the convent door half an hour earlier. I
+      will send up to-night your armor and horse. Here is a purse which the Earl
+      of Evesham also left for your use. Is there aught else I can do for you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nothing, sir," Cuthbert said; "and if I regain the army in safety I shall
+      have pleasure in reporting to King Richard how kindly and courteously you
+      have treated me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The arrangements were carried out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An hour before daybreak Cuthbert was aroused, donned his armor and steel
+      casque, drank a flask of wine, and ate a manchet of bread which the prior
+      himself brought him, and then, with a cordial adieu to the kind monks,
+      issued forth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The guide had just reached the gate, and together they trotted down the
+      narrow streets to the west gate of the city, where four men-at-arms were
+      awaiting them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gates were at once opened, and Cuthbert and his little troop sallied
+      forth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0008" id="link2HCH0008"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER VIII. &mdash; THE ATTACK.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      All day they rode with their faces west, and before nightfall had made a
+      journey of over forty miles. Then bestowing a largess upon the
+      men-at-arms, Cuthbert dismissed them, and took up his abode at a hostelry,
+      his guide looking to the two horses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was pleased with the appearance of the man who had been placed at
+      his disposal. He was a young fellow of twenty-two or twenty-three, with an
+      honest face. He was, he told Cuthbert, the son of a small farmer near
+      Avignon; but having a fancy for trade, he had been apprenticed to a master
+      smith. Having served his apprenticeship, he found that he had mistaken his
+      vocation, and intended to return to the paternal vineyards.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert calculated that he would make at least four days' journey to the
+      south before he could meet with any dangers. Doubtless his exit from the
+      convent had been discovered, and the moment the gates of the city were
+      opened the spy would have proceeded south to warn his comrades, and these
+      would doubtless have taken a road which at a distance would again take
+      them on to that by which Cuthbert would be now traveling. As, however, he
+      rode fast, and made long marches each day, he hoped that he might succeed
+      in distancing them. Unfortunately, upon the third day his horse cast his
+      shoe, and no smith could be met with until the end of the day's journey.
+      Consequently, but a short distance could be done and this at a slow pace.
+      Upon the fifth day after their first start they arrived at a small town.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning Cuthbert on rising found that his guide did not present
+      himself as usual. Making inquiries he found that the young man had gone
+      out the evening before, and had not returned. Extremely uneasy at the
+      circumstance, Cuthbert went to the city guard, thinking that perhaps his
+      guide might have got drunk, and been shut up in the cells. No news,
+      however, was to be obtained there, and after waiting some hours, feeling
+      sure that some harm had befallen him, he gave notice to the authorities of
+      his loss, and then mounting his horse, and leaving some money with the
+      landlord of the hostelry to give to his guide in case the latter should
+      return, he started at midday by the southern road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He felt sure now that he was overtaken, and determined to keep his eyes
+      and faculties thoroughly on watch.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The roads in those days were mere tracks. Here and there a little village
+      was to be met with; but the country was sparsely cultivated, and traveling
+      lonely work. Cuthbert rode fast, carefully avoiding all copses and small
+      woods through which the road ran, by making a circuit round them and
+      coming on to it again on the other side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His horse was an excellent one, the gift of the earl, and he had little
+      fear, with his light weight, of being overtaken if he could once leave his
+      enemies behind him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length he approached an extensive forest, which stretched for miles on
+      either side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Half a mile before he reached it the track divided.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had for some little time eased his horse down to a walk, as he felt
+      that the wood would be the spot where he would in all probability be
+      attacked, and he needed that his steed should be possessed of its utmost
+      vigor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the spot where the track branched a man in the guise of a mendicant was
+      sitting. He begged for alms, and Cuthbert threw him a small coin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A sudden thought struck him as he heard a rustling in the bushes near.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Which is the nearest and best road to Avignon?" he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The right-hand road is the best and shortest," the beggar said. "The
+      other makes a long circuit and leads through several marshes, which your
+      honor will find it hard to pass."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert thanked him and moved forward, still at a walk, along the
+      right-hand road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he had gone about two hundred yards, and was hidden from the sight of
+      the man he had left&mdash;the country being rough, and scattered with
+      clumps of bushes&mdash;he halted, and, as he expected, heard the sound of
+      horses' hoofs coming on at full gallop along the other road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your master must have thought me young indeed," he said, "to try and
+      catch me with such a transparent trick as that. I do not suppose that
+      accursed page has more than ten men with him, and doubtless has placed
+      five on each road. This fellow was placed here to see which track I would
+      follow, and has now gone to give the party on the left hand the news that
+      I have taken this way. Had it not been for him I should have had to run
+      the gantlet with four or five of my enemies. As it is, the path will
+      doubtless be clear."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying, he turned his horse, galloped back to the spot where the tracks
+      separated, and then followed the left-hand route.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he had hoped, he passed through the wood without incident or
+      interruption, and arrived safely that night at a small town, having seen
+      no signs of his enemies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day he started again early, and rode on until midday, when he
+      halted at a large village, at which was the only inn between the place
+      from which he started and his destination. He declined the offer of the
+      servant of the inn to take his horse round to the stable, telling the man
+      to hold him outside the door and give him from a sieve a few handfuls of
+      grain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then he entered the inn and ate a hearty meal. As he appeared at the door
+      he saw several men gathered near. With a single spring he threw himself
+      into the saddle, just as a rush forward was made by those standing round.
+      The man next to him sprang upon him, and endeavored to drag him from the
+      saddle. Cuthbert drew the little dagger called a <i>miséricorde</i> from
+      his belt, and plunged it into his throat. Then seizing the short mace
+      which hung at the saddlebow, he hurled it with all his force full in the
+      face of his enemy, the page of Sir Philip, who was rushing upon him sword
+      in hand. The heavy weapon struck him fairly between the eyes, and with a
+      cry he fell back, his face completely smashed in by the blow, the sword
+      which he held uplifted to strike flying far through the air.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert struck his spurs into his horse, and the animal dashed forward
+      with a bound, Cuthbert striking with his long sword at one or two men who
+      made a snatch at the reins. In another minute he was cantering out of the
+      village, convinced that he had killed the leader of his foes, and that he
+      was safe now to pursue the rest of his journey on to Marseilles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So it turned out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without further incident he traveled through the south of France, and
+      arrived at the great seaport. He speedily discovered the quarters in which
+      the Earl of Evesham's contingent were encamped, and made toward this
+      without delay. As he entered a wild shout of joy was heard, and Cnut ran
+      forward with many gestures of delight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear Cuthbert, my dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "Can it be true that
+      you have escaped? We all gave you up; and although I did my best, yet had
+      you not survived it I should never have forgiven myself, believing that I
+      might have somehow done better, and have saved you from the cutthroats who
+      attacked us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, thanks, my good Cnut," Cuthbert cried. "I have been through a
+      time of peril, no doubt; but as you see, I am hale and well&mdash;better,
+      methinks, than you are, for you look pale and ill; and I doubt not that
+      the wound which I received was a mere scratch to that which bore you down.
+      It sounded indeed like the blow of a smith's hammer upon an anvil."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Fortunately, my steel cap saved my head somewhat," Cnut said, "and the
+      head itself is none of the thinnest; but it tried it sorely, I confess.
+      However, now that you are back I shall, doubt not, soon be as strong as
+      ever I was. I think that fretting for your absence has kept me back more
+      than the inflammation from the wound itself&mdash;but there is the earl at
+      the door of his tent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Through the foresters and retainers who had at Cnut's shout of joy crowded
+      up, Cuthbert made his way, shaking hands right and left with the men,
+      among whom he was greatly loved, for they regarded him as being in a great
+      degree the cause of their having been freed from outlawry, and restored to
+      civil life again. The earl was really affected. As Cuthbert rode up he
+      held out both arms, and as his page alighted he embraced him as a father.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "What anxiety have we not suffered. Had
+      you been my own son, I could not have felt more your loss. We did not
+      doubt for an instant that you had fallen into the hands of some of the
+      retainers of that villain count; and from all we could learn, and from the
+      absence of any dead body by the side of that of Cnut, I imagined that you
+      must have been carried off. It was clear that your chance of life, if you
+      fell into the hands of that evil page, or his equally vile master, was
+      small indeed. The very day that Cnut was brought in I visited the French
+      camp, and accused him of having been the cause of your disappearance and
+      Cnut's wounds. He affected the greatest astonishment at the charge. He had
+      not, as he said, been out of the camp for two days. My accusation was
+      unfounded and malicious, and I should answer this as well as the previous
+      outrage, when the vow of the Crusaders to keep peace among themselves was
+      at an end. Of course I had no means of proving what I said, or I would
+      have gone direct to the king and charged him with the outrage. As it was I
+      gained nothing by my pains. He has accompanied the French division to
+      Genoa; but when we meet at Sicily, where the two armies are to rendezvous,
+      I will bring the matter before the king, as the fact that his page was
+      certainly concerned in it must be taken as showing that he was the
+      instigator."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It would, my lord earl, be perhaps better," Cuthbert said, "if I might
+      venture to advise, to leave the matter alone. No doubt the count would say
+      that he had discharged his page after the tournament, and that the latter
+      was only carrying out his private feud with me. We should not be able to
+      disprove the story, and should gain no satisfaction by the matter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl admitted the justice of Cuthbert's reasoning, but reserved to
+      himself the task of punishing the author of the outrage upon the first
+      fitting opportunity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was a weary delay at Marseilles before the expedition set sail. This
+      was caused by the fact of the English fleet, which had been ordered to be
+      there upon their arrival, failing to keep the agreement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The words English fleet badly describe the vessels which were to carry the
+      English contingent to their destination. They were ships belonging to the
+      maritime nations of Italy&mdash;the Venetians, Genoese, Pisans, etc.; for
+      England at that time had but few of her own, and these scarcely fitted for
+      the stormy navigation of the Bay of Biscay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard, impatient as ever of delay, at last lost his temper, and
+      embarked on board a ship with a few of his chosen knights, and set sail by
+      himself for Sicily, the point at which the two armies of the expedition
+      were to reunite. A few days after his departure the long-looked-for fleet
+      arrived, and a portion of the English host embarked at once, and set sail
+      for Sicily, where they were to be landed, and the ships were to return to
+      fetch the remaining contingent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A sea voyage of this kind in those days was a serious matter. Long voyages
+      were rare, and troops were carried very much upon the principle of
+      herrings; that is, were packed as close as they could be, without any
+      reference to their comfort. As the voyages seldom lasted more than
+      twenty-four hours, this did not much matter, but during long voyages the
+      discomforts, or as may be said sufferings, of the troops were
+      considerable. So tightly packed were the galleys in which the English set
+      sail from Marseilles that there was no walking about. Every man slept
+      where he sat, and considered himself lucky indeed if he could obtain room
+      sufficient to stretch himself at full length. Most slept sitting against
+      bulwarks or other supports. In the cabins, where the knights, their pages
+      and squires were placed, the crowding was of course less excessive, but
+      even here the amount of space, which a subaltern traveling to India for
+      the first time nowadays would grumble at, was considered amply sufficient
+      for half a dozen knights of distinction. It was a week after sailing, when
+      Cnut touched Cuthbert's arm as he came on deck one morning, and said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Look, look, Cuthbert! that mountain standing up in the water has caught
+      fire on the top. Did you ever see such a thing?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The soldiers crowded to the side of the vessel in intense astonishment and
+      no little awe. From the top of a lofty and rugged hill, rising almost
+      straight from the sea, flames were roaring up, smoke hung over the island,
+      and stones were thrown into the air and rattled down the side of the hill,
+      or fell into the sea with a splash.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is a fearsome sight," Cnut said, crossing himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It looks as if it was the mouth of purgatory," exclaimed another,
+      standing by.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert himself was amazed, for the instruction he had received from
+      Father Francis was of too slight a nature to include the story of
+      volcanoes. A priest, however, who accompanied the ship in the character of
+      leech and confessor, explained the nature of the phenomenon to his
+      astonished listeners, and told them that over on the mainland was a
+      mountain which at times vomited forth such masses of stones and of liquid
+      rock that it had swallowed up and covered many great cities. There was
+      also, he told them, another mountain of the same sort, even more vast, on
+      the island of Sicily itself; but that this had seldom, as far back as man
+      could remember, done any great harm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sailing on, in another day they arrived off the coast of Sicily itself,
+      and sailing up the straits between it and the mainland they landed at
+      Messina. Here a considerable portion of the French army had already
+      arrived, having been brought down from Genoa.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no news of the King of England; and, as often happens, the
+      saying "The more haste the less speed," had been verified here.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was some days later before King Richard arrived, having been driven
+      from his course by tempests, well-nigh cast ashore, and having besides
+      gone through many adventures. Three weeks later the whole of the army of
+      the Crusaders were gathered around Messina, where it was intended to
+      remain some little time before starting. It was a gay time; and the kings
+      vied with each other in entertainments, joustings, and tournaments. The
+      Italian knights also made a brave show, and it might have been thought
+      that this huge army of men were gathered there simply for amusement and
+      feasting. In the tournaments every effort was made to prevent any feeling
+      of national rivalry, and although parties of knights held their own
+      against all comers, these were most carefully selected to represent
+      several nationalities, and therefore victory, on whichsoever side it fell,
+      excited no feelings of bitterness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Alone, King Richard was undoubtedly the strongest cavalier of the two
+      armies. Against his ponderous strength no knight could keep his seat; and
+      this was so palpable that after many victories King Richard was forced to
+      retire from the lists from want of competitors, and to take his place on
+      the daïs with the more peace-loving King of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gayety of the camp was heightened by the arrival of many nobles and
+      dames from Italy. Here, too, came the Queen of Navarre, bringing with her
+      the beautiful Princess Berengaria.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," the Earl of Evesham said to Cuthbert a fortnight after the
+      arrival of the queen "that unless my eyes deceive me the princess is
+      likely to be a cause of trouble."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In what way?" asked Cuthbert with surprise, for he had been struck with
+      her marvelous beauty, and wondered greatly what mischief so fair a being
+      could do.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "By the way in which our good lord, the king, gazes upon her, methinks
+      that it were like enough that he broke off his engagement with the Prince
+      of France for the sake of the fair eyes of this damsel."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That were indeed a misfortune," Cuthbert said gravely, for he saw at once
+      the anger which such a course would excite in the minds of the French king
+      and his knights, who would naturally be indignant in the extreme at the
+      slight put upon their princess. As day after day passed it became evident
+      to all that the King of England was infatuated by the princess. Again he
+      entered the lists himself, and as some fresh Italian knights and others
+      had arrived, he found fresh opponents, and conspicuously laid the spoils
+      of victory at the feet of the princess, whom he selected as the Queen of
+      Beauty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All sorts of rumors now became current in camp; violent quarrels between
+      the kings, and bad feelings between the French and English knights broke
+      out again in consequence, and this more violently than before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0009" id="link2HCH0009"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER IX. &mdash; THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      One night it chanced that Cuthbert was late in his return to camp, and his
+      road took him through a portion of the French encampment; the night was
+      dark, and Cuthbert presently completely lost all idea as to his bearings.
+      Presently he nearly ran against a tent; he made his way to the entrance in
+      order to crave directions as to his way&mdash;for it was a wet night; the
+      rain was pouring in torrents, and few were about of whom he could demand
+      the way&mdash;and, as he was about to draw aside the hangings, he heard
+      words said in a passionate voice which caused him to withdraw his hand
+      suddenly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I tell you," said a voice, "I would rather drive a dagger myself into her
+      heart than allow our own princess to be insulted by this hot-headed island
+      dog."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is sad indeed," said another, but in a calmer smoother tone, "that the
+      success of a great expedition like this, which has for its object the
+      recovery of the holy sepulcher from the infidels, should be wrecked by the
+      headstrong fancies of one man. It is even, as is told by the old Grecian
+      poet, as when Helen caused a great war between people of that nation."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know nothing," another voice said, "either of Helen or the Greeks, or
+      of their poets. They are a shifty race, and I can believe aught that is
+      bad of them. But touching this princess of Navarre, I agree with our
+      friend, it would be a righteous deed to poniard her, and so to remove the
+      cause of dispute between the two kings, and, indeed, the two nations. This
+      insult laid upon our princess is more than we, as French knights and
+      gentlemen, can brook; and if the king says the word there is not a
+      gentleman in the army but will be ready to turn his sword against the
+      islanders."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then the smooth voice spoke again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It would, my brethren, be wrong and useless to shed blood; but methinks
+      that if this apple of discord could be removed a good work would be done
+      not, as our friend the count has suggested, by a stab of the dagger; that
+      indeed would be worse than useless. But surely there are scores of
+      religious houses, where this bird might be placed in a cage without a soul
+      knowing where she was, and where she might pass her life in prayer that
+      she may be pardoned for having caused grave hazards of the failure of an
+      enterprise in which all the Christian world is concerned."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The voices of the speakers now fell, and Cuthbert was straining his ear to
+      listen, when he heard footsteps approaching the tent, and he glided away
+      into the darkness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With great difficulty be recovered the road to the camp, and when he
+      reached his tent he confided to the Earl of Evesham what he had heard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is serious indeed," the earl said, "and bodes no little trouble and
+      danger. It is true that the passion which King Richard has conceived for
+      Berengaria bids fair to wreck the Crusade, by the anger which it has
+      excited in the French king and his nobles; but the disappearance of the
+      princess would no less fatally interfere with it, for the king would be
+      like a raging lion deprived of his whelps, and would certainly move no
+      foot eastward until he had exhausted all the means in his power of tracing
+      his lost lady love. You could not, I suppose, Cuthbert, point out the tent
+      where this conversation took place?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I could not," Cuthbert answered; "in the darkness one tent is like
+      another. I think I should recognize the voices of the speakers did I hear
+      them again; indeed, one voice I did recognize; it was that of the Count of
+      Brabant, with whom we had trouble before."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is good," the earl said, "because we have at least an object to
+      watch. It would never do to tell the king what you have heard. In the
+      first place, his anger would be so great that it would burst all bounds,
+      and would cause, likely enough, a battle at once between the two armies;
+      nor would it have any good effect, for he of Brabant would of course deny
+      the truth of your assertions, and would declare it was merely a got-up
+      story to discredit him with the king, and so to wipe out the old score now
+      standing between us. No, if we are to succeed, alike in preventing harm
+      happening to the princess, and an open break between the two monarchs, it
+      must be done by keeping a guard over the princess, unsuspected by all, and
+      ourselves frustrating any attempt which may be made."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert expressed his willingness to carry out the instructions which the
+      earl might give him; and, much disturbed by the events of the day, both
+      earl and page retired to rest, to think over what plan had best be
+      adopted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The princess was staying at the palace of the bishop of the town; this he,
+      having another residence a short distance outside the walls, had placed at
+      the disposal of the Queen of Navarre and her suite; and the first step of
+      Cuthbert in the morning was to go into the town, to reconnoiter the
+      position and appearance of the building. It was a large and irregular
+      pile, and communicated with the two monasteries lying alongside of it. It
+      would therefore clearly be a most difficult thing to keep up a complete
+      watch on the exterior of so large a building. There were so many ways in
+      which the princess might be captured and carried off by unscrupulous men
+      that Cuthbert in vain thought over every plan by which it could be
+      possible to safeguard her. She might be seized upon returning from a
+      tournament or entertainment; but this was improbable, as the queen would
+      always have an escort of knights with her, and no attempt could be
+      successful except at the cost of a public fracas and much loss of blood.
+      Cuthbert regarded as out of the question that an outrage of this kind
+      would be attempted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fact that one of the speakers in the tent had used the words "my
+      sons," showed that one priest or monk, at least, was connected with the
+      plot. It was possible that this man might have power in one of the
+      monasteries, or he might be an agent of the bishop himself; and Cuthbert
+      saw that it would be easy enough in the night for a party from one or
+      other of the monasteries to enter by the door of communication with the
+      palace, and carry off the princess without the slightest alarm being
+      given. Once within the walls of the convent she could be either hidden in
+      the dungeons or secret places, which buildings of that kind were sure to
+      possess, or could be at once carried out by some quiet entrance, and taken
+      into the country, or transferred to some other building in the town.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Cuthbert joined the earl he told him the observations that he had
+      made, and Sir Walter praised the judgment which he had shown in his
+      conclusions. The earl was of opinion that it would be absolutely necessary
+      to get some clew as to the course which the abductors purposed to take;
+      indeed it was possible that on after-consideration they might drop their
+      plan altogether, for the words which Cuthbert had overheard scarcely
+      betokened a plan completely formed and finally decided upon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The great point he considered, therefore, was that the tent of his old
+      enemy should be carefully watched, and that an endeavor should be made to
+      hear something of what passed within, which might give a clew to the plan
+      fixed upon. They did not, of course, know whether the tent in which the
+      conversation had been heard by Cuthbert was that of Sir de Jacquelin
+      Barras, or of one of the other persons who had spoken; and Cuthbert
+      suggested that the first thing would be to find out whether the count,
+      after nightfall, was in the habit of going to some other tent, or whether,
+      on the other hand, he remained within and was visited by others.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was easy, of course, to discover which was his tent; and Cuthbert soon
+      got its position, and then took Cnut into his counsels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The matter is difficult," Cnut said, "and I see no way by which a watch
+      can be kept up by day; but after dark&mdash;I have several men in my band
+      who can track a deer, and surely could manage to follow the steps of this
+      baron without being observed. There is little Jack, who is no bigger than
+      a boy of twelve, although he can shoot, and run, and play with the
+      quarterstaff, or, if need be, with the bill, against the best man in the
+      troop. I warrant me that if you show him the tent he will keep such sharp
+      watch that no one shall enter or depart without his knowing where they go
+      to. On a dark night he will be able to slip among the tents, and to move
+      here and there without being seen. He can creep on his stomach without
+      moving a leaf, and trust me the eyes of these French men-at-arms will look
+      in vain for a glimpse of him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You understand, Cnut, all that I want to know is whether the other
+      conspirators in this matter visit his tent, or whether he goes to theirs."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I understand," Cnut said. "That is the first point to be arrived at."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three days later Cnut brought news that each night after dark a party of
+      five men met in the tent that was watched; that one of the five always
+      came out when all had assembled, and took his station before the entrance
+      of the tent, so as to be sure that no eavesdropper was near.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert smiled.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is a case of locking the door after the horse has gone."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is to be done now?" Cnut asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will talk with the earl before I tell you, Cnut. This matter is too
+      serious for me to take a step without consulting Sir Walter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That night there was a long talk between the earl and his page as to the
+      best course to be pursued. It was clear that their old enemy was the
+      leading person in the plot, and that the only plan to baffle it with any
+      fair chances of success was to keep a constant eye upon his movements, and
+      also to have three or four of the sturdiest men of the band told off to
+      watch, without being perceived, each time that the princess was in her
+      palace.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham left the arrangements entirely in the hands of his
+      page, of whose good sense and sagacity he had a very high opinion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His own first impulse had been to go before the king and denounce the
+      Count of Brabant. But the ill-will between them was already well known;
+      for not only was there the original dispute at the banquet, but when the
+      two armies had joined at Sicily, King Richard, who had heard from the earl
+      of the attempt at the assassination of Cuthbert, had laid a complaint
+      before King Philip of the conduct of his subject.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir de Jacquelin Barras, however, had denied that he had any finger in the
+      matter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He had," he said, "discharged his page after the encounter with Cuthbert,
+      and knew nothing further whatever of his movements."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although it was morally certain that the page could not have purchased the
+      services of the men who assisted him, from his own purse, or gain them by
+      any means of persuasion, but that they were either the followers of the
+      Count of Brabant, or ruffians hired with his money, as no proof could be
+      obtained the matter was allowed to drop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl felt, however, that an accusation against the count by him of an
+      intention to commit a high crime, and this merely on the evidence of his
+      page, would appear like an attempt to injure the fame of his rival.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Feeling, therefore, that nothing could be done save to watch, he left the
+      matter entirely in the hands of his page, telling him that he could take
+      as many men-at-arms or archers as he might choose and use them in his
+      name.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut entered warmly into Cuthbert's plans; and finally it was arranged
+      between them that six of the archers should nightly keep watch opposite
+      the various entrances of the bishop's palace and of the two monasteries
+      joining. Of course, they could not patrol up and down without attracting
+      attention, but they were to take up posts where they could closely observe
+      the entrances, and were either to lie down and feign drunken sleep, or to
+      conceal themselves within the shadow of an arch or other hiding-place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Down on the seashore Cuthbert made an arrangement with one of the owners
+      of small craft lying there that ten of his men should sleep on board every
+      night, together with some fishermen accustomed to the use of the oar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert himself determined to be always with this party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Night after night passed, and so long a time went by that Cuthbert began
+      to think the design must have been given up.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, he resolved to relax none of his watchfulness during the
+      remaining time that the expedition might stop in Sicily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was in January, three weeks after the first watch had been set, when
+      one of the men who had been placed to watch the entrance to one of the
+      monasteries leaped on board the craft and shook Cuthbert by the shoulder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "A party of some five men," he said, "have just issued out from the
+      monastery. They are bearing a burden&mdash;what, I cannot see. They were
+      making in the direction of the water. I whistled to Dion who was next to
+      me in the lane. He is following them, and I came on to tell you to
+      prepare."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The night was pitch-dark, and it was difficult in the extreme to see any
+      one moving at a short distance off.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were two or three streets that led from the monastery, which stood
+      at the top of the town, toward the sea; and a party coming down might take
+      any of these, according to the position in which the boat they were
+      seeking was placed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert now instantly sent five or six of his men with instructions to
+      avoid all noise, along the line of the port, with orders to bring in word
+      should anyone come down and take boat, or should they hear any noise in
+      the town. He himself with the sailors loosed the ropes which fastened the
+      boat to shore, got out the oars, and prepared to put off at a moment's
+      notice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was of course ignorant whether the abductor would try to carry the
+      princess off by water, or would hide her in one of the convents of the
+      town; but he was inclined to think that the former would be the course
+      adopted; for the king in his wrath would be ready to lay the town in
+      flames, and to search every convent from top to bottom for the princess.
+      Besides, there would be too many aware of the secret.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was not wrong in his supposition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Soon the man he had sent to the extreme right came running up with the
+      news that a boat had embarked at the further end with a party of some ten
+      men on board. As he came along he had warned the others, and in five
+      minutes the whole party were collected in the craft, numbering in all
+      twelve of Cuthbert's men and six sailors. They instantly put out, and
+      rowed in the direction in which the boat would have gone, the boatmen
+      expressing their opinion that probably the party would make for a vessel
+      which was lying anchored at some little distance from shore. The bearings
+      of the position of this ship was known to the boatmen, but the night was
+      so dark that they were quite unable to find it. Orders had been given that
+      no sound or whisper was to be heard on board the boat; and after rowing as
+      far as they could the boatmen said they were in the direction of the ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The boatmen all lay on their oars, and all listened intently. Presently
+      the creaking of a pulley was heard in the still night, at a distance of a
+      few hundred yards. This was enough. It was clear that the vessel was
+      getting up sail. The boat's head was turned in that direction; the crew
+      rowed steadily but noiselessly, and in a few minutes the tall mast of a
+      vessel could be seen faintly against the sky. Just as they perceived the
+      situation, a hail from on board showed that their approach was now
+      observed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Stretch to your oars," Cuthbert said, "we must make a dash for it now."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The rowers bent to their work and in a minute the boat ran alongside the
+      craft.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert and his followers scrambled upon the deck they were attacked
+      by those of the crew and passengers who were standing near; but it was
+      evident at once that the chiefs of the expedition had not heard the hail,
+      and that there was no general plan of defense against them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not until the last of them had gained a footing and were beginning
+      to fight their way along the vessel that from below three or four
+      men-at-arms ran up, and one in a tone of authority demanded what was the
+      matter. When he heard the clash of swords and the shouts of the combatants
+      he put himself at once at the head of the party and a fierce and obstinate
+      fight now took place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The assailants had, however, the advantage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert and his men were all lightly clad, and this on the deck of a ship
+      lumbered with ropes and gear, and in the dark, was a great advantage, for
+      the mailed men-at-arms frequently stumbled and fell. The fight lasted for
+      several minutes. Cnut, who was armed with a heavy mace, did great service,
+      for with each of his sweeping blows he broke down the guard of an
+      opponent, and generally leveled him to the deck.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The numbers at the beginning of the fight were not unequal, but the men to
+      whom the vessel belonged made but a faint resistance when they perceived
+      that the day was going against them. The men-at-arms, however, consisting
+      of three, who appeared to be the leaders, and of eight pikemen fought
+      stubbornly and well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was not long in detecting in the tones of the man who was clearly
+      at the head of affairs the voice of Sir de Jacquelin Barras. To do him
+      justice he fought with extreme bravery, and when almost all his followers
+      were cut down or beaten overboard, he resisted stanchly and well. With a
+      heavy two-handed sword he cleaved a space at the end of the boat, and kept
+      the whole of Cuthbert's party at bay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last Cnut, who had been engaged elsewhere, came to the front, and a
+      tough fight ensued between them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It might have ended badly for the brave forester, for his lack of armor
+      gave an enormous advantage to his opponent. Soon, however, the count's
+      foot slipped on the boards of the deck, and before he could recover
+      himself the mace of Cnut descended with tremendous force upon his head,
+      which was unprotected, as he had taken off his casque on arriving at the
+      ship. Without a word or a cry the count fell forward on the deck, killed
+      as a bullock by a blow of a poleaX. &mdash; While this conflict had been
+      going on, occasionally the loud screams of a woman had been heard below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, attended by Cnut and two of his followers, now descended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the bottom of the steps they found a man-at-arms placed at the door of
+      a cabin. He challenged as they approached, but being speedily convinced
+      that the vessel was in their hands, and that his employer and party were
+      all conquered, he made a virtue of necessity, and laid down his arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You had better go in alone," Cnut said, "Master Cuthbert. The lady is
+      less likely to be frightened by your appearance than by us, for she must
+      wonder indeed what is going on."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On entering the cabin, which had evidently been fitted up for the use of a
+      lady, Cuthbert saw standing at the other end the princess, whom of course
+      he knew well by sight. A lamp was burning in the cabin, and by its light
+      he could see that her face was deadly pale. Her robes were torn and
+      disarranged, and she wore a look at once of grave alarm and surprise upon
+      seeing a handsomely dressed page enter with a deep reverence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What means this outrage, young sir? Whoever you be, I warn you that the
+      King of England will revenge this indignity."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your highness," Cuthbert said, "you have no further reason for alarm; the
+      knaves who carried you off from the bishop's palace and conveyed you to
+      this ship are all either killed or in our power. I am the page of the Earl
+      of Evesham, a devoted follower of King Richard. Some of the designs of the
+      bold men came to the ears of my lord, and he ordered me and a band of his
+      followers to keep good guard over the palace and buildings adjoining. We
+      were unable to gather our strength in time to prevent your being taken on
+      board, but we lost no time in putting forth when we found that your
+      abductors had taken boat, and by good fortune arrived here in time; a few
+      minutes later, and the knaves would have succeeded in their object, for
+      the sails were already being hoisted, and the vessel making way, when we
+      arrived. Your abductors are all either killed or thrown overboard, and the
+      vessel's head is now turned toward the shore, and I hope in a few minutes
+      to have the honor of escorting you to the palace."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The princess, with a sigh of much satisfaction and relief, sank on to a
+      couch.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am indeed indebted to you, young sir," she said. "Believe me, the
+      Princess Berengaria is not ungrateful, and should it be ever in her power
+      to do aught for your lord, or for yourself, or for those who have
+      accompanied you to rescue her, believe me that she will do it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "May I be so bold as to ask a boon?" Cuthbert said, dropping on one knee
+      before her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is granted at once, whatever it be, if in my power."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My boon is, lady," he said, "that you will do your best to assuage the
+      natural anger which the King of England will feel at this bold and most
+      violent attempt. That he should be told, is of course necessary; but,
+      lady, much depends upon the telling, and I am sure that at your request
+      the king would restrain his anger. Were it not for that, I fear that such
+      quarrels and disputes might arise as would bring the two armies to blows,
+      and destroy forever all hope of the successful termination of our joint
+      enterprise."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are a wise and good youth," the princess said, holding out her hand
+      to Cuthbert, which, as duty bound, he placed to his lips. "Your request is
+      wise and most thoughtful. I will use any poor influence which I may
+      possess"&mdash;and Cuthbert could see that the blood came back now to the
+      white face&mdash;"to induce King Richard to allow the matter to pass over.
+      There is no reason why he should take up the case. I am no more under his
+      protection than under that of the King of France, and it is to the latter
+      I should appeal, for as I believe the men who abducted me were his
+      subjects."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The leader of them, madam, was a certain Sir de Jacquelin Barras, a Count
+      of Brabant, with whom my master has had an old feud, and who has been just
+      killed by the leader of our men-at-arms. The others, who have had the most
+      active hand in the matter, have also perished; and it would, I think be
+      doubtful whether any clew could be obtained of those who were in league
+      with them. The only man in the party who is alive was placed as a sentry
+      at your door, and as he is but a man-at-arms we may be sure that he knows
+      naught of the enterprise, but has merely carried out the orders of his
+      master."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The vessel had by this time brought up close to the port. The princess
+      determined to wait on board until the first dawn was seen in the skies,
+      and then under the escort of her deliverers to go back to the palace,
+      before the town was moving. This plan was carried out, and soon after dawn
+      the princess was safe in the palace from which she had been carried a few
+      hours previously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0010" id="link2HCH0010"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER X. &mdash; PIRATES.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was not possible that a matter of this sort could be entirely hushed
+      up. Not many hours passed before rumors were current of events which had
+      taken place, though none knew what those events were.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were reports that the tire-woman of the Princess Berengaria had in
+      the night discovered that her mistress' couch was unoccupied, that she had
+      found signs of a struggle, and had picked up a dagger on the floor, where
+      it had evidently fallen from the sheath; also it was said that the
+      princess had returned at daylight escorted by an armed party, and that she
+      was unable to obtain entrance to the palace until one of the ladies of the
+      queen had been fetched down to order the sentries at the gate to allow her
+      to enter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the news which rumor carried through the camp. Few, however,
+      believed it, and none who could have enlightened them opened their lips
+      upon the subject.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was known, however, that a messenger had come to King Richard early,
+      and that he had at once mounted and ridden off to the bishop's palace.
+      What had happened there none could say, but there were rumors that his
+      voice had been heard in furious outbursts of passion. He remained there
+      until the afternoon, when he sent for a number of his principal nobles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When these arrived they found him standing on a daïs in the principal hall
+      of the palace, and he there formally introduced to them the Princess
+      Berengaria as his affianced wife. The ceremony of the marriage, he told
+      them, would shortly take place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This announcement caused a tremendous stir in both armies. The English,
+      who had never been favorable to the alliance with the French princess,
+      were glad to hear that this was broken off, and were well content that the
+      Princess Berengaria should be their future queen, for her beauty, high
+      spirit, and kindness had won all hearts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the part of the French, on the other hand, there was great indignation,
+      and for some time it was feared that the armies would come to open blows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Philip, however, although much angered, was politic enough to
+      deprecate any open outbreak. He knew that a dispute now began would not
+      only at once put a stop to the Crusade, but that it might lead to more
+      serious consequences at home. The fiery bravery of the English king,
+      backed as it would be by the whole strength of his subjects, might render
+      him a very formidable opponent; and the king felt that private grievances
+      must be laid aside where the good of France was concerned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Still the coldness between the armies increased, their camps were moved
+      further apart, and during the time that they remained in Sicily there was
+      but little commerce between the two forces.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the winter had broken the French monarch broke up his camp, and
+      in March sailed for the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The English had expected that the marriage ceremony of the king and
+      Princess Berengaria would be celebrated before they left Sicily, but this
+      was not the case. There were high joustings and <i>fêtes</i> in honor of
+      the princess, but the marriage was delayed. A fortnight after the French
+      had sailed the English embarked in the two hundred ships which had been
+      prepared, and sailed also on their way to Acre.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must not be supposed that the attempted abduction of the Princess
+      Berengaria was unimportant in its results to Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After returning from the palace the king, who had heard from her the
+      details of what had taken place, and the names of her rescuers, sent for
+      the Earl of Evesham. The latter had of course learned from Cuthbert all
+      that had happened, and had expressed his high approval of his conduct, and
+      his gratification at the result.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I learn, Sir Earl," said King Richard, "that it is to you that I am
+      indebted for the rescue of the princess. She tells me that suspecting some
+      plot you placed a guard around the bishop's palace, with a strong body on
+      the shore ready to rescue her from the hands of any who might attempt to
+      take her to sea."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is as you say, sire," replied the earl; "but the whole merit of the
+      affair rests upon my page, the lad whom you may remember as having fought
+      with and conquered the French page, and of whose conduct you then approved
+      highly. You may also remember that he escaped by some display of bravery
+      and shrewdness the further attempts to assassinate him, and your majesty
+      was good enough to make a complaint to King Philip of the conduct of one
+      of his nobles on that head. It seems that some two months since the lad in
+      coming through the French camp at night missed his way, and accidentally
+      overheard a few words spoken in a voice which he recognized as that of his
+      enemy. The name of your majesty being mentioned, he deemed it his duty to
+      listen, and thus discovered that a plot was on foot for carrying off the
+      princess. After consultation with me, we agreed upon the course to be
+      adopted, namely, to place sentries round the bishop's place and the
+      buildings adjoining, who should follow and bring word should she be taken
+      to another place in town, while a band was placed on the shore in
+      readiness to interfere at once to prevent her being carried away by sea.
+      He undertook the management of all details, having with him a trusty
+      squire who commands my Saxon bowmen."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For your own part I thank you, my lord," the king said, "and, believe me,
+      you shall not find Richard ungrateful. As to your page, he appears brave
+      and wise beyond his years. Were it not that I think that it would not be
+      good for him, and might attract some envy upon the part of others, I would
+      at once make him a knight. He already has my promise that I will do so on
+      the first occasion when he can show his prowess upon the infidels. Bring
+      him to me to-morrow, when the princess will be here with the Queen of
+      Navarre at a banquet. I would fain thank him before her; and, although I
+      have agreed&mdash;at the princess' earnest solicitation&mdash;to take no
+      further notice of the matter, and to allow it to pass as if it had not
+      been, yet I cannot forgive the treachery which has been used, and without
+      letting all know exactly what has occurred would fain by my reception of
+      your page let men see that something of great import has happened, of the
+      nature of which I doubt not that rumor will give some notion."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the following day, therefore, Cuthbert to his confusion found himself
+      the center of the royal circle. The king expressed himself to him in the
+      most gracious manner, patting him on the shoulder, and said that he would
+      be one day one of the best and bravest of his knights. The princess and
+      the Queen of Navarre gave him their hands to kiss, and somewhat
+      overwhelmed, he withdrew from the royal presence, the center of attention,
+      and, in some minds, of envy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut too did not pass unrewarded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His majesty, finding that Cnut was of gentle Saxon blood, gave him a gold
+      chain in token of his favor, and distributed a heavy purse among the men
+      who had followed him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the British fleet, numbering two hundred ships, set sail from Sicily,
+      it was a grand and martial sight. From the masts were the colors of
+      England and those of the nobles who commanded; while the pennons of the
+      knights, the bright plumes and mantles, the flash of armor and arms made
+      the decks alive with light and color.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king's ship advanced in the van, and round him were the vessels
+      containing his principal followers. The Queen of Navarre and the Princess
+      Berengaria were with the fleet. Strains of music rose from the waters, and
+      never were the circumstances of war exhibited in a more picturesque form.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For two days the expedition sailed on, and then a change of a sudden and
+      disastrous kind took place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is all this bustle about?" Cuthbert said to Cnut. "The sailors are
+      running up the ladders, all seems confusion."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," said Cnut, "that we are about to have a storm. A few minutes
+      ago scarce a cloud was to be seen; now that bank over there has risen
+      halfway up the sky. The sailors are accustomed to these treacherous seas,
+      and the warnings which we have not noticed have no doubt been clear enough
+      to them."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With great rapidity the sails of the fleet came down, and in five minutes
+      its whole aspect was changed; but quickly as the sailors had done their
+      work, the storm was even more rapid in its progress. Some of the ships
+      whose crews were slower or less skillful than the others were caught by
+      the gale before they could get their sails snug, and the great sheets of
+      white canvas were blown from the bolt-ropes as if made of paper, and a
+      blackness which could almost be felt covered the sea, the only light being
+      that given by the frothing waters. There was no longer any thought of
+      order. Each ship had to shift for herself; and each captain to do his best
+      to save those under his charge, without thought of what might befall the
+      others.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the ship which carried the Earl of Evesham's contingent, order and
+      discipline prevailed. The earl's voice had been heard at the first puff of
+      wind, shouting to the men to go below, save a few who might be of use to
+      haul at ropes. His standard was lowered, the bright flags removed from the
+      sides of the ship, the shields which were hanging over the bulwarks were
+      hurriedly taken below, and when the gale smote them the ship was trim, and
+      in readiness to receive it. A few square yards of sail alone were all that
+      the captain had thought it prudent to keep spread, and in a minute from
+      the time she was struck the lofty hulk was tearing along through the
+      waters at a tremendous speed. Four of the best hands were placed at the
+      helm; and here the captain took his post.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The danger was now that in the darkness they might run against one of
+      their consorts. Even in the war of the elements they could hear from time
+      to time crashes as of vessels striking against each other, with shouts and
+      cries. Once or twice from the darkness ships emerged, close on one hand or
+      the other; but the steadiness of the captain in each case saved the ship
+      from collision.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the storm continued these glimpses of other vessels became more and
+      more rare, and the ship being a very fast sailer, the captain indulged the
+      hope that he was now clear of the rest of the fleet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He now attempted to lie-to to the storm, but the wind was too strong. The
+      ships in those days, too, were so high out of the water, and offered in
+      themselves such a target to the wind, that it was useless to adopt any
+      other maneuver than to run before it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For two days and nights the tempest raged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What think you," the earl said to the captain, "of our position? Where
+      are we, and where will the course upon which we are running take us?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I cannot say with certainty," the captain said, "for the wind has shifted
+      several times. I had hoped to gain the shelter of Rhodes, but a shift of
+      wind bore us away from there, and I much fear that from the direction in
+      which we have been running we must be very nigh on the coast of Africa."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "<i>Peste!</i>" the earl said. "That would indeed be a speedy end to our
+      Crusade. These Moors are pirates and cutthroats to a man; and even should
+      we avoid the risk of being dashed to pieces, we should end our lives as
+      slaves to one of these black infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three hours later the captain's prophecies turned out right. Breakers were
+      seen in various points in front, and with the greatest difficulty the
+      vessel was steered through an opening between them; but in another few
+      minutes she struck heavily, one of her masts went over the side, and she
+      lay fast and immovable. Fortunately, the outside bank of sand acted as a
+      sort of breakwater; had she struck upon this the good ship would have gone
+      to pieces instantly; but although the waves still struck her with
+      considerable force, the captain had good hope that she would not break up.
+      Darkness came on; the tempest seemed to lull. As there was no immediate
+      danger, and all were exhausted by the tossing which they had received
+      during the last forty-eight hours, the crew of the Rose slept soundly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning the sun rose brilliantly, and there was no sign of the
+      great storm which had scattered the fleet of England. The shore was to be
+      seen at a distance of some four miles. It was low and sandy, with lofty
+      mountains in the distance. Far inland a white town with minaret and dome
+      could be seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Know you where we are?" the earl asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "As far as I can tell," the captain said, "we have been driven up the bay
+      called the Little Syrtis&mdash;a place full of shoals and shallows, and
+      abounding with pirates of the worst kind."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Think you that the ship has suffered injury?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whether she has done so or not," the captain said, "I fear greatly that
+      she is fast in the sand, and even the lightening of all her cargo will
+      scarce get her off; but we must try at least."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is little time that we shall have to try, Master Captain," Cuthbert,
+      who was standing close, said. "Me thinks those two long ships which are
+      putting out from that town will have something to say to that."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is too true," the captain said. "Those are the galleys of the Moorish
+      corsairs. They are thirty or forty oars, draw but little water, and will
+      be here like the wind."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What do you advise?" asked the earl. "The falconets which you have upon
+      the poop can make but a poor resistance to boats that can row around us,
+      and are no doubt furnished with heavy metal. They will quickly perceive
+      that we are aground and defenseless, and will be able to plump their shot
+      into us until they have knocked the good ship to pieces. However, we will
+      fight to the last. It shall not be said that the Earl of Evesham was taken
+      by infidel dogs and sold as a slave, without striking a blow in his
+      defense."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert stood watching the corsairs, which were now rowing toward them at
+      all speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks, my lord," he said presently, "if I might venture to give an
+      opinion, that we might yet trick the infidel."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "As how, Cuthbert?" the earl said. "Speak out; you know that I have great
+      faith in your sagacity."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think, sir," the page said, "that did we send all your men below,
+      leaving only the crew of the vessel on deck, they would take us for a
+      merchant ship which has been wrecked here, and exercise but little care
+      how they approach us. The men on deck might make a show of firing once or
+      twice with the falconets. The pirates, disdaining such a foe, would row
+      alongside. Once there, we might fasten one or both to our side with
+      grapnels, and then, methinks, that English bill and bow will render us
+      more than a match for Moorish pirates, and one of these craft can scarcely
+      carry more men than we have. I should propose to take one of them by
+      force, and drive the pirates overboard; take possession of, if possible,
+      or beat off her consort; and then take the most valuable stores from the
+      ship and make our way as best we can to the north."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Well thought of!" exclaimed the earl cordially. "You have indeed imagined
+      a plan which promises well. What think you, captain?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think, my lord," the Genoese said, "that the plan is an excellent one,
+      and promises every success. If your men will all go below, holding their
+      arms in readiness for the signal, mine shall prepare grapnels and ropes,
+      and the first of these craft which comes alongside they will lash so
+      securely to the Rose that I warrant me she gets not away."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These preparations were soon made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The soldiers, who at first had been filled with apprehension at the
+      thought of slavery among the infidels, were now delighted at the prospect
+      of a struggle ending in escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The archers prepared their bows and arrows, and stood behind the portholes
+      in readiness to pour a volley into the enemy; the men-at-arms grasped
+      their pikes and swords; while above, the sailors moved hither and thither
+      as if making preparations for defense, but in reality preparing the
+      grapnels and ropes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the pirates was faster than the other, and soon coming within
+      reach, opened fire upon the Rose with a heavy cannon, which she carried in
+      her bow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The crew of the Rose replied with their falconets and sakers from the
+      poop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The corsair at first did not keep her course direct for the ship, but
+      rowed once or twice round her, firing as she did so. Then, apparently
+      satisfied that no great precaution need be observed with a feebly-manned
+      ship in so great a strait as the Rose, they set up a wild cry of "Allah!"
+      and rowed toward her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In two minutes the corsair was alongside of the Rose, and the fierce crew
+      were climbing up her sides. As she came alongside the sailors cast
+      grapnels into her rigging, and fastened her to the Rose; and then a loud
+      shout of "Hurrah for England!" was heard; the ports opened, and a volley
+      of arrows was poured upon the astonished corsair; and from the deck above
+      the assailants were thrown back into the galley, and a swarm of heavily
+      armed men leaped down from the ship upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Taken by surprise, and indeed outnumbered, the resistance of the corsairs
+      was but slight. In a close fierce <i>mêlée</i> like this the light-armed
+      Moors had but little chance with the mail-clad English, whose heavy swords
+      and axes clove their defenses at a blow. The fight lasted but three
+      minutes, and then the last of the corsairs was overboard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men who rowed the galley had uttered the most piercing cries while
+      this conflict had been raging. They were unable to take any part in it,
+      had they been disposed to do so, for they were all slaves chained to the
+      oars.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scarcely had the conflict ended when the other galley arrived upon the
+      scene; but seeing what had happened, and that her consort had fallen into
+      the hands of the English, she at once turned her head, and rowed back
+      rapidly to the town from which she had come.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the slaves who rowed the galley were many white men, and their cries
+      of joy at their liberation greatly affected those who had thus
+      unexpectedly rescued them. Hammers were soon brought into requisition, the
+      shackles struck off them, and a scene of affecting joy took place. The
+      slaves were of all nationalities, but Italians and Spaniards, French and
+      Greeks formed the principal part. There was no time, however, to be lost;
+      the arms and munitions of war were hastily removed from the Rose, together
+      with the most valuable of the stores.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The galley-slaves again took their places, and this time willingly, at the
+      oars, the places of the weakest being supplied by the English, whose want
+      of skill was made up by the alacrity with which they threw their strength
+      into the work; and in an hour from the time that the galley had arrived
+      alongside of the Rose, her head was turned north, and with sixty oars she
+      was rowing at all speed for the mouth of the bay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0011" id="link2HCH0011"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XI. &mdash; IN THE HOLY LAND.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the galley which had escaped reached the town from which it had
+      started, it with three others at once set out in pursuit; while from a
+      narrow creek two other galleys made their appearance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were a few words of question among the English whether to stop and
+      give battle to these opponents, or to make their way with all speed. The
+      latter counsel prevailed; the earl pointing out that their lives were now
+      scarcely their own, and that they had no right on their way to the holy
+      sepulcher to risk them unnecessarily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately they had it in their hands to fight or escape, as they chose;
+      for doubly banked as the oars now were there was little chance of the
+      enemy's galleys overtaking them. Gradually as they rowed to sea the
+      pursuing vessels became smaller and smaller to view, until at last they
+      were seen to turn about and make again for land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After some consultation between the earl and the captain of the lost ship
+      it was determined to make for Rhodes. This had been settled as a halting
+      point for the fleet, and the earl thought it probable that the greater
+      portion of those scattered by the storm would rendezvous there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So it proved; after a voyage, which although not very long was tedious,
+      owing to the number of men cramped up in so small a craft, they came
+      within sight of the port of Rhodes, and were greatly pleased at seeing a
+      perfect forest of masts there, showing that at least the greater portion
+      of the fleet had survived the storm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was indeed the fact, and a number of other single ships dropped in
+      during the next day or two.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was great astonishment on the part of the fleet when the long, swift
+      galley was seen approaching, and numerous conjectures were offered as to
+      what message the pirates could be bringing&mdash;for there was no
+      mistaking the appearance of the long, dangerous-looking craft.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When, upon her approach, the standard of the Earl of Evesham was seen
+      flying on the bow, a great shout of welcome arose from the fleet; and King
+      Richard himself, who happened to be on the deck of the royal ship, shouted
+      to the earl to come on board and tell him what masquerading he was doing
+      there. The earl of course obeyed the order, anchoring near the royal
+      vessel, and going on board in a small boat, taking with him his page and
+      squire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king heard with great interest the tale of the adventures of the Rose;
+      and when the Earl of Evesham said that it was to Cuthbert that was due the
+      thought of the stratagem by which the galley was captured, and its crew
+      saved from being carried away into hopeless slavery, the king patted the
+      boy on the shoulder with such hearty force as nearly to throw Cuthbert off
+      his feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "By St. George!" said the monarch, "you are fated to be a very pink of
+      knights. You seem as thoughtful as you are brave; and whatever your age
+      may be, I declare that the next time your name is brought before me I will
+      call a chapter of knights, and they shall agree that exception shall be
+      made in your favor, and that you shall at once be admitted to the
+      honorable post. You will miss your page, Sir Walter; but I am sure you
+      will not grudge him that."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No, no, sire," said the earl. "The lad, as I have told your majesty, is a
+      connection of mine&mdash;distant it is true, but one of the nearest I have&mdash;and
+      it will give me the greatest pleasure to see him rising so rapidly, and on
+      a fair way to distinguish himself so highly. I feel already as proud of
+      him as if he were my own son."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fleet remained some two or three weeks at Rhodes, for many of the
+      vessels were sorely buffeted and injured, masts were carried away as well
+      as bulwarks battered in, and the efforts of the crews and of those of the
+      whole of the artificers of Rhodes were called into requisition. Light
+      sailing craft were sent off in all directions, for the king was in a fever
+      of anxiety. Among the vessels still missing was that which bore the Queen
+      of Navarre and the fair Berengaria.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One day a solitary vessel was seen approaching. "Another of our lost
+      sheep," the earl said, looking out over the poop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She proved, however, to be a merchant ship of Greece, and newly come from
+      Cyprus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Her captain went on board the royal ship, and delivered a message to the
+      king, to the effect that two of the vessels had been cast upon the coast
+      of Cyprus, that they had been plundered by the people, the crews
+      ill-treated and made prisoners by the king, and that the Queen of Navarre
+      and the princess were in their hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This roused King Richard into one of his furies. "Before I move a step
+      toward the Holy Land," he said, "I will avenge these injuries upon this
+      faithless and insolent king. I swear that I will make him pay dearly for
+      having laid a hand upon these ladies."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At once the signal was hoisted for all the vessels in a condition to sail
+      to take on board water and provisions, and to prepare to sail for Cyprus;
+      and the next morning at daybreak the fleet sailed out, and made their way
+      toward that island, casting anchor off the harbor of Famagosta.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard sent a messenger on shore to the king, ordering him at once
+      to release the prisoners; to make the most ample compensation to them; to
+      place ships at their service equal to those which had been destroyed; and
+      to pay a handsome sum of money as indemnity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The King of Cyprus, however, an insolent and haughty despot, sent back a
+      message of defiance. King Richard at once ordered the anchors to be
+      raised, and all to follow the royal ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fleet entered the harbor of Famagosta; the English archers began the
+      fight by sending a flight of arrows into the town. This was answered from
+      the walls by a shower of stones and darts from the machines.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no time wasted. The vessels were headed toward the shore, and as
+      the water was deep, many of them were able to run close alongside the
+      rocky wharves. In an instant, regardless of the storm of weapons poured
+      down by the defenders, the English leaped ashore.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The archers kept up so terrible a rain of missiles against the battlements
+      that the defenders could scarcely show themselves for an instant there,
+      and the men-at-arms, placing ladders against them, speedily mounted, and
+      putting aside all opposition, poured into the town. The effeminate Greek
+      soldiers of the monarch could offer no effectual resistance whatever, and
+      he himself fled from the palace and gained the open country, followed by a
+      few adherents. The English gained a considerable booty, for in those days
+      a town taken by assault was always looked upon as the property of the
+      captors. The Queen of Navarre and the princess were rescued.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard, however, was not satisfied with the success he had gained,
+      and was determined to punish this insolent little king. Accordingly the
+      English were set in motion into the interior, and town after town speedily
+      fell, or opened their gate to him. The king, deserted by his troops, and
+      detested by his people for having brought so terrible a scourge upon them
+      by his reckless conduct, now sued for peace; but King Richard would give
+      him no terms except dethronement, and this he was forced to accept. He was
+      deprived of his crown, and banished from the island.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king now, to the surprise of his barons, announced his intention of at
+      once marrying the Princess Berengaria.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Popular as he was, there was yet some quiet grumbling among his troops; as
+      they said, with justice, they had been waiting nearly six months in the
+      island of Sicily, and the king might well have married there, instead of a
+      fresh delay being caused when so near their place of destination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the king as usual had his own way, and the marriage was
+      solemnized amid great rejoicing and solemnity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a brilliant scene indeed in the cathedral of Limasol. There were
+      assembled all the principal barons of England, together with a great
+      number of the nobles of Cyprus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Certainly no better matched pair ever stood at the altar together, for as
+      King Richard was one of the strongest and bravest men of his own or any
+      other time, so Berengaria is admitted to have been one of the loveliest
+      maidens.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The air was rent with the acclamations of the assembled English host and
+      of the numerous inhabitants of Limasol as they emerged from the cathedral.
+      For a fortnight the town was given up to festivity; tournaments,
+      joustings, banquets succeeded each other day after day, and the islanders,
+      who were fond of pleasure, and indeed very wealthy, vied with the English
+      in the entertainments which they gave in honor of the occasion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The festivities over, the king gave the welcome order to proceed on their
+      voyage. They had now been joined by all the vessels left behind at Rhodes,
+      and it was found that only a few were missing, and that the great storm,
+      terrible as it had been, had inflicted less damage upon the fleet than was
+      at first feared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days' sail brought them within sight of the white walls of Acre, and
+      it was on June 8, 1191, that the fleet sailed into the port of that town.
+      Tremendous acclamations greeted the arrival of the English army by the
+      host assembled on the shores.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Acre had been besieged for two years, but in vain; and even the arrival of
+      the French army under Philip Augustus had failed to turn the scale. The
+      inhabitants defended themselves with desperate bravery; every assault upon
+      the walls had been repulsed with immense slaughter; and at no great
+      distance off the Sultan Saladin, with a large army, was watching the
+      progress of the siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fame of King Richard and the English was so great, however, that the
+      besiegers had little doubt that his arrival would change the position of
+      things; and even the French, in spite of the bad feeling which had existed
+      in Sicily, joined with the knights and army of the King of Jerusalem in
+      acclaiming the arrival of the English.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Philip Augustus, the French king, was of a somewhat weak and wavering
+      disposition. It would have been thought that after his dispute with King
+      Richard he would have gladly done all in his power to carry Acre before
+      the arrival of his great rival. To the great disappointment of the French,
+      however, he declared that he would take no step in the general assault
+      until the arrival of Richard; and although the French had given some
+      assistance to the besiegers, the army had really remained passive for many
+      weeks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, however, that the English had arrived, little time was lost; for the
+      moment the dissensions and jealousies between the monarchs were patched
+      up, the two hosts naturally imitated the example of their sovereigns, and
+      French and English worked side by side in throwing up trenches against the
+      walls, in building movable towers for the attack, and in preparing for the
+      great onslaught.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The French were the first to finish their preparations, and they delivered
+      a tremendous assault upon the walls. The besieged, however, did not lose
+      heart, and with the greatest bravery repulsed every attempt. The scaling
+      ladders were hurled backward, the towers were destroyed by Greek fire;
+      boiling oil was hurled down upon the men who advanced under the shelter of
+      machines to undermine the walls; and after desperate fighting the French
+      fell back, baffled and beaten.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was some quiet exultation in the English lines at the defeat of the
+      French, for they believed that a better fortune would crown their own
+      efforts. Such, however, to their surprise and mortification, was not the
+      case. When their preparations were completed they attacked with splendid
+      bravery. They were fighting under the eyes of their king and in sight of
+      the French army, who had a few days before been baffled; and if bravery
+      and devotion could have carried the walls of Acre, assuredly King
+      Richard's army would have accomplished the task.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was, however, too great for them, and with vast loss the army fell back
+      to its camp, King Richard raging like a wounded lion. Many of his barons
+      had been killed in the assault, and the pikemen and men-at-arms had
+      suffered heavily. The Earl of Evesham had been wounded; Cuthbert had taken
+      no part in the assault, for the earl, knowing his bravery, had forbidden
+      his doing so, as he foresaw the struggle would be of the most desperate
+      character; and as it was not usual for pages to accompany their lords on
+      the battlefield, Cuthbert could not complain of his being forbidden to
+      take part in the fight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl, however, permitted him to accompany Cnut and the bowmen, who did
+      great service by the accuracy of their aim, preventing by their storm of
+      arrows the men on the battlements from taking steady aim and working their
+      machines, and so saved the Earl of Evesham's troop and those fighting near
+      him from suffering nearly as heavy loss as some of those engaged in other
+      quarters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But while successful in beating off all assaults, the defenders of Acre
+      were now nearly at the end of their resources. The Emperor Saladin,
+      although he had collected an army of two hundred thousand men, yet feared
+      to advance and give battle to the Crusaders in their own lines&mdash;for
+      they had thrown up round their camp strong intrenchments to prevent the
+      progress of the siege being disturbed by forces from without.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The people of Acre seeing the time pass and no sign of a rescuing force,
+      their provisions being utterly exhausted, and pestilence and fever making
+      frightful ravages in the city, at last determined to surrender.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For over two years they had made a resistance of the most valiant
+      description, and now, despairing of success or rescue, and seeing the
+      hosts of their besiegers increasing day by day, they hoisted a flag upon
+      the walls and sent a deputation to the kings, asking for terms if they
+      submitted. They would have done well had they submitted upon the arrival
+      of the French and English reinforcements. For the monarchs, annoyed by the
+      defeat of their forces and by the heavy losses they had sustained, and
+      knowing that the besieged were now at their last crust, were not disposed
+      to be merciful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the horrors which then attended the capture of cities in a war in
+      which so little quarter was given on either side were avoided. The city
+      was to be surrendered; the much-prized relic contained within its walls&mdash;said
+      to be a piece of the true cross which had been captured by the Saracens at
+      the battle of Tiberias, in which they had almost annihilated the Christian
+      armies a few years before&mdash;was to be surrendered; the Christian
+      prisoners in their hands were to be given up unharmed; and the inhabitants
+      undertook to pay two hundred thousand pieces of gold to the kings within
+      forty days, under the condition that the fighting men now taken prisoners
+      were to be put to death should this ransom not be paid.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The conquest of Acre was hailed throughout Christendom as a triumph of the
+      highest importance. It opened again the gates of the Holy Land; and so
+      tremendous was the strength of the fortress that it was deemed that if
+      this stronghold were unable to resist effectually the arms of the
+      Crusaders, and that if Saladin with so great an army did not dare to
+      advance to its rescue, then the rest of the Holy Land would speedily fall
+      under the hands of the invading army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the fall of Acre, however, the dissensions between the two kings,
+      which had for awhile been allowed to rest while the common work was to be
+      done, broke out again with renewed intensity. The jealousy of Philip
+      Augustus was raised to the highest point by the general enthusiasm of the
+      combined armies for the valiant King of England, and by the authority
+      which that monarch exercised in the councils. He therefore suddenly
+      announced his intention of returning to France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This decision at first occasioned the greatest consternation in the ranks
+      of the Crusaders; but this feeling was lessened when the king announced
+      that he should leave a large portion of the French army behind, under the
+      command of the Duke of Burgundy. The wiser councilors were satisfied with
+      the change. Although there was a reduction of the total fighting force,
+      yet the fact that it was now centered under one head, and that King
+      Richard would now be in supreme command, was deemed to more than
+      counterbalance the loss of a portion of the French army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before starting on the march for Jerusalem King Richard sullied his
+      reputation by causing all the defenders of Acre to be put to death, their
+      ransom not having arrived at the stipulated time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then the allied army set out upon their journey. The fleet cruised along
+      near them, and from it they obtained all that was requisite for their
+      wants, and yet, notwithstanding these advantages, the toil and fatigue
+      were terrible. Roads scarcely existed, and the army marched across the
+      rough and broken country. There was no straggling, but each kept his
+      place; and if unable to do so, fell and died. The blazing sun poured down
+      upon them with an appalling force; the dust which rose when they left the
+      rocks and came upon flat, sandy ground almost smothered them. Water was
+      only obtainable at the halts, and then was frequently altogether
+      insufficient for the wants of the army; while in front, on flank, and in
+      rear hovered clouds of the cavalry of Saladin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At times King Richard would allow parties of his knights to detach
+      themselves from the force to drive off these enemies. But it was the chase
+      of a lion after a hare. The knights in their heavy armor and powerful
+      steeds were left behind as if standing still, by the fleet Bedouins on
+      their desert coursers; and the pursuers, exhausted and worn out, were
+      always glad to regain the ranks of the army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These clouds of cavalry belonging to the enemy did not content themselves
+      with merely menacing and cutting off stragglers. At times, when they
+      thought they saw an opening, they would dash in and attack the column
+      desperately, sometimes gaining temporary advantages, killing and wounding
+      many, then fleeing away again into the desert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding that it was impossible to catch these wary horsemen, King Richard
+      ordered his bowmen to march outside his cavalry, so that when the enemy's
+      horse approached within bowshot they should open upon them with arrows;
+      then, should the horsemen persist in charging, the archers were at once to
+      take refuge behind the lines of the knights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Day after day passed in harassing conflicts. The distance passed over each
+      day was very small, and the sufferings of the men from thirst, heat, and
+      fatigue enormous. Cuthbert could well understand now what he had heard of
+      great armies melting away, for already men began to succumb in large
+      numbers to the terrible heat, and the path traversed by the army was
+      scattered with corpses of those who had fallen victims to sunstroke. Not
+      even at night did the attacks of the enemy cease, and a portion of the
+      harassed force was obliged to keep under arms to repel assaults.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So passed the time until the army arrived at Azotus, and there, to the
+      delight of the Crusaders, who only longed to get at their foes, they
+      beheld the whole force of Saladin, two hundred thousand strong, barring
+      their way. Had it not been for the stern discipline enforced by King
+      Richard the knights of England and France would have repeated the mistake
+      which had caused the extermination of the Christian force at Tiberias, and
+      would have leveled their lances and charged recklessly into the mass of
+      their enemies. But the king, riding round the flanks and front of the
+      force, gave his orders in the sternest way, with the threat that any man
+      who moved from the ranks should die by his hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The army was halted, the leaders gathered round the king, and a hasty
+      consultation was held. Richard insisted upon the fight being conducted
+      upon the same principles as the march&mdash;that the line of archers
+      should stand outside the knights, and should gall the advancing force with
+      arrows till the last moment, and then retire among the cavalry, only to
+      sally out again as the Bedouins fell back from the steel wall of horsemen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had now for the first time donned full armor, and rode behind the
+      Earl of Evesham as his esquire, for the former esquire had been left
+      behind, ill with fever at Acre.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0012" id="link2HCH0012"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XII. &mdash; THE ACCOLADE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was now a year since they had left England, and Cuthbert had much grown
+      and widened out in the interval, and had never neglected an opportunity of
+      practicing with arms; and the earl was well aware that he should obtain as
+      efficient assistance from him in time of need as he could desire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the first time that Cuthbert, and indeed the great proportion of
+      those present in the Christian host, had seen the enemy in force, and they
+      eagerly watched the vast array. It was picturesque in the extreme, with a
+      variety and brightness of color rivaling that of the Christian host. In
+      banners and pennons the latter made a braver show; but the floating robes
+      of the infidel showed a far brighter mass of color than the steel armor of
+      the Christians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here were people drawn from widely separated parts of Saladin's dominions.
+      Here were Nubians from the Nile, tall and powerful men, jet black in skin,
+      with lines of red and white paint on their faces, giving a ghastly and
+      wild appearance to them. On their shoulders were skins of lions and other
+      wild animals. They carried short bows, and heavy clubs studded with iron.
+      By them were the Bedouin cavalry, light, sinewy men, brown as berries,
+      with white turbans and garments. Near these were the cavalry from Syria
+      and the plains of Assyria&mdash;wild horsemen with semi-barbarous armor
+      and scarlet trappings. Here were the solid lines of the Egyptian infantry,
+      steady troops, upon whom Saladin much relied. Here were other tribes,
+      gathered from afar, each distinguished by its own particular marks. In
+      silence did this vast array view awhile the solid mass of the Christians.
+      Suddenly a strange din of discordant music from thousands of musical
+      instruments&mdash;conches and horns, cymbals and drums, arose in wild
+      confusion. Shouts of defiance in a dozen tongues and from two hundred
+      thousand throats rose wild and shrill upon the air, while clear above all
+      the din were heard the strange vibratory cries of the warriors from the
+      Egyptian highlands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "One would think," said Cnut grimly to Cuthbert, "that the infidels
+      imagine we are a flock of antelopes to be frightened by an outcry. They
+      would do far better to save their wind for future use. They will want it,
+      methinks, when we get fairly among them. Who would have thought that a
+      number of men, heathen and infidel though they be, could have made so foul
+      an outcry?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert laughed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Every one fights according to his own method, Cnut; and I am not sure
+      that there is not some thing to be said for this outcry, for it is really
+      so wild and fearful that it makes my blood almost curdle in my veins; and
+      were it not that I know the proved valor of our knights and footmen, I
+      should feel shaken by this terrible introduction to the fight."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I heed it no more," said Cnut, "than the outcry of wild fowl, when one
+      comes upon them suddenly on a lake in winter. It means no more than that;
+      and I reckon that they are trying to encourage themselves fully as much as
+      to frighten us. However, we shall soon see. If they can fight as well as
+      they can scream, they certainly will get no answering shouts from us. The
+      English bulldog fights silently, and bite as hard as he will, you will
+      hear little beyond a low growl. Now, my men," he said, turning to his
+      archers, "methinks the heathen are about to begin in earnest. Keep steady;
+      do not fire until you are sure that they are within range. Draw your bows
+      well to your ears, and straightly and steadily let fly. Never heed the
+      outcry or the rush, keep steady to the last moment. There is shelter
+      behind you, and fierce as the attack may be, you can find a sure refuge
+      behind the line of the knights."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut with his archers formed part of the line outside the array of English
+      knights, and the arrows of the English bowmen fell fast as bands of the
+      Bedouin horse circled round them in the endeavor to draw the Christians on
+      to the attack. For some time Saladin persisted in these tactics. With his
+      immense superiority of force he reckoned that if the Christian chivalry
+      would but charge him, the victory of Tiberias would be repeated. Hemmed in
+      by numbers, borne down by the weight of armor and the effects of the
+      blazing sun, the knights would succumb as much to fatigue as to the force
+      of their foes. King Richard's orders, however, were well obeyed, and at
+      last the Moslem chief, urged by the entreaties of his leading emirs, who
+      felt ashamed that so large a force should hesitate to attack one so vastly
+      inferior in numbers, determined upon taking the initiative, and forming
+      his troops in a semicircle round the Christian army, launched his horsemen
+      to the attack. The instant they came within range a cloud of arrows from
+      the English archers fell among them, but the speed at which the desert
+      horses covered the ground rendered it impossible for the archers to
+      discharge more than one or two shafts before the enemy were upon them.
+      Quickly as they now slipped back and sought refuge under the lances of the
+      knights, many of them were unable to get back in time, and were cut down
+      by the Saracens. The rest crept between the horses or under their bellies
+      into the rear, and there prepared to sally out again as soon as the enemy
+      retired. The Christian knights sat like a wall of steel upon their horses,
+      their lances were leveled, and brave as the Bedouin horsemen were, they
+      felt to break this massive line was impossible. The front line, however,
+      charged well up to the points of the lances, against which they hewed with
+      their sharp scimiters, frequently severing the steel top from the ashpole,
+      and then breaking through and engaging in hand-to-hand conflict with the
+      knights. Behind the latter sat their squires, with extra spears and arms
+      ready to hand to their masters; and in close combat, the heavy maces with
+      their spike ends were weapons before which the light-clad horsemen went
+      down like reeds before a storm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hour after hour the Arab horsemen persisted in their attack, suffering
+      heavily, but determined to conquer if possible. Then Saladin suddenly
+      ordered a retreat, and at seeing their enemy fly, the impetuosity of the
+      Crusaders at last broke out. With a shout they dashed after the foe. King
+      Richard, knowing that his followers had already shown a patience far
+      beyond what he could have expected, now headed the onslaught, performing
+      prodigies of valor with his single arm, and riding from point to point to
+      see that all was well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The early resistance of the infidel host was comparatively slight. The
+      heavy mass of the Christian cavalry, with their leveled lances, swept
+      through the ranks of the light horsemen, and trampled them down like grass
+      beneath their feet; but every moment the resistance became more stubborn.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Saladin, knowing the Christians would sooner or later assume the
+      offensive, had gathered his troops line in line behind the front ranks,
+      and as the force of the Crusaders' charge abated, so did the number of
+      foes in their front multiply. Not only this, but upon either side chosen
+      bands swept down, and ere long the Christians were brought to a stand, and
+      all were fighting hand to hand with their enemies. The lances were thrown
+      away now, and with ax and mace each fought for himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham was one of a group of knights whom King Richard had
+      that day ordered to keep close to his person, and around this group the
+      fight raged most furiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Saladin, aware of the extreme personal valor and warlike qualities of King
+      Richard, set the greatest value upon his death or capture, and had ordered
+      a large number of his best troops to devote their whole attention to
+      attacking the King of England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The royal standard carried behind the king was a guide to their onslaught,
+      and great as was the strength and valor of King Richard, he with
+      difficulty was able to keep at bay the hosts that swept around him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now that the lance had been abandoned for battle-ax, Cuthbert was able to
+      take an active part in the struggle, his duties consisting mainly in
+      guarding the rear of his master, and preventing his being overthrown by
+      any sudden attack on the flank or from behind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard was bent not only on defending himself from the attacks of
+      his foes, but on directing the general course of the battle; and from time
+      to time he burst, with his own trusty knights, through the ring of foes,
+      and rode from point to point of the field, calling the knights together,
+      exhorting them to steadiness, and restoring the fight where its fortunes
+      seemed doubtful. At one time the impetuosity of the king led him into
+      extreme danger. He had burst through the enemy surrounding him, and these,
+      by order of their captain, allowed him to pass through their ranks, and
+      then threw themselves together in his rear, to cut him off from the
+      knights who rode behind. The maneuver was successful. The rush of horsemen
+      fairly carried away the Christian knights, and one or two alone were able
+      to make their way through.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Amid the wild confusion that raged, where each man was fighting for his
+      own life, and but little view of what was passing could be obtained
+      through the barred visor, the fact that the king was separated from them
+      was known to but few. Sir Walter himself was engaged fiercely in a
+      hand-to-hand fight with four Bedouins who surrounded him, when Cuthbert
+      shouted:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The king, Sir Walter! the king! He is cut off and surrounded! For
+      heaven's sake ride to him. See! the royal standard is down."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a shout the earl turned, brained one of his foes with a sweep of his
+      heavy ax, and, followed by Cuthbert, dashed to the assistance of the king.
+      The weight of his horse and armor cleft through the crowd, and in a brief
+      space he penetrated to the side of King Richard, who was borne upon by a
+      host of foes. Just as they reached them a Bedouin who had been struck from
+      his horse crawled beneath the noble charger of King Richard, and drove his
+      scimiter deep into its bowels. The animal reared high in its sudden pain,
+      and then fell on the ground, carrying the king, who was unable to
+      disengage himself quickly enough.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      [Image: WITH A SHOUT THE EARL TURNED, FOLLOWED BY CUTHBERT, AND DASHED TO
+      THE ASSISTANCE OF THE KING.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In an instant the Earl of Evesham had leaped from his horse and with his
+      broad triangular shield extended, sought to cover him from the press of
+      enemies. Cuthbert imitated his lord, and strove to defend the latter from
+      attacks from the rear. For a moment or two the sweep of the earl's heavy
+      ax and Cuthbert's circling sword kept back the foe, but this could not
+      last. King Richard in vain strove to extricate his leg from beneath his
+      fallen steed. Cuthbert saw at a glance that the horse still lived, and
+      with a sudden slash of his sword he struck it on the hind quarter. Goaded
+      by the pain the noble animal made a last effort to rise, but only to fall
+      back dead. The momentary action was, however, sufficient for King Richard,
+      who drew his leg from under it, and with his heavy battle-ax in hand, rose
+      with a shout, and stood by the side of the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In vain did the Bedouins strive to cut down and overpower the two
+      champions; in vain did they urge their horses to ride over them. With each
+      sweep of his ax the king either dismounted a foe or clove in the head of
+      his steed, and a wall of slain around them testified to the tremendous
+      power of their arms. Still, even such warriors as these could not long
+      sustain the conflict. The earl had already received several desperate
+      wounds, and the king himself was bleeding from some severe gashes with the
+      keen-edged scimiters. Cuthbert was already down, when a shout of "St.
+      George!" was heard, and a body of English knights clove through the throng
+      of Saracens and reached the side of King Richard. Close behind these in a
+      mass pressed the British footmen with bill and pike, the enemy giving way
+      foot by foot before their steady discipline.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king was soon on horseback again, and rallying his troops on, led them
+      for one more great and final charge upon the enemy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The effect was irresistible. Appalled by the slaughter which they had
+      suffered, and by the tremendous strength and energy of the Christian
+      knights, the Saracens broke and fled; and the last reserves of Saladin
+      gave way as the king, shouting his war-cry of "God help the holy
+      sepulcher!" fell upon them. Once, indeed, the battle still seemed
+      doubtful, for a fresh band of the enemy at that moment arrived and joined
+      in the fray. The Crusaders were now, however, inspired with such courage
+      and confidence that they readily obeyed the king's war-cry, gathered in a
+      firm body, and hurled themselves upon this new foe. Then the Saracens
+      finally turned and fled, and the Christian victory was complete.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was one of the features of this war that however thorough the victories
+      of the Christians, the Saracens very speedily recovered from their
+      effects. A Christian defeat was crushing and entire; the knights died as
+      they stood, and defeat meant annihilation. Upon the other hand, the
+      Saracens and Bedouins, when they felt that their efforts to win the battle
+      were unsuccessful, felt no shame or humiliation in scattering like sheep.
+      On their fleet horses and in their light attire they could easily distance
+      the Christians, who never, indeed, dreamed of pursuing them. The day after
+      the fight the enemy would collect again under their chiefs, and be as
+      ready as before to renew their harassing warfare.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On his return from the field the king assembled many of his principal
+      knights and leaders, and summoned the Earl of Evesham, with the message
+      that he was to bring his esquire with him. When they reached the tent the
+      king said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lords, as some of you may be aware, I have this day had a narrow
+      escape from death. Separated from you in the battle, and attended only by
+      my standard-bearer, I was surrounded by the Saracens. I should doubtless
+      have cleft my way through the infidel dogs, but a foul peasant stabbed my
+      charger from below, and the poor brute fell with me. My standard-bearer
+      was killed, and in another moment my nephew Arthur would have been your
+      king, had it not been that my good lord here, attended by this brave lad,
+      appeared. I have seen a good deal of fighting, but never did I see a
+      braver stand than they made above my body. The Earl of Evesham, as you all
+      know, is one of my bravest knights, and to him I can simply say, 'Thanks;
+      King Richard does not forget a benefit like this.' But such aid as I might
+      well look for from so stout a knight as the Earl of Evesham I could hardly
+      have expected on the part of a mere boy like this. It is not the first
+      time that I have been under a debt of gratitude to him; for it was his
+      watchfulness and bravery which saved Queen Berengaria from being carried
+      off by the French in Sicily. I deemed him too young then for the order of
+      knighthood&mdash;although, indeed, bravery has no age; still for a private
+      benefit, and that performed against allies, in name at least, I did not
+      wish so far to fly in the face of usage as to make him a knight. I
+      promised him then, however, that the first time he distinguished himself
+      against the infidel he should win his spurs. I think that you will agree
+      with me, my lords, that he has done so. Not only did he stand over me, and
+      with great bravery defend Sir Walter from attacks from behind, but his
+      ready wit saved me when even his sword and that of Sir Walter would have
+      failed to do so. Penned down under poor Robin I was powerless to move
+      until our young esquire, in an interval of slashing at his assailants,
+      found time to give a sharp blow together with a shout to Robin. The poor
+      beast tried to rise, and the movement, short as it was, enabled me to draw
+      my leg from under him, and then with my mace I was enabled to make a stand
+      until you arrived at my side. I think, my lords, that you will agree with
+      me that Cuthbert, the son of Sir William de Lance, is fit for the honor of
+      knighthood."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A general chorus of approval arose from the assembly, and the king,
+      bidding Cuthbert kneel before him, drew his sword and laid it across his
+      shoulders, dubbing him Sir Cuthbert de Lance. When he had risen the great
+      barons of England pressed round to shake his hand, and Cuthbert, who was a
+      modest young fellow, felt almost ashamed at the honors which were bestowed
+      upon him. The usual ceremonies and penances which young knights had to
+      undergo before admission into the body&mdash;and which in those days were
+      extremely punctilious, and indeed severe, consisting, among other things,
+      in fasting, in watching the armor at night, in seclusion and religious
+      services&mdash;were omitted when the accolade was bestowed for bravery in
+      the field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king ordered his armorer at once to make for Cuthbert a suit of the
+      finest armor, and authorized him to carry on his shield a sword raising a
+      royal crown from the ground, in token of the deed for which the honor of
+      knighthood had been bestowed upon him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon his return to the earl's camp the news of his new dignity spread at
+      once among the followers of Sir Walter, and many and hearty were the
+      cheers that went up from the throats of the Saxon foresters, led by Cnut.
+      These humble friends were indeed delighted at his success, for they felt
+      that to him they owed very much; and his kindness of manner and the gayety
+      of heart which he had shown during the hardships they had undergone since
+      their start had greatly endeared him to them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was now to take rank among the knights who followed the banner of
+      the earl. A tent was erected for him, an esquire assigned to him, and the
+      lad as he entered his new abode felt almost bewildered at the change which
+      had taken place in one short day&mdash;that he, at the age of sixteen,
+      should have earned the honor of knighthood, and the approval of the King
+      of England, expressed before all the great barons of the realm, was indeed
+      an honor such as he could never have hoped for; and the thought of what
+      his mother would say should the news reach her in her quiet Saxon home
+      brought the tears into his eyes. He had not gone through the usual
+      religious ceremonies, but he knelt in his tent alone, and prayed that he
+      might be made worthy of the honors bestowed upon him; that he might
+      fulfill the duties of a Christian knight fearlessly and honorably; that
+      his sword might never be raised but for the right; that he might devote
+      himself to the protection of the oppressed, and the honor of God; that his
+      heart might be kept from evil; and that he might carry through life
+      unstained his new escutcheon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If the English had thought that their victory would have gained them
+      immunity from the Saracen attacks they were speedily undeceived. The host,
+      indeed, which had barred their way had broken up; but its fragments were
+      around them, and the harassing attacks began again with a violence and
+      persistency even greater than before. The Crusaders, indeed, occupied only
+      the ground upon which they stood. It was death to venture one hundred
+      yards from the camp unless in a strong body; and the smallest efforts to
+      bring in food from the country round were instantly met and repelled. Only
+      in very strong bodies could the knights venture from camp even to forage
+      for their horses, and the fatigues and sufferings of all were in no way
+      relieved by the great victory of Azotus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0013" id="link2HCH0013"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XIII. &mdash; IN THE HANDS OF THE SARACENS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The English had hoped that after one pitched battle they should be able to
+      advance upon Jerusalem, but they had reckoned without the climate and
+      illness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although unconquered in the fray, the Christian army was weakened by its
+      sufferings to such an extent that it was virtually brought to a
+      standstill. Even King Richard, with all his impetuosity, dared not venture
+      to cut adrift from the seashore and to march direct upon Jerusalem; that
+      city was certainly not to be taken without a long siege, and this could
+      only be undertaken by an army strong enough, not only to carry out so
+      great a task, but to meet and defeat the armies which Saladin would bring
+      up to the rescue, and to keep open the line down to Joppa, by which alone
+      provisions and the engines necessary for the siege could be brought up.
+      Hence the war resolved itself into a series of expeditions and detached
+      fights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The British camp was thoroughly fortified, and thence parties of the
+      knights sallied out and engaged in conflicts with the Saracens, with
+      varying success. On several of these expeditions Cuthbert attended the
+      earl, and behaved with a bravery which showed him well worthy of the
+      honors which he had received.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon one occasion the news reached camp that a party of knights, who had
+      gone out to guard a number of footmen cutting forage and bringing it into
+      camp, had been surrounded and had taken refuge in a small town, whose
+      gates they had battered in when they saw the approach of an overwhelming
+      host of the enemy. King Richard himself headed a strong force and advanced
+      to their assistance. Their approach was not seen until within a short
+      distance of the enemy, upon whom the Crusaders fell with the force of a
+      thunderbolt, and cleft their way through their lines. After a short pause
+      in the little town they prepared to again cut their way through, joined by
+      the party who had there been besieged. The task was now, however, far more
+      difficult; for the footmen would be unable to keep up with the rapid
+      charge of the knights, and it was necessary not only to clear the way, but
+      to keep it open for their exit. King Richard himself and the greater
+      portion of his knights were to lead the charge; another party were to
+      follow behind the footmen, who were ordered to advance at the greatest
+      speed of which they were capable, while their rearguard by charges upon
+      the enemy kept them at bay. To this latter party Cuthbert was attached.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Saracens followed their usual tactics, and this time with great
+      success. Dividing as the king with his knights charged them, they suffered
+      these to pass through with but slight resistance, and then closed in upon
+      their track, while another and still more numerous body fell upon the
+      footmen and their guard. Again and again did the knights charge through
+      the ranks of the Moslems, while the billmen stoutly kept together and
+      resisted the onslaughts of the enemy's cavalry. In spite of their bravery,
+      however, the storm of arrows shot by the desert horsemen thinned their
+      ranks with terrible rapidity. Charging up to the very point of the spears,
+      these wild horsemen fired their arrows into the faces of their foe, and
+      although numbers of them fell beneath the more formidable missiles sent by
+      the English archers, their numbers were so overwhelming that the little
+      band melted away. The small party of knights, too, were rapidly thinned,
+      although performing prodigious deeds of valor. The Saracens when
+      dismounted or wounded still fought on foot, their object being always to
+      stab or hough the horses, and so dismount the riders. King Richard and his
+      force, though making the most desperate efforts to return to the
+      assistance of the rearguard, were baffled by the sturdy resistance of the
+      Saracens, and the position of those in the rear was fast becoming
+      hopeless.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One by one the gallant little band of knights fell, and a sea of turbans
+      closed over the fluttering plumes. Cuthbert, after defending himself with
+      extreme bravery for a long time, was at last separated from the small
+      remainder of his comrades by a rush of the enemy's horse, and when
+      fighting desperately he received a heavy blow at the back of the head from
+      the mace of a huge Nubian soldier, and fell senseless to the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he recovered his consciousness the first impression upon his mind was
+      the stillness which had succeeded to the din of battle; the shouts and
+      war-cries of the Crusaders, the wild yells of the Moslems were hushed, and
+      in their place was a quiet chatter in many unknown tongues, and the sound
+      of laughter and feasting. Raising his head and looking round, Cuthbert saw
+      that he and some ten of his comrades were lying together in the midst of a
+      Saracen camp, and that he was a prisoner to the infidels. The sun streamed
+      down with tremendous force upon them; there was no shelter; and though all
+      were wounded and parched with thirst, the Saracens of whom they besought
+      water, pointing to their mouths and making signs of their extreme thirst,
+      laughed in their faces, and signified by a gesture that it was scarcely
+      worth the trouble to drink when they were likely so soon to be put to
+      death.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was late in the afternoon before any change was manifest. Then Cuthbert
+      observed a stir in the camp; the men ran to their horses, leaped on their
+      backs, and with wild cries of "Welcome!" started off at full speed.
+      Evidently some personage was about to arrive, and the fate of the
+      prisoners would be solved. A few words were from time to time exchanged
+      between these, each urging the other to keep up his heart and defy the
+      infidel. One or two had succumbed to their wounds during the afternoon,
+      and only six were able to stand erect when summoned to do so by some of
+      their guard, who made signs to them that a great personage was coming.
+      Soon the shouts of the horsemen and other sounds announced that the great
+      chief was near at hand, and the captives gathered from the swelling shouts
+      of the Arabs that the new arrival was Sultan Suleiman&mdash;or Saladin,
+      for he was called by both names&mdash;surrounded by a bodyguard of
+      splendidly-dressed attendants. The emir, who was himself plainly attired,
+      reined up his horse in front of the captives.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are English," he said, in the <i>lingua-franca</i>, which was the
+      medium of communication between the Eastern and Western peoples in those
+      days. "You are brave warriors, and I hear that before you were taken you
+      slaughtered numbers of my people. They did wrong to capture you and bring
+      you here to be killed. Your cruel king gives no mercy to those who fall
+      into his hands. You must not expect it here, you who without a pretense of
+      right invade my country, slaughter my people, and defeat my armies. The
+      murder of the prisoners of Acre has closed my heart to all mercy. There,
+      your king put ten thousand prisoners to death in cold blood, a month after
+      the capture of the place, because the money at which he had placed their
+      ransom had not arrived. We Arabs do not carry huge masses of gold about
+      with us; and although I could have had it brought from Egypt, I did not
+      think that so brave a monarch as Richard of England could have committed
+      so cruel an action in cold blood. When we are fresh from battle, and our
+      wounds are warm, and our hearts are full of rage and fury, we kill our
+      prisoners; but to do so weeks after a battle is contrary to the laws alike
+      of your religion and of ours. However, it is King Richard who has sealed
+      your doom, not I. You are knights, and I do not insult you with the offer
+      of turning from your religion and joining me. Should one of you wish to
+      save his life on these conditions, I will, however, promise him a place of
+      position and authority among us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      None of the knights moved to accept the offer, but each, as the eye of the
+      emir ran along the line, answered with an imprecation of contempt and
+      hatred. Saladin waved his hand, and one by one the captives were led
+      aside, walking as proudly to their doom as if they had been going to a
+      feast. Each wrung the hand of the one next to him as he turned, and then
+      without a word followed his captors. There was a dull sound heard, and one
+      by one the heads of the knights rolled in the sand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert happened to be last in the line, and as the executioners laid
+      hands upon him and removed his helmet, the eye of the sultan fell upon
+      him, and he almost started at perceiving the extreme youth of his captive.
+      He held his hand aloft to arrest the movements of the executioners, and
+      signaled for Cuthbert to be brought before him again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are but a boy," he said. "All the knights who have hitherto fallen
+      into my hands have been men of strength and power; how is it that I see a
+      mere youth among their ranks, and wearing the golden spurs of knighthood?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "King Richard himself made me a knight," Cuthbert said proudly, "after
+      having stood across him when his steed had been foully stabbed at the
+      battle of Azotus, and the whole Moslem host were around him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah!" said the emir, "were you one of the two who, as I have heard,
+      defended the king for some time against all assaults? It were hard indeed
+      to kill so brave a youth. I doubt me not that at present you are as firmly
+      determined to die a Christian knight as those who have gone before you?
+      But time may change you. At any rate for the present your doom is
+      postponed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He turned to a gorgeously dressed noble next to him, and said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your brother, Ben Abin, is Governor of Jerusalem, and the gardens of the
+      palace are fair. Take this youth to him as a present, and set him to work
+      in his gardens. His life I have spared, in all else Ben Abin will be his
+      master."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert heard without emotion the words which changed his fate from death
+      to slavery. Many, he knew, who were captured in these wars were carried
+      away as slaves to different parts of Asia, and it did not seem to him that
+      the change was in any way a boon. However, life is dear, and it was but
+      natural that a thought should leap into his heart that soon either the
+      Crusaders might force a way into Jerusalem and there rescue him, or that
+      he himself might in some way escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sultan having thus concluded the subject, turned away, and galloped
+      off surrounded by his bodyguard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Those who had captured the Christians now stripped off the armor of
+      Cuthbert; then he was mounted on a barebacked steed, and with four
+      Bedouins, with their long lances, riding beside him, started for
+      Jerusalem. After a day of long and rapid riding the Arabs stopped suddenly
+      on the crest of a hill, with a shout of joy, and throwing themselves from
+      their horses bent with their foreheads to the earth at the sight of their
+      holy city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, as he gazed at the stately walls of Jerusalem, and the noble
+      buildings within, felt bitterly that it was not thus that he had hoped to
+      see the holy city. He had dreamed of arriving before it with his comrades,
+      proud and delighted at their success so far, and confident in their power
+      soon to wrest the town before them from the hands of the Moslems. Instead
+      of this he was a slave&mdash;a slave to the infidel, perhaps never more to
+      see a white face, save that of some other unfortunate like himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Even now in its fallen state no city is so impressive at first sight as
+      Jerusalem; the walls, magnificent in height and strength, and picturesque
+      in their deep embattlements, rising on the edge of a deep valley. Every
+      building has its name and history. Here is the church built by the first
+      Crusaders; there the mighty mosque of Suleiman on the site of the Temple;
+      far away on a projecting ridge the great building known as the Tomb of
+      Moses; on the right beyond the houses rise the towers on the Roman walls;
+      the Pool of Bethsaida lies in the hollow; in the center are the cupolas of
+      the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Among all the fairest cities of the
+      world, there are none which can compare in stately beauty with Jerusalem.
+      Doubtless it was a fairer city in those days, for long centuries of
+      Turkish possession have reduced many of the former stately palaces to
+      ruins. Then, as now, the banner of the Prophet floated over the high
+      places; but whereas at present the population is poor and squalid, the
+      city in those days contained a far larger number of inhabitants,
+      irrespective of the great garrison collected for its defense.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The place from which Cuthbert had his first sight of Jerusalem is that
+      from which the best view is to be obtained&mdash;the crest of the Mount of
+      Olives. After a minute or two spent in looking at the city the Arabs with
+      a shout continued their way down into the valley. Crossing this they
+      ascended the steep road to the walls, brandishing their lances and giving
+      yells of triumph; then riding two upon each side of their prisoner, to
+      protect him from any fanatic who might lay a hand upon him, they passed
+      under the gate known as the Gate of Suleiman into the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The populace thronged the streets; and the news brought by the horsemen
+      that a considerable portion of the Christian host had been defeated and
+      slain passed from mouth to mouth, and was received with yells of
+      exultation. Execrations were heaped upon Cuthbert, who rode along with an
+      air as quiet and composed as if he were the center of an ovation instead
+      of that of an outburst of hatred.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He would, indeed, speedily have been torn from his guards, had not these
+      shouted that he was placed in their hands by Saladin himself for conduct
+      to the governor. As the emir was as sharp and as ruthless with his own
+      people as with the prisoners who fell into his hands, the name acted as a
+      talisman, and Cuthbert and his escort rode forward without molestation
+      until they reached the entrance to the palace.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Dismounting, Cuthbert was now led before the governor himself, a stern and
+      grave-looking man, sitting cross-legged on a divan surrounded by officers
+      and attendants. He heard in silence the account given him by the escort,
+      bowed his head at the commands of Suleiman, and, without addressing a word
+      to Cuthbert, indicated to two attendants that he was to be removed into
+      the interior of the house. Here the young knight was led to a small
+      dungeon-like room; bread and dates with a cruse of water, were placed
+      before him; the door was then closed and locked without, and he found
+      himself alone with his thoughts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No one came near him that night, and he slept as soundly as he would have
+      done in his tent in the midst of the Christian host. He was resolved to
+      give no cause for ill-treatment or complaint to his captors, to work as
+      willingly, as cheerfully, as was in his power, and to seize the first
+      opportunity to make his escape, regardless of any risk of his life which
+      he might incur in doing so.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning the door opened, and a black slave led him into the garden,
+      which was surrounded by a very high and lofty wall. It was large, and full
+      of trees and flowers, and far more beautiful than any garden that Cuthbert
+      had seen in his native land. There were various other slaves at work; and
+      an Arab, who appeared to be the head of the gardeners, at once appointed
+      to Cuthbert the work assigned to him. A guard of Arabs with bow and spear
+      watched the doings of the slaves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With one glance round, Cuthbert was assured that escape from this garden,
+      at least, was not to be thought of, and that for the present patience
+      alone was possible. Dismissing all ideas of that kind from his mind, he
+      set to work with a steady attention to his task. He was very fond of
+      flowers, and soon he became so absorbed in his work as almost to forget
+      that he was a slave. It was not laborious&mdash;digging, planting, pruning
+      and training the flowers, and giving them copious draughts of water from a
+      large fountain in the center of the garden.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The slaves were not permitted to exchange a word with each other. At the
+      end of the day's work they were marched off to separate chambers, or, as
+      they might be called, dungeons. Their food consisted of water, dried
+      dates, and bread, and they had little to complain of in this respect;
+      indeed, the slaves in the gardens of the governor's house at Jerusalem
+      enjoyed an exceptionally favored existence. The governor himself was
+      absorbed in the cares of the city. The head gardener happened to be a man
+      of unusual humanity, and it was really in his hands that the comfort of
+      the prisoners was placed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sometimes in the course of the day veiled ladies would issue in groups
+      from the palace, attended by black slaves with drawn scimiters. They
+      passed without unveiling across the point where the slaves were at work,
+      and all were forbidden on pain of death to look up, or even to approach
+      the konak or pavilion, where the ladies threw aside their veils, and
+      enjoyed the scent and sight of the flowers, the splash of murmuring
+      waters, and the strains of music touched by skillful hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although Cuthbert wondered in his heart what these strange wrapped-up
+      figures might look like when the veils were thrown back, he certainly did
+      not care enough about the matter to run any risk of drawing the anger of
+      his guards upon himself by raising his eyes toward them; nor did he ever
+      glance up at the palace, which was also interdicted to the slaves. From
+      the lattice casements during the day the strains of music and merry
+      laughter often came down to the captives; but this, if anything, only
+      added to the bitterness of their position, by reminding them that they
+      were shut off for life from ever hearing the laughter of the loved ones
+      they had left behind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For upward of a month Cuthbert remained steadily at work, and during that
+      time no possible plan of escape had occurred to him, and he had indeed
+      resigned himself to wait, either until, as he hoped, the city would be
+      taken by the Christians, or until he himself might be removed from his
+      present post and sent into the country, where, although his lot would
+      doubtless be far harder, some chance of escape might open before him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One night, long after slumber had fallen upon the city, Cuthbert was
+      startled by hearing his door open. Rising to his feet, he saw a black
+      slave, and an old woman beside him. The latter spoke first in the <i>lingua-franca</i>:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My mistress, the wife of the governor, has sent me to ask your story. How
+      is it that, although but a youth, you are already a knight? How is it that
+      you come to be a slave to our people? The sultan himself sent you to her
+      lord. She would fain hear through me how it has happened. She is the
+      kindest of ladies, and the sight of your youth has touched her heart."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With thanks to the unknown lady who had felt an interest in him, Cuthbert
+      briefly related the events which had led to his captivity. The old woman
+      placed on the ground a basket containing some choice fruit and white
+      bread, and then departed with the negro as quietly as she had come,
+      leaving Cuthbert greatly pleased at what had taken place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Doubtless," he said to himself, "I shall hear again; and it may be that
+      through the pity of this lady some means of escape may open to me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although for some little time no such prospect appeared, yet the visits of
+      the old woman, which were frequently repeated, were of interest to him,
+      and seemed to form a link between him and the world.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After coming regularly every night for a week she bade the young knight
+      follow her, holding her finger to her lips in sign that caution must be
+      observed. Passing through several passages, he was at length led into a
+      room where a lady of some forty years of age, surrounded by several slaves
+      and younger women, was sitting. Cuthbert felt no scruple in making a deep
+      obeisance to her; the respect shown to women in the days of chivalry was
+      very great, and Cuthbert, in bowing almost to the ground before the lady
+      who was really his mistress, did not feel that he was humiliating himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Young slave," she said, "your story has interested us. We have frequently
+      watched from the windows, and have seen how willingly and patiently you
+      have worked; and it seems strange indeed that one so young should have
+      performed such feats of bravery as to win the honor of knighthood from the
+      hand of that greatest of warriors, Richard of England. What is it, we
+      would fain learn from your lips, that stirs up the heart of the Christian
+      world that they should launch their armies against us, who wish but to be
+      left alone, and who have no grudge against them? This city is as holy to
+      us as it is to you; and as we live around it, and all the country for
+      thousands of miles is ours, is it likely that we should allow it to be
+      wrested from us by strangers from a distance?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was spoken in some Eastern language of which Cuthbert understood no
+      word, but its purport was translated to him by the old woman who had
+      hitherto acted as his mistress' messenger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert reported the circumstances of the fight at Azotus, and endeavored
+      to explain the feelings which had given rise to the Crusade. He then, at
+      the orders of the lady, related the incidents of his voyage out, and
+      something of his life at home, which was more interesting even than the
+      tale of his adventures to his hearers, as to them the home-life of these
+      fierce Christian warriors was entirely unknown.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After an audience of two hours Cuthbert was conducted back to his cell,
+      his mistress assuring him of her good-will, and promising to do all in her
+      power to make his captivity as light as possible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0014" id="link2HCH0014"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XIV. &mdash; AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Two or three nights afterward the old woman again came to Cuthbert, and
+      asked him, in her mistress' name, if in any way he could suggest a method
+      of lightening his captivity, as his extreme youth and bravery of demeanor
+      had greatly pleased her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert replied that nothing but freedom could satisfy his longings; that
+      he was comfortable and not over-worked, but that he pined to be back again
+      with his friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old woman brought him on the following night a message to the effect
+      that his mistress would willingly grant him his liberty, but as he was
+      sent to her husband by the sultan, it would be impossible to free him
+      openly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From what she said," the old woman continued, "if you could see some plan
+      of making your escape, she would in no way throw difficulties in your
+      path; but it must not be known that the harem in any way connived at your
+      escape, for my lord's wrath would be terrible, and he is not a man to be
+      trifled with."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Looking round at the high walls that surrounded the garden, Cuthbert said
+      that he could think of no plan whatever for escaping from such a place;
+      that he had often thought it over, but that it appeared to him to be
+      hopeless. Even should he manage to scale these walls, he would only find
+      himself in the town beyond, and his escape from that would be altogether
+      hopeless. "Only," he said, "if I were transported to some country palace
+      of the governor could I ever hope to make my escape." The next night the
+      messenger brought him the news that his mistress was disposed to favor his
+      escape in the way he had pointed out, and that she would in two or three
+      days ask the governor for permission to pay a visit to their palace beyond
+      the walls, and that with her she would take a number of gardeners&mdash;among
+      them Cuthbert&mdash;to beautify the place. Cuthbert returned the most
+      lively and hearty thanks to his patroness for her kind intentions, and
+      hope began to rise rapidly in his heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is probable, however, that the black guards of the harem heard
+      something of the intentions of their mistress, and that they feared the
+      anger of the governor should Cuthbert make his escape, and should it be
+      discovered that this was the result of her connivance. Either through this
+      or through some other source the governor obtained an inkling that the
+      white slave sent by the sultan was receiving unusual kindness from the
+      ladies of the harem.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two nights after Cuthbert had begun to entertain bright hopes of his
+      liberty, the door of the cell was softly opened. He was seized by four
+      slaves, gagged, tied hand and foot, covered with a thick burnous, and
+      carried out from his cell. By the sound of their feet he heard that they
+      were passing into the open air, and guessed that he was being carried
+      through the garden; then a door opened and was closed after them; he was
+      flung across a horse like a bale of goods, a rope or two were placed
+      around him to keep him in that position, and then he felt the animal put
+      in motion, and heard by the trampling of feet that a considerable number
+      of horsemen were around him. For some time they passed over the rough,
+      uneven streets of the city; then there was a pause and exchange of
+      watchword and countersign, a creaking of doors, and a lowering of a
+      drawbridge, and the party issued out into the open country. Not for very
+      long did they continue their way; a halt was called, and Cuthbert was
+      taken off his horse.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On looking round, he found that he was in the middle of a considerable
+      group of men. Those who had brought him were a party of the governor's
+      guards; but he was now delivered over to a large band of Arabs, all of
+      whom were mounted on camels. One of these creatures he was ordered to
+      mount, the bonds being loosed from his arms and feet. An Arab driver, with
+      lance, bows, and arrows, and other weapons, took his seat on the neck of
+      the animal, and then with scarcely a word the caravan marched off with
+      noiseless step, and with their faces turned southward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed to Cuthbert almost as a dream. A few hours before he had been
+      exalted with the hope of freedom; now he was being taken away to a slavery
+      which would probably end but with his life. Although he could not
+      understand any of his captors, the repetition of a name led him to believe
+      that he was being sent to Egypt as a present to some man in high authority
+      there; and he doubted not that the Governor of Jerusalem, fearing that he
+      might escape, and dreading the wrath of the sultan should he do so, had
+      determined to transfer the troublesome captive to a more secure position
+      and to safer hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For three days the journey continued; they had now left the fertile
+      lowlands of Palestine, and their faces were turned west. They were
+      entering upon that sandy waste which stretches between the southern corner
+      of Palestine and the land of Egypt, a distance which can be traveled by
+      camels in three days, but which occupied the children of Israel forty
+      years.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At first the watch had been very sharply kept over the captive; but now
+      that they had entered the desert the Arabs appeared to consider that there
+      was no chance of an attempt to escape. Cuthbert had in every way
+      endeavored to ingratiate himself with his guard. He had most willingly
+      obeyed their smallest orders, had shown himself pleased and grateful for
+      the dates which formed the staple of their repasts. He had assumed so
+      innocent and quiet an appearance that the Arabs had marveled much among
+      themselves, and had concluded that there must have been some mistake in
+      the assertion of the governor's guard who had handed the prisoner over to
+      them, that he was one of the terrible knights of King Richard's army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert's heart had not fallen for a moment. He knew well that if he once
+      reached Cairo all hope of escape was at an end; and it was before reaching
+      that point that he determined if possible to make an effort for freedom.
+      He had noticed particularly the camel which appeared to be the fleetest of
+      the band; it was of lighter build than the rest, and it was with
+      difficulty that its rider had compelled it to accommodate itself to the
+      pace of the others. It was clear from the pains he took with it, by the
+      constant patting and the care bestowed upon its watering and feeding, that
+      its rider was extremely proud of it; and Cuthbert concluded that if an
+      escape was to be made, this was the animal on which he must accomplish it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon arriving at the end of each day's journey the camels were allowed to
+      browse at will, a short cord being tied between one of their hind and one
+      of their fore-feet. The Arabs then set to work to collect sticks and to
+      make a fire&mdash;not for cooking, for their only food was dried dates and
+      some black bread, which they brought with them&mdash;but for warmth, as
+      the nights were damp and somewhat chilly, as they sat round the fire,
+      talked, and told stories. Before finally going off to rest each went out
+      into the bushes and brought in his camel; these were then arranged in a
+      circle around the Arabs, one of the latter being mounted as sentry to
+      prevent any sudden surprise&mdash;not indeed that they had the smallest
+      fear of the Christians, who were far distant; but then, as now, the Arabs
+      of the desert were a plundering race, and were ever ready to drive off
+      each other's camels or horses. Cuthbert determined that if flight was
+      possible, it must be undertaken during the interval after the arrival at
+      the halting-place and before the bringing in of the camels. Therefore,
+      each day upon the halt he had pretended great fatigue from the rough
+      motion of the camel, and had, after hastily eating the dates handed to
+      him, thrown himself down, covered himself with his Arab robe, and feigned
+      instant sleep. Thus they had in the three days from starting come to look
+      upon his presence sleeping close to them as a matter of course.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The second day after entering the desert, however, Cuthbert threw himself
+      down by the side of an uprooted shrub of small size and about his own
+      length. He covered himself as usual with his long, dark-blue robe, and
+      pretended to go to sleep. He kept his eyes, however, on the alert through
+      an aperture beneath his cloth, and observed particularly the direction in
+      which the camel upon which he had set his mind wandered into the bushes.
+      The darkness came on a very few minutes after they had halted, and when
+      the Arabs had once settled round their fire Cuthbert very quietly shifted
+      the robe from himself to the long low bush near him, and then crawled
+      stealthily off into the darkness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had no fear of his footfall being heard upon the soft sand, and was
+      soon on his feet, looking for the camels. He was not long in finding them,
+      or in picking out the one which he had selected. The bushes were
+      succulent, and close to the camping-ground; indeed, it was for this that
+      the halting-places were always chosen. It was not so easy, however, to
+      climb into the high wooden saddle, and Cuthbert tried several times in
+      vain. Then he repeated in a sharp tone the words which he had heard the
+      Arabs use to order their camels to kneel, striking the animal at the same
+      moment behind the fore-legs with a small switch. The camel immediately
+      obeyed the order to which he was accustomed, and knelt down, making,
+      however, as he did so, the angry grumble which those creatures appear to
+      consider it indispensable to raise when ordered to do anything.
+      Fortunately this noise is so frequently made, and the camels are so given
+      to quarrel among themselves that although in the still air it might have
+      been heard by the Arabs sitting a short hundred yards away, it attracted
+      no notice, and Cuthbert, climbing into the seat, shook the cord that
+      served as a rein, and the animal, rising, set off at a smooth, steady
+      swing in the direction in which his head was turned&mdash;that from which
+      they had that day arrived.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Once fairly away from the camping-ground, Cuthbert, with blows of his
+      stick, increased the speed of the camel to a long shuffling trot, and the
+      fire in the distance soon faded out into the darkness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert trusted to the stars as guides. He was not unarmed, for as he
+      crawled away from his resting-place he had picked up one of the Arabs'
+      spears and bow and arrows, and a large bag of dates from the spot where
+      they had been placed when their owner dismounted. He was already clad in
+      Eastern garb, and was so sunburnt and tanned that he had no fear whatever
+      of any one at a distance detecting that he was a white man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Steering his course by the stars, he rode all night without stopping. He
+      doubted not that he would have at least three hours' start, for the Arabs
+      were sure to have sat that time round the fires before going out to bring
+      in their camels. Even then they would suppose for some time that the
+      animal upon which he was seated had strayed, and no pursuit would be
+      attempted until it was discovered that he himself had made his escape,
+      which might not be for a long time, as the Arabs would not think of
+      looking under the cloth to see if he were there. He hoped, therefore, that
+      he would reach the cultivated land long before he was overtaken. He had
+      little fear but that he should then be able to journey onward without
+      attracting attention.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A solitary Arab when traveling rides straight, and his communications to
+      those whom he meets are confined to the set form of two or three words,
+      "May Allah protect you!" the regular greeting of Moslems when they meet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When morning broke Cuthbert, even when ascending to the top of a somewhat
+      lofty mound, could see no signs of pursuers in the vast stretch of desert
+      behind him. In front the ground was already becoming dotted here and there
+      with vegetation, and he doubted not that after a few hours' ride he should
+      be fairly in the confines of cultivated country. He gave his camel a meal
+      of dates, and having eaten some himself, again set the creature in motion.
+      These camels, especially those of good breed, will go on for three or four
+      days with scarcely a halt; and there was no fear of that on which he rode
+      breaking down from fatigue, for the journeys hitherto had been
+      comparatively short.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By midday Cuthbert had reached the cultivated lands of Palestine. Here and
+      there over the plain villages were dotted, and parties of men and camels
+      were to be seen. Cuthbert now arranged his robes carefully in Arab
+      fashion, slung the long spear across his shoulders, and went boldly
+      forward at a slinging trot, having little fear that a passer-by would have
+      any suspicion whatever as to his being other than an Arab bent upon some
+      rapid journey. He soon found that his hopes were justified. Several times
+      he came upon parties of men whom he passed with the salute, and who
+      scarcely raised their eyes as he trotted by them. The plain was an open
+      one, and though cultivated here and there, there were large tracts lying
+      unworked. There was no occasion therefore to keep to the road; so riding
+      across country, and avoiding the villages as far as possible, stopping
+      only at a stream to give his camel water, Cuthbert rode without ceasing
+      until nightfall. Then he halted his camel near a wood, turned it in to
+      feed on the young foliage, and wrapping himself in his burnous was soon
+      asleep, for he ached from head to foot with the jolting motion which had
+      now been continued for so many hours without an interval. He had little
+      fear of being overtaken by the party he had left behind; they would, he
+      was convinced, be many hours behind, and it was extremely improbable that
+      they would hit upon the exact line which he had followed, so that even if
+      they succeeded in coming up to him, they would probably pass him a few
+      miles either to the right or left.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So fatigued was he with his long journey that the next day he slept until
+      after the sun had risen. He was awakened suddenly by being seized by a
+      party of Arabs, who, roughly shaking him, questioned him as to where he
+      came from, and what he was doing there. He saw at a glance that they were
+      not with the party from which he had escaped, and he pointed to his lips
+      to make signs that he was dumb. The Arabs evidently suspected that
+      something was wrong. They examined the camel, and then the person of their
+      captive. The whiteness of his skin at once showed them that he was a Frank
+      in disguise, and without more ado or questioning, they tied him hand and
+      foot, flung him across the camel, and, mounting their own animals, rode
+      rapidly away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From the position of the sun Cuthbert saw that they were making their
+      course nearly due east, and therefore that it could not be their intention
+      to take him to Jerusalem, which was to the north of the line they were
+      following. A long day's journey, which to Cuthbert seemed interminable,
+      found them on the low spit of sand which runs along by the side of the
+      Dead Sea. Behind, lofty rocks rose almost precipitously, but through a
+      cleft in these the Arabs had made their way. Cuthbert saw at once that
+      they belonged to some desert tribe over whom the authority of Suleiman was
+      but nominal. When summoned for any great effort, these children of the
+      desert would rally to his armies and fight for a short time; but at the
+      first disaster, or whenever they became tired of the discipline and
+      regularity of the army, they would mount their camels and return to the
+      desert, generally managing on the way to abstract from the farms of those
+      on their route either a horse, cattle, or some other objects which would
+      pay them for the labors they had undergone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They were now near the confines of their own country, and apparently had
+      no fear whatever of pursuit. They soon gathered some of the dead wood cast
+      on the shores of the sea, and with these a fire was speedily lighted, and
+      an earthenware pot was taken down from among their baggage: it was filled
+      with water from a skin, and then grain having been placed in it, it was
+      put among the wood ashes. Cuthbert, who was weary and aching in every limb
+      from the position in which he had been placed on the camel, asked them by
+      signs for permission to bathe in the lake. This was given principally
+      apparently from curiosity, for but very few Arabs were able to swim;
+      indeed, as a people they object so utterly to water that the idea of any
+      one bathing for his amusement was to them a matter of ridicule.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, who had never heard of the properties of the Dead Sea, was
+      perfectly astonished upon entering the water to find that instead of
+      wading in it up to the neck before starting to swim, as he was accustomed
+      to do at home, the water soon after he got waist-deep took him off his
+      feet, and a cry of astonishment burst from him as he found himself on
+      rather than in the fluid. The position was so strange and unnatural that
+      with a cry of alarm he scrambled over on to his feet, and made the best of
+      his way to shore, the Arabs indulging in shouts of laughter at his
+      astonishment and alarm. Cuthbert was utterly unable to account for the
+      strange sensations he had experienced; he perceived that the water was
+      horribly salt, and that which had got into his mouth almost choked him. He
+      was, however, unaware that saltness adds to the weight of water, and so to
+      the buoyancy of objects cast into it. The saltness of the fluid he was
+      moreover painfully conscious of by the smarting of the places on his
+      wrists and ankles where the cords had been bound that fastened him to the
+      camel. Goaded, however, by the laughter of the Arabs, he determined once
+      more to try the experiment of entering this strange sheet of water, which
+      from some unaccountable cause appeared to him to refuse to allow anybody
+      to sink in it. This time he swam about for some time, and felt a little
+      refreshed. When he returned to the shore he soon re-attired himself in his
+      Bedouin dress, and seated himself a little distance from his captors, who
+      were now engaged in discussing the materials prepared by themselves. They
+      made signs to Cuthbert that he might partake of their leavings, for which
+      he was not a little grateful, for he felt utterly exhausted and worn out
+      with his cruel ride and prolonged fasting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Arabs soon wrapped themselves in their burnouses, and feeling
+      confident that their captive would not attempt to escape from them in a
+      place where subsistence would be impossible, paid no further attention to
+      him beyond motioning to him to lie down at their side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, however, determined to make another effort to escape; for
+      although he was utterly ignorant of the place in which he found himself,
+      or of the way back, he thought that anything would be better than to be
+      carried into helpless slavery into the savage country beyond the Jordan.
+      An hour, therefore, after his captors were asleep he stole to his feet,
+      and fearing to arouse them by exciting the wrath of one of the camels by
+      attempting to mount him, he struck up into the hills on foot. All night he
+      wandered, and in the morning found himself at the edge of a strange
+      precipice falling abruptly down to a river, which, some fifty feet wide,
+      ran at its foot. Upon the opposite side the bank rose with equal rapidity,
+      and to Cuthbert's astonishment he saw that the cliffs were honeycombed by
+      caves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Keeping along the edge for a considerable distance, he came to a spot
+      where it was passable, and made his way down to the river bank. Here he
+      indulged in a long drink of fresh water, and then began to examine the
+      caves which perforated the rocks. These caves Cuthbert knew had formerly
+      been the abode of hermits. It was supposed to be an essentially sacred
+      locality, and between the third and fourth centuries of Christianity some
+      twenty thousand monks had lived solitary lives on the banks of that river.
+      Far away he saw the ruins of a great monastery, called Mar Saba, which had
+      for a long time been the abode of a religious community, and which at the
+      present day is still tenanted by a body of monks. Cuthbert made up his
+      mind at once to take refuge in these caves. He speedily picked out one
+      some fifty feet up the face of the rock, and approachable only with the
+      greatest difficulty and by a sure foot. First he made the ascent to
+      discover the size of the grotto, and found that although the entrance was
+      but four feet high and two feet wide, it opened into an area of
+      considerable dimensions. Far in the corner, when his eyes became
+      accustomed to the light, he discovered a circle of ashes, and his
+      conjectures that these caves had been the abode of men were therefore
+      verified. He again descended, and collected a large bundle of grass and
+      rushes for his bed. He discovered growing among the rocks many edible
+      plants, whose seeds were probably sown there centuries before, and
+      gathering some of these he made his way back to the cavern. The grass
+      furnished him with an excellent bed, and he was soon asleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0015" id="link2HCH0015"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XV. &mdash; A HERMIT'S TALE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The next day he discovered on his excursions plenty of eatable berries on
+      the bushes; and now that he had no longer fear of hunger he resolved to
+      stay for some little time, until his wounds, which had festered badly, had
+      recovered, before making an attempt to rejoin the Christian army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One day when employed in gathering berries he was surprised by meeting a
+      wild-looking figure, who appeared suddenly from one of the caves. It was
+      that of a very old man, with an extremely long white beard flowing to his
+      waist; his hair, which was utterly unkempt, fell to the same point. He was
+      thin to an extraordinary extent, and Cuthbert wondered how a man could
+      have been reduced to such a state of starvation, with so plentiful a
+      supply of fruit and berries at hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old man looked at Cuthbert attentively, and then made the sign of the
+      cross. Cuthbert gave a cry of joy, and repeated the sign. The old man at
+      once came down from his cavern, and looked at him with surprise and
+      astonishment, and then addressed him in the French language.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Are you a Christian truly; and if so, whence do you come?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert at once explained that he had been taken prisoner when with King
+      Richard's army, and had effected his escape. He also told the old man that
+      he had been remaining for the last four days in a cave higher up the
+      stream. The hermit&mdash;for he was one&mdash;beckoned him to follow him,
+      and Cuthbert found himself in a cave precisely similar to that which he
+      himself inhabited. There were no signs of comfort of any kind; a bed-place
+      made of great stones stood in one corner, and Cuthbert, remembering the
+      comforts of his own grassy couch, shuddered at the thought of the intense
+      discomfort of such a sleeping-place. In another corner was an altar, upon
+      which stood a rough crucifix, before which the hermit knelt at once in
+      prayer, Cuthbert following his example. Rising again, the hermit motioned
+      to him to sit down, and then began a conversation with him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was so long since the hermit had spoken to any living being that he had
+      almost lost the use of his tongue, and his sentences were slow and
+      ill-formed. However, Cuthbert was able to understand him, and he to gather
+      the drift of what Cuthbert told him. The old man then showed him that by
+      touching a stone in the corner of his cave the apparently solid rock
+      opened, and revealed an entrance into an inner cave, which was lit by a
+      ray of light which penetrated from above.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This," he said, "was made centuries ago, and was intended as a refuge
+      from the persecutors of that day. The caves were then almost all inhabited
+      by hermits, and although many recked not of their lives, and were quite
+      ready to meet death through the knife of the infidel, others clung to
+      existence, and preferred to pass many years of penance on earth for the
+      sake of atoning for their sins before called upon to appear before their
+      Maker. If you are pursued it will be safer for you to take up your abode
+      here. I am known to all the inhabitants of this country, who look upon me
+      as mad, and respect me accordingly. None ever interfere with me, or with
+      the two or three other hermits, the remains of what was once almost an
+      army, who now alone survive. I can offer you no hospitality beyond that of
+      a refuge; but there is water in the river below, fruits and berries in
+      abundance on the shrubs. What would you have more?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert accepted the invitation with thanks; for he thought that even at
+      the worst the presence of this holy man would be a protection to him from
+      any Arabs who might discover him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For three or four days he resided with the hermit, who, although he
+      stretched his long lean body upon the hard stones of his bed, and passed
+      many hours of the night kneeling on the stone floor in front of his altar,
+      yet had no objection to Cuthbert making himself as comfortable as he could
+      under the circumstances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the end of the fourth day Cuthbert asked him how long he had been
+      there, and how he came to take up his abode in so desolate and fearsome a
+      place. The hermit was silent for a time, and then said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is long indeed since my thoughts have gone back to the day when I was
+      of the world. I know not whether it would not be a sin to recall them; but
+      I will think the matter over to-night, and if it appears to me that you
+      may derive good from my narrative, I will relate it to you to-morrow."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day Cuthbert did not renew the request, leaving it to the hermit
+      to speak should he think fit. It was not until the evening that he alluded
+      to the subject; and then taking his seat on a bank near the edge of the
+      river, he motioned to Cuthbert to sit beside him, and began:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My father was a peer of France, and I was brought up at the court.
+      Although it may seem strange to you, looking upon this withered frame,
+      sixty-five years back I was as bold and comely a knight as rode in the
+      train of the king, for I am now past ninety, and for sixty years I have
+      resided here. I was a favorite of the king's, and he loaded me with wealth
+      and honor. He, too, was young, and I joined with him in the mad carousals
+      and feastings of the court. My father resided for the most part at one of
+      his castles in the country, and I, an only son, was left much to myself. I
+      need not tell you that I was as wild and as wicked as all those around me;
+      that I thought little of God, and feared neither Him nor man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It chanced that one of the nobles&mdash;I need not mention his name&mdash;whose
+      castle lay in the same province as that of my father, had a lovely
+      daughter, who, being an only child, would be his heiress. She was
+      considered one of the best matches in France, and reports of her exceeding
+      beauty had reached the court. Although my allowance from my father, and
+      from the estates which the king had given me personally, should have been
+      more than enough for my utmost wants, gambling and riotous living
+      swallowed up my revenue faster than it came in, and I was constantly
+      harassed by debt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Talking one night at supper with a number of bold companions as to the
+      means we should take for restoring our wasted fortunes, some said in jest
+      that the best plan would be for one of us to marry the beauty of Dauphiny.
+      I at once said that I would be the man to do it; the idea was a wild one,
+      and a roar of laughter greeted my words. Her father was known to be a
+      stern and rigid man, and it was certain that he would not consent to give
+      his daughter to a spendthrift young noble like myself. When the laughter
+      had subsided I repeated my intention gravely, and offered to wager large
+      sums with all around the table that I would succeed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "On the morrow I packed up a few of my belongings, put in my valise the
+      dress of a wandering troubadour, and taking with me only a trusty servant,
+      started for Dauphiny. It would be tedious to tell you the means I resorted
+      to to obtain the affections of the heiress. I had been well instructed in
+      music and could play on the lute, and knew by heart large numbers of
+      ballads, and could myself, in case of necessity, string verses together
+      with tolerable ease. As a troubadour I arrived at the castle gate, and
+      craved permission to enter to amuse its occupants. Troubadours then, as
+      now, were in high esteem in the south, and I was at once made a welcome
+      guest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Days passed, and weeks; still I lingered at the castle, my heart being
+      now as much interested as my pride in the wager which I had undertaken.
+      Suffice it to say that my songs, and perhaps my appearance&mdash;for I
+      cannot be accused of vanity now in saying nature had been bountiful to me&mdash;won
+      my way to her heart. Troubadours were licensed folk, and even in her
+      father's presence there was naught unseemly in my singing songs of love.
+      While he took them as the mere compliments of a troubadour, the lady, I
+      saw, read them as serious effusions of my heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It was only occasionally that we met alone; but ere long she confessed
+      that she loved me. Without telling her my real name, I disclosed to her
+      that I was of her own rank and that I had entered upon the disguise I wore
+      in order to win her love. She was romantic, and was flattered by my
+      devotion. I owned to her that hitherto I had been wild and reckless; and
+      she told me at once that her father destined her for the son of an old
+      friend of his, to whom it appeared she had been affianced while still a
+      baby. She was positive that nothing would move her father. For the man she
+      was to marry she entertained no kind of affection, and indeed had never
+      seen him, as she had been brought up in a convent to the age of fifteen;
+      and just before she had returned thence he had gone to finish his
+      education at Padua.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "She trembled when I proposed flight; but I assured her that I was certain
+      of the protection of the king, and that he would, I was sure, when the
+      marriage was once celebrated, use his influence with her father to obtain
+      his forgiveness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The preparations for her flight were not long in making. I purchased a
+      fleet horse in addition to my own, and ordered my servant to bring it to a
+      point a short distance from the castle gate. I had procured a long rope
+      with which to lower her down from her lattice to the moat below, which was
+      at present dry, intending myself to slide after her. The night chosen was
+      one when I knew that the count was to have guests, and I thought that they
+      would probably, as is the custom, drink heavily, and that there would be
+      less fear of any watch being kept.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The guests arrived just at nightfall. I had feigned illness, and kept my
+      room. From time to time I heard through the windows of the banqueting hall
+      bursts of laughter. These gradually ceased; and at last when all was still
+      I, after waiting some time, stole from my room with a rope in my hand to
+      the apartment occupied by her. A slight tap at the door, as arranged, was
+      at once answered, and I found her ready cloaked and prepared for the
+      enterprise. She trembled from head to foot, but I cheered her to the best
+      of my power, and at last she was in readiness to be lowered. The window
+      was at a considerable height from the ground; but the rope was a long one,
+      and I had no fear of its reaching the bottom. Fastening it round her
+      waist, I began to lower her from the window.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The night was a windy one, and she swung backward and forward as she went
+      down. By what chance it was I know not&mdash;for I had examined the rope
+      and found it secure&mdash;but methinks in swaying backward and forward it
+      may have caught a sharp stone, maybe it was a punishment from Heaven upon
+      me for robbing a father of his child&mdash;but suddenly I felt there was
+      no longer a weight on my arms. A fearful shriek rang through the air, and,
+      looking out, I saw far below a white figure stretched senseless in the
+      mud!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For a minute I stood paralyzed. But the cry had aroused others, and,
+      turning round, I saw a man at the door with a drawn sword. Wild with grief
+      and despair, and thinking, not of making my escape, or of concealing my
+      part in what had happened, but rushing without an instant's delay to the
+      body of her I loved so well, I drew my sword, and like a madman rushed
+      upon him who barred the door. The combat was brief but furious, and nerved
+      by the madness of despair I broke down his guard and ran him through the
+      body. As he fell back, his face came in the full light of the moon, which
+      streamed through the open door of the passage, and to my utter horror and
+      bewilderment I saw that I had slain my father.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What happened after that night I know not. I believe that I made my
+      escape from the castle and rushed round to the body of her whose life I
+      had destroyed, and that there finding her dead, I ran wildly across the
+      country. When I came to my senses months had passed, and I was the inmate
+      of an asylum for men bereaved of their senses, kept by noble monks. Here
+      for two years I remained, the world believing that I was dead. None knew
+      that the troubadour whose love had cost the lady her life, who had slain
+      the guest of her father, and had then disappeared, was the unhappy son of
+      that guest. My friends in Paris when they heard of the tragedy of course
+      associated it with me, but they all kept silent. The monks, to whom I
+      confessed the whole story, were shocked indeed, but consoled me in my
+      grief and despair by the assurance that however greatly I had sinned, the
+      death of the lady had been accidental, and that if I were a parricide it
+      was at least unintentionally.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My repentance was deep and sincere; and after awhile, under another name,
+      I joined the army of the Crusaders, to expiate my sin by warring for the
+      holy sepulcher. I fought as men fight who have no wish to live; but while
+      all around me fell by sword and disease, death kept aloof from me. When
+      the Crusade had failed I determined to turn forever from the world, and to
+      devote my life to prayer and penance; and so casting aside my armor I made
+      my way here, and took up my abode in a cave in this valley, where at that
+      time were many thousands of other hermits&mdash;for the Saracens, while
+      they gained much money from fines and exactions from pilgrims who came to
+      Jerusalem, and fought stoutly against those who sought to capture that
+      city, were in the main tolerant, and offered no hindrance to the community
+      of men whom they looked upon as mad.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here, my son, for more than sixty years have I prayed, with much fasting
+      and penance. I trust now that the end is nearly at hand, and that my long
+      life of mortification may be deemed to have obliterated the evil deeds
+      which I did in my youth. Let my fate be a warning to you. Walk steadily in
+      the right way; indulge not in feasting and evil companionship; and above
+      all, do not enter upon evil deeds, the end of which no man can see."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The hermit was silent, and Cuthbert, seeing that his thoughts had again
+      referred to the past, wandered away, and left him sitting by the river
+      side. Some hours later he returned and found the hermit kneeling before
+      the altar; and the next morning the latter said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I presume, my son, you do not wish to remain here as a hermit, as I have
+      done? Methinks it were well that we made our arrangements for your return
+      to the Christian host, who will, I hope, ere long be at the gates of
+      Jerusalem."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I should like nothing better," Cuthbert said. "But ignorant as I am of
+      the nature of the country, it seems to be nigh impossible to penetrate
+      through the hosts of the Saracens to reach the camp of King Richard."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The matter is difficult and not without danger," the hermit said. "As to
+      the nature of the country, I myself know but little, for my dealings with
+      the natives have been few and simple. There are, however, several
+      Christian communities dwelling among the heathen. They are poor, and are
+      forced to live in little-frequented localities. Their Christianity may be
+      suspected by their neighbors, but as they do no man harm, and carry on
+      their worship in secret, they are little interfered with. There is one
+      community among the hills between this and Jerusalem, and I can give you
+      instructions for reaching this, together with a token which will secure
+      you hospitality there, and they will no doubt do their best to forward you
+      to another station. When you approach the flat country where the armies
+      are maneuvering you must doubtless trust to yourself; but as far as the
+      slopes extend, methinks that our friends will be able to pass you without
+      great difficulty."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert's heart rose greatly at the prospect of once again entering upon
+      an active life, and the next evening, with many thanks for his kindness,
+      he knelt before the aged hermit to receive his blessing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the instructions given him he had no difficulty in making his way
+      through the mountains, until after some five hours' walk he found himself
+      at a little village situated in a narrow valley.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Going to the door of the principal hut he knocked, and upon entering
+      showed the owner&mdash;who opened the door&mdash;a rosette of peculiar
+      beads and repeated the name of Father Anselm. The peasant at once
+      recognized it and bade Cuthbert welcome. He knew but a few words of
+      French, although doubtless his ancestors had been of European extraction.
+      In the morning he furnished Cuthbert with the sheepskin and short tunic
+      which formed the dress of a shepherd, and dyeing his limbs and face a deep
+      brown he himself started with Cuthbert on his journey to the next
+      Christian community.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was a small one consisting of two huts only, built almost on the
+      summit of a mountain, the inhabitants living partly on the milk and cheese
+      of their goats and partly upon the scanty vegetables which grew around the
+      huts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His welcome was as cordial as that of the night before; and the next
+      morning, his former guide taking leave of him, the peasant in whose house
+      he had slept again conducted him forward to another community. This was
+      the last station and stood in a narrow gorge on the face of the hills
+      looking down over the plain, beyond which in the far distance a faint line
+      of blue sea was visible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This community was far more prosperous and well-to-do than those at which
+      the previous nights had been passed. The head of the village appeared to
+      be a personage of some importance; and although clinging in secret to his
+      Christian faith, he and his belongings had so far adopted the usages of
+      the Mussulmen that apparently no thought of their Christianity entered
+      into the minds of the authorities. He was the owner of two or three horses
+      and of some extensive vineyards and olive grounds. He was also able to
+      speak French with some degree of fluency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At considerable length he explained to Cuthbert the exact position of the
+      Christian army, which had moved some distance along the coast since
+      Cuthbert had left it. It was, he said, exposed to constant attacks by the
+      Saracens, who harassed it in every way, and permitted it no repose. He
+      said that the high hopes which had been raised by the defeat of the
+      Saracens at Azotus had now fallen, and that it was feared the Christians
+      would not be able to force their way forward to Jerusalem. The great
+      portion of their animals had died, and the country was so eaten up by the
+      Saracen hosts that an advance upon Jerusalem without a large baggage train
+      was next to impossible; and indeed if the Christians were to arrive before
+      that city, they could effect nothing without the aid of the heavy machines
+      necessary for battering the walls or effecting an escalade.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was vastly grieved when he heard of the probable failure of the
+      expedition, and he burned with eagerness to take his part again in the
+      dangers and difficulties which beset the Christian army. His host pointed
+      out to him the extreme difficulty and danger of his crossing the enemy's
+      lines, but at the same time offered to do all in his power to assist him.
+      After two days' stay at the village, and discussing the pros and cons of
+      all possible plans, it was decided that the best chance lay in a bold
+      effort. The host placed at his disposal one of his horses, together with
+      such clothes as would enable him to ride as an Arab chief of rank and
+      station; a long lance was furnished him, a short and heavy mace, and
+      scimitar; a bag of dates was hung at the saddlebow; and with the sincerest
+      thanks to his protector, and with a promise that should the Christian host
+      win their way to Jerusalem the steed should be returned with ample
+      payment, Cuthbert started on his journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0016" id="link2HCH0016"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XVI. &mdash; A FIGHT OF HEROES.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The horse was a good and spirited one, and when he had once descended to
+      the plains, Cuthbert rode gayly along, exulting in his freedom, and in
+      once again possessing arms to defend himself should it be needed. His
+      appearance was so exactly that of the horsemen who were continually
+      passing and repassing that no observation whatever was attracted by it.
+      Through villages, and even through camps, Cuthbert rode fearlessly, and
+      arrived, without having once been accosted, near the main camp of the
+      Saracens, which extended for miles parallel to the sea. But at a distance
+      of some three leagues beyond could be seen the white tents of the
+      Christian host, and Cuthbert felt that the time of trial was now at hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He dismounted for an hour to allow his steed to rest itself, fed it with
+      dates from his wallet, and gave it a drink of water at the stream. Then,
+      when he felt that it had thoroughly recovered its strength and freshness,
+      he remounted, and rode briskly on as before. He passed unchallenged,
+      attracting no more notice than a person nowadays would do in walking along
+      a crowded street. Without hesitation he passed through the tents and
+      started across the open country. Bands of horsemen were seen here and
+      there, some going, and some coming from the direction of the Christian
+      camp. As it was doubtless supposed that he was on his way to join some
+      band that had gone on in advance, the passage of the solitary horseman
+      excited no comment until he approached within about two miles of the
+      Christian camp. There were now, so far as he could see, no enemies between
+      him and the point he so longed to gain. But at this minute a group of Arab
+      horsemen, gathered, apparently on the lookout against any movement of the
+      Christians, shouted to him "Halt!" demanding whither he was going.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Up to this point Cuthbert had ridden at a gentle canter; but at the
+      challenge he put spurs into his steed and made across the plain at full
+      speed. With a wild yell the Arabs started in pursuit. They lay at first
+      some two hundred yards on his right, and he had therefore a considerable
+      start of them. His horse was fairly fresh, for the journey that he had
+      made had only been about fifteen miles&mdash;an inconsiderable distance to
+      an Arab steed. For half a mile he did not think that his pursuers gained
+      much upon him, riding as they had done sideways. They had now gathered in
+      his rear, and the nearest was some one hundred and fifty yards behind him.
+      A quarter of a mile further he again looked around, and found that two of
+      the Arabs, far better mounted than the others, had come within half the
+      distance which separated them from him when he last glanced back. His
+      horse was straining to the utmost, and he felt that it could do no more;
+      he therefore prepared himself for a desperate fight should his pursuers
+      overtake him. In another quarter of a mile they were but a short distance
+      behind, and an arrow whizzing by Cuthbert's ear told him they had betaken
+      themselves to their bows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Half a mile ahead he saw riding toward him a group of Christian knights;
+      but he felt that it was too late for him to hope to reach them, and that
+      his only chance now was to boldly encounter his pursuers. The main body of
+      the Arabs was fully two hundred yards behind&mdash;a short distance when
+      going at a gallop&mdash;which left him but little time to shake off the
+      pursuit of the two immediately behind him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A sharp stinging pain in his leg told him that it was time to make his
+      effort; and checking his horse, he wheeled suddenly round. The two Arabs
+      with a yell rode at him with pointed lance. With his right hand Cuthbert
+      grasped the short heavy mace which hung at his saddlebow, and being well
+      practiced in the hurling of this weapon&mdash;which formed part of the
+      education of a good knight&mdash;he cast it with all his force at the
+      chest of the Arab approaching on that side. The point of the spear was
+      within a few yards of his breast as he flung the mace; but his aim was
+      true, for it smote the Saracen full on the chest, and hurled him from his
+      horse as if struck with a thunderbolt. At the same instant Cuthbert threw
+      himself flat on the neck of his steed and the lance of the Arab who came
+      up on the other side passed harmlessly between his shoulders, tearing his
+      clothes as it went. In an instant Cuthbert had wheeled his horse, and
+      before the Arab could turn his steed Cuthbert, coming up from behind, had
+      run him through the body.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Short as the delay had been, the main body of the pursuers were scarcely
+      fifty yards away; but Cuthbert now continued his flight toward the
+      knights, who were galloping forward at full speed; and a moment afterward
+      glancing back, he saw that his pursuers had turned and were in full
+      flight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a shout of joy he rode forward to the party who had viewed with
+      astonishment this conflict between what appeared to be three of the
+      infidels. Even louder than his first shout of exultation was the cry of
+      joy which he raised at seeing among the party to whom he rode up the Earl
+      of Evesham, who reined in his horse in astonishment, and drew his sword as
+      the supposed enemy galloped toward him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lord, my lord!" Cuthbert said. "Thank Heaven I am safe with you
+      again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl lowered his sword in astonishment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Am I mad," he said, "or dreaming, or is this really Sir Cuthbert?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is I, sure enough," Cuthbert exclaimed, "although truly I look more
+      like a Bedouin soldier than a Christian knight."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear boy!" exclaimed the earl, galloping forward and throwing his arms
+      around Cuthbert's neck, "we thought you were dead. But by what wonderful
+      fortune have you succeeded in escaping?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a few words Cuthbert related the principal incidents of his adventures,
+      and he was heartily congratulated by the assembled knights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was, however, no time for long explanations. Large bodies of the
+      Saracen horse were already sweeping down to capture, if possible, this
+      small band of knights who had ventured so far from the camp; and as King
+      Richard's orders were that none should venture upon conflicts except by
+      his orders, the party reluctantly turned their horses and galloped back to
+      the camp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Great as had been the earl's joy, it was, if possible, exceeded by that of
+      Cnut on discovering in the Arab chief who rode up alongside the earl the
+      lad he loved so well. Loud and hearty were the cheers which rang out from
+      the earl's camp as the news spread, and Cuthbert was compelled to shake
+      hands with the whole party before entering the earl's tent, to refresh
+      himself and give the narrative of what had happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, retiring to his tent with the Earl of Evesham, inquired of him
+      what had taken place during his absence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For," he said, "although but a short three days' march from here, I have
+      been as one of the dead, and have heard nothing whatever of what has taken
+      place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nothing could have gone worse," the earl said. "We have had nothing but
+      dissensions and quarrels. First, the king fell out with the Archduke of
+      Austria."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "On what ground did this happen?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For once," the earl said, "the king our master was wholly in the wrong,
+      which is not generally the case. We had just taken Ascalon, and were hard
+      at work fortifying the place. King Richard with his usual zeal, in order
+      to encourage the army, seized heavy stones and himself bore them into
+      their place. The archduke stood near with some of his knights: and it may
+      be that the haughty Austrian looked somewhat superciliously at our king
+      thus laboring.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "'Why do you not make a show of helping?' King Richard said, going up to
+      him. 'It would encourage the men, and show that the labor upon which we
+      are engaged can be undertaken by all without derogation.'
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "To this the archduke replied:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "'I am not the son of a mason!'
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whereupon Richard, whose blood no doubt had been excited by the air of
+      the Austrian, struck him with his hand a fierce blow across the face. We
+      nearly betook ourselves to our swords on both sides; but King Richard
+      himself could have scattered half the Austrians, and these, knowing that
+      against his impetuous valor they could do nothing, simply withdrew from
+      our camp, and sailed the next day for home. Then the king, in order to
+      conciliate some at least of his allies, conferred the crown of Jerusalem
+      upon Conrad of Montferat. No sooner had he done this than Conrad was
+      mysteriously wounded. By whom it was done none knew. Some say that it was
+      by emissaries of the Old Man of the Mountain. Others affirm that it was
+      the jealousy of some of the knights of the holy orders. But be that as it
+      may, he died. Some of the French, ever jealous of the valor of our king,
+      ascribed it to his orders. This monstrous accusation coming to the ears of
+      King Richard, he had hot words with the Duke of Burgundy. In this I blame
+      him not, for it is beyond all reason that a man like the king, whose
+      faults, such as they are, arise from too much openness, and from the want
+      of concealment of such dislikes as he may have, should resort to poison to
+      free himself of a man whom he himself had but a day or two before
+      appointed King of Jerusalem. However it be, the consequences were most
+      unfortunate, for the result of the quarrel was that the Duke of Burgundy
+      and his Frenchmen followed the example of the Austrians, and we were left
+      alone. Before this we had marched upon Jerusalem. But the weather had been
+      so bad, and our train was so insufficient to carry the engines of war,
+      that we had been forced to fall back again. King Richard again advanced,
+      and with much toil we went as far as the village of Bethany."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Why," Cuthbert exclaimed, "I passed through that village, and it is but
+      three miles from the holy city."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is so," the earl said; "and many of us, ascending the hill in front,
+      saw Jerusalem. But even then it was certain that we must again retrace our
+      steps; and when we asked King Richard to come to the crest of the hill to
+      see the holy city, he refused to do so, saying, 'No; those who are not
+      worthy of conquering Jerusalem should not look at it!' This was but a
+      short time since, and we are now retracing our steps to Acre, and are
+      treating with Saladin for a peace."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then," Cuthbert said sadly, "all our hopes and efforts are thrown away;
+      all this blood has been shed for nothing; and after the three great powers
+      of Europe have engaged themselves solemnly in the war, we are baffled, and
+      have to fall back before the hordes of the infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Partly before them," the earl said, "partly as the result of our own
+      jealousies and passions. Had King Richard been a lesser man than he is, we
+      might have conquered Jerusalem. But he is so extraordinary a warrior that
+      his glory throws all others into the shade. He is a good general, perhaps
+      the best in Europe; and had he done nothing but lead, assuredly we should
+      have carried out our purpose. See how ably he maneuvered the army at the
+      fight of Azotus. Never was a more complete defeat than that which he
+      inflicted there upon the Saracens; and although the fact that his
+      generalship achieved this, might have caused some jealousy to the other
+      commanders, this might have died away could he between the battles have
+      been a general, and nothing more. But, alas! he is in addition a
+      knight-errant&mdash;and such a knight-errant as Europe has never seen
+      before. Wherever there is danger, Richard will plunge into the midst.
+      There are brave men in all the three armies; but the strongest and bravest
+      are as children to King Richard. Alone he can dart into ranks of the
+      infidels, and cut a lane for himself by the strength of his right arm.
+      More than this, when danger has threatened he has snatched up his
+      battle-ax and dashed into the fray without helm or cuirass, performing
+      such prodigies of valor and strength that it has been to his prowess alone
+      that victory was to be ascribed. Hence he is the idol of all the soldiers,
+      whatever their nationality; for he is as ready to rush to the rescue of a
+      French or Austrian knight when pressed as to that of his own men. But the
+      devotion which the whole army felt for him was as gall and wormwood to the
+      haughty Austrian and the indolent Frenchman; and the retirement of the
+      King of France, which left Richard in supreme command, was in every way
+      unfortunate."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the following day the army again marched, and Cuthbert could not but
+      notice the difference, not only in number but in demeanor, from the
+      splendid array which had left Acre a few months before. There was little
+      now of the glory of pennon and banner; the bright helms and cuirasses were
+      rusted and dinted, and none seemed to care aught for bravery of show. The
+      knights and men-at-arms were sunburnt and thin, and seemed but half the
+      weight that they had been when they landed. Fatigue, hardship, and the
+      heat had done their work; disease had swept off vast numbers. But the
+      remains of the army were so formidable in their fighting powers that the
+      Saracens, although following them at a distance in vast numbers, did not
+      venture an attack upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few days after their arrival at Acre, the king gave orders for the
+      embarkation of the troops. Just as they were preparing to enter the ships
+      a small vessel was seen entering the harbor. It drew up to the shore, and
+      a knight leaped from it, and, inquiring where King Richard was to be
+      found, made his way to the king, who was standing superintending the
+      embarkation of some of the horses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Saracens, sire!" he exclaimed. "The Saracens are besieging Jaffa, and
+      the place must be lost unless assistance arrives in a day or two."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king leaped on board the nearest ship, shouted to his leading officers
+      to follow him, and gave orders to others to bring down the troops with all
+      possible speed, to waste not a moment, and to see that all was done, and
+      then, in five minutes after the receipt of the news he started for Jaffa.
+      The Earl of Evesham and Cuthbert had been standing near the king when the
+      order was given, and followed him at once on board the bark which he had
+      chosen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah, my gallant young knight," the king exclaimed, "I am right glad to see
+      you with me. We shall have more fighting before we have done, and I know
+      that that suits your mood as well as my own."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king's vessel was far in advance of any of the others, when early the
+      following morning it arrived at Jaffa.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your eyes are better than mine," the king said to Cuthbert. "Tell me what
+      is that flag flying on the top of the town."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert looked at it earnestly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear, sire, that it is the crescent. We have arrived too late."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "By the holy cross," said King Richard, "that shall not be so; for if the
+      place be taken, we will retake it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the vessel neared the shore a monk ran out into the water up to his
+      shoulders, and said to the king that the citadel still held out, and that
+      even now the Saracens might be driven back. Without delay the king leaped
+      into the water, followed by the knights and men-at-arms, and entering the
+      gate, threw himself upon the infidels within, who, busy plundering, had
+      not noticed the arrival of the ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The war cry of "St. George! St. George!" which the king always shouted in
+      battle, struck panic among the infidels; and although the king was
+      followed but by five knights and a few men-at-arms, the Saracens, to the
+      number of three thousand, fled before him, and all who tarried were
+      smitten down. The king followed them out upon the plain, driving them
+      before him as a lion would drive a flock of sheep, and then returned
+      triumphant into the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day, some more ships having arrived, King Richard found that in
+      all, including the garrison, he could muster two thousand combatants. The
+      enemy renewed the attack in great numbers, and the assaults upon the walls
+      were continuous and desperate. King Richard, who loved fighting in the
+      plain rather than behind walls, was impatient at this, and at one time so
+      fierce was the attack that he resolved to sally out. Only ten horses
+      remained in the town, and King Richard, mounting one, called upon nine of
+      the knights to mount and sally out with him. The little band of ten
+      warriors charged down upon the host of the Saracens and swept them before
+      them. It was a marvelous sight indeed to see so small a group of horsemen
+      dashing through a crowd of Saracen warriors. These, although at first
+      beaten back, yet rallied, and the ten knights had great difficulty in
+      fighting their way back to the town. When near the walls the Christians
+      again made a stand, and a few knights sallied out from the town on foot
+      and joined them. Among these was Cuthbert, the Earl of Evesham having
+      accompanied King Richard in his charge. In all, seventeen knights were now
+      rallied round the king. So fierce was the charge of the Saracens that the
+      king ordered those on horseback to dismount, and with their horses in the
+      center, the little body knelt with their lances opposed to the Saracens.
+      Again and again the wild cavalry swept down upon this little force, but in
+      vain did they attempt to break their ranks. The scene was indeed an
+      extraordinary one. At last the king, seeing that the enemy were losing
+      heart, again ordered the knights to mount, and these dashing among the
+      enemy, completed their defeat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While this had been going on news came to the king that the Saracens from
+      another side had made their way into Jaffa, and were massacring the
+      Christians. Without, an instant's delay he flew to their succor, followed
+      only by two knights and a few archers, the rest being so worn by their
+      exertions as to be unable to move. The Mamelukes, the chosen guard of
+      Saladin, had headed the attack; but even these were driven out from the
+      town, and Richard dashed out from the city in their pursuit. One Saracen
+      emir, distinguished for his stature and strength, ventured to match
+      himself against the king, and rode boldly at him. But with one blow
+      Richard severed his head, and his right shoulder and arm, from his body.
+      Then having, by his single arm, put to rout the Saracens at this point, he
+      dashed through them to the aid of the little band of knights who had
+      remained on the defensive when he left them at the alarm of the city being
+      entered. These were almost sinking with fatigue and wounds; but King
+      Richard opened a way around them by slaying numbers of the enemy, and then
+      charged again alone into the midst of the Mussulman host, and was lost to
+      the sight of his companions. All thought that they would never see him
+      again. But he soon reappeared, his horse covered with blood, but himself
+      unwounded; and the attack of the enemy ceased.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From the hour of daybreak, it is said, Richard had not ceased for a moment
+      to deal out his blows, and the skin of his hand adhered to the handle of
+      his battle-ax. This narration would appear almost fabulous, were it not
+      that it is attested in the chronicles of several eye-witnesses, and for
+      centuries afterward the Saracen women hushed their babes when fractious by
+      threatening them with Malek-Rik, the name which they gave to King Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Glorious as was the success, it was a sad one, for several of the most
+      devoted of the followers of King Richard were wounded badly, some few to
+      death. Among these last, to the terrible grief of Cuthbert, was his friend
+      and patron, the Earl of Evesham. The king, on taking off his armor,
+      hurried to his tent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The glory of this day is marred indeed," he said to the wounded knight,
+      "if I am to lose you, Sir Walter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear that it must even be so, my lord," the dying earl said. "I am glad
+      that I have seen this day, for never did I think to witness such feats as
+      those which your majesty has performed; and though the Crusade has failed,
+      and the holy city remains in the hands of the infidel, yet assuredly no
+      shadow of disgrace has fallen upon the English arms, and, indeed, great
+      glory has accrued to us. Whatever may be said of the Great Crusade, it
+      will at least be allowed by all men, and for all time, that had the
+      princes and soldiers of other nations done as your majesty and your
+      followers have done, the holy city would have fallen into our hands within
+      a month of our putting foot upon the soil. Your majesty, I have a boon to
+      ask."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have but to name it, Sir Walter, and it is yours."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Cuthbert, here," he said, pointing to the young knight, who was
+      sorrowfully kneeling by his bedside, "is as a son to me. The relationship
+      by blood is but slight, but by affection it is as close as though he were
+      mine own. I have, as your majesty knows, no male heirs, and my daughter is
+      but young, and will now be a royal ward. I beseech your majesty to bestow
+      her in marriage, when the time comes, upon Sir Cuthbert. They have known
+      each other as children, and the union will bring happiness, methinks, to
+      both, as well as strength and protection to her; and further, if it might
+      be, I would fain that you should bestow upon him my title and dignity."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It shall be so," the king said. "When your eyes are closed, Sir Walter,
+      Sir Cuthbert shall be Earl of Evesham, and, when the time comes, the
+      husband of your daughter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was too overwhelmed with grief to feel a shadow of exaltation at
+      the gracious intimation of the king; although, even then, a thought of
+      future happiness in the care of the fair young lady Marguerite passed
+      before his mind. For the last time the king gave his hand to his faithful
+      servant, who pressed it to his lips, and a few minutes afterward breathed
+      his last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0017" id="link2HCH0017"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XVII. &mdash; AN ALPINE STORM.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The tremendous exertions which King Richard had made told upon him, and
+      attacks of fever succeeded each other at short intervals. This, however,
+      mattered the less, since negotiations were now proceeding between him and
+      Saladin. It was impossible, with the slight means at his disposal, for
+      Richard further to carry on the Crusade alone. Moreover, pressing news had
+      arrived from his mother in England, urging him to return, as his brother
+      John was intriguing against him, and had already assumed all but the
+      kingly title. Saladin was equally desirous of peace. His wild troops were,
+      for the most part, eager to return to their homes, and the defeats which
+      they had suffered, and the, to them, miraculous power of King Richard's
+      arm, had lowered their spirit and made them eager to be away. Therefore he
+      consented without difficulty to the terms proposed. By these, the
+      Christians were to surrender Ascalon, but were to keep Jaffa, Tyre, and
+      the fortresses along the coast. All hostilities were to be suspended on
+      both sides for the space of three years, three months, three weeks, three
+      days, and three hours, when Richard hoped to return again and to
+      recommence the struggle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Between the sultan and King Richard a feeling approaching that of
+      friendship had sprung up during the campaign. Saladin was himself brave in
+      the extreme, and exposed his life as fearlessly as did his Christian
+      rival, and the two valiant leaders recognized the great qualities of each
+      other. Several times during the campaign when Richard had been ill, the
+      emir had sent him presents of fruit and other matters, to which Richard
+      had responded in the same spirit. An interview had taken place between
+      them which further cemented their friendship; and when Richard promised to
+      return again at the end of the truce with a far larger army, and to
+      accomplish the rescue of the holy city, the sultan smiled, and said that
+      it appeared that valor alone was not sufficient to conquer in the Holy
+      Land, but that if Jerusalem were to fall into the hands of the Christians,
+      it could fall into no worthier hands than those of Malek-Rik.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, with many mutual courtesies, the great rivals separated, and soon
+      after King Richard and the little remnant of his army embarked on board
+      ship, and set sail for England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was on October 11, 1192, that Richard Coeur de Lion left Palestine.
+      Soon after they started a storm suddenly burst upon them, and dispersed
+      them in various directions. The ship in which Queen Berengaria was carried
+      arrived safely in Sicily; but that in which King Richard was borne was
+      missing, and none of his fellow-voyagers knew what had become of him. Sir
+      Cuthbert was in the same vessel as the king, and the bark was driven upon
+      the Island of Corfu. All reached shore in safety, and King Richard then
+      hired three small vessels, in which he sailed to the port of Zara, whence
+      he hoped to reach the domains of his nephew, Otho of Saxony, the son of
+      his sister Matilda. The king had with him now but two of his knights,
+      Baldwin of Béthune, and Cuthbert of Evesham. Cnut was with his feudal
+      chief&mdash;for such Cuthbert had now, by his accession to the rank of
+      Earl of Evesham, become&mdash;and three or four English archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear, my lords," the king said to his knights as he sat in a little
+      room in an inn at Zara, "that my plight is a bad one. I am surrounded by
+      enemies, and, alas! I can no longer mount my steed and ride out as at
+      Jaffa to do battle with them. My brother, John Lackland, is scheming to
+      take my place upon the throne of England. Philip of France, whose mind is
+      far better at such matters than at setting armies in the field, is in
+      league with him. The Emperor Henry has laid claim to the throne of Sicily.
+      Leopold of Austria has not forgiven me the blow I struck him in the face
+      at Ascalon, and the friends of Conrad of Montferat are spreading far and
+      wide the lie that I was the instigator of his murder. Sure never had a
+      poor king so many enemies, and few have ever had so small a following as I
+      have now. What think you, my lords? What course would you advise that I
+      should adopt? If I can reach Saxony doubtless Otho will aid me. But hence
+      to Dresden is a long journey indeed. I have neither credit nor funds to
+      hire a ship to take us by sea. Nor would such a voyage be a safe one, when
+      so many of my enemies' ships are on the main. I must needs, I think, go in
+      disguise, for my way lies wholly through the country of my enemies."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Surely," Cuthbert said, "no potentate could for very shame venture to
+      detain your majesty on your way from the Holy Land, where you have wrought
+      such great deeds. Were I in your place, I would at once proclaim myself,
+      mount my horse, have my banner carried before me, and ride openly on. You
+      have, too, another claim, namely, that of being shipwrecked, and even in
+      war-time nations respect those whom the force of God has thrown upon their
+      shores."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear me, Sir Cuthbert," Sir Baldwin said, "that you overrate the
+      chivalry of our master's enemies. Had we been thrown on the shores of
+      France, Philip perhaps would hesitate to lay hands upon the king; but
+      these petty German princelings have no idea of the observances of true
+      chivalry. They are coarse and brutal in their ways; and though in outward
+      form following the usage of knighthood, they have never been penetrated
+      with its spirit. If the friends of Conrad of Montferat lay hands upon King
+      Richard I fear that no scruples will prevent them from using their
+      advantage to the utmost. Even their emperor I would not trust. The course
+      which you advise would no doubt be in accordance with the spirit of King
+      Richard; but it would be madness for him to judge other people's spirit by
+      his own, and it would be rushing into the lion's den to proclaim himself
+      here. I should recommend, if I might venture to do so, that his majesty
+      should assume a false name, and that we should travel in small parties so
+      as to attract no attention, each making his way to Saxony as best he may."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was silence for a minute or two, and then the king with a sigh said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear that you are right, Sir Baldwin, and that there is no chivalry
+      among these swinish German lords. You shall accompany me. Not, Sir
+      Cuthbert," he observed kindly, noticing a look of disappointment upon the
+      face of the young knight, "that I estimate your fidelity one whit lower
+      than that of my brave friend; but he is the elder and the more versed in
+      European travel, and may manage to bring matters through better than you
+      would do. You will have dangers enough to encounter yourself, more even
+      than I shall, for your brave follower, Cnut, can speak no language but his
+      own, and your archers will be hard to pass as any other than what they
+      are. You must be my messenger to England, should you arrive there without
+      me. Tell my mother and wife where you left me, and that, if I do not come
+      home I have fallen into the hands of one or other of my bitter foes. Bid
+      them bestir themselves to hold England for me against my brother John,
+      and, if needs be, to move the sovereigns of Europe to free me from the
+      hands of my enemies. Should a ransom be needed, I think that my people of
+      England will not grudge their goods for their king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The following day the king bade farewell to his faithful followers, giving
+      his hand to kiss, not only to Sir Cuthbert, but to Cnut and his archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have done me brave service," he said, "and I trust may yet have
+      occasion to do it again. These are bad times when Richard of England has
+      naught wherewith to reward his friends. But," he said, taking a gold chain
+      from his neck and breaking it with his strong fingers into five fragments,
+      "that is for you, Cnut, and for your four archers, in remembrance of King
+      Richard."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men, albeit hardened by many scenes of warfare, yet shed tears
+      plenteously at parting with the king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We had better," Cuthbert said to them when they were alone, "delay here
+      for a few days. If we are taken, the news that some Englishmen have been
+      captured making their way north from Zara will spread rapidly, and may
+      cause the enemies of Richard to be on the lookout for him, suspecting that
+      the ship which bore us may also have carried him; for the news that he is
+      missing will spread rapidly through Europe, and will set all his enemies
+      on the alert."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In accordance with this plan they delayed for another ten days at Zara,
+      and then, hiring a small boat, were landed some thirty miles further along
+      the coast. Cuthbert had obtained for Cnut the dress of a palmer, as in
+      this he would pass almost unquestioned, and his silence might be accounted
+      for on the ground that he had taken a vow of silence. He himself had
+      placed on his coat armor a red cross, instead of the white cross borne by
+      the English knights, and would now pass as a French knight. Similar
+      changes were made in the dress of his followers, and he determined to pass
+      as a French noble who had been wrecked on his way home, and who was
+      returning through Germany to France. The difficulties in his own case
+      would not be serious, as his French would pass muster anywhere in Germany.
+      The greatest difficulty would be with his attendants; but he saw no way of
+      avoiding this.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert's object, when with his little party he separated from King
+      Richard, was to make his way to Verona, thence cross by Trent into
+      Bavaria, and so to journey to Saxony. Fortunately he had at the storming
+      of Acre become possessed of a valuable jewel, and this he now sold, and
+      purchased a charger for himself. He had little fear of any trouble in
+      passing through the north of Italy, for this was neutral ground, where
+      knights of all nations met, and where, neither as an English nor a French
+      Crusader, would he attract either comment or attention.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a slow journey across the northern plains, as of course he had to
+      accommodate his pace to that of his men. Cnut and the archers had grumbled
+      much at the change of the color of the cross upon their jerkins; and, as
+      Cnut said, would have been willing to run greater perils under their true
+      colors than to affect to belong to any other nationality. On their way
+      they passed through Padua, and there stopped a few days. Cuthbert could
+      but feel, in looking at the splendor of this Italian city, the courteous
+      manner of its people, and the university, which was even then famous, how
+      far in advance were those stately cities of Italy to Western Europe. His
+      followers were as much surprised as himself at the splendors of the city.
+      Here they experienced no trouble or annoyance whatever, for to the cities
+      of Italy knights of all nations resorted, learned men came to study,
+      philosophers to dispute, and as these brought their attendants with them,
+      you might in the streets of Padua and its sister cities hear every
+      language in Europe spoken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From Padua they journeyed to Verona, marveling greatly at the richness of
+      the country. The footmen, however, grumbled at the flatness of the plain,
+      and said that it was as bad as marching in the Holy Land. On their right,
+      however, the slopes of the Alps, thickly clad with forests, reached down
+      nearly to the road, and Cuthbert assured them that they would have plenty
+      of climbing before they had done. At Verona they tarried again, and
+      wondered much at the great amphitheater, then almost perfect. Cuthbert
+      related to Cnut and the archers how men had there been set to fight while
+      the great stone benches round were thronged with men and women looking on
+      at their death struggles, and said that not unfrequently British captives
+      were brought hither and made to contend in the arena. The honest fellows
+      were full of indignation and horror at the thought of men killing
+      themselves to give sport to others. They were used to hard knocks, and
+      thought but little of their life, and would have betaken themselves to
+      their bows and bills without hesitation in case of a quarrel. But to fight
+      in cold blood for amusement seemed to them very terrible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert would then have traveled on to Milan, at that time next to Rome
+      the richest city in Europe, but he longed to be back in England, and was
+      the more anxious as he knew that King Richard would be passing through
+      great dangers, and he hoped to meet him at the court of Saxony. His money,
+      too, was fast running out, and he found that it would be beyond his
+      slender means to extend his journey so far. At Verona, then, they turned
+      their back on the broad plains of Lombardy, and entered the valley of the
+      Trent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So far no observation whatever had been excited by the passage of the
+      English knight. So many Crusaders were upon their way home, many in
+      grievous plight, that the somewhat shabby retinue passed unnoticed. But
+      they were now leaving Italy, and entering a country where German was
+      spoken. Trent, in those days an important city, was then, and is still,
+      the meeting place of Italy and Germany. Both tongues are here spoken; but
+      while the Italian perhaps preponderates, the customs, manners, and mode of
+      thought of the people belong to those of the mountaineers of the Tyrol
+      rather than of the dwellers on the plains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are choosing a stormy time," the landlord of the hostelry where they
+      put up said to Cuthbert. "The winter is now at hand, and storms sweep
+      across the passes with terrible violence. You had better, at the last
+      village you come to in the valley, obtain the services of a guide, for
+      should a snowstorm come on when you are crossing, the path will be lost,
+      and nothing will remain but a miserable death. By daylight the road is
+      good. It has been cut with much trouble, and loaded mules can pass over
+      without difficulty. Poles have been erected at short distances to mark the
+      way when the snow covers it. But when the snowstorms sweep across the
+      mountains it is impossible to see ten paces before you, and if the
+      traveler leaves the path he is lost."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But I suppose," Cuthbert said, "that even in winter travelers pass over?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They do," the host said. "The road is as open in winter as in summer,
+      although, of course, the dangers are greater. Still, there is nothing to
+      prevent vigorous men from crossing over when the storms come on. Now, too,
+      with the snow already lying in the upper forests, the wolves are abroad,
+      and should you be attacked by one of those herds, you will find it hard
+      work to defend your lives. Much has been done to render the road safe. At
+      the distance of every league stone houses have been erected, where
+      travelers can find shelter either from the storm or from the attacks of
+      wolves or bears, for these, too, abound in the forests, and in summer
+      there is fine hunting among them. You are, as I see, returning from the
+      Holy Land, an are therefore used to heat rather than cold, so I should
+      advise you before you leave this city to buy some rough cloaks to shield
+      you from the cold. You can obtain them for your followers very cheaply,
+      made of the mountain goat or of sheepskins, and even those of bearskin
+      well dressed are by no means dear."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Obtaining the address of a merchant who kept these things, Cuthbert
+      proceeded thither; and purchased five cloaks of goatskin with hoods to
+      pull over their heads for his followers while for himself he obtained one
+      of rather finer material.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Another two days' journey brought them to the foot of the steep ascent,
+      and here they hired the services of a guide. The ascent was long and
+      difficult, and in spite of the praises which the host had bestowed upon
+      the road, it was so steep that Cuthbert was, for the most part, obliged to
+      walk, leading his steed, whose feet slipped on the smooth rock, and as in
+      many places a false step would have thrown them down many hundreds of feet
+      into the valley below, Cuthbert judged it safer to trust himself to his
+      own feet. He disincumbered himself of his helmet and gorget, and placed
+      these upon the horse's back. At nightfall they had attained a very
+      considerable height, and stopped at one of the small refuges of which the
+      landlord had spoken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I like not the look of the weather," the guide said in the morning&mdash;at
+      least that was what Cuthbert judged him to say, for he could speak no word
+      of the man's language. His actions, however, as he looked toward the sky,
+      and shook his head, spoke for themselves, and Cuthbert, feeling his own
+      powerlessness in a situation so novel to him, felt serious misgivings at
+      the prospect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The scenery was now very wild. On all sides crags and mountain tops
+      covered with snow glistened in the sun. The woods near the path were free
+      of snow; but higher up they rose black above the white ground. The wind
+      blew keenly, and all rejoiced in the warm cloaks which they had obtained;
+      for even with the protection of these they had found the cold bitter
+      during the night.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I like not this country," Cnut said. "We grumbled at the heat of
+      Palestine, but I had rather march across the sand there than in this
+      inhospitable frozen region. The woods look as if they might contain
+      specters. There is a silence which seems to be unnatural, and my courage,
+      like the warmth of my body, is methinks oozing out from my fingers."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert laughed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have no doubt that your courage would come again much quicker than the
+      warmth, Cnut, if there were any occasion for it. A brisk walk will set you
+      all right again, and banish these uneasy fancies. To-night we shall be at
+      the highest point, and to-morrow begin to descend toward Germany."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All day the men kept steadily on. The guide from time to time looked
+      apprehensively at the sky; and although in the earlier part of the day
+      Cuthbert's inexperienced eye saw nothing to cause the slightest
+      uneasiness, toward the afternoon the scene changed. Light clouds began to
+      gather on the top of all the hills and to shut the mountain peaks entirely
+      from view. The wind moaned between the gorges and occasionally swept along
+      in such sudden gusts that they could with difficulty retain their feet.
+      The sky became gradually overcast, and frequently light specks of snow, so
+      small as to be scarcely perceptible, were driven along on the blast,
+      making their faces smart by the force with which they struck them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It scarcely needs our guide's face," Cuthbert said, "to tell us that a
+      storm is at hand, and that our position is a dangerous one. As for me, I
+      own that I feel better pleased now that the wind is blowing, and the
+      silence is broken, than at the dead stillness which prevailed this
+      morning. After all, methinks that a snowstorm cannot be more dreaded than
+      a sandstorm, and we have faced those before now."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Faster and faster the snow came down, until at last the whole air seemed
+      full of it, and it was with difficulty that they could stagger forward.
+      Where the path led across open places the wind swept away the snow as fast
+      as it fell, but in the hollows the track was already covered; and feeling
+      the difficulty of facing the blinding gale, Cuthbert now understood the
+      urgency with which his host had insisted upon the danger of losing the
+      track. Not a word was spoken among the party as they plodded along. The
+      guide kept ahead, using the greatest caution wherever the path was
+      obliterated by the snow, sometimes even sounding with his iron-shod staff
+      to be sure that they were upon the level rock. In spite of his warm cloak
+      Cuthbert felt that he was becoming chilled to the bone. His horse could
+      with difficulty keep his feet; and Cnut and the archers lagged behind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must keep together, lads," he shouted. "I have heard that in these
+      mountains when sleepiness overpowers the traveler, death is at hand.
+      Therefore, come what may, we must struggle on."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Many times the gale was so violent that they were obliged to pause and
+      take shelter under the side of a rock or precipice until the fury of the
+      blast had passed; and Cuthbert eagerly looked out for the next refuge. At
+      last they reached it, and the guide at once entered. It was not that in
+      which he had intended to pass the night, for this lay still higher; but it
+      would have been madness to attempt to go further in the face of such a
+      gale. He signed to Cuthbert that it was necessary at once to collect
+      firewood, and he himself proceeded to light some brands which had been
+      left by previous travelers. Cuthbert gave directions to Cnut and the
+      archers; and these, feeling that life depended upon a good fire being kept
+      up, set to with a will, cutting down shrubs and branches growing in the
+      vicinity of the hut. In half an hour a huge fire blazed in the refuge; and
+      as the warmth thawed their limbs, their tongues were unloosened, and a
+      feeling of comfort again prevailed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If this be mountaineering, my lord," Cnut said, "I trust that never again
+      may it be my fortune to venture among the hills. How long, I wonder, do
+      the storms last here? I was grumbling all the way up the hill at the load
+      of provisions which the guide insisted that each of us should bring with
+      him. As it was to be but a three days' journey before we reached a village
+      on the other side, I wondered why he insisted upon our taking food enough
+      to last us at least for a week. But I understand now, and thank him for
+      his foresight; for if this storm goes on we are assuredly prisoners here
+      for so long as it may continue."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The horse had to be brought into the hut, for it would have been death for
+      it to have remained outside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is that?" Cnut said presently, as a distant howl was heard between
+      the lulls of the storm. The guide muttered some word which Cuthbert did
+      not understand. But he said to Cnut, "I doubt not that it is wolves. Thank
+      God that we are safe within this refuge, for here not even the most
+      ravenous beasts could make their way."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Pooh!" Cnut said contemptuously. "Wolves are no bigger than dogs. I have
+      heard my grandfather say that he shot one in the forest, and that it was
+      no bigger than a hound. We should make short work of them."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not," Cuthbert said. "I have heard tales of these animals which
+      show that they must be formidable opponents. They hunt in great packs, and
+      are so furious that they will attack parties of travelers; many of these
+      have perished miserably, horses and men, and nothing but their swords and
+      portions of their saddles have remained to tell where the battle was
+      fought."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0018" id="link2HCH0018"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XVIII. &mdash; SENTENCED TO DEATH.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Just before arriving at the refuge they had passed along a very steep and
+      dangerous path. On one side the rock rose precipitously, ten feet above
+      their heads. On the other was a fall into the valley below. The road at
+      this point was far wider than usual.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently the howl of a wolf was heard near, and soon the solitary call
+      was succeeded by the howling of great numbers of animals. These speedily
+      surrounded the hut, and so fierce were their cries that Cnut changed his
+      opinion as to the ease with which they could be defeated, and allowed that
+      he would rather face an army of Saracens than a troop of these
+      ill-conditioned animals. The horse trembled in every limb at the sound of
+      the howling of the wolves; and cold as was the night, in spite of the
+      great fire that blazed on the hearth, his coat became covered with the
+      lather of fear. Even upon the roof above the trampling of the animals
+      could be heard; and through the open slits of the windows which some
+      travelers before them had stuffed with straw, they could hear the fierce
+      breathing and snorting of the savage beasts, who scratched and tore to
+      make an entrance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that we might launch a few arrows through
+      these loopholes. The roof appears not to be over strong; and should some
+      of them force an entrance, the whole pack might follow."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Dark as was the night, the black bodies were visible against the white
+      snow, and the archers shot several arrows forth, each stretching a wolf
+      dead on the ground. Those killed were at once pounced upon by their
+      comrades and torn to pieces; and this mark of savageness added to the
+      horror which those within felt of the ferocious animals. Suddenly there
+      was a pause in the howling around the hut, and then Cnut, looking forth
+      from the loophole, declared that the whole body had gone off at full speed
+      along the path by which they had reached the refuge. Almost immediately
+      afterward a loud shout for help was heard, followed by the renewed howling
+      and yelping of the wolves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Good heavens!" Cuthbert exclaimed. "Some traveler coming after us is
+      attacked by these horrible beasts. Let us sally out, Cnut. We cannot hear
+      a Christian torn to pieces by these beasts, without lending him a hand."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In spite of the angry shouts and entreaties of the guide, the door was
+      thrust open, and the party, armed with their axes and bows, at once rushed
+      out into the night. The storm had for the moment abated and they had no
+      difficulty in making their way along the track. In fifty yards they came
+      to a bend of the path, and saw, a little distance before them, a black
+      mass of animals covering the road, and congregated round a figure who
+      stood with his back to the rock. With a shout of encouragement they sprang
+      forward, and in a few moments were in the midst of the savage animals, who
+      turned their rage against them at once. They had fired two or three arrows
+      apiece, as they approached, into them; and now throwing down their bows,
+      the archers betook themselves to their swords, while Cuthbert with his
+      heavy battle-axe hewed and cut at the wolves as they sprang toward him. In
+      a minute they had cleared their way to the figure, which was that of a
+      knight in complete armor. He leaned against the rock completely exhausted,
+      could only mutter a word of thanks through his closed visor. At a short
+      distance off a number of the wolves were gathered, rending and tearing the
+      horse of the knight; but the rest, soon recovering from their surprise,
+      attacked with fury the little party. The thick cloaks of the archers stood
+      them in good stead against the animal's teeth, and standing in a group
+      with their backs to the rock, they hewed and cut vigorously at their
+      assailants. The numbers of these, however, appeared almost innumerable,
+      and fresh stragglers continued to come along the road, and swell their
+      body. As fast as those in front fell, their heads cleft with the axes of
+      the party, fresh ones sprang forward; and Cuthbert saw that in spite of
+      the valor and strength of his men, the situation was well-nigh desperate.
+      He himself had been saved from injury by his harness, for he still had on
+      his greaves and leg pieces.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Keep together," he shouted to his men, "and each lend aid to the other if
+      he sees him pulled down. Strike lustily for life, and hurry not your
+      blows, but let each toll." This latter order he gave perceiving that some
+      of the archers, terrified by this furious army of assailants with gaping
+      mouths and glistening teeth, were striking wildly, and losing their
+      presence of mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The combat, although it might have been prolonged, could yet have had but
+      one termination, and the whole party would have fallen. At this moment,
+      however, a gust of wind, more furious than any which they had before
+      experienced, swept along the gorge, and the very wolves had to crouch on
+      their stomachs to prevent themselves being hurled by its fury into the
+      ravine below. Then even above the storm a deep roar was heard. It grew
+      louder and louder. The wolves, as if struck with terror, leaped to their
+      feet, and scattered on either way along the path at full speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What sound can this be?" Cnut exclaimed in an awe-struck voice. "It
+      sounds like thunder; but it is regular and unbroken; and, my lord, surely
+      the earth quakes under our feet!"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Louder and louder grew the roar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Throw yourselves down against the wall of rock," Cuthbert shouted,
+      himself setting the example.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A moment afterward, from above a mighty mass of rock and snow poured over
+      like a cascade, with a roar and sound which nigh stunned them. For minutes&mdash;it
+      seemed for hours to them&mdash;the deluge of snow and rock continued.
+      Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it ceased, and a silence as of death
+      reigned over the place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Arise," Cuthbert said; "the danger, methinks, is past. It was what men
+      call an avalanche&mdash;a torrent of snow slipping down from the higher
+      peaks. We have had a narrow escape indeed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By this time the knight whom they had rescued was able to speak, and
+      raising his visor, he returned his deepest thanks to those who had come so
+      opportunely to his aid.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I was well-nigh exhausted," he said, "and it was only my armor which
+      saved me from being torn to pieces. A score of them had hold of me; but
+      fortunately my mail was of Milan proof, and even the jaws and teeth of
+      these enormous beasts were unable to pierce it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The refuge is near at hand," Cuthbert said. "It is but a few yards round
+      yonder point. It is well that we heard your voice. I fear that your horse
+      has fallen a victim."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Assisting the knight, who in spite of his armor was sorely bruised and
+      exhausted, they made their way back to the refuge. Cnut and the archers
+      were all bleeding freely from various wounds inflicted upon them in the
+      struggle, breathless and exhausted from their exertions, and thoroughly
+      awe-struck by the tremendous phenomenon of which they had been witnesses,
+      and which they had only escaped from their good fortune in happening to be
+      in a place so formed that the force of the avalanche had swept over their
+      heads. The whole of the road, with the exception of a narrow piece four
+      feet in width, had been carried away. Looking upward, they saw that the
+      forest had been swept clear, not a tree remaining in a wide track as far
+      as they could see up the hill. The great bowlders which had strewn the
+      hillside, and many of which were as large as houses, had been swept away
+      like straws before the rush of snow, and for a moment they feared that the
+      refuge had also been carried away. Turning the corner, however, they saw
+      to their delight that the limits of the avalanche had not extended so far,
+      the refuges, as they afterward learned, being so placed as to be sheltered
+      by overhanging cliffs from any catastrophe of this kind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They found the guide upon his knees, muttering his prayers before a cross,
+      which he had formed of two sticks laid crosswise on the ground before him;
+      and he could scarce believe his eyes when they entered, so certain had he
+      considered it that they were lost. There were no longer any signs of the
+      wolves. The greater portion, indeed, of the pack had been overwhelmed by
+      the avalanche, and the rest, frightened and scared, had fled to their
+      fastnesses in the woods.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight now removed his helmet, and discovered a handsome young man of
+      some twenty-four or twenty-five years old.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am," he said, "Baron Ernest of Kornstein. To whom do I owe my life?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In spite of my red cross," Cuthbert said, "I am English. My name is Sir
+      Cuthbert, and I am Earl of Evesham. I am on my return from the Holy Land
+      with my followers; and as we are passing through countries where many of
+      the people are hostile to England, we have thought it as well for a time
+      to drop our nationality. But to you I do not hesitate to tell the truth."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You do well," the young knight said, "for, truth to say, the people of
+      these parts bear but little love to your countrymen. You have saved my
+      life when I was in the sorest danger. I had given myself up for lost, for
+      even my armor could not have saved me long from these wretches; and my
+      sword and life are at your disposal. You are young indeed," he said,
+      looking with surprise at Cuthbert, who had now thrown back the hood of his
+      cloak, "to have gained the honor of knighthood. You scarce look eighteen
+      years of age, although, doubtless, you are older."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am scarce seventeen," Cuthbert said; "but I have had the good fortune
+      to attract the notice of King Richard, and to have received the knighthood
+      from his sword."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "None more worthy," said the young knight, "for although King Richard may
+      be fierce and proud, he is the worthiest knight in Christendom, and
+      resembles the heroes of romance rather than a Christian king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He is my lord and master," Cuthbert said, "and I love him beyond all men,
+      and would give my life for his. He is the kindest and best of masters; and
+      although it be true that he brooks no opposition, yet is it only because
+      his own bravery and eagerness render hateful to him the indolence and
+      cowardice of others."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They now took their seats round the fire. The archers, by the advice of
+      the guide, rubbed their wounds with snow, and then applied bandages to
+      them. The wallets were opened, and a hearty supper eaten; and all,
+      wrapping themselves in their fur cloaks, were soon asleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For four days the gale continued, keeping the party prisoners in the hut.
+      On the fifth the force of the wind abated, and the snow ceased to fall.
+      They were forced to take the door off its hinges to open it, for the snow
+      had piled up so high that the chimney alone of the hut remained above its
+      surface. With great difficulty and labor they cleared a way out, and then
+      the guide again placing himself at their head, they proceeded on their
+      way. The air was still and cold, and the sky of a deep, dark blue, which
+      seemed even darker in contrast with the whiteness of the snow. At times
+      they had great difficulty in struggling through the deep drifts; but for
+      the most part the wind had swept the path clear. Where it was deepest, the
+      tops of the posts still showed above the snow, and enabled the guide to
+      direct their footsteps. They were, however, obliged to travel slowly, and
+      it was three days before they gained the village on the northern slope of
+      the mountains, having slept at refuges by the road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What are your plans?" the knight asked Sir Cuthbert that night, as they
+      sat by the fire of the hostelry. "I would warn you that the town which you
+      will first arrive at is specially hostile to your people, for the baron,
+      its master, is a relation of Conrad of Montferat, who is said to have been
+      killed by order of your king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is false," Cuthbert said. "King Richard had appointed him King of
+      Jerusalem; and, though he liked him not, thought him the fittest of those
+      there to exercise sovereignty. He was the last man who would have had an
+      enemy assassinated; for so open is he of disposition that he would have
+      fought hand to hand with the meanest soldier of his army had he desired to
+      kill him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I doubt not that it is so, since you tell me," the knight said
+      courteously. "But the people here have taken that idea into their minds,
+      and it will be hard to disabuse them. You must therefore keep up your
+      disguise as a French knight while passing through this neighborhood.
+      Another week's journeying, and you will reach the confines of Saxony, and
+      there you will, as you anticipate, be safe. But I would not answer for
+      your life were you discovered here to be of English birth. And now tell me
+      if there is aught that I can do for you. I will myself accompany you into
+      the town, and will introduce you as a French knight, so that no suspicion
+      is likely to lie upon you, and will, further, ride with you to the borders
+      of Saxony. I am well known, and trust that my company will avert all
+      suspicion from you. You have told me that your purse is ill-supplied; you
+      must suffer me to replenish it. One knight need not fear to borrow of
+      another; and I know that when you have returned to your home you will
+      bestow the sum which I now give you upon some holy shrine in my name, and
+      thus settle matters between us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert without hesitation accepted the offer, and was well pleased at
+      finding his purse replenished, for its emptiness had caused him serious
+      trouble. Cuthbert's steed was led by one of the archers, and he himself
+      walked gayly alongside of Sir Ernest, followed by his retainers. Another
+      long day's march brought them down to Innsbruck, where they remained
+      quietly for a week. Then they journeyed on until they emerged from the
+      mountains, crossed the Bavarian frontier, and arrived at Fussen, a strong
+      city, with well-built walls and defenses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They at once proceeded to the principal hostelry, where the young baron
+      was well known, and where great interest was excited by the news of the
+      narrow escape which he had had from the attack of the wolves. A journey
+      across the Alps was in those days regarded as a very perilous enterprise
+      in the winter season, and the fact that he should have been rescued from
+      such a strait appeared almost miraculous. They stayed for two days quietly
+      in the city, Cuthbert declining the invitation of the young noble to
+      accompany him to the houses of his friends, as he did not wish that any
+      suspicion should be excited as to his nationality, and preferred remaining
+      quiet to having forced upon him the necessity of making false statements.
+      As to his followers, there was no fear of the people among whom they mixed
+      detecting that they were English. To the Bavarian inhabitants, all
+      languages, save their native German, were alike unintelligible; and even
+      had French been commonly spoken, the dialects of that tongue, such as
+      would naturally be spoken by archers and men-at-arms, would have been a
+      Greek to those accustomed only to Norman French.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the third day, however, an incident occurred which upset Cuthbert's
+      calculations, and nearly involved the whole party in ruin. The town was,
+      as the young baron had said, governed by a noble who was a near relation
+      of Conrad of Montferat, and who was the bitter enemy of the English. A
+      great <i>fête</i> had been given in honor of the marriage of his daughter,
+      and upon this day the young pair were to ride in triumph through the city.
+      Great preparations had been made; masks and pageants of various kinds
+      manufactured; and the whole townspeople, dressed in their holiday attire,
+      were gathered in the streets. Cuthbert had gone out, followed by his
+      little band of retainers, and taken their station to see the passing show.
+      First came a large body of knights and men-at-arms, with gay banners and
+      trappings. Then rode the bridegroom, with the bride carried in a litter by
+      his side. After this came several allegorical representations. Among these
+      was the figure of a knight bearing the arms of Austria. Underneath his
+      feet, on the car, lay a figure clad in a royal robe, across whom was
+      thrown a banner with the leopards of England. The knight stood with his
+      foot on this figure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This representation of the dishonor of England at the hands of Austria
+      elicited great acclamations from the crowd. Cuthbert clinched his teeth
+      and grasped his sword angrily, but had the sense to see the folly of
+      taking any notice of the insult. Not so with Cnut. Furious it the insult
+      offered to the standard of his royal master, Cnut, with a bound, burst
+      through the ranks of the crowd, leaped on to the car, and with a buffet
+      smote the figure representing Austria into the road, and lifted the flag
+      of England from the ground. A yell of indignation and rage was heard. The
+      infuriated crowd rushed forward. Cnut, with a bound, sprang from the car,
+      and, joining his comrades, burst through those who attempted to impede
+      them, and darted down a by-street.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, for the moment amazed at the action of his follower, had on the
+      instant drawn his sword and joined the archers. In the crowd, however, he
+      was for a second separated from them; and before he could tear himself
+      from the hands of the citizens who had seized him, the men-at-arms
+      accompanying the procession surrounded him, and he was led away by them to
+      the castle, the guards with difficulty protecting him from the enraged
+      populace. Even at this moment Cuthbert experienced a deep sense of
+      satisfaction at the thought that his followers had escaped. But he feared
+      that alone, and unacquainted with the language of the country, they would
+      find it difficult indeed to escape the search which would be made for
+      them, and to manage to find their way back to their country. For himself,
+      he had little hopes of liberty, and scarcely more of life. The hatred of
+      the baron toward the English would now be heightened by the daring act of
+      insult to the arms of Austria, and this would give a pretext for any deed
+      of violence which might be wrought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was, after a short confinement, brought before the lord baron of
+      the place, in the great hall of the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Who art thou, sir," the noble exclaimed, "who darest to disturb the
+      marriage procession of my daughter, and to insult the standard of the
+      emperor my master?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, a baron of England," Cuthbert said
+      fearlessly, "and am traveling homeward from the Holy Land. My garb as a
+      Crusader should protect me from all interruption; and the heedless conduct
+      of my retainer was amply justified by the insult offered to the arms of
+      England. There is not one of the knights assembled round you who would not
+      in like manner have avenged an insult offered to those of Austria; and I
+      am ready to do battle in the lists with any who choose to say that the
+      deed was a foul or improper one. In the Holy Land Austrians and English
+      fought side by side; and it is strange indeed to me that on my return,
+      journeying through the country of the emperor, I should find myself
+      treated as an enemy, and see the arms of King Richard exposed to insult
+      and derision by the burghers of this city."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert had spoken he threw down his mailed glove, and several of the
+      knights present stepped forward to pick it up. The baron, however, waved
+      them back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is no question," he said, "of honorable fight. This is a follower of
+      the murderer of my good cousin of Montferat, who died under the hands of
+      assassins set upon him by Richard of England."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is false!" Cuthbert shouted. "I denounce it as a foul lie, and will
+      maintain it with my life."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your life is already forfeited," the baron said, "both by your past
+      connection with Richard of England and as the insulter of the arms of
+      Austria. You die, and to-morrow at noon your head shall be struck off in
+      the great square before my castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without another word Cuthbert was hurried off to his cell, and there
+      remained, thinking moodily over the events of the day, until nightfall. He
+      had no doubt that his sentence would be carried out, and his anxiety was
+      rather for his followers than for himself. He feared that they would make
+      some effort on his behalf, and would sacrifice their own lives in doing
+      so, without the possibility of assisting him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning he was led out to the square before the castle. It was a
+      large flagged courtyard. Upon one side was the entrance to the castle, one
+      of whose wings also formed a second side to the square. The side facing
+      this was formed by the wall of the city, and the fourth opened upon a
+      street of the town. This side of the square was densely filled with
+      citizens, while the men-at-arms of the baron and a large number of knights
+      were gathered behind a scaffold erected in the center. Upon this was a
+      block, and by the side stood a headsman. As Cuthbert was led forward a
+      thrill of pleasure ran through him at perceiving no signs of his
+      followers, who he greatly feared might have been captured in the night,
+      and brought there to share his fate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he was led forward the young noble whose life he had saved advanced to
+      the baron, and dropping on one knee before him, craved the life of
+      Cuthbert, relating the event by which he had saved his life in the passage
+      of the mountains. The baron frowned heavily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Though he had saved the life of every noble in Bavaria," he said, "he
+      should die. I have sworn an oath that every Englishman who fell into my
+      hands should expiate the murder of my kinsman; and this fellow is,
+      moreover, guilty of an outrage to the arms of Austria."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The young Sir Ernest drew himself up haughtily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lord baron," he said, "henceforth I renounce all allegiance to you,
+      and I will lay the case before the emperor, our common master, and will
+      cry before him at the outrage which has thus been passed upon a noble
+      gentleman. He has thrown down the glove, and challenged any of your
+      knights, and I myself am equally ready to do battle in his cause."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron grew red with passion, and he would have ordered the instant
+      arrest of the young man, but as Sir Ernest was connected by blood with
+      many present, and was indeed one of the most popular among the nobles of
+      the province, the baron simply waved him aside, and ordered Cuthbert to be
+      led to the block. The young Englishman was by the executioner divested of
+      his armor and helmet, and stood in the simple attire worn by men of rank
+      at that time. He looked around, and holding up his hand, conveying alike a
+      farewell and a command to his followers to remain in concealment, he gazed
+      round the crowd, thinking that he might see among them in some disguise or
+      other the features of Cnut, whose tall figure would have rendered him
+      conspicuous in a crowd. He failed, however, to see any signs of him, and
+      turning to the executioner, signified by a gesture that he was ready.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At this instant an arrow from the wall above pierced the brain of the man,
+      and he fell dead in his tracks. A roar of astonishment burst from the
+      crowd. Upon the city wall at this point was a small turret, and on this
+      were five figures. The wall around was deserted, and for the moment these
+      men were masters of the position.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Seize those insolent varlets!" the baron shouted, shaking his sword with
+      a gesture of fury at them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His words, however, were arrested, for at the moment another arrow struck
+      him in the throat, and he fell back into the arms of those around him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Quickly now the arrows of the English archers flew into the courtyard. The
+      confusion which reigned there was indescribable. The citizens with shouts
+      of alarm took to their heels. The men-at-arms were powerless against this
+      rain of missiles, and the knights, hastily closing their visors, shouted
+      contradictory orders, which no one obeyed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the confusion no one noticed the prisoner. Seizing a moment when the
+      attention of all was fixed upon the wall, he leaped from the platform, and
+      making his way unnoticed through the excited crowd of men-at-arms, darted
+      down a narrow lane that divided the castle from the wall. He ran along
+      until, one hundred yards further, he came to a staircase by which access
+      to the battlements was obtained. Running lightly up this, he kept along
+      the wall until he reached the turret.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, my noble Cnut!" he exclaimed, "and you, my brave fellows. But I
+      fear you have forfeited your lives. There is no escape. In a minute the
+      whole force of the place will recover from their confusion, and be down
+      upon us from both sides."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We have prepared for that," Cnut said. "Here is a rope hanging down into
+      the moat."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Glancing over, Cuthbert saw that the moat was dry; and after a final
+      discharge of arrows into the crowd, the six men slid one after another
+      down the rope and made their way at full speed across the country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0019" id="link2HCH0019"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XIX. &mdash; DRESDEN.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was some ten minutes before the men-at-arms rallied sufficiently from
+      their surprise to obey orders. Two bodies were then drawn up, and
+      proceeded at a rapid pace toward the staircases leading to the wall, one
+      on each side of the turret in which they believed that the little body of
+      audacious assailants were still lying. Having reached the wall, the
+      soldiers advanced, covering themselves with their shields, for they had
+      learned the force with which an English clothyard shaft drawn by a strong
+      hand flies. Many had been killed by these missiles passing through and
+      through the cuirass and backpiece. No reply being obtained to the summons
+      to surrender, they proceeded to break in with their battle-axes the door
+      of the little turret. Rushing in with ax and pike, they were astonished to
+      find the place empty. A glance over the wall showed the rope still
+      hanging, and the manner of the escape became manifest. The fugitives were
+      already out of sight, and the knights, furious at the escape of the men
+      who had bearded them in the heart of the city with such audacity, and had
+      slain the lord baron and several of his knights, gave orders that an
+      instant pursuit should be organized. It was, however, a full half hour
+      before the city gates were thrown open, and a strong troop of knights and
+      mounted men issued out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had been certain that an instant pursuit would be set on foot,
+      and the moment that he was out of sight of the battlements he changed the
+      direction in which he had started, and turning at right angles, swept
+      round the city, still keeping at a distance, until he reached the side
+      next the mountains, and then plunged into the woods on the lower slopes of
+      the hills.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They will," he said, as they halted breathless from their run, "follow
+      the road toward the south, and scour the country for awhile before it
+      occurs to their thick German skulls that we have doubled back on our
+      tracks. Why, what is it, Cnut?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This exclamation was provoked by the forester throwing himself on his
+      knees before Sir Cuthbert, and imploring his pardon for the dire strait
+      into which his imprudence had drawn him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It was a dire strait, certainly, Cnut. But if you got me into it, at
+      least you have extricated me; and never say more about it, for I myself
+      was near committing the imprudence to which you gave way, and I can well
+      understand that your English blood boiled at the sight of the outrage to
+      the flag of England. Now, let us waste no time in talk, but, keeping to
+      the foot of this mountain, make along as far as we can to the west. We
+      must cling to the hills for many days' march before we venture again to
+      try to cross the plains. If possible, we will keep on this way until we
+      reach the confines of the country of the Swiss, who will assuredly give us
+      hospitality, and who will care little for any threats of these German
+      barons, should they hear that we have reached their asylum."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By nightfall they had already traveled many leagues, and making a fire in
+      the wood, Cuthbert asked Cnut for an account of what had taken place on
+      the previous day.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We ran for life, Sir Cuthbert, and had not noticed that you had been
+      drawn into the fray. Had we done so, we would have remained, and sold our
+      lives with yours; but hoping that you had passed unnoticed in the crowd,
+      and that you would find some means to rejoin us we kept upon our way.
+      After running down three streets we passed a place where a courtyard with
+      stables ranged round it was open. There were none about, and we entered,
+      and taking refuge in a loft hid ourselves beneath some provender. There we
+      remained all night, and then borrowing some apparel which some of the
+      stablemen had hung upon the walls, we issued into the town. As we neared
+      the great square we saw some men employed in erecting a platform in the
+      midst, and a suspicion that all might not be right, and that you might
+      have fallen into the hands of these German dogs, beset our minds. After
+      much consultation we determined to see what the affair meant, and making
+      our way on to the walls which, indeed, were entirely deserted, we took
+      refuge in that turret where you saw us. Seeing the crowd gather, and being
+      still more convinced that some misfortune was about to occur, I again went
+      back to the stables, where I had noticed a long rope used by the carters
+      for fastening their loads to the wagons. With this I returned, for it was
+      clear that if we had to mingle in this business it would be necessary to
+      have a mode of escape. Of the rest you are aware. We saw the knights
+      coming out of the castle, with that portly baron, their lord, at their
+      head. We saw the block and the headsman upon the platform, and were
+      scarcely surprised when you were led out, a prisoner, from the gates. We
+      judged that what did happen would ensue. Seeing that the confusion wrought
+      by a sudden attack from men perched up aloft as we were, commanding the
+      courtyard, and being each of us able to hit a silver mark at the distance
+      of one hundred yards, would be great indeed, we judged that you might be
+      able to slip away unobserved, and were sure that your quick wit would
+      seize any opportunity which might offer. Had you not been able to join us,
+      we should have remained in the turret and sold our lives to the last, as,
+      putting aside the question that we could never return to our homes, having
+      let our dear lord die here, we should not, in our ignorance of the
+      language and customs of the country, have ever been able to make our way
+      across it. We knew, however, that before this turret was carried we could
+      show these Germans how five Englishmen, when brought to bay, can sell
+      their lives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They had not much difficulty in obtaining food in the forest, for game
+      abounded, and they could kill as many deer as seemed fit to them. As Cnut
+      said, it was difficult to believe that they were not back again in the
+      forest near Evesham, so similar was their life to that which they had led
+      three years before. To Cnut and the archers, indeed, it was a pleasanter
+      time than any which they had passed since they had left the shores of
+      England, and they blithely marched along, fearing little any pursuit which
+      might be set on foot, and, indeed, hearing nothing of their enemies. After
+      six days' travel they came upon a rude village, and here Cuthbert learned
+      from the people&mdash;with much difficulty, however, and pantomime, for
+      neither could understand a word spoken by the other&mdash;that they were
+      now in one of the Swiss cantons, and therefore secure from all pursuit by
+      the Germans. Without much difficulty Cuthbert engaged one of the young men
+      of the village to act as their guide to Basle, and here, after four days'
+      traveling, they arrived safely. Asking for the residence of the
+      burgomaster, Cuthbert at once proceeded thither, and stated that he was an
+      English knight on the return from the Crusades; that he had been foully
+      entreated by the Lord of Fussen, who had been killed in a fray by his
+      followers; and that he besought hospitality and refuge from the
+      authorities of Basle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We care little," the burgomaster said, "what quarrel you may have had
+      with your neighbors. All who come hither are free to come and go as they
+      list, and you, as a knight on the return from the Holy Land, have a claim
+      beyond that of an ordinary traveler."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The burgomaster was himself able to speak French, and summoning several of
+      the councilors of the town, he requested Cuthbert to give a narrative of
+      his adventures; which he did. The councilors agreed with the burgomaster
+      that Cuthbert must be received hospitably; but the latter saw that there
+      was among many of them considerable doubt as to the expediency of
+      quarreling with a powerful neighbor. He therefore said to the burgomaster:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have no intention, honorable sir, of taking up any prolonged residence
+      here. I only ask to be furnished with a charger and arms, and in payment
+      of these I will leave this gold chain, the gift of King Richard himself,
+      as a gage, and will on my return to my country forward to you the value of
+      the arms and horse, trusting that you will return the chain to me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The burgomaster, however, said that the city of Basle was not so poor that
+      it need take the gage of an honorable knight, but that the arms and
+      charger he required should be given him in a few hours, and that he might
+      pay the value in London to a Jew merchant there who had relations with one
+      at Basle. Full instructions were given to him, and he resolved to travel
+      down upon the left bank of the Rhine, until he reached Lorraine, and
+      thence to cross into Saxony. The same afternoon the promised horse and
+      arms were provided, and Cuthbert, delighted again to be in harness, and
+      thanking courteously the burgomaster and council for their kindness,
+      started with his followers on his journey north. These latter had been
+      provided with doublets and other garments suitable to the retinue of a
+      knight, and made a better show than they had done since they first left
+      England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaving Basle, they traveled along the left side of the Rhine by easy
+      stages. The country was much disturbed, owing to the return and
+      disbandment of so many of the troops employed in the Crusades. These,
+      their occupation being gone, scattered over the country, and France and
+      Germany alike were harassed by bands of military robbers. The wild country
+      between the borders of Switzerland and Lorraine was specially vexed, as
+      the mountains of the Vosges afforded shelter, into which the freebooters
+      could not be followed by the troops of the duke.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the evening of the third day they reached a small inn standing in a
+      lonely position near the foot of the mountains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I like not the look of this place," Cuthbert said; "but as we hear that
+      there is no other within a distance of another ten miles, we must e'en
+      make the best of it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The host received them with extreme and even fawning civility, which by no
+      means raised him in the estimation of Cuthbert or Cnut. A rough meal was
+      taken, and they then ascended to the rude accommodation which had been
+      provided. It was one large room barely furnished. Upon one side straw was
+      thickly littered down&mdash;for in those days beds among the common people
+      were unknown. In a sort of alcove at the end was a couch with a rough
+      mattress and coverlet. This Cuthbert took possession of, while his
+      followers stretched themselves upon the straw.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cnut said, "that it were well that one should keep watch at
+      the door. I like not the look of our host, and we are near the spot where
+      the bands of the robbers are said to be busy."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Toward morning the archer on guard reported that he could hear the sound
+      of many approaching footsteps. All at once sprang to their feet, and
+      betook themselves to their arms. Looking from the window they saw a large
+      party of rough men, whose appearance at once betokened that they were
+      disbanded soldiers&mdash;a title almost synonymous in those days with that
+      of robber. With the united strength of the party the truckle bed was
+      carried from the alcove and placed against the door. Cuthbert then threw
+      open the window, and asked in French what they wanted. One of the party,
+      who appeared to be the leader, said that the party had better surrender
+      immediately. He promised them good treatment, and said that the knight
+      would be put to ransom, should it be found that the valuables upon his
+      person were not sufficient to pay the worshipful company present for the
+      trouble which they had taken in waiting upon him. This sally was received
+      with shouts of laughter. Cuthbert replied quietly that he had no valuables
+      upon his person; that if they took him there were none would pay as much
+      as a silver mark for the ransom of them all; and that the only things that
+      they had to give were sharp arrows and heavy blows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You talk bravely, young sir," the man said. "But you have to do with men
+      versed in fight, and caring but little either for knocks or for arrows. We
+      have gone through the Crusades, and are therefore held to be absolved from
+      all sin, even that so great as would be incurred in the cutting of your
+      knightly throat."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But we have gone through the Crusades also," Cuthbert said, "and our
+      persons are sacred. The sin of slitting our weazands, which you speak of,
+      would therefore be so great that even the absolution on which you rely
+      would barely extend to it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We know most of those who have served in the Holy Land," the man said
+      more respectfully than he had yet spoken, "and would fain know with whom
+      we speak."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am an Englishman, and a follower of King Richard," Cuthbert said, "and
+      am known as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham. As I was the youngest among the
+      knights who fought for the holy sepulcher, it may be that my appearance is
+      known to you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah," the other said, "you are he whom they called the Boy Knight, and who
+      was often in the thick of the fray, near to Richard himself. How comes it,
+      Sir Cuthbert, that you are here?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The fleet was scattered on its return," Cuthbert replied, "and I landed
+      with my followers, well-nigh penniless, at Zara, and have since made my
+      way across the Tyrol. I have, then, as you may well suppose, neither
+      silver nor gold about my person; and assuredly neither Philip of France
+      nor John of Austria would give a noble for my ransom; and it would be
+      long, methinks, to wait ere John of England would care to ransom one of
+      King Richard's followers."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The brigands spoke for awhile among themselves, and then the leader said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You speak frankly and fairly, Sir Knight, and as you have proved yourself
+      indeed a doughty giver of hard blows, and as I doubt not that the archers
+      with you can shoot as straight and as fast as the rest of the Saxon breed,
+      we will e'en let you go on your way, for your position is but little
+      better than ours, and dog should not rob dog."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, good fellow," Cuthbert said. "We trust that in any case we might
+      have made a strong defense against you; but it would be hard if those who
+      have fought together in the Holy Land should slay each other in this
+      lonely corner of Lorraine."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Are you seeking adventures or employment, Sir Knight? For if so, myself
+      and comrades here would gladly take service with you; and it may be that
+      with a clump of spears you might obtain engagement, either under the Duke
+      of Lorraine or he of Cleves."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks for your offer," Cuthbert replied; "but at present my face is
+      turned toward England. King Richard needs all his friends; and there is so
+      little chance of sack or spoil, even should we have&mdash;which God
+      forfend&mdash;civil war, that I fear I could ill reward the services which
+      you offer me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The leader and his men shouted an adieu to Cuthbert and departed for the
+      mountains, leaving the latter well pleased with his escape from a fight of
+      which the result was doubtful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Journeying on without further adventure, they came to Nancy, and were
+      there kindly received by the duke, who was not at that time upon good
+      terms with Philip of France, and was therefore well disposed toward the
+      English. Cuthbert inquired from him whether any news had been heard of
+      King Richard? but received as a reply that the duke had heard nothing of
+      him since he sailed from Palestine.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is strange," Cuthbert said, "for I myself have journeyed but slowly,
+      and have met with many delays. King Richard should long ere this have
+      reached Saxony; and I fear much that some foul treatment has befallen him.
+      On our way we found how bitter was the feeling among those related to
+      Conrad of Montferat against him; and the Archduke John is still smarting
+      from the blow which King Richard struck him at Ascalon. But surely they
+      would not be so unknightly as to hinder so great a champion of Christendom
+      as King Richard on his homeward way?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Archduke John is crafty and treacherous," the duke said; "and the
+      emperor himself would, I think, be not sorry to lay hand upon the King of
+      England, were it only to do pleasure to Philip of France. Assuredly,
+      however the anger and indignation of all Christendom will be aroused
+      should the king's passage be interrupted, for it were indeed a gross
+      breach of hospitality to seize upon a man who has the double claim of
+      being a champion of Christendom and a shipwrecked man. However, it is
+      early yet to be uneasy, and it may be that in a few days we may have news
+      of the arrival of the king in Saxony. He may have encountered difficulties
+      similar to those which you yourself have met with. The country is
+      everywhere disturbed, and it is not only in my forests that bands of
+      outlawed men are to be met with. At present there is peace in Europe. It
+      may last indeed but a short time. But so long as it continues, so long
+      must the mountains and woods be full of desperate men. Were war declared
+      between any two princes these would flock to the banners of him who would
+      pay them highest, and a war which could end in the entire destruction of
+      the armies of both combatants would be a blessing to Europe."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After entertaining Cuthbert courteously for three days, the Duke of
+      Lorraine bade him adieu, and gave him an escort of men-at-arms to the
+      borders of the Rhine, where he would find the way open to the domains of
+      the Duke of Saxony. Without adventure Cuthbert and his followers arrived
+      at Dresden, and he immediately presented himself at the castle of the
+      duke. The instant that he sent in his name as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, a
+      knight of King Richard, he was conducted to the presence of the duke and
+      of his wife, the sister of King Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Are you bearer of news of my brother Richard?" the duke said, advancing a
+      step to meet the young knight as he entered the hall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Alas! my lord duke, I am not," Cuthbert said; "but had hoped to gain
+      tidings from you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From me?" the duke said in surprise. "What should lead you to believe
+      that I have any news of King Richard later than that which others have
+      received? The last I heard of him was upon the day of his departure from
+      the Holy Land, before the storm arose which scattered his fleet, and I am
+      ignorant whether he has foundered at sea, or whether, as some suppose, his
+      vessel may have been taken captive by the Moors."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I bear you later tidings," Cuthbert said, "than those you have received.
+      I was on board the ship with King Richard. We were wrecked upon the Island
+      of Corfu and there hiring a small ship, we proceeded to Zara. King Richard
+      determined to make his way across the Tyrol to this place; but he thought
+      that it would attract attention to him were he accompanied by so large a
+      party. Therefore he, with Sir Baldwin of Béthune, and a few followers,
+      started north, while I with my men kept west through the north of Italy,
+      and then crossed by the pass over Trent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "How long is it since you left my brother?" the duchess asked anxiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is now over a month since I bade him adieu," Cuthbert answered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then he should have been heard of long since," the duchess said. "What
+      fate can have befallen him?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Judging from my own experience," Cuthbert said, "I fear that he may have
+      come to harm at the hands of the friends of Conrad of Montferat, who
+      falsely allege that the death of their kinsman was caused by King Richard.
+      The Archduke John, too, owes him no good-will; and even the emperor is
+      evilly disposed toward him. The king traveled under an assumed name; but
+      it might well be that he would be recognized upon the way. His face was
+      known to all who fought in the East; and his lordly manner and majestic
+      stature could ill be concealed beneath a merchant's garb. Still, lady, as
+      I have been so long in making my way across, it may be that King Richard
+      has been similarly delayed without danger befalling him, and it could
+      hardly be that so important a man as the King of England would be
+      detained, or come to any misfortune, without the news being bruited
+      abroad."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In spite of Cuthbert's reassuring words, the duke and duchess were greatly
+      alarmed at the news of King Richard's disappearance, although indeed
+      consoled to find that their previous fears, that he had been drowned in
+      the storm or captured by the Moorish corsairs, were unfounded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They now requested from Cuthbert the story of what had befallen him since
+      he left the king; and this he related at some length. The duke was greatly
+      interested, and begged Cuthbert at least to remain at his court until some
+      news might arrive of King Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a month Cuthbert tarried at the castle of the Duke of Saxony, where he
+      was nobly entertained, and treated as a guest of much honor. Cnut and the
+      archers were delighted at the treatment they received, for never in their
+      lives had they been so royally entertained. Their Saxon tongue was nigh
+      enough akin to the language spoken here to be understood; and their tales
+      of adventure in the Holy Land rendered them as popular among the retainers
+      of the duke as their master became with the duke and duchess.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0020" id="link2HCH0020"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XX. &mdash; UNDER THE GREENWOOD.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      At the end of a month, news came from England that Sir Baldwin of Béthune
+      had returned there, bearing the news that the king had been arrested at
+      Gortz, only two days' journey north of the Adriatic&mdash;that he had been
+      recognized, and at once captured. He had offered no resistance, finding
+      indeed that it would be hopeless so to do. Sir Baldwin had been permitted
+      to depart without molestation. He believed that the folk into whose hands
+      he had fallen were retainers of the Archduke John. This news, although sad
+      in itself, was yet in some degree reassuring to the duke and his wife; for
+      they felt that while the followers of Conrad of Montferat would not
+      hesitate to put King Richard to death should he fall into their hands, the
+      Archduke John would not dare to bring upon himself the indignation of
+      Europe by such treatment of his royal captive. Cuthbert at once determined
+      to return to England to see Sir Baldwin, and to ascertain what steps were
+      being taken for the discovery of the prison in which King Richard was
+      confined, and for his release therefrom; and also to establish himself in
+      his new dignity as Earl of Evesham. Therefore, bidding adieu to the duke
+      and duchess, he started north. The duke furnished him with letters of
+      introduction to the princes through whose countries he would travel; and
+      again crossing the Rhine, he journeyed through the territories of the
+      Dukes of Cleves and Brabant, and reached the mouth of Scheldt without
+      interruption. There taking ship, he sailed for London.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a long and stormy passage between the mouth of the Scheldt and
+      London. The vessel in which Cuthbert had shipped was old and somewhat
+      unseaworthy, and several times in the force of the gale all on board gave
+      up hope for their lives. At last, however, they reached the mouth of the
+      Thames, and dropping up with the tide, reached London eight days after
+      their embarkation. The noble charger which the King of Saxony had
+      presented to Cuthbert had suffered greatly, and he feared at one time that
+      the poor animal would succumb to the effects of the tempest. However,
+      after entering into smooth water it recovered itself, and on landing near
+      the Tower he found that it was able to support his weight. Cnut and the
+      archers were, like Cuthbert, delighted to have their feet again upon
+      English soil; and although London did not now strike them with the same
+      wonder which it would have done had they first visited it before starting
+      on their journey&mdash;for in many respects it was greatly behind some of
+      the continental cities&mdash;yet the feeling of home, and the pleasure of
+      being able to understand the conversation of those around them, made the
+      poor fellows almost beside themselves with joy. Beyond the main political
+      incidents Cuthbert had heard little of what had passed in England since
+      his departure; and putting up at a hostelry, he inquired of the host
+      whether Sir Baldwin of Béthune was in London, or whether he was away on
+      his estates. The landlord did not know. There were, he said, but few
+      nobles at court, and London was never so dull as at present. As Cuthbert
+      did not wish his coming home to be known to John until he had learned
+      something of the position of affairs, he dispatched Cnut to the Tower to
+      inquire privately of some of the officials about the place whether Sir
+      Baldwin was there. Cnut soon returned with the news that he had not been
+      at the court since his return from the Holy Land, and that he was living
+      at his castle down in Dorsetshire. After some hesitation Cuthbert resolved
+      to set out to see his friend, and after six days' travel he arrived at the
+      castle of the knight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Baldwin received him with immense joy. He had not heard of him since
+      they parted at Zara, and he feared that a fate similar to that which had
+      befallen King Richard had overtaken Cuthbert, even if he were still alive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have you seen aught of the king, our master?" the good knight inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nothing," Cuthbert said. "I know no more than yourself. Indeed, I hoped
+      to have learned something from you as to the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I was separated from him at Gortz, and while he was taken a prisoner to
+      the archduke, I was allowed to pursue my way. I had many difficulties and
+      dangers, and was some weeks in finding my way back. Nothing was known of
+      the king when I returned. Indeed, I was the first bearer of any definite
+      news concerning him since the day when he sailed from Acre. Three weeks
+      ago, as you may have learned, the news came that he is now detained in
+      captivity by the emperor, who demanded his delivery by the Archduke John,
+      into whose hands he first fell. But where he is no one exactly knows. The
+      news has created an immense excitement in the kingdom, and all are
+      resolved to sacrifice any of their treasures which may be demanded in
+      order to satisfy the ransom which the recreant emperor has placed upon the
+      king. Shame is it indeed that a Christian sovereign should hold another in
+      captivity. Still more, when that other was returning through his dominions
+      as a Crusader coming from the Holy Land, when his person should be safe,
+      even to his deadliest enemy. It has long been suspected that he was in the
+      hands either of the emperor or of the archduke, and throughout Europe the
+      feeling of indignation has been strong; and I doubt not, now that the
+      truth is known, this feeling will be stronger than ever."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But now that it is known," Cuthbert said, "I suppose there will be no
+      delay in ransoming the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There will be no delay in raising the ransom," Sir Baldwin said. "But the
+      kingdom is very impoverished by war, by the exactions of Prince John, and
+      by those of Langley, who held it for King Richard. He was a loyal servant
+      of the king, but an exacting and rapacious prelate. However, I doubt not
+      that the rents of the English nobles will soon be charged with sums
+      sufficient for the ransom; and if this avail not, not one of them will
+      grudge their silver flagons and vessels to melt down to make the total
+      required. But we must not flatter ourselves that he will obtain his
+      liberty so soon as the money is raised. Prince John has long been yearning
+      for sovereignty. He has long exercised the real, if not the nominal,
+      power, and he has been intriguing with the pope and Philip of France for
+      their support for his seizing the crown. He will throw every obstacle in
+      the way, as, we may be sure, will Philip of France, Richard's deadly
+      enemy. And now about yourself, Sir Cuthbert; tell me what has befallen you
+      since we last met."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert related the adventures which had befallen him, and heard those of
+      Sir Baldwin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have not, I suppose," the latter remarked, "as yet seen Prince John?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No," Cuthbert replied, "I thought it better to come down to ask you to
+      advise me on the position of affairs before I attempted to see him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You did well," Sir Baldwin said. "When I arrived, I found that the proper
+      officials had, according to King Richard's instructions, draw up the
+      patent conferring upon you the lands and title of Earl of Evesham, before
+      leaving Acre, and had received the king's signature to it. This was
+      attested by several of the nobles who were with us and who returned safely
+      to England. Prince John, however, declared that he should not give any
+      heed to the document; that King Richard's power over this realm had ceased
+      before he made it; and that he should bestow the earldom upon whomsoever
+      he chose. As a matter of fact, it has been given to Sir Rudolph Fleming, a
+      Norman knight and a creature of the prince. The king has also, I hear,
+      promised to him the hand of the young Lady Margaret, when she shall become
+      of marriageable age. At present she is placed in a convent in Worcester.
+      The abbess is, I believe, a friend of the late earl, and the girl had been
+      with her for some time previously. Indeed she went there, I think, when
+      her father left England. This lady was ordered to give up her charge to
+      the guardianship of Sir Rudolph; but she refused to do so, saying that it
+      would not be convenable for a young lady to be under the guardianship of a
+      bachelor knight having no lady at the head of his establishment, and that
+      therefore she should retain her, in spite of the orders of the prince.
+      Prince John, I hear, flew into a fury at this; but he did not dare to
+      provoke the anger of the whole of the clergy by ordering the convent to be
+      violated. And indeed, not only would the clergy have been indignant, but
+      many of the great nobles would also have taken their part, for there can
+      be no doubt that the contention of the abbess was reasonable; and there is
+      among all the friends of King Richard a very strong feeling of anger at
+      your having been deprived of the earldom. This, however, has so far not
+      found much vent in words, for as it was uncertain whether you would ever
+      return to claim your rights, it was worth no one's while to embroil
+      himself unnecessarily with the prince on such a subject. God knows that
+      there are subjects enough of dispute between John Lackland and the English
+      barons without any fresh ones arising. The kingdom is in a state of
+      disturbance. There have been several risings against Prince John's
+      authority; but those have been, so far, suppressed. Now that we know where
+      King Richard is, and hope for his return ere very long, it is probable
+      that peace will be maintained; but should treachery prevail, and King
+      Richard's return be prevented, you may be sure that John will not be
+      permitted to mount the throne without the determined resistance of a large
+      number of the nobles."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But," Cuthbert said, "John is not the successor to the throne. Prince
+      Arthur of Brittany was named by King Richard from the first as his
+      successor. He is so by blood and by right, and John can have no pretense
+      to the throne so long as he lives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is so," Sir Baldwin said. "But unhappily in England at present might
+      makes right, and you may be sure that at King Richard's death, be it when
+      it may, Prince John will make a bold throw for the throne, and, aided as
+      he will be by the pope and by Philip of France, methinks that his chances
+      are better than those of the young prince. A man's power, in warlike
+      times, is more than a boy's. He can intrigue and promise and threaten,
+      while a boy must be in the hands of partisans. I fear that Prince Arthur
+      will have troubled times indeed before he mounts the throne of England.
+      Should Richard survive until he becomes of age to take the field himself
+      and head armies, he may succeed, for all speak well of him as a boy of
+      singular sweetness of disposition, while Prince John is detested by all
+      save those who flatter and live by him. But enough for the present of
+      politics, Cuthbert; let us now to table. It is long since we two feasted
+      together; and, indeed, such meals as we took in the Holy Land could
+      scarcely have been called feasts. A boar's head and a good roasted capon
+      are worthy all the strange dishes that we had there. I always misdoubted
+      the meat, which seemed to me to smack in flavor of the Saracens, and I
+      never could bring myself to inquire whence that strange food was obtained.
+      A stoup of English ale, too, is worth all the Cyprus wines, especially
+      when the Cyprus wines are half-full of the sand of the desert. Pah! it
+      makes my throat dry to think of those horrible meals. So you have brought
+      Cnut and your four archers safely back with you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Yes," Cuthbert said, smiling. "But they were, I can assure you, a heavy
+      weight on me, in spite of their faithfulness and fidelity. Their ignorance
+      of the language brought most of my troubles upon me, and Cnut had
+      something of the nature of a bull in him. There are certain things which
+      he cannot stomach, and when he seeth them he rageth like a wild beast,
+      regardless altogether of safety or convenience."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the evening the two knights again talked over the course which Cuthbert
+      should adopt. The elder knight's opinion was that his young friend had
+      best formally claim the title by writing to the king-at-arms, and should
+      also announce his return to Prince John, signing himself "Sir Cuthbert,
+      Earl of Evesham;" but that, in the present state of things, it would be
+      unwise for him to attempt to regain his position, should, as was certain
+      to be the case, Prince John refuse to recognize him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are very young yet," Sir Baldwin said, "not eighteen, I think, and
+      can afford to wait, at any rate, to see whether King Richard returns.
+      Should he come back, he will see all these wrongs are righted; and one of
+      his first cares would assuredly be to cast this usurper out of his stolen
+      dignities. How old is the Lady Margaret?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "She is fifteen," Cuthbert said. "She was three years younger than I."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I wish she had been younger," Sir Baldwin said. "At fifteen she is not by
+      custom fairly marriageable; but men can strain these points when they
+      choose; and I fear that the news of your coming will hasten both the
+      prince and Sir Rudolph in their determination to strengthen the claim of
+      this usurper by marriage with the heiress of Evesham. The Lady Margaret
+      and her friends can of course claim that she is a royal ward, and that as
+      such the king alone can dispose of her person and estates. But
+      unfortunately force overrides argument."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But surely," Cuthbert said, "they will never venture to take her by force
+      from the convent?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They venture a great many strange things in England now," Sir Baldwin
+      said; "and Worcester is perilously near to Evesham. With a clump of twenty
+      spears, Sir Rudolph might break into the convent and carry off the young
+      lady, and marry her by force; and although the Church might cry out,
+      crying would be of little avail when the deed was done; and a handsome
+      present on the part of Sir Rudolph might go far to shut the mouths of many
+      of the complainants, especially as he will be able to say that he has the
+      king's sanction for what he did."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that if such be the case it would be perilous
+      indeed to wait for King Richard's return. Assuredly Sir Rudolph would not
+      tarry until she attained the age of seventeen, and it may well be that two
+      years may yet pass before King Richard comes back. It seems to me the
+      wiser part will be that I should give Prince John no notice that I am in
+      England. As you say, such notice would be of no avail in recovering my
+      lands and title, but it would put the prince upon his guard; and assuredly
+      he and his minions would press forward their measures to obtain possession
+      of the person of the Lady Margaret; while, on the other hand, no harm can
+      come of my maintaining silence."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think that you are right, Sir Cuthbert. It were indeed best that your
+      enemies should suppose you either dead or in some dungeon in the Tyrol.
+      What would you then do?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would return to my old home," Cuthbert said. "My lady mother is, I
+      trust, still alive. But I will not appear at her house, but will take
+      refuge in the forest there. Cnut, and the archers with him, were all at
+      one time outlaws living there, and I doubt not that there are many good
+      men and true still to be found in the woods. Others will assuredly join
+      when they learn that Cnut is there, and that they are wanted to strike a
+      blow for my rights. I shall then bide my time. I will keep a strict watch
+      over the castle and over the convent. As the abbess is a friend and
+      relative of Lady Margaret's, I may obtain an interview with her, and warn
+      her of the dangers that await her, and ask if she be willing to fulfill
+      the promise of her father and King Richard's will, in accepting me as her
+      husband when due time shall arrive, and whether she will be willing that I
+      should take such steps as I may to deliver her from the persecution of Sir
+      Rudolph. If, as I trust, she assents to this, I will keep a watch over the
+      convent as well as the castle, and can then either attack the latter or
+      carry her off from the former, as the occasion may appear to warrant.
+      There are plenty of snug cottages round the forest, where she can remain
+      in concealment in the care of some good farmer's wife for months, and we
+      shall be close at hand to watch over her. With the aid of the forest men,
+      Sir Walter took the castle of Sir John of Wortham; and although Evesham is
+      a far grander pile than that, yet methinks it could be carried by a sudden
+      assault; and we know more of war now than we did then. Prince John may
+      deny me the right of being the Earl of Evesham; but methinks before many
+      months I can, if I choose, become its master."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Be not too hasty in that matter," Sir Baldwin said. "You might capture
+      the castle with the aid of your outlaws; but you could scarcely hold it.
+      The prince has, ere now, with the aid of those faithful to him and his
+      foreign mercenaries, captured stronger holds than that of Evesham; and if
+      you turn his favorite out, you would have a swarm of hornets around you
+      such as the walls of Evesham could not keep out. It would therefore be
+      worse than useless for you to attempt what would be something like an act
+      of rebellion against Prince John's authority, and would give him what now
+      he has no excuse for, a ground for putting a price upon your head&mdash;and
+      cutting it off if he got the opportunity. You might now present yourself
+      boldly at court, and although he might refuse to recognize your title of
+      earl, yet, as a knight and a Crusader who has distinguished himself
+      greatly in the Holy Land, he dare not interfere with your person, for this
+      would be resented by the whole of the chivalry of England. Still, I agree
+      with you that your best course is to keep your return a secret. You will
+      then be unwatched and unnoticed, and your enemies will take their time in
+      carrying their designs into effect."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days later Cuthbert, attended by his faithful retainers, left Sir
+      Baldwin's castle, and traveled by easy stages through Wiltshire and the
+      confines of Gloucestershire up to Worcester. He had been supplied by Sir
+      Baldwin with suitable attire for himself and his followers, and now rode
+      as a simple knight, without arms or cognizance, journeying from one part
+      to another. All the crosses and other crusading signs were laid aside, and
+      there was nothing to attract any attention to him upon his passage.
+      Cuthbert had at first thought of going direct to the convent of Worcester,
+      and asking for an interview with Lady Margaret; but he reflected that it
+      might be possible that some of the myrmidons of Sir Rudolph might be
+      keeping a watch over that building to see that Lady Margaret was not
+      secretly removed to some other place of refuge, and that the appearance of
+      a knight before its doors would excite comment and suspicion. He therefore
+      avoided the town, and journeyed straight to the forest, where he had so
+      often roamed with Cnut and the outlaws.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here he found that matters had but little changed since he was last there.
+      Many of those who had fought with him in the Holy Land, and who had
+      returned by sea, had again taken to the forest, joined by many new men
+      whom the exactions of Sir Rudolph had already goaded into revolt. Cnut was
+      received with enthusiasm, and when he presented Cuthbert to them as the
+      rightful heir of Evesham and the well-known friend of the foresters, their
+      enthusiasm knew no bounds. They at once accepted him as their lord and
+      master, and promised to obey his orders, and to lay down their lives, if
+      necessary, in his cause, as they knew that it was he who had formerly
+      obtained the pardon of the forest band, and who had fought with them in
+      their attack on Wortham Castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To Cuthbert's great delight he heard that his mother was in good health,
+      although she had for some months been grievously fretting over his
+      disappearance and supposed death. Cuthbert hesitated whether he should
+      proceed at once to see her; but he feared that the shock of his appearance
+      might be too much for her, and that her expressions of joy might make the
+      retainers and others aware of his arrival, and the news might in some way
+      reach the ears of those at the castle. He therefore dispatched Cnut to see
+      her, and break the news to her cautiously, and to request her to arrange
+      for a time when she would either see Cuthbert at some place at a distance
+      from the house, or would so arrange that the domestics should be absent
+      and that he would have an interview with her there unobserved.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut was absent some hours, and on his return told Cuthbert that he had
+      seen Dame Editha, and that her joy on hearing of her son's safe arrival
+      had caused her no harm, but rather the reverse. The news that King Richard
+      had bestowed upon him the title and lands of Evesham was new to her, and
+      she was astonished indeed to hear of his elevation. Having heard much of
+      the character of the pretending earl, she had great fears for the safety
+      of Cuthbert, should his residence in the neighborhood get to his ears; and
+      although sure of the fidelity of all her retainers, she feared that in
+      their joy at their young master's return they might let slip some
+      incautious word which would come to the ears of some of those at the
+      castle. She therefore determined to meet him at a distance. She had
+      arranged that upon the following day she would give out that she intended
+      to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Dunstan, which lay at the edge
+      of the forest, to thank him for her recovery from illness, and to pray for
+      the safety of her son. She would be carried thither in a litter, and her
+      journey would excite no comment whatever. She would take with her four of
+      her most trusted retainers, and would on her arrival at the shrine send
+      them to a distance, in order to pay her devotions undisturbed. Cuthbert
+      was to be near, and the moment he saw them depart, to enter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This arrangement was carried out, and the joy of Dame Editha at again
+      meeting her son was deep indeed. He had left her a lad of fifteen. He now
+      returned a youth of nearly eighteen, stout and strong beyond his age, and
+      looking far older than he was, from the effect of the hot sun of Syria and
+      of the hardships through which he had gone. That he should win his spurs
+      upon the first opportunity the earl had promised her, and she doubted not
+      that he would soon attain the rank which his father had held. But that he
+      should return to her a belted earl was beyond her wildest thoughts. This,
+      however, was but little in her mind then. It was her son, and not the Earl
+      of Evesham, whom she clasped in her arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the interview must necessarily be a short one, Cuthbert gave her but a
+      slight outline of what had happened since they parted, and the
+      conversation then turned upon the present position, and upon the steps
+      which had best be taken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your peril is, I fear, as great here as when you were fighting the
+      infidels in the Holy Land," she said. "Sir Rudolph has not been here long;
+      but he has proved himself a cruel and ruthless master. He has driven forth
+      many of the old tenants and bestowed their lands upon his own servants and
+      retainers. The forest laws he carries out to the fullest severity, and has
+      hung several men who were caught infringing them. He has laid such heavy
+      burdens on all the tenants that remain that they are fairly ruined, and if
+      he stay here long he will rule over a desert. Did he dream of your
+      presence here, he would carry fire and sword through the forest. It is sad
+      indeed to think that so worthless a knave as this should be a favorite of
+      the ruler of England. But all men say that he is so. Thus were you to
+      attack him, even did you conquer and kill him, you would have the enmity
+      of Prince John to contend with; and he spareth none, man or woman, who
+      stand in his way. It will be a bad day indeed for England should our good
+      King Richard not return. I will, as you wish me, write to my good cousin,
+      the Lady Abbess of St. Anne's, and will ask that you may have an interview
+      with the Lady Margaret, to hear her wishes and opinions concerning the
+      future, and will pray her to do all that she can to aid your suit with the
+      fair young lady, and to keep her at all events safe from the clutches of
+      the tyrant of Evesham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three days later a boy employed as a messenger by Dame Editha brought a
+      note to Cuthbert, saying that she had heard from the Abbess of St. Anne's,
+      who would be glad to receive a visit from Cuthbert. The abbess had asked
+      his mother to accompany him; but this she left for him to decide. Cuthbert
+      sent back a message in reply that he thought it would be dangerous for her
+      to accompany him, as any spy watching would report her appearance, and
+      inquiries were sure to be set on foot as to her companion. He said that he
+      himself would call at the convent on the following evening after
+      nightfall, and begged her to send word to the abbess to that effect, in
+      order that he might, when he presented himself, be admitted at once.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0021" id="link2HCH0021"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXI. &mdash; THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Upon the following evening Cuthbert proceeded to Worcester. He left his
+      horse some little distance outside the town, and entered on foot. Having
+      no apprehension of an attack, he had left all his pieces of armor behind,
+      and was in the quiet garb of a citizen. Cnut attended him&mdash;for that
+      worthy follower considered himself as responsible that no harm of any sort
+      should befall his young master. The consequences of his own imprudence in
+      the Tyrol were ever before his mind, and he determined that from
+      henceforth there should be no want of care on his part. He accompanied
+      Cuthbert to within a short distance of the convent, and took up his
+      position in the shade of a house, whence he could watch should any one
+      appear to be observing Cuthbert's entrance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon ringing the bell Cuthbert told the porteress, as had been arranged,
+      that he had called on a message from Dame Editha, and he was immediately
+      ushered into the parlor of the convent, where, a minute or two later, he
+      was joined by the lady abbess. He had when young been frequently to the
+      convent, and had always been kindly received.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am indeed glad to see you, Sir Cuthbert," she said, "though I certainly
+      should not have recognized the lad who used to come here with my cousin in
+      the stalwart young knight I see before me. You are indeed changed and
+      improved. Who would think that my gossip Editha's son would come to be the
+      Earl of Evesham! The Lady Margaret is eager to see you; but I think that
+      you exaggerate the dangers of her residence here. I cannot think that even
+      a minion of Prince John would dare to violate the sanctity of a convent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear, good mother," Cuthbert said, "that when ambition and greed are in
+      one scale, reverence for the holy church will not weigh much in the other.
+      Had King Richard been killed upon his way home, or so long as nothing was
+      heard of him, Sir Rudolph might have been content to allow matters to
+      remain as they were, until at least Lady Margaret attained an age which
+      would justify him in demanding that the espousal should be carried out.
+      But the news which has now positively been ascertained, that the king is
+      in the hands of the emperor, and the knowledge that sooner or later his
+      freedom will be obtained, will hasten the friends of the usurper to make
+      the most of their advantage. He knows that the king would at once upon his
+      return annul the nomination of Sir Rudolph to the earldom which had
+      previously been bestowed upon me. But he may well think that if before
+      that time he can secure in marriage the person of the late earl's
+      daughter, no small share of the domains may be allotted to him as her
+      dowry, even if he be obliged to lay by his borrowed honors. You will,
+      unless I am greatly mistaken, hear from him before long."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The abbess looked grave.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is much in what you say, Sir Cuthbert; and indeed a certain
+      confirmation is given to it by the fact that only yesterday I received a
+      letter from Sir Rudolph, urging that now the Lady Margaret is past the age
+      of fifteen, and may therefore be considered marriageable, the will of the
+      prince should be carried into effect, and that she should for the present
+      be committed to the charge of the Lady Clara Boulger, who is the wife of a
+      friend and associate of Sir Rudolph. He says that he should not wish to
+      press the marriage until she attains the age of sixteen, but that it were
+      well that his future wife should become accustomed to the outside world,
+      so as to take her place as Castellan of Evesham with a dignity befitting
+      the position. I wrote at once to him saying that in another year it would,
+      in my poor judgment, be quite time to think about such worldly matters;
+      that at the present the Lady Margaret was receiving an education suitable
+      to her rank; that she was happy here; and that unless constrained by force&mdash;of
+      which, I said, I could not suppose that any possibility existed&mdash;I
+      should not surrender the Lady Margaret into any hands whatsoever, unless,
+      indeed, I received the commands of her lawful guardian, King Richard."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You said well, holy mother," Sir Cuthbert said. "But you see the hawks
+      scent the danger from afar, and are moving uneasily already. Whether they
+      consider it so pressing that they will dare to profane the convent, I know
+      not. But I am sure that should they do so, they will not hesitate a moment
+      at the thought of the anger of the church. Prince John has already shown
+      that he is ready, if need be, to oppose the authority of the holy father,
+      and he may well, therefore, despise any local wrath that might be excited
+      by an action which he can himself disavow, and for which, even at the
+      worst, he need only inflict some nominal punishment upon his vassal.
+      Bethink thee, lady, whether it would not be safer to send the Lady
+      Margaret to the care of some person, where she may be concealed from the
+      search of Sir Rudolph."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would gladly do so," the abbess said, "did I know of such a person or
+      such a place. But it is difficult indeed, for a young lady of rank to be
+      concealed from such sharp searchers as Sir Rudolph would be certain to
+      place upon her track. Your proposal that she should take refuge in the
+      house of some small franklin near the forest, I cannot agree to. In the
+      first place, it would demean her to be so placed; and in the second, we
+      could never be sure that the report of her residence there might not reach
+      the ears of Sir Rudolph. As a last resource, of course, such a step would
+      be justifiable, but not until at least overt outrages have been attempted.
+      Now I will call Lady Margaret in."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The young girl entered with an air of frank gladness, but was startled at
+      the alteration which had taken place in her former playfellow, and paused
+      and looked at the abbess, as if inquiring whether this could be really the
+      Cuthbert she had known. Lady Margaret was fifteen in years; but she looked
+      much younger. The quiet seclusion in which she had lived in the convent
+      had kept her from approaching that maturity which as an earl's daughter,
+      brought up in the stir and bustle of a castle, she would doubtless have
+      attained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is indeed Sir Cuthbert," the abbess said, "your old playfellow, and
+      the husband destined for you by your father and by the will of the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Struck with a new timidity, the girl advanced, and, according to the
+      custom of the times, held up her cheek to be kissed. Cuthbert was almost
+      as timid as herself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I feel, Lady Margaret," he said, "a deep sense of my own unworthiness of
+      the kindness and honor which the dear lord your father bestowed upon me;
+      and were it not that many dangers threaten, and that it were difficult
+      under the circumstances to find one more worthy of you, I would gladly
+      resign you into the hands of such a one were it for your happiness. But
+      believe me that the recollection of your face has animated me in many of
+      the scenes of danger in which I have been placed; and although even in
+      fancy my thoughts scarcely ventured to rise so high, yet I felt as a true
+      knight might feel for the lady of his love."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I always liked you, Sir Cuthbert," the girl said frankly, "better than
+      any one else next to my father, and gladly submit myself to his will. My
+      own inclinations indeed, so far as is maidenly, go with his. These are
+      troubled times," she said anxiously, "and our holy mother tells me that
+      you fear some danger is overhanging me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I trust that the danger may not be imminent," Cuthbert answered. "But
+      knowing the unscrupulous nature of the false Earl of Evesham, I fear that
+      the news that King Richard is found will bestir him to early action. But
+      you can rely, dear lady, on a careful watch being kept over you night and
+      day; and should any attempt be made to carry you away, or to put force
+      upon you, be assured that assistance will be at hand. Even should any
+      attempt succeed, do not lose heart, for rescue will certainly be
+      attempted; and I must be dead, and my faithful followers crushed, before
+      you can become the bride of Sir Rudolph."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then turning to other subjects, he talked to her of the life he had led
+      since he last saw her. He told her of the last moments of her father, and
+      of the gallant deeds he had done in the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After waiting for two hours, the abbess judged that the time for
+      separation had arrived; and Cuthbert, taking a respectful adieu of his
+      young mistress, and receiving the benediction of the abbess, departed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He found Cnut on guard at the point where he had left him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have you seen aught to give rise to suspicion?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Yes," Cnut said, "the place is undoubtedly watched. Just after you had
+      entered a man came from that house yonder and went up to the gate, as if
+      he would fain learn by staring at its iron adornments the nature of him
+      who had passed in. Then he re-entered his house, and if I mistake not is
+      still on the watch at that casement. If we stand here for a minute or two,
+      perchance he may come out to see what delays you in this dark corner, in
+      which case I may well give him a clout with my ax which will settle his
+      prying."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Better not," Cuthbert said. "We can retire round this corner and so avoid
+      his observation; and were his body found slain here, suspicion would be at
+      once excited in the mind of his employer. At present he can have no ground
+      for any report which may make the knight uneasy, for he can but know that
+      a gentleman has entered, and remained for two hours at the convent, and he
+      will in no way connect my visit with the Lady Margaret."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They had just turned the corner which Cuthbert indicated, when a man came
+      up rapidly behind them and almost brushed them as he passed, half-turning
+      round and trying to gaze into their faces. Cnut at once assumed the aspect
+      of an intoxicated person, and stretching forth his foot, with a dexterous
+      shove pushed the stranger into the gutter. The latter rose with a fierce
+      cry of anger; but Cnut with a blow of his heavy fist again stretched him
+      on the ground, this time to remain quiet until they had walked on and
+      passed out of sight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "A meddling fool," Cnut grumbled. "He will not, methinks, have much to
+      report to Sir Rudolph this time. Had I thought that he had seen your face,
+      I would have cleft his skull with no more hesitation than I send an arrow
+      into the brain of a stag in the forest."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As they journeyed along Cuthbert informed Cnut of what the abbess had told
+      him; and the latter agreed that a watch must be placed on the convent, and
+      that a force must be kept as near as possible at hand so as to defeat any
+      attempt which might be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day one of the forest men who had been a peaceable citizen, but
+      who had been charged with using false weights and had been condemned to
+      lose his ears, repaired to Worcester. His person was unknown there, as he
+      had before lived at Gloucester. He hired a house in the square in which
+      the convent was situated, giving out that he desired to open a house of
+      business for the sale of silks, and for articles from the Low Countries.
+      As he paid down earnest-money for the rent no suspicion whatever was
+      excited. He at once took up his abode there, having with him two stout
+      serving-men, and a 'prentice boy; and from that time two sets of watchers
+      observed without ceasing what passed at the Convent of St. Anne.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At a distance of half a mile from the road leading between Worcester and
+      Evesham stood a grange, which had for some time been disused, the ground
+      belonging to it having been sequestrated and given to the lord of an
+      adjoining estate, who did not care to have the grange occupied. In this
+      ten men, headed by Cnut, took up their residence, blocking up the window
+      of the hall with hangings, so that the light of the fire kindled within
+      would not be observed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two months passed on without any incident of importance. The feeling
+      between the outlaws in the forest and the retainers of the false Earl of
+      Evesham was becoming much imbittered. Several times the foresters of the
+      latter, attempting pursuit of men charged with breaking the game laws,
+      were roughly handled. These on making their report were sent back again,
+      supported by a force of footmen; but these, too, were driven back, and the
+      authority of Sir Rudolph was openly defied.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Gradually it came to his ears that the outlaws were commanded by a man who
+      had been their leader in times gone by, but who had been pardoned, and
+      had, with a large number of his band, taken service in the army of the
+      Crusaders; also, that there was present a stranger, whose manner and the
+      deference paid to him by Cnut proclaimed him to be of gentle blood. This
+      news awakened grave uneasiness on the part of Sir Rudolph. The knight
+      caused inquiries to be made, and ascertained that Cnut had been especially
+      attached to the young Cuthbert, and that he had fought under the Earl of
+      Evesham's banner. It seemed possible then that with him had returned the
+      claimant for the earldom; and in that case Sir Rudolph felt that danger
+      menaced him, for the bravery of the Earl of Evesham's adopted son had been
+      widely spoken of by those who had returned from the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph was a man of forty, tall and dark, with Norman features. He
+      held the Saxons in utter contempt, and treated them as beings solely
+      created to till the land for the benefit of their Norman lords. He was
+      brave and fearless, and altogether free from the superstition of the
+      times. Even the threats of the pope, which although Prince John defied
+      them yet terrified him at heart, were derided by his follower, who feared
+      no one thing in the world, save, perhaps, the return of King Richard from
+      captivity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No sooner had the suspicion that his rival was in the neighborhood
+      possessed him than he determined that one of two things must be carried
+      out: either Sir Cuthbert must be killed, or the Lady Margaret must be
+      carried off and forced to accept him as her husband. First he endeavored
+      to force Sir Cuthbert to declare himself and to trust to his own arm to
+      put an end to his rival. To that end he caused a proclamation to be
+      written, and to be affixed to the door of the village church at the fair
+      of Evesham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut and several of his followers were there, all quietly dressed as
+      yeomen. Seeing a crowd round the door of the church, he pressed forward.
+      Being himself unable to read writing, he asked one of the burgesses what
+      was written upon the paper which caused such excitement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is," the burgess said, "in the nature of a cartel or challenge from
+      our present lord, Sir Rudolph. He says that it having come to his ears
+      that a Saxon serf, calling himself Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, is
+      lurking in the woods and consorting with outlaws and robbers, he
+      challenges him to appear, saying that he will himself, grievously although
+      he would demean himself by so doing, yet condescend to meet him in the
+      lists with sword and battle-ax, and to prove upon his body the falseness
+      of his averments. Men marvel much," the burgess continued, "at this
+      condescension on the earl's part. We have heard indeed that King Richard,
+      before he sailed for England, did, at the death of the late good earl,
+      bestow his rank and the domains of Evesham upon Sir Cuthbert, the son of
+      the Dame Editha. Whether it be true or not, we cannot say; but it seems
+      strange that such honor should have been bestowed upon one so young. In
+      birth indeed he might aspire to the rank, since his father, Sir Walter,
+      was a brave knight, and the mother, Dame Editha, was of good Saxon blood,
+      and descended from those who held Evesham before the arrival of the
+      Normans."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut's first impulse was to stride forward and to tear down the
+      proclamation. But the remembrance of his solemn determination not in
+      future to act rashly came across him, and he decided to take no steps
+      until he had reported the facts to his master, and taken his counsel
+      thereon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert received the news with much indignation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is naught that I should like better," he said, "than to try my
+      strength against that of this false traitor. But although I have proved my
+      arm against the Saracens, I think not that it is yet strong enough to cope
+      against a man who, whatsoever be his faults, is said to be a valiant
+      knight. But that would not deter me from attempting the task. It is
+      craftily done on the part of Sir Rudolph. He reckons that if I appear he
+      will kill me; that if I do not appear, I shall be branded as a coward, and
+      my claims brought into disrepute. It may be, too, that it is a mere ruse
+      to discover if I be in the neighborhood. Some rumors thereof may have
+      reached him, and he has taken this course to determine upon their truth.
+      He has gone too far, and honest men will see in the cartel itself a sign
+      that he misdoubts him that my claims are just; for were I, as he says, a
+      Saxon serf, be sure that he would not condescend to meet me in the lists
+      as he proposes. I trust that the time will come when I may do so. But at
+      present I will submit to his insult rather than imperil the success of our
+      plans, and, what is of far greater importance, the safety and happiness of
+      the Lady Margaret, who, did aught befall me, would assuredly fall into his
+      hands."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After some thought, however, Cuthbert drew up an answer to the knight's
+      proclamation. He did not in this speak in his own name, but wrote as if
+      the document were the work of Cnut. It was worded as follows: "I, Cnut, a
+      free Saxon and a leader of bowmen under King Richard in the Holy Land, do
+      hereby pronounce and declare the statements of Sir Rudolph, miscalled the
+      Earl of Evesham, to be false and calumnious. The earldom was, as Rudolph
+      well knows, and as can be proved by many nobles and gentlemen of repute
+      who were present with King Richard, granted to Sir Cuthbert, King
+      Richard's true and faithful follower. When the time shall come Sir
+      Cuthbert will doubtless be ready to prove his rights. But at present right
+      has no force in England, and until the coming of our good King Richard
+      must remain in abeyance. Until then, I support the title of Sir Cuthbert,
+      and do hereby declare Sir Rudolph a false and perjured knight; and warn
+      him that if he falls into my hands it will fare but badly with him, as I
+      know it will fare but badly with me should I come into his."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At nightfall the cartel of Sir Rudolph was torn down from the church and
+      that of Cnut affixed in its place. The reading thereof caused great
+      astonishment in Evesham, and the rage of Sir Rudolph, when the news came
+      to his ears, was very great. Cuthbert was sure that this affair would
+      quicken the intentions of Sir Rudolph with regard to the Lady Margaret,
+      and he received confirmation of this in a letter which the abbess sent
+      him, saying that she had received another missive from Sir Rudolph,
+      authoritatively demanding in the king's name the instant surrender of Lady
+      Margaret to him. That night forty archers stole, one by one, quietly into
+      Worcester, entering the town before the gates were shut, and so mingling
+      with the citizens that they were unobserved. When it was quite dark they
+      quietly took their way, one by one, to the square in which stood the
+      convent, and were admitted into the shop of Master Nicholas, the silk
+      mercer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The house was a large one, with its floors overhanging each the one
+      beneath it, as was the custom of the time, and with large casements
+      running the whole width of the house.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mercer had laid by a goodly store of provisions, and for three days
+      the troop, large as it was, was accommodated there. Cuthbert himself was
+      with them, Cnut remaining at the grange with the ten men originally sent
+      there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the third day Sir Rudolph, with a number of knights and men-at-arms,
+      arrived in the town, giving out that he was passing northward, but he
+      would abide that night at the hostelry. A great many of his men-at-arms
+      did, as those on the watch observed, enter one by one into the town. The
+      people of Worcester were somewhat surprised at this large accompaniment of
+      the earl, but thought no harm. The Abbess of St. Anne's, however, was
+      greatly terrified, as she feared that some evil design might be intended
+      against her. She was, however, reassured in the evening by a message
+      brought by a boy, to the effect that succor would be near, whatsoever
+      happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At midnight a sudden uproar was heard in the streets of Worcester.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A party of men fell upon the burgesses guarding the gate of the town,
+      disarmed them, and took possession of it. At the same time those who had
+      put up at the hostelry with Sir Rudolph suddenly mounted their horses, and
+      with a great clatter rode down the streets to the convent of St. Anne.
+      Numbers of men on foot also joined, and some sixty in all suddenly
+      appeared before the great gate of the convent. With a thundering noise
+      they knocked at the door, and upon the grating being opened Sir Rudolph
+      himself told the porteress who looked through it that she was to go at
+      once to the abbess and order her to surrender the body of the Lady
+      Margaret to him, in accordance with the order of Prince John; adding, that
+      if within the space of five minutes the order was not complied with, he
+      would burst in the gates of the convent and take her for himself. In
+      another minute a casement opened above, and the abbess herself appeared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Rash man," she said to Sir Rudolph, "I warn you against committing the
+      sin of sacrilege. Neither the orders of Prince John nor of any other
+      potentate can override the rights of the holy church; and should you
+      venture to lay the hand of force upon this convent you will be placed
+      under the anathema of the church, and its spiritual terrors will be
+      directed against you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am prepared to risk that, holy mother," Sir Rudolph said, with a laugh.
+      "So long as I am obeying the orders of my prince, I care naught for those
+      of any foreign potentate, be he pope or be he emperor. Three minutes of
+      the time I gave you have elapsed, and unless within two more the Lady
+      Margaret appears at the gate I will batter it down; and you may think
+      yourself lucky if I do not order my men to set light to it and to smoke
+      you out of your hole."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The abbess closed the window, and as she did so the long row of casements
+      in the house of Master Nicholas were opened from top to bottom, and a
+      volley of sixty clothyard arrows was poured into the group closely
+      standing round the gate. Many fell, killed outright, and shouts of rage
+      and pain were heard arising.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Furious at this unexpected attack, Sir Rudolph turned and commanded those
+      with him to attack the house whence this volley of missiles had come. But
+      even while he spoke another flight of arrows, even more deadly than the
+      last, was poured forth. One of the knights standing by the side of Sir
+      Rudolph fell, shot through the brain. Very many of the common men,
+      undefended by harness, fell shot through and through; and an arrow
+      piercing the joint of the armor of Sir Rudolph wounded him in the
+      shoulder. In vain the knight stormed and raged and ordered his men to
+      advance. The suddenness of the attack seemed to his superstitious
+      followers a direct answer from heaven to the words of the abbess. Their
+      number was already seriously lessened, and those who were in case to do so
+      at once took flight and scattered through the city, making for the gate,
+      which had already been seized by Sir Rudolph's men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding himself alone with only a few of his knights and principal
+      men-at-arms remaining, while the storm of arrows continued unabated, Sir
+      Rudolph was forced to order his men to retreat with many fierce threats of
+      the vengeance which he would hereafter take.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0022" id="link2HCH0022"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXII. &mdash; A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The return of Sir Rudolph's party to Evesham was not unmarked by incident,
+      for as they passed along the road, from an ambush in a wood other archers,
+      whose numbers they could not discover, shot hard upon them, and many fell
+      there who had escaped from the square at Worcester. When the list was
+      called upon the arrival at the castle, it was found that no less than
+      thirty of those who had set out were missing, while many others were
+      grievously wounded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The noise of the tumult in the square of the convent aroused the whole
+      town of Worcester. Alarm bells were rung; and the burgesses, hastily
+      arming themselves, poured into the streets. Directed by the sound, they
+      made their way to the square, and were astonished at finding it entirely
+      deserted, save for some twenty men, lying dead or dying in front of the
+      gate of the convent, pierced with long arrows. They speedily found that
+      Sir Rudolph and his troop had departed; and further inquiry revealed the
+      fact that the burgher guard at one of the gates had been overpowered and
+      were prisoners in the watchroom. These could only say that they were
+      suddenly seized, all being asleep save the one absolutely on guard. They
+      knew nothing more than that a few minutes later there was a great clatter
+      of horsemen and men on foot leaving the city. Unable to find any solution
+      to this singular circumstance, but satisfied that Sir Rudolph had
+      departed, and that no more disturbance was likely to arise that night, the
+      burgesses again betook themselves to their beds, having closed the gates
+      and placed a strong guard over them, determining next morning to sift the
+      affair to the bottom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning the leading burgesses met in council, and finding none who
+      could give them any information, the mayor and two of the councilors
+      repaired to the convent, where they asked for an interview with the lady
+      abbess. Mightily indignant were they at hearing that Sir Rudolph had
+      attempted to break into the convent, and to carry off a boarder residing
+      there. But the abbess herself could give them no further news. She said
+      that after she retired from the window she heard great shouts and cries,
+      and that almost immediately afterward the whole of the party in front
+      hastily retired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That Sir Rudolph had been attacked by a party of archers was evident; but
+      whence they had shot, or how they had come upon the spot at the time, or
+      whither they had gone, were mysteries that could not be solved. In the
+      search which the authorities made, however, it was discovered that the
+      house of the draper, Master Nicholas, was closed. Finding that summonses
+      to open were unanswered, the door was broken in, and the premises were
+      found in confusion. No goods of any kind were discovered there, but many
+      bales filled with dried leaves, bark of trees, and other worthless
+      matters. Such goods as had been displayed in the window had clearly been
+      carried away. Searching the house, they found signs that a considerable
+      number of men had been concealed there, and although not knowing whence
+      the body of archers could have come, they concluded that those who
+      defeated the attempt of Sir Rudolph must have been hidden in the draper's
+      house. The singularity of this incident gave rise to great excitement; but
+      the indignation against Sir Rudolph was in no way lessened by the fact
+      that his attempt had been defeated, not by the townsmen themselves, but by
+      some unknown force.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After much consultation on the part of the council, it was resolved that a
+      deputation, consisting of the mayor and the five senior councilors, should
+      resort to London, and there demand from the prince redress for the injury
+      put upon their town by Sir Rudolph. These worthy merchants betook
+      themselves to London by easy stages, and upon their arrival there were
+      kept for some days before they could obtain an interview with King John.
+      When they appeared before him and commenced telling their story the prince
+      fell into sudden rage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have heard of this matter before," he said, "and am mightily angry with
+      the people of Worcester, inasmuch as they have dared to interfere to
+      prevent the carrying out of my commands. The Earl of Evesham has written
+      to me, that thinking to scare the abbess of St. Anne's into a compliance
+      with the commands which I had laid upon her, and to secure the delivery of
+      a contumacious ward of the crown, he had pretended to use force, having,
+      however, no idea of carrying his threats into effect. When, as he doubted
+      not, the abbess was on the point of yielding up the ward, the good knight
+      was suddenly set upon by the rascals of the town, who slew some of his
+      companions and followers, and did grievously ill-treat the remainder.
+      This," said the prince, "you now pretend was done by a party of men of
+      whose presence in the town you had no cognizance. Your good sense must be
+      small, if you think that I should believe such a tale as this. It is your
+      rascaldom at Worcester which interfered to prevent my will being carried
+      out, and I have a goodly mind to order the troop of Sir Charles Everest,
+      which is now marching toward Evesham, to sack the town, as a punishment
+      for its rebellion. As, however, I am willing to believe that you and the
+      better class of burgesses were in ignorance of the doings of the rougher
+      kind, I will extend mercy toward the city, and will merely inflict a fine
+      of three thousand golden marks upon it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mayor attempted humbly to explain and to entreat; but the prince was
+      seized with a sudden passion, and threatened if he said more he would at
+      once cast him and his fellows into durance. Therefore, sadly crestfallen
+      at the result of their mission, the mayor and councilors returned to
+      Worcester, where their report caused great consternation. This was
+      heightened by the fact that upon the following day Sir Charles Everest,
+      with five hundred mercenaries of the prince, together with Sir Rudolph and
+      his following, and several other barons favorable to the cause of the
+      prince, were heard to be approaching the town.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Worcester was capable of making a stout defense, but seeing that no help
+      was likely to be forthcoming, and fearing the utter ruin of the town
+      should it be taken by storm, the council, after sitting many hours in
+      deliberation, determined to raise the money required to pay the fine
+      inflicted by the prince. The bolder sort were greatly averse to this
+      decision, especially as a letter had been received, signed "Cuthbert, Earl
+      of Evesham," offering, should the townspeople decide to resist the unjust
+      demands of Prince John, to enter the town with one hundred and fifty
+      archers to take part in its defense. With this force, as the more ardent
+      spirits urged, the defeat of any attempt to carry it by storm would be
+      assured. But the graver men argued that even if defeated for the first
+      time further attempts would be made, and as it was likely that King
+      Richard would not return for a long time, and that Prince John might
+      become sovereign of England, sooner or later the town must be taken, and,
+      in any case, its trade would for a long time be destroyed, and great
+      suffering inflicted upon all; therefore, that it was better to pay the
+      fine now than to risk all these evils, and perhaps the infliction of a
+      heavier impost upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The abbess was kept informed by friends in the council of the course of
+      the proceedings. She had in the meantime had another interview with Sir
+      Cuthbert and had determined, seeing that Prince John openly supported the
+      doings of his minion, it would be better to remove the Lady Margaret to
+      some other place, as no one could say how the affair might terminate; and
+      with five hundred mercenaries at his back, Sir Rudolph would be so
+      completely master of the city that he would be able in broad daylight, did
+      he choose, to force the gates of the convent and carry off the king's
+      ward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, two days before the arrival of the force before the walls of
+      Worcester, Lady Margaret left the convent by a postern gate in the rear,
+      late in the evening. She was attended by two of the sisters, both of whom,
+      as well as herself, were dressed as country women. Mules were in readiness
+      outside the city gates, and here Sir Cuthbert, with an escort of archers,
+      was ready to attend them. They traveled all night, and arrived in the
+      morning at a small convent situated five miles from the city of Hereford.
+      The abbess here was a cousin of the Superior of St. Anne's, and had
+      already consented to receive Lady Margaret. Leaving her at the door, and
+      promising that, as far as possible, he would keep watch over her, and that
+      even in the worst she need never despair, Sir Cuthbert left her and
+      returned to the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The band there assembled varied considerably in numbers, for provisions
+      could not be found continually for a large body of men. The forest was
+      indeed very extensive, and the number of deer therein large. Still, for
+      the feeding of one hundred and fifty men many animals are required, and
+      other food. The franklins in the neighborhood were all hostile to Sir
+      Rudolph, whom they regarded as a cruel tyrant, and did their utmost in the
+      way of supplies for those in the forest. Their resources, however, were
+      limited, and it was found necessary to scatter the force, and for a number
+      of them to take up their residence in places a short distance away, forty
+      only remaining permanently on guard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph and his friends entered Worcester, and there received with
+      great hauteur the apologies of the mayor and council, and the assurance
+      that the townspeople were in nowise concerned in the attack made upon him.
+      To this he pretended disbelief. The fine demanded was paid, the principal
+      portion in gold, the rest in bills signed by the leading merchants of the
+      place; for after every effort it had been found impossible to collect such
+      a sum within the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The day after he arrived he again renewed his demand to the abbess for the
+      surrender of the Lady Margaret; this time, however, coming to her attended
+      only by two squires, and by a pursuivant bearing the king's order for the
+      delivery of the damsel. The abbess met him at the gate, and informed him
+      that the Lady Margaret was no longer in her charge.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Finding," she said in a fearless tone, "that the holy walls of this
+      convent were insufficient to restrain lawless men, and fearing that these
+      might be tempted to acts of sacrilege, which might bring down upon them
+      the wrath of the church and the destruction of their souls, I have sent
+      her away."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whither has she gone?" Sir Rudolph demanded, half-mad with passion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That I decline to say," the lady abbess replied. "She is in good hands;
+      and when King Richard returns his ward shall be delivered to him at once."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Will you take oath upon the Bible that she is not within these walls?"
+      Sir Rudolph exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My word is sufficient," the lady abbess replied calmly. "But should it be
+      necessary, I should be ready to swear upon the relics that she is not
+      here."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few hours later Sir Rudolph, attended by his own party and by one
+      hundred of Sir Charles Everest's mercenaries, returned to his castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three days afterward, as Cuthbert was sitting at a rude but hearty meal in
+      the forest, surrounded by Cnut and his followers, a hind entered
+      breathless. Cuthbert at once recognized him as one of the servitors of his
+      mother.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is it?" he exclaimed, leaping to his feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Terrible news, Master Cuthbert, terrible news!" exclaimed the man. "The
+      wicked earl came down this morning, with fifty of his men, set fire to the
+      house, and all its buildings and stacks, and has carried off the lady,
+      your mother, a prisoner to the castle, on a charge, as he said, of
+      harboring traitors."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A cry of fury broke from Cnut and his men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The false traitor shall bitterly regret this outrage," Cuthbert
+      exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had in the first excitement seized his arms, and his followers snatched
+      up their bows, as if for instant warfare. A few moments' reflection,
+      however, showed to Cuthbert the impossibility of his attacking a fortress
+      like Evesham, garrisoned by a strong body of well-armed men, with only the
+      archers of the forest, without implements necessary for such an assault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Send at once, Cnut," he said, "and call in all the band. We cannot take
+      the castle; but we will carry fire and sword round its walls. We will cut
+      off all communication from within or from without. If attacked by large
+      forces, we will retire upon the wood, returning to our posts without the
+      walls as soon as the force is withdrawn. These heavily armed men can move
+      but slowly, while we can run at full speed. There cannot be more than some
+      twenty horsemen in the castle; and methinks with our arrows and pikes we
+      can drive these back if they attempt to fall upon us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut at once sent off swift-footed messengers to carry out Cuthbert's
+      orders, and on the following day the whole of the band were again
+      assembled in the woods. Just as Cuthbert was setting them in motion a
+      distant blast of a horn was heard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is," Cuthbert exclaimed, "the note calling for a parley. Do you, Cnut,
+      go forward, and see what is demanded. It is probably a messenger from Sir
+      Rudolph."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After half an hour's absence Cnut returned, bringing with him a pursuivant
+      or herald. The latter advanced at once toward Cuthbert, who, now in his
+      full knightly armor, was evidently the leader of the party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I bear to you, Sir Cuthbert, falsely calling yourself Earl of Evesham, a
+      message from Sir Rudolph. He bids me tell you that the traitress, Dame
+      Editha, your mother, is in his hands, and that she has been found guilty
+      of aiding and abetting you in your war against Prince John, the regent of
+      this kingdom. For that offense she has been condemned to die."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here he was interrupted by a cry of rage which broke from the assembled
+      foresters. Continuing unmoved, he said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Rudolph, being unwilling to take the life of a woman, however justly
+      forfeited by the law, commands me to say that if you will deliver yourself
+      up to him by to-morrow at twelve the Dame Editha shall be allowed to go
+      free. But that if by the time the dial points to noon you have not
+      delivered yourself up, he will hang her over the battlements of the
+      castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was very pale, and he waved his hand to restrain the fury which
+      animated the outlaws.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This man," he said to them, "is a herald, and, as such, is protected by
+      all the laws of chivalry. Whatsoever his message, it is none of his. He is
+      merely the mouthpiece of him who sent him." Then, turning to the herald,
+      he said, "Tell the false knight, your master, on my part, that he is a
+      foul ruffian, perjured to all the vows of knighthood; that this act of
+      visiting upon a woman the enmity he bears her son will bring upon him the
+      execration of all men; and that the offer which he makes me is as foul and
+      villainous as himself. Nevertheless, knowing his character, and believing
+      that he is capable of keeping his word, tell him that by to-morrow at noon
+      I will be there; that the lady, my mother, is to leave the castle gates as
+      I enter them; and that though by his foul device he may encompass my
+      death, yet that the curse of every good man will light upon him, that he
+      will be shunned as the dog he is, and that assuredly Heaven will not
+      suffer that deeds so foul should bring with them the prize he seeks to
+      gain."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The herald bowed, and, escorted by two archers to the edge of the forest,
+      returned to Evesham Castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After his departure an animated council took place. Cnut and the outlaws,
+      burning with indignation, were ready to attempt anything. They would, had
+      Cuthbert given the word, have attacked the castle that very night. But
+      Cuthbert pointed out the absolute impossibility of their carrying so
+      strong a place by such an assault, unprovided with engines for battering
+      down the gates. He said that surprise would be impossible, as the knight
+      would be sure to take every precaution against it; and that in the event
+      of such an attack being attempted, he would possibly carry his threat into
+      execution, and murder Dame Editha before their eyes. Cnut was like a
+      madman, so transported with fury was he; and the archers were also beside
+      themselves. Cuthbert alone retained his calmness. Retiring apart from the
+      others, he paced slowly backward and forward among the trees, deliberating
+      upon the best course to be pursued. The archers gathered round the fire
+      and passed the night in long and angry talk, each man agreeing that in the
+      event of their beloved leader being sacrificed by Sir Rudolph, they would
+      one and all give their lives to avenge him by slaying the oppressor
+      whensoever he ventured beyond the castle gates.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a time, Cuthbert called Cnut to him, and the two talked long and
+      earnestly. Cnut returned to his comrades with a face less despairing than
+      that he had before worn, and sent off at once a messenger with all speed
+      to a franklin near the forest to borrow a stout rope some fifty feet in
+      length, and without telling his comrades what the plans of Sir Cuthbert
+      were, bade them cheer up, for that desperate as the position was, all hope
+      was not yet lost.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Cuthbert," he said, "has been in grievous straits before now, and has
+      gone through them. Sir Rudolph does not know the nature of the man with
+      whom he has to deal, and we may trick him yet."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At eleven o'clock the next day from the walls of Evesham Castle a body of
+      archers one hundred and fifty strong were seen advancing in solid array.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Think you, Sir Rudolph," one of his friends, Sir Hubert of Gloucester,
+      said to him, "that these varlets think of attacking the castle?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They might as well think of scaling heaven," Sir Rudolph said. "Evesham
+      could resist a month's siege by a force well equipped for the purpose; and
+      were it not that good men are wanted for the king's service, and that
+      these villains shoot straight and hard, I would open the gates of the
+      castle and launch our force against them. We are two to one as strong as
+      they, and our knights and mounted men-at-arms could alone scatter that
+      rabble."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Conspicuous upon the battlements a gallows had been erected.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The archers stopped at a distance of a few hundred yards from the castle,
+      and Sir Cuthbert advanced alone to the edge of the moat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Rudolph of Eresby, false knight and perjured gentleman," he shouted
+      in a loud voice, "I, Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, do denounce you as foresworn
+      and dishonored, and do challenge you to meet me here before the castle in
+      sight of your men and mine, and decide our quarrel as Heaven may judge
+      with sword and battle-ax."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph leaned over the battlements, and said: "It is too late,
+      varlet. I condescended to challenge you before, and you refused. You
+      cannot now claim what you then feared to accept. The sun on the dial
+      approaches noon, and unless you surrender yourself before it reaches the
+      mark, I will keep my word, and the traitress, your mother, shall swing
+      from that beam."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Making a sign to two men-at-arms, these brought forward Dame Editha and so
+      placed her on the battlements that she could be seen from below. Dame
+      Editha was still a very fair woman, although nigh forty years had rolled
+      over her head. No sign of fear appeared upon her face, and in a firm voice
+      she cried to her son:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Cuthbert, I beg&mdash;nay, I order you to retire. If this unknightly lord
+      venture to carry out his foul threats against me, let him do so. England
+      will ring with the dastardly deed, and he will never dare show his face
+      again where Englishmen congregate. Let him do his worst. I am prepared to
+      die."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A murmur rose from the knights and men-at-arms standing round Sir Rudolph.
+      Several of his companions had from the first, wild and reckless as they
+      were, protested against Sir Rudolph's course, and it was only upon his
+      solemn assurance that he intended but to frighten Sir Cuthbert into
+      surrender, and had no intention of carrying his threats against the lady
+      into effect, that they had consented to take part in the transaction. Even
+      now, at the fearless words of the Saxon lady several of them hesitated,
+      and Sir Hubert of Gloucester stepped forward to Sir Rudolph.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir knight," he said, "you know that I am your true comrade and the
+      faithful servant of Prince John. Yet in faith would I not that my name
+      should be mixed up in so foul a deed. I repent me that I have for a moment
+      consented to it. But the shame shall not hang upon the escutcheon of
+      Hubert of Gloucester that he stood still when such foul means were tried.
+      I pray you, by our long friendship, and for the sake of your own honor as
+      a knight, to desist from this endeavor. If this lady be guilty, as she
+      well may be of aiding her son in his assaults upon the soldiers of Prince
+      John, then let her be tried, and doubtless the court will confiscate her
+      estates. But let her son be told that her life is in no danger, and that
+      he is free to go, being assured that harm will not come to her."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And if I refuse to consent to allow my enemy, who is now almost within my
+      hand, to escape," Sir Rudolph said, "what then?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then," said the knight, "I and my following will at once leave your
+      walls, and will clear ourselves to the brave young knight yonder of all
+      hand in this foul business."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A murmur of agreement from several of those standing round showed that
+      their sentiments were in accordance with those of Sir Hubert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I refuse," said Rudolph passionately. "Go, if you will. I am master of my
+      actions, and of this castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a word, Sir Hubert and two others of the knights present turned,
+      and briefly ordering their men-at-arms to follow them, descended the
+      staircase to the courtyard below. Their horses were brought out, the men
+      fell into rank, and the gates of the castle were thrown open.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Stand to arms!" Sir Cuthbert shouted to the archers. "They are going to
+      attempt a sortie." And hastily he retired to the main body of his men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0023" id="link2HCH0023"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXIII. &mdash; THE FALSE AND PERJURED KNIGHT.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As the band of knights and their retainers issued from the gate a
+      trumpeter blew a parley, and the three knights advanced alone toward the
+      group of archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Cuthbert de Lance," Sir Hubert said, "in the name of myself and my
+      two friends here we ask your pardon for having so far taken part in this
+      foul action. We did so believing only that Sir Rudolph intended the
+      capture of your lady mother as a threat. Now that we see he was in
+      earnest, we wash our hands of the business; and could we in any way atone
+      for our conduct in having joined him, we would gladly do so consistently
+      only with our allegiance to the prince regent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert bowed courteously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks for your words, Sir Hubert. I had always heard yourself and the
+      knights here spoken of as brave and gallant gentlemen, whose sole fault
+      was that they chose to take part with a rebel prince rather than with the
+      King of England. I rejoice that you have cleared your name of so foul a
+      blot as this would have placed upon it, and I acknowledge that your
+      conduct now is knightly and courteous. But I can no more parley. The sun
+      is within a few minutes of twelve, and I must surrender, to meet such fate
+      as may befall me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying, with a bow he left them, and again advanced to the castle gate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Rudolph," he shouted, "the hour is at hand. I call upon you to
+      deliver, outside the gate, the lady, my mother. Whether she wills it or
+      not, I call upon you to place her beyond the gate, and I give you my
+      knightly word that as she leaves it I enter it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Dame Editha would then have attempted resistance; but she saw that it
+      would be useless. With a pale face she descended the steps, accompanied by
+      the men-at-arms. She knew that any entreaty to Sir Rudolph would be vain,
+      and with the courage of her race she mentally vowed to devote the rest of
+      her life to vengeance for her son.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the gate opened and she was thrust forth, for a moment she found
+      herself in the arms of her son.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Courage, mother!" he whispered; "all may yet be well."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut was waiting a few paces behind, and offering his hand to Dame Editha,
+      he led her to the group of archers, while Cuthbert, alone, crossed the
+      drawbridge and entered the portal, the heavy portcullis falling after him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut, immediately ordering four of his men to escort Dame Editha to the
+      wood with all speed, advanced with his men toward the walls. All had
+      strung their bows and placed their arrows on the ground in front of them
+      in readiness for instant use. Cnut himself, with two others carrying the
+      rope, advanced to the edge of the moat. None observed their doings, for
+      all within the castle were intent upon the proceedings there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the courtyard Sir Rudolph had taken his post, with the captain of the
+      mercenaries beside him, and the men-at-arms drawn up in order. He smiled
+      sardonically as Cuthbert entered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So, at last," he said, "this farce is drawing to an end. You are in my
+      power, and for the means which I have taken to capture you, I will account
+      to the prince. You are a traitor to him; you have attacked and slaughtered
+      many of my friends; you are an outlaw defying the law; and for each of
+      these offenses your head is forfeited."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I deny," Cuthbert said, standing before him, "your right to be my judge.
+      By my peers only can I be tried. As a knight of England and as rightful
+      lord of this castle, I demand to be brought before a jury of my equals."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I care nothing for rights or for juries," said Sir Rudolph. "I have the
+      royal order for your execution, and that order I shall put into effect,
+      although all the knights and barons in England objected."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert looked round to observe the exact position in which he was
+      standing. He knew, of course, every foot of the castle, and saw that but a
+      short distance behind a single row of armed men was the staircase leading
+      to the battlements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "False and perjured knight," he said, taking a step forward, "I may die;
+      but I would rather a thousand deaths than such a life as yours will be
+      when this deed is known in England. But I am not yet dead. For myself, I
+      could pardon you; but for the outrage to my mother&mdash;" and with a
+      sudden movement he struck Sir Rudolph in the face with all his strength
+      with his mailed hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the blood gushing from his nostrils, the knight fell backward, and
+      Sir Cuthbert, with a bound, before the assembly could recover from their
+      astonishment at the deed, burst through the line of men-at-arms, and
+      sprang up the narrow staircase. A score of men-at-arms started in pursuit;
+      but Sir Cuthbert gained the battlements first, and without a moment's
+      hesitation sprang upon them and plunged forward, falling into the moat
+      fifty feet below. Here he would have perished miserably, for in his heavy
+      armor he was of course unable to swim a stroke, and his weight took him at
+      once into the mud of the moat. At its margin, however, Cnut stood awaiting
+      him, with one end of the rope in his hand. In an instant he plunged in,
+      and diving to the bottom grasped Cuthbert by the body, and twisted the
+      rope round him. The two archers on the bank at once hauled upon it, and in
+      a minute Sir Cuthbert was dragged to the bank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By this time a crowd of men-at-arms appeared upon the battlements. But as
+      they did so the archers opened a storm of arrows upon them, and quickly
+      compelled them to find shelter. Carried by Cnut and the men with him&mdash;for
+      he was insensible&mdash;Sir Cuthbert was quickly conveyed to the center of
+      the outlaws, and these at once in a compact body began their retreat to
+      the wood. Cuthbert quickly recovered consciousness, and was soon able to
+      walk. As he did so the gates of the castle were thrown open, and a crowd
+      of men-at-arms, consisting of the retainers of the castle and the
+      mercenaries of Prince John, sallied forth. So soon as Cuthbert was able to
+      move the archers started at a brisk run, several of them carrying
+      Cuthbert's casque and sword, and others assisting him to hurry along. The
+      rear ranks turned as they ran and discharged flights of arrows at the
+      enemy, who, more heavily armed and weighted, gained but slowly upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Had not Sir Rudolph been stunned by the blow dealt him by Cuthbert he
+      would himself have headed the pursuit, and in that case the foresters
+      would have had to fight hard to make their retreat to their fastness. The
+      officer in command of the mercenaries, however, had no great stomach for
+      the matter. Men were hard to get, and Prince John would not have been
+      pleased to hear that a number of the men whom he had brought with such
+      expense from foreign parts had been killed in a petty fray. Therefore
+      after following for a short time he called them off, and the archers fell
+      back into the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here they found Dame Editha, and for three days she abode among them,
+      living in a small hut in the center of the forest. Then she left, to take
+      up her abode until the troubles were past with some kin who lived in the
+      south of Gloucestershire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although the lady abbess had assured Cuthbert that the retreat of Lady
+      Margaret was not likely to be found out, he himself, knowing how great a
+      stake Sir Rudolph had in the matter, was still far from being easy. It
+      would not be difficult for the latter to learn through his agents that the
+      lady superior of the little convent near Hereford was of kin to her of St.
+      Anne's, and, close as a convent is, yet the gossiping of the servants who
+      go to market was certain to let out an affair so important as the arrival
+      of a young lady to reside under the charge of the superior. Cuthbert was
+      not mistaken as to the acuteness of his enemy. The relationship between
+      the two lady superiors was no secret, and after having searched all the
+      farmhouses and granges near the forest, and being convinced that the lady
+      abbess would have sent her charge rather to a religious house than to that
+      of a franklin, Sir Rudolph sought which of those within the circuit of a
+      few miles would be likely to be the one selected. It was not long before
+      he was enabled to fix upon that near Hereford, and spies going to the spot
+      soon found out from the country people that it was a matter of talk that a
+      young lady of rank had been admitted by the superior. Sir Rudolph
+      hesitated whether to go himself at the head of a strong body of men and
+      openly to take her, or to employ some sort of device. It was not that he
+      himself feared the anathema of the church; but he knew Prince John to be
+      weak and vacillating, at one time ready to defy the thunder of the pope,
+      the next cringing before the spiritual authority. He therefore determined
+      to employ some of his men to burst into the convent and carry off the
+      heiress, arranging that he himself, with some of his men-at-arms, should
+      come upon them in the road, and make a feigned rescue of her, so that, if
+      the lady superior laid her complaint before the pope's legate he could
+      deny that he had any hand in the matter, and could even take credit for
+      having rescued her from the men who had profaned the convent. That his
+      story would be believed mattered but little. It would be impossible to
+      prove its falsity, and this was all that he cared for.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This course was followed out. Late one evening the lady superior was
+      alarmed by a violent knocking at the door. In reply to questions asked
+      through the grill, the answer was given, "We are men of the forest, and we
+      are come to carry the Lady Margaret of Evesham off to a secure
+      hiding-place. The Lord of Evesham has discovered her whereabouts, and will
+      be here shortly, and we would fain remove her before he arrives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From whom have you warrant?" the lady superior said. "I surrender her to
+      no one, save to the lady abbess of St. Anne's. But if you have a written
+      warrant from Sir Cuthbert, the rightful Lord of Evesham, I will lay the
+      matter before the Lady Margaret, and will act as it may seem fit to her."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We have no time for parleying," a rough voice said. "Throw open the gate
+      at once, or we will break it down."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ye be no outlaws," the lady superior said, "for the outlaws are men who
+      fear God and respect the church. Were ye what ye say, ye would be provided
+      with the warrants that I mention. I warn you, therefore, that if you use
+      force, you will be excommunicated, and placed under the ban of the
+      church."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The only answer was a thundering assault upon the gate, which soon yielded
+      to the blows. The sisters and novices ran shrieking through the corridors
+      at this rude uproar. The lady superior, however, stood calmly awaiting the
+      giving way of the gate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Where is the Lady Margaret?" the leader of the party, who were dressed in
+      rough garb, and had the seeming of a band of outlaws, demanded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will say nothing," she said, "nor do I own that she is here."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We will soon take means to find out," the man exclaimed. "Unless in five
+      minutes she is delivered to us, we will burn your place to the ground."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The lady abbess was insensible to the threat; but the men rushing in,
+      seized some sisters, who, terrified out of their wits by this irruption,
+      at once gave the information demanded, and the men made their way to the
+      cell where the Lady Margaret slept.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The girl had at once risen when the tumult commenced, doubting not in her
+      mind that this was another attempt upon the part of her enemy to carry her
+      off. When, therefore, she heard heavy footsteps approaching along the
+      gallery&mdash;having already hastily attired herself&mdash;she opened the
+      door and presented herself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If you seek the Lady Margaret of Evesham," she said calmly, "I am she. Do
+      not harm any of the sisters here. I am in your power, and will go with you
+      at once. But I beseech you add not to your other sins that of violence
+      against holy women."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men, abashed by the calm dignity of this young girl, abstained from
+      laying hands upon her, but merely motioned to her to accompany them. Upon
+      their way they met the man who appeared to be their leader, and he, well
+      pleased that the affair was over, led the way to the courtyard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Farewell, my child," the abbess exclaimed. "God will deliver you from the
+      power of these wicked men. Trust in Him, and keep up your courage.
+      Wickedness will not be permitted to triumph upon the earth; and be assured
+      that the matter shall be brought to the ears of the pope's legate, and of
+      Prince John himself."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She could say no more, for the men, closing round the weeping girl,
+      hurried her out from the convent. A litter awaited them without, and in
+      this the young lady was placed, and, borne upon the shoulders of four
+      stout men, she started at a fast pace, surrounded closely by the rest of
+      the band.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a dark night, and the girl could not see the direction in which she
+      was being taken; but she judged from the turn taken upon leaving the
+      convent that it was toward Evesham. They had proceeded some miles, when a
+      trampling of horses was heard, and a body of armed men rode up. For a
+      moment Lady Margaret's heart gave a leap, for she thought that she had
+      been rescued by her friends. There was a loud and angry altercation, a
+      clashing of swords, and a sound of shouting and cries outside the litter.
+      Then it was placed roughly on the ground, and she heard the sound of the
+      footsteps of her first captors hurrying away. Then the horsemen closed
+      round the litter, and the leader dismounted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am happy indeed, Lady Margaret," he said, approaching the litter, "to
+      have been able to save you from the power of these villains. Fortunately,
+      word came to me that the outlaws in the forest were about to carry you
+      off, and that they would not hesitate even to desecrate the walls of the
+      convent. Assembling my men-at-arms, I at once rode to your rescue, and am
+      doubly happy to have saved you, first, as a gentleman, secondly, as being
+      the man to whom our gracious prince has assigned you as a wife. I am Sir
+      Rudolph, Earl of Evesham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As from the first the girl had been convinced that she had fallen into the
+      power of her lawless suitor, this came upon her as no surprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whether your story is true, Sir Rudolph," she said, "or not, God knows,
+      and I, a poor weak girl, will not pretend to venture to say. It is between
+      you and your conscience. If, as you say, you have saved me from the power
+      of the outlaws, I demand that, as a knight and a gentleman, you return
+      with me at once to the convent from which I was taken by force."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I cannot do that," Sir Rudolph said. "Fortune has placed you in my hands,
+      and has enabled me to carry out the commands of the prince. Therefore,
+      though I would fain yield to your wishes and so earn your good-will, which
+      above all things I wish to obtain, yet my duty toward the prince commands
+      me to utilize the advantage which fate has thrown in my hands."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must do as you will, Sir Rudolph," the girl said with dignity. "I
+      believe not your tale. You sought before, in person, to carry me off, but
+      failed, and you have now employed other means to do so. The tale of your
+      conduct to Dame Editha has reached my ears, and I hold you a foresworn
+      knight and a dishonored man, and as such I would rather die than become
+      your wife, although as yet I am but a child, and have no need to talk of
+      weddings for years to come."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We need not parley here," the knight said coldly. "We shall have plenty
+      of time when at my castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The litter was now lifted, placed between two horses, and proceeded
+      rapidly on its journey. Although the hope was but faint, yet until the
+      gates of the castle closed upon them the Lady Margaret still hoped that
+      rescue might reach her. But the secret had been too well kept, and it was
+      not until the following day that the man who had been placed in a cottage
+      near the convent arrived in all haste in the forest, to say that it was
+      only in the morning that he had learned that the convent had been broken
+      open by men disguised as archers, and the Lady Margaret carried off.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Four days elapsed before Sir Rudolph presented himself before the girl he
+      had captured. So fearfully was his face bruised and disfigured by the blow
+      from the mailed hand of Cuthbert three weeks before, that he did not wish
+      to appear before her under such unfavorable circumstances, and the captive
+      passed the day gazing from her casement in one of the rooms in the upper
+      part of the keep, toward the forest whence she hoped rescue would come.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within the forest hot discussions were going on as to the best course to
+      pursue. An open attack was out of the question, especially as upon the day
+      following the arrival there of Lady Margaret three hundred more
+      mercenaries had marched in from Worcester, so that the garrison was now
+      raised to five hundred men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is there no way," Cnut exclaimed furiously, "by which we might creep into
+      this den, since we cannot burst into it openly?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is a way from the castle," Cuthbert said, "for my dear lord told me
+      of it one day when we were riding together in the Holy Land. He said then
+      that it might be that he should never return, and that it were well that I
+      should know of the existence of this passage, which few besides the earl
+      himself knew of. It is approached by a very heavy slab of stone in the
+      great hall. This is bolted down, and as it stands under the great table
+      passes unnoticed, and appears part of the ordinary floor. He told me the
+      method in which, by touching a spring, the bolts were withdrawn and the
+      stone could be raised. Thence a passage a quarter of a mile long leads to
+      the little chapel standing in the hollow, and which, being hidden among
+      the trees, would be unobserved by any party besieging the castle. This of
+      course was contrived in order that the garrison, or any messenger thereof,
+      might make an exit in case of siege."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But if we could escape," Cnut asked, "why not enter by this way?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The stone is of immense weight and strength," Cuthbert replied, "and
+      could not be loosed from below save with great labor and noise. There are,
+      moreover, several massive doors in the passage, all of which are secured
+      by heavy bolts within. It is therefore out of the question that we could
+      enter the castle by that way. But were we once in, we could easily carry
+      off the lady through this passage."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The large force which Sir Rudolph had collected was not intended merely
+      for the defense of the castle, for the knight considered that with his own
+      garrison he could hold it against a force tenfold that which his rival
+      could collect. But he was determined if possible to crush out the outlaws
+      of the forest, for he felt that so long as this formidable body remained
+      under an enterprising leader like Sir Cuthbert, he would never be safe for
+      a moment, and would be a prisoner in his own castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had foreseen that the attack was likely to be made, and had
+      strengthened his band to the utmost. He felt, however, that against so
+      large a force of regularly armed men, although he might oppose a stout
+      resistance and kill many, yet that in the end he must be conquered. Cnut,
+      however, suggested to him a happy idea, which he eagerly grasped.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It would be a rare sport," Cnut said, "when this armed force comes out to
+      attack us, if we could turn the tables by slipping in, and taking their
+      castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The very thing," Cuthbert exclaimed. "It is likely that he will use the
+      greater portion of his forces, and that he will not keep above fifty or
+      sixty men, at the outside, in the castle. When they sally out we will at
+      first oppose a stout resistance to them in the wood, gradually falling
+      back. Then, at a given signal, all save twenty men shall retire hastily,
+      and sweeping round make for the castle. Their absence will not be noticed,
+      for in this thick wood it is difficult to tell whether twenty men or two
+      hundred are opposing you among the bushes; and the twenty who remain must
+      shoot thick and fast to make believe that their numbers are great,
+      retiring sometimes, and leading the enemy on into the heart of the wood."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But supposing, Sir Cuthbert, that they should have closed the gates and
+      lifted the drawbridge? We could not gain entrance by storming, even if
+      only twenty men held the walls, until long after the main body would have
+      returned."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert thought for some time, and then said, "Cnut, you shall undertake
+      this enterprise. You shall fill a cart high with faggots, and in it shall
+      conceal a dozen of your best men. You, dressed as a serf, shall drive the
+      oxen, and when you reach the castle shall say, in answer to the hail of
+      the sentry, that you are bringing in the tribute of wood of your master
+      the franklin of Hopeburn. They will then lower the drawbridge and open the
+      gates; and when you have crossed the bridge and are under the portcullis,
+      spring out suddenly, cut loose the oxen so that they will not draw the
+      cart further in, cut the chains of the drawbridge so that it cannot be
+      drawn off, and hold the gate for a minute or two until we arrive."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The plan is capital," Cnut exclaimed. "We will do the proud Norman yet.
+      How he will storm when he finds us masters of his castle! What then will
+      you do, Sir Cuthbert?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We can hold the castle for weeks," Cuthbert said, "and every day is in
+      our favor. If we find ourselves forced to yield to superior numbers, we
+      can at last retire through the passage I have spoken of, and must then
+      scatter and each shift for himself until these bad days be past."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0024" id="link2HCH0024"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXIV. &mdash; THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM CASTLE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Upon the day before starting out to head the expedition against the
+      outlaws, Sir Rudolph sent word to the Lady Margaret that she must prepare
+      to become his wife at the end of the week. He had provided two tiring
+      maids for her by ordering two of the franklins to send in their daughters
+      for that purpose, and these mingled their tears with Margaret's at the
+      situation in which they were placed. She replied firmly to the messenger
+      of the knight that no power on earth could oblige her to marry him. He
+      might drive her to the altar; but though he killed her there, her lips
+      should refuse to say the words which would unite them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The following morning, early, the castle rang with the din of preparation.
+      The great portion of the mercenaries were encamped in tents outside the
+      walls, for, spacious as it was, Evesham could hardly contain four hundred
+      men in addition to its usual garrison. The men-at-arms were provided with
+      heavy axes to cut their way through the bushes. Some carried bundles of
+      straw, to fire the wood should it be found practicable to do so; and as it
+      was now summer and the wind was blowing high, Sir Rudolph hoped that the
+      dry grass and bushes would catch, and would do more even than his
+      men-at-arms in clearing the forest of those whom he designated the
+      villains infesting it. They had, too, with them several fierce dogs
+      trained to hunting the deer, and these, the knight hoped, would do good
+      service in tracking the outlaws. He and the knights and the men-at-arms
+      with him were all dismounted, for he felt that horses would in the forest
+      be an incumbrance, and he was determined himself to lead the way to the
+      men-at-arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When they reached the forest they were saluted by a shower of arrows; but
+      as all were clad in mail, these at a distance effected but little harm. As
+      they came closer, however, the clothyard arrows began to pierce the coarse
+      and ill-made armor of the foot soldiers, although the finer armor of the
+      knights kept out the shafts which struck against it. Sir Rudolph and his
+      knights leading the way, they entered the forest and gradually pressed
+      their invisible foe backward through the trees. The dogs did good service,
+      going on ahead and attacking the archers; but, one by one, they were soon
+      shot, and the assailants left to their own devices. Several attempts were
+      made to fire the wood. But these failed, the fire burning but a short time
+      and then dying out of itself. In addition to the fighting men, Sir Rudolph
+      had impressed into the service all the serfs of his domain, and these,
+      armed with axes, were directed to cut down the trees as the force
+      proceeded, Sir Rudolph declaring that he would not cease until he had
+      leveled the whole forest, though it might take him months to do so.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The assailants gained ground steadily, the resistance being less severe
+      than Sir Rudolph had anticipated. Several small huts and clearings in the
+      forest which had been used by the outlaws, and round which small crops had
+      been planted, were destroyed, and all seemed to promise well for the
+      success of the enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was about two hours after they had left the castle, when a heavy cart
+      filled with fagots was seen approaching its gates. The garrison, who had
+      not the least fear of any attack, paid no attention to it until it reached
+      the edge of the moat. Then the warder, seeing that it contained fagots,
+      lowered the drawbridge without question, raised the portcullis, and opened
+      the gates.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From whom do you bring this wood?" he asked as the man driving the oxen
+      began to cross the bridge.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From the franklin of Hopeburn."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is well," said the warder, "for he is in arrear now, and should have
+      sent in the firewood two months since. Take it to the woodhouse at the
+      other end of the court."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The heavy wagon crossed the drawbridge, but as it was entering the gate it
+      came suddenly to a stop. With a blow of his ox goad Cnut leveled the
+      warder to the ground, and cutting the cords of the bullocks, drove them
+      into the yard ahead. As he did so the pile of fagots fell asunder, and
+      twelve men armed with bow and pike leaped out. The men-at-arms standing
+      near, lounging in the courtyard, gave a shout of alarm, and the garrison,
+      surprised at this sudden cry, ran to their arms. At first they were
+      completely panic-stricken. But seeing after a time how small was the
+      number of their assailants, they took heart and advanced against them. The
+      passage was narrow, and the twelve men formed a wall across it. Six of
+      them with their pikes advanced, the other six with bent bows standing
+      behind them and delivering their arrows between their heads. The garrison
+      fought stoutly, and although losing many, were pressing the little band
+      backward. In vain the assistant-warder tried to lower the portcullis, or
+      to close the gates. The former fell on to the top of the wagon, and was
+      there retained. The gates also were barred by the obstacle. The chains of
+      the drawbridge had at once been cut. Cnut encouraged his followers by his
+      shouts, and armed with a heavy ax, did good service upon the assailants.
+      But four of his party had fallen, and the rest were giving way, when a
+      shout was heard, and over the drawbridge poured Cuthbert and one hundred
+      and fifty of the outlaws of the forest. Struck with terror at this attack,
+      the garrison drew back, and the foresters poured into the yard. For a few
+      minutes there was a fierce fight; but the defenders of the castle,
+      disheartened and taken by surprise, were either cut down or, throwing down
+      their arms, cried for quarter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Ten minutes after the wagon had crossed the drawbridge the castle was
+      safely in possession of Sir Cuthbert. The bridge was raised, the wagon
+      removed, the portcullis lowered, and to the external eye all remained as
+      before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert at once made his way to the chamber where the Lady Margaret was
+      confined, and her joy at her deliverance was great indeed. So unlimited
+      was her faith in Sir Cuthbert that she had never lost confidence; and
+      although it did not seem possible that in the face of such disparity of
+      numbers he could rescue her from the power of Sir Rudolph, yet she had not
+      given up hope. The joy of the farmers' daughters who had been carried off
+      to act as her attendants was little inferior to her own; for once in the
+      power of this reckless baron, the girls had small hopes of ever being
+      allowed to return again to their parents.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The flag of Sir Rudolph was thrown down from the keep, and that of the
+      late earl hoisted in its stead; for Cuthbert himself, although he had
+      assumed the cognizance which King Richard had granted him, had not yet any
+      flag or pennon emblazoned with it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No words can portray the stupefaction and rage of Sir Rudolph when a man
+      who had managed to slip unobserved from the castle at the time of its
+      capture bore the news to him in the forest. All opposition there had
+      ceased, and the whole of the troops were engaged in aiding the peasants in
+      cutting wide roads through the trees across the forest, so as to make it
+      penetrable by horsemen in every direction. It was supposed that the
+      outlaws had gradually stolen away through the thickets and taken to the
+      open country, intending to scatter to their homes, or other distant
+      hiding-places; and the news that they had by a ruse captured the castle
+      came as a thunder-clap.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph's first impulse was to call his men together and to march
+      toward the castle. The drawbridge was up and the walls bristled with armed
+      men. It was useless to attempt a parley; still more useless to think of
+      attacking the stronghold without the proper machines and appliances.
+      Foaming with rage, Sir Rudolph took possession of a cottage near, camped
+      his men around and prepared for a siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were among the mercenaries many men accustomed to the use of engines
+      of war. Many, too, had aided in making them; and these were at once set to
+      work to construct the various machines in use at that time. Before the
+      invention of gunpowder, castles such as those of the English barons were
+      able to defy any attack by an armed force for a long period. Their walls
+      were so thick that even the balistas, casting huge stones, were unable to
+      breach them except after a very long time. The moats which surrounded them
+      were wide and deep, and any attempt at storming by ladders was therefore
+      extremely difficult; and these buildings were consequently more often
+      captured by famine than by other means. Of provisions, as Sir Rudolph
+      knew, there was a considerable supply at present in the castle, for he had
+      collected a large number of bullocks in order to feed the strong body who
+      had been added to the garrison. The granaries, too, were well stored; and
+      with a groan Sir Rudolph thought of the rich stores of French wines which
+      he had collected in his cellars.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After much deliberation with the knights with him and the captain of the
+      mercenaries, it was agreed in the first instance to attempt to attack the
+      place by filling up a portion of the moat and ascending by scaling
+      ladders. Huge screens of wood were made, and these were placed on wagons;
+      the wagons themselves were filled with bags of earth, and a large number
+      of men getting beneath them shoved the ponderous machines forward to the
+      edge of the moat. The bags of stones and earth were then thrown in, and
+      the wagons pushed backward to obtain a fresh supply. This operation was of
+      course an exceedingly slow one, a whole day being occupied with each trip
+      of the wagons. They were not unmolested in their advance, for, from the
+      walls, mangonels and other machines hurled great stones down upon the
+      wooden screens, succeeding sometimes, in spite of their thickness, in
+      crashing through them, killing many of the men beneath. The experiment was
+      also tried of throwing balls of Greek fire down upon the wood; but as this
+      was green and freshly felled it would not take fire, but the flames
+      dropping through, with much boiling pitch and other materials, did
+      grievously burn and scald the soldiers working below it. Upon both sides
+      every device was tried. The crossbowmen among the mercenaries kept up a
+      fire upon the walls to hinder the defenders from interfering with the
+      operations, while the archers above shot steadily, and killed many of
+      those who ventured within range of their bows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After ten days' labor a portion of the moat some twenty yards in length
+      was filled with bags of earth, and all was ready for the assault. The
+      besiegers had prepared great numbers of strong ladders, and these were
+      brought up under shelter of the screens. Then, all being ready, the
+      trumpets sounded for the assault, and the troops moved forward in a close
+      body, covering themselves with their shields so that no man's head or body
+      was visible, each protecting the one before him with his shield held over
+      him. Thus the body presented the appearance of a great scale-covered
+      animal. In many respects, indeed, the warfare of those days was changed in
+      no way from that of the time of the Romans. In the twelve hundred years
+      which had elapsed between the siege of Jerusalem and the days of the
+      Crusades there had been but little change in arms or armor, and the
+      operations which Titus undertook for the reduction of the Jewish
+      stronghold differed but little from those which a Norman baron employed in
+      besieging his neighbor's castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within Evesham Castle all was contentment and merriment during these days.
+      The garrison had no fear whatever of being unable to repel the assault
+      when it should be delivered. Huge stones had been collected in numbers on
+      the walls, caldrons of pitch, beneath which fires kept simmering, stood
+      there in readiness. Long poles with hooks with which to seize the ladders
+      and cut them down were laid there; and all that precaution and science
+      could do was prepared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert passed much of the day, when not required upon the walls,
+      chatting with the Lady Margaret, who, attended by her maidens, sat working
+      in her bower. She had learned to read from the good nuns of the convent&mdash;an
+      accomplishment which was by no means general, even among the daughters of
+      nobles; but books were rare, and Evesham boasted but few manuscripts. Here
+      Margaret learned in full all the details of Cuthbert's adventures since
+      leaving England, and the fondness with which as a child she had regarded
+      the lad grew gradually into the affection of a woman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The courage of the garrison was high, for although they believed that
+      sooner or later the castle might be carried by the besiegers, they had
+      already been told by Cnut that there was a means of egress unknown to the
+      besiegers, and that when the time came they would be able to escape
+      unharmed. This, while it in no way detracted from their determination to
+      defend the castle to the last, yet rendered their task a far lighter and
+      more agreeable one than it would have been had they seen the gallows
+      standing before them as the end of the siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the testudo, as it was called in those days, advanced toward the
+      castle, the machines upon the walls&mdash;catapults, mangonels and
+      arbalasts&mdash;poured forth showers of stones and darts upon it, breaking
+      up the array of shields and killing many; and as these openings were made,
+      the archers, seizing their time, poured in volleys of arrows. The
+      mercenaries, however, accustomed to war, advanced steadily, and made good
+      their footing beneath the castle wall, and proceeded to rear their
+      ladders. Here, although free from the action of the machines, they were
+      exposed to the hand missiles, which were scarcely less destructive. In
+      good order, and with firmness, however, they reared the ladders, and
+      mounted to the assault, covering themselves as well as they could with
+      their shields. In vain, however, did they mount. The defenders poured down
+      showers of boiling pitch and oil, which penetrated the crevices of their
+      armor and caused intolerable torment. Great stones were toppled over from
+      the battlements upon them; and sometimes the ladders, seized by the poles
+      with hooks, were cast backward, with all upon them, on the throng below.
+      For half an hour, encouraged by the shouts of Sir Rudolph and their
+      leaders, the soldiers strove gallantly; but were at last compelled to draw
+      off, having lost nigh one hundred men, without one gaining a footing upon
+      the walls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That evening another council of war was held without. Already some large
+      machines for which Sir Rudolph had sent had arrived. In anticipation of
+      the possibility of failure, two castles upon wheels had been prepared, and
+      between these a huge beam with an iron head was hung. This was upon the
+      following day pushed forward on the newly-formed ground across the moat.
+      Upon the upper part of each tower were armed men who worked machines
+      casting sheaves of arrows and other missiles. Below were those who worked
+      the ram. To each side of the beam were attached numerous cords, and with
+      these it was swung backward and forward, giving heavy blows each stroke
+      upon the wall. The machines for casting stones, which had arrived, were
+      also brought in play, and day and night these thundered against the walls;
+      while the ram repeated its ceaseless blows upon the same spot, until the
+      stone crumbled before it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Very valiantly did the garrison oppose themselves to these efforts. But
+      each day showed the progress made by the besiegers. Their forces had been
+      increased, Prince John having ordered his captain at Gloucester to send
+      another one hundred men to the assistance of Sir Rudolph. Other towers had
+      now been prepared. These were larger than the first, and overtopped the
+      castle walls. From the upper story were drawbridges, so formed as to drop
+      from the structures upon the walls, and thus enable the besiegers to rush
+      upon them. The process was facilitated by the fact that the battlements
+      had been shot away by the great stones, and there was a clear space on
+      which the drawbridges could fall. The attack was made with great vigor;
+      but for a long time the besieged maintained their post, and drove back the
+      assailants as they poured out across the drawbridges on to the wall. At
+      last Cuthbert saw that the forces opposed to him were too numerous to be
+      resisted, and gave orders to his men to fall back upon the inner keep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Making one rush, and clearing the wall of those who had gained a footing,
+      the garrison fell back hastily, and were safely within the massive keep
+      before the enemy had mustered in sufficient numbers upon the wall to
+      interfere with them. The drawbridge was now lowered, and the whole of the
+      assailants gained footing within the castle. They were still far from
+      having achieved a victory. The walls of the keep were massive and strong,
+      and its top far higher than the walls, so that from above a storm of
+      arrows poured down upon all who ventured to show themselves. The keep had
+      no windows low enough down for access to be gained; and those on the
+      floors above were so narrow, and protected by bars, that it seemed by
+      scaling the walls alone could an entry be effected. This was far too
+      desperate an enterprise to be attempted, for the keep rose eighty feet
+      above the courtyard. It was upon the door, solid and studded with iron,
+      that the attempt had to be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Several efforts were made by Sir Rudolph, who fought with a bravery worthy
+      of a better cause, to assault and batter down the door. Protected by
+      wooden shields from the rain of missiles from above, he and his knights
+      hacked at the door with their battle-axes. But in vain. It had been
+      strengthened by beams behind, and by stones piled up against it. Then fire
+      was tried. Fagots were collected in the forest, and brought; and a huge
+      pile having been heaped against the door, it was lighted. "We could
+      doubtless prolong the siege for some days, Lady Margaret," said Cuthbert,
+      "but the castle is ours; and we wish not, when the time comes that we
+      shall again be masters of it, that it should be a mere heap of ruins.
+      Methinks we have done enough. With but small losses on our side, we have
+      killed great numbers of the enemy, and have held them at bay for a month.
+      Therefore, I think that to-night it will be well for us to leave the
+      place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Lady Margaret was rejoiced at the news that the time for escape had come,
+      for the perpetual clash of war, the rattling of arrows, the ponderous thud
+      of heavy stones caused a din very alarming to a young girl; and although
+      the room in which she sat, looking into the inner court of the castle, was
+      not exposed to missiles, she trembled at the thought that brave men were
+      being killed, and that at any moment a shot might strike Cuthbert, and so
+      leave her without a friend or protector.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Content with having destroyed the door, the assailants made no further
+      effort that evening, but prepared in the morning to attack it, pull down
+      the stones filled behind it, and force their way into the keep. There was,
+      with the exception of the main entrance, but one means of exit, a small
+      postern door behind the castle, and throughout the siege a strong body of
+      troops had been posted here, to prevent the garrison making a sortie.
+      Feeling secure therefore that upon the following day his enemies would
+      fall into his power, Sir Rudolph retired to rest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An hour before midnight the garrison assembled in the hall. The table was
+      removed, and Cuthbert having pressed the spring, which was at a distance
+      from the stone and could not be discovered without a knowledge of its
+      existence, the stone turned aside by means of a counterpoise, and a flight
+      of steps was seen. Torches had been prepared. Cnut and a chosen band went
+      first; Cuthbert followed, with Lady Margaret and her attendants; and the
+      rest of the archers brought up the rear, a trusty man being left in charge
+      at last with orders to swing back the stone into its place, having first
+      hauled the table over the spot, so that their means of escape should be
+      unknown.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The passage was long and dreary, the walls were damp with wet, and the
+      massive doors so swollen by moisture that it was with the greatest
+      difficulty they could be opened. At last, however, they emerged into the
+      little friary in the wood. It was deserted, the priest who usually dwelt
+      there having fled when the siege began. The stone which there, as in the
+      castle, concealed the exit, was carefully closed, and the party then
+      emerged into the open air. Here Cuthbert bade adieu to his comrades. Cnut
+      had very anxiously begged to be allowed to accompany him and share his
+      fortunes, and Cuthbert had promised him that if at any time he should
+      again take up arms in England, he would summon him to his side, but that
+      at present as he knew not whither his steps would be turned, it would be
+      better that he should be unattended. The archers had all agreed to scatter
+      far and wide through the country, many of them proceeding to Nottingham
+      and joining the bands in the forest of Sherwood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert himself had determined to make his way to the castle of his
+      friend, Sir Baldwin, and to leave the Lady Margaret in his charge. Cnut
+      hurried on at full speed to the house of a franklin, some three miles
+      distant. Here horses were obtained and saddled, and dresses prepared; and
+      when Cuthbert with Lady Margaret arrived there, no time was lost. Dressed
+      as a yeoman, with the Lady Margaret as his sister, he mounted a horse,
+      with her behind him on a pillion. The other damsels also mounted, as it
+      would not have been safe for them to remain near Evesham. They therefore
+      purposed taking refuge in a convent near Gloucester for the present.
+      Bidding a hearty adieu to Cnut, and with thanks to the franklin who had
+      aided them, they set forward on their journey. By morning they had reached
+      the convent, and here the two girls were left, and Cuthbert continued his
+      journey. He left his charge at a convent a day's ride distant from the
+      castle of Sir Baldwin, as he wished to consult the knight first as to the
+      best way of her entering the castle without exciting talk or suspicion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Baldwin received him with joy. He had heard something of his doings,
+      and the news of the siege of Evesham had been noised abroad. He told him
+      that he was in communication with many other barons, and that ere long
+      they hoped to rise against the tyranny of Prince John, but that at present
+      they were powerless, as many, hoping that King Richard would return ere
+      long, shrank from involving the country in a civil war. When Cuthbert told
+      him that the daughter of his old friend was at a convent but a day's ride
+      distant, and that he sought protection for her, Sir Baldwin instantly
+      offered her hospitality.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will," he said, "send my good wife to fetch her. Some here know your
+      presence, and it would be better therefore that she did not arrive for
+      some days, as her coming will then seem to be unconnected with yourself.
+      My wife and I will, a week hence, give out that we are going to fetch a
+      cousin of my wife's to stay here with her; and when we return no suspicion
+      will be excited that she is other than she seems. Should it be otherwise,
+      I need not say that Sir Baldwin of Béthune will defend his castle against
+      any of the minions of Prince John. But I have no fear that her presence
+      here will be discovered. What think you of doing in the meantime?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am thinking," Cuthbert said, "of going east. No news has been obtained
+      of our lord the king save that he is a prisoner in the hands of the
+      emperor; but where confined, or how, we know not. It is my intent to
+      travel to the Tyrol, and to trace his steps from the time that he was
+      captured. Then, when I obtain knowledge of the place where he is kept, I
+      will return, and consult upon the best steps to be taken. My presence in
+      England is now useless. Did the barons raise the standard of King Richard
+      against the prince, I should at once return and join them. But without
+      land or vassals, I can do nothing here, and shall be indeed like a hunted
+      hare, for I know that the false earl will move heaven and earth to capture
+      me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Baldwin approved of the resolution; but recommended Cuthbert to take
+      every precaution not to fall himself into the hands of the emperor; "for,"
+      he said, "if we cannot discover the prison of King Richard, I fear that it
+      would be hopeless indeed ever to attempt to find that in which a simple
+      knight is confined."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0025" id="link2HCH0025"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXV. &mdash; IN SEARCH OF THE KING.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The following day, with many thanks, Cuthbert started from the castle, and
+      in the first place visited the convent, and told Lady Margaret that she
+      would be fetched in a few days by Sir Baldwin and his wife. He took a
+      tender adieu of her, not without many forebodings and tears upon her part;
+      but promising blithely that he would return and lead her back in triumph
+      to her castle, he bade adieu and rode for London.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had attired himself as a merchant, and took up his abode at a hostelry
+      near Cheapside. Here he remained quietly for some days, and, mixing among
+      the people, learned that in London as elsewhere the rapacity of Prince
+      John had rendered him hateful to the people, and that they would gladly
+      embrace any opportunity of freeing themselves from his yoke. He was
+      preparing to leave for France, when the news came to him that Prince John
+      had summoned all the barons faithful to him to meet him near London, and
+      had recalled all his mercenaries from different parts of the country, and
+      was gathering a large army; also, that the barons faithful to King
+      Richard, alarmed by the prospect, had raised the royal standard, and that
+      true men were hurrying to their support. This entirely destroyed the plans
+      that he had formed. Taking horse again, and avoiding the main road, by
+      which he might meet the hostile barons on their way to London, he
+      journeyed down to Nottingham. Thence riding boldly into the forest, he
+      sought the outlaws, and was not long ere he found them. At his request he
+      was at once taken before their leader, a man of great renown both for
+      courage and bowmanship, one Robin Hood. This bold outlaw had long held at
+      defiance the sheriff of Nottingham, and had routed him and all bodies of
+      troops who had been sent against him. With him Cuthbert found many of his
+      own men; and upon hearing that the royal standard had been raised, Robin
+      Hood at once agreed to march with all his men to join the royal force.
+      Messengers were dispatched to summon the rest of the forest band from
+      their hiding-places, and a week later Cuthbert, accompanied by Robin Hood
+      and three hundred archers, set out for the rendezvous. When they arrived
+      there they found that Sir Baldwin had already joined with his retainers,
+      and was by him most warmly received, and introduced to the other barons in
+      the camp, by whom Cuthbert was welcomed as a brother. The news that Prince
+      John's army was approaching was brought in a fortnight after Cuthbert had
+      joined the camp, and the army in good order moved out to meet the enemy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The forces were about equal. The battle began by a discharge of arrows;
+      but Robin Hood and his men shot so true and fast that they greatly
+      discomfited the enemy; and King John's mercenaries having but little
+      stomach for the fight, and knowing how unpopular they were in England, and
+      that if defeated small mercy was likely to be shown to them, refused to
+      advance against the ranks of the loyal barons, and falling back declined
+      to join in the fray. Seeing their numbers so weakened by this defection,
+      the barons on the prince's side hesitated, and surrounding the prince
+      advised him to make terms with the barons while there was yet time. Prince
+      John saw that the present was not a favorable time for him, and concealing
+      his fury under a mask of courtesy, he at once acceded to the advice of his
+      followers, and dispatched a messenger to the barons with an inquiry as to
+      what they wanted of him. A council was held, and it was determined to
+      demand the dismissal of the mercenaries and their dispatch back to their
+      own country; also that John would govern only as his brother's
+      representative; that the laws of the country should be respected; that no
+      taxes should be raised without the assent of the barons; that all men who
+      had taken up arms against his authority should be held free; and that the
+      barons on Prince John's side should return peaceably home and disband
+      their forces. Seeing, under the circumstances, that there was no way
+      before him but to yield to these demands, Prince John accepted the terms.
+      The mercenaries were ordered to march direct to London, and orders were
+      given that ships should be at once prepared to take them across to
+      Normandy, and the barons marched for their homes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Satisfied, now that the mercenaries were gone, that they could henceforth
+      hold their ground against Prince John, the royal barons also broke up
+      their forces. Robin Hood with his foresters returned to Sherwood; and
+      Cuthbert, bidding adieu to Sir Baldwin, rode back to London, determined to
+      carry out the plan which he had formed. He was the more strengthened in
+      this resolution, inasmuch as in the royal camp he had met a friend from
+      whom he parted last in the Holy Land. This was Blondel, the minstrel of
+      King Richard, whose songs and joyous music had often lightened the evening
+      after days of fighting and toil in Palestine. To him Cuthbert confided his
+      intention, and the minstrel instantly offered to accompany him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I shall," he said, "be of assistance to you. Minstrels are like heralds.
+      They are of no nationality, and can pass free where a man-at-arms would be
+      closely watched and hindered. Moreover, it may be that I might aid you
+      greatly in discovering the prison of the king. So great is the secrecy
+      with which this has been surrounded that I question if any inquiries you
+      could make would enable you to trace him. My voice, however, can penetrate
+      into places where we cannot enter. I will take with me my lute, and as we
+      journey I will sing outside the walls of each prison we come to one of the
+      songs which I sang in Palestine. King Richard is himself a singer and
+      knows my songs as well as myself. If I sing a verse of some song which I
+      wrote there and which, therefore, would be known only to him, if he hears
+      it he may follow with the next verse, and so enable us to know of his
+      hiding-place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert at once saw the advantages which such companionship would bring
+      him, and joyfully accepted the minstrel's offer, agreeing himself to go as
+      serving man to Blondel. The latter accompanied him to London. Here their
+      preparations were soon made, and taking ship in a merchantman bound for
+      the Netherlands, they started without delay upon their adventure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The minstrels and troubadours were at that time a privileged race in
+      Europe, belonging generally to the south of France, although produced in
+      all lands. They traveled over Europe singing the lays which they
+      themselves had composed, and were treated with all honor at the castles
+      where they chose to alight. It would have been considered as foul a deed
+      to use discourtesy to a minstrel as to insult a herald. Their persons
+      were, indeed, regarded as sacred, and the knights and barons strove to
+      gain their good-will by hospitality and presents, as a large proportion of
+      their ballads related to deeds of war; and while they would write lays in
+      honor of those who courteously entertained them, they did not hesitate to
+      heap obloquy upon those who received them discourteously, holding them up
+      to the gibes and scoffs of their fellows. In no way, therefore, would
+      success be so likely to attend the mission of those who set out to
+      discover the hiding-place of King Richard as under the guise of a minstrel
+      and his attendant. No questions would be asked them; they could halt where
+      they would, in castle or town, secure of hospitality and welcome. Blondel
+      was himself a native of the south of France, singing his songs in the soft
+      language of Languedoc. Cuthbert's Norman French would pass muster anywhere
+      as being that of a native of France; and although when dressed as a
+      servitor attention might be attracted by his bearing, his youth might
+      render it probable that he was of noble family, but that he had entered
+      the service of the minstrel in order to qualify himself some day for
+      following that career. He carried a long staff, a short sword, and at his
+      back the lute or small harp played upon by the troubadour. Blondel's
+      attire was rich, and suitable to a person of high rank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They crossed to the Scheldt, and thence traveled by the right bank of the
+      Rhine as far as Mannheim, sometimes journeying by boat, sometimes on foot.
+      They were also hospitably entertained, and were considered to more than
+      repay their hosts by the songs which Blondel sang.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At Mannheim they purchased two horses, and then struck east for Vienna.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The journey was not without danger, for a large portion of this part of
+      Europe was under no settled government, each petty baron living in his own
+      castle, and holding but slight allegiance to any feudal lord, making war
+      upon his neighbor on his own account, levying blackmail from travelers,
+      and perpetually at variance with the burghers of the towns.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The hills were covered with immense forests, which stretched for many
+      leagues in all directions, and these were infested by wolves, bears, and
+      robbers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The latter, however, although men without pity or religion, yet held the
+      troubadours in high esteem, and the travelers without fear entered the
+      gloomy shades of the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They had not gone far when their way was barred by a number of armed men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am a minstrel," Blondel said; "and as such doubt not that your courtesy
+      will be extended to me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Of a surety," the leader said; "the gay science is as much loved and
+      respected in the greenwood as in the castle; and moreover, the purses of
+      those who follow it are too light to offer any temptation to us. We would
+      pray you, however, to accompany us to our leader, who will mightily
+      rejoice to see you, for he loves music, and will gladly be your host so
+      long as you will stay with him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Blondel, without objection, turned his horse's head and accompanied the
+      men, followed by Cuthbert. After half an hour's traveling they came to a
+      building which had formerly been a shrine, but which was now converted to
+      the robbers' headquarters. The robber chief, on hearing from his followers
+      the news that a minstrel had arrived, came forward to meet him, and
+      courteously bade him welcome.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am Sir Adelbert, of Rotherheim," he said, "although you see me in so
+      poor a plight. My castle and lands have been taken by my neighbor, with
+      whom for generations my family have been at feud. I was in the Holy Land
+      with the emperor, and on my return found that the baron had taken the
+      opportunity of my absence, storming my castle and seizing my lands. In
+      vain I petitioned the emperor to dispossess this traitorous baron of my
+      lands, which by all the laws of Christendom should have been respected
+      during my absence. The emperor did indeed send a letter to the baron to
+      deliver them up to me; but his power here is but nominal, and the baron
+      contemptuously threw the royal proclamation into the fire and told the
+      messenger that what he had taken by the sword he would hold by the sword;
+      and the emperor having weightier matters on hand than to set troops in
+      motion to redress the grievances of a simple knight, gave the matter no
+      further thought. I have therefore been driven to the forest, where I live
+      as best I may with my followers, most of whom were retainers upon my
+      estate, and some my comrades in the Holy Land. I make war upon the rich
+      and powerful, and beyond that do harm to no man. But, methinks," he
+      continued, "I know your face, gentle sir."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It may well be so, Sir Adelbert," the minstrel said, "for I too was in
+      the Holy Land. I followed the train of King Richard, and mayhap at some of
+      the entertainments given by him you have seen my face. My name is
+      Blondel."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I remember now," the knight said. "It was at Acre that I first saw you,
+      and if I remember rightly you can wield the sword as well as the lute."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "One cannot always be playing and singing," Blondel said, "and in lack of
+      amusement I was forced to do my best against the infidel, who indeed would
+      have but little respected my art had I fallen into his hands. The
+      followers of the prophet hold minstrels but in slight reverence."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is the news of King Richard?" the knight said. "I have heard that he
+      was lost on the voyage homeward."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is not so," Blondel said. "He landed safely on the coast, and was
+      journeying north with a view of joining his sister at the court of Saxony,
+      when he was foully seized and imprisoned by the Archduke John."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That were gross shame indeed," the knight said, "and black treachery on
+      the part of Duke John. And where is the noble king imprisoned?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That," said Blondel, "no man knows. On my journey hither I have gathered
+      that the emperor claimed him from the hand of the archduke, and that he is
+      imprisoned in one of the royal fortresses, but which I know not. And
+      indeed, sir knight, since you are well disposed toward him, I may tell you
+      that the purport of my journey is to discover if I can the place of his
+      confinement. He was a kind and noble master, and however long my search
+      may be, I will yet obtain news of him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight warmly applauded the troubadour's resolution, and was turning
+      to lead him into his abode, when his eye fell upon Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks I know the face of your attendant as well as your own; though
+      where I can have seen him I know not. Was he with you in the Holy Land?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Yes," Blondel said, "the youth was also there; and doubtless you may have
+      noticed him, for he is indeed of distinguished and of good family."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then let him share our repast," the knight said, "if it seems good to
+      you. In these woods there is no rank, and I myself have long dropped my
+      knightly title, and shall not reassume it until I can pay off my score to
+      the Baron of Rotherheim, and take my place again in my castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The minstrel and Cuthbert were soon seated at the table with the knight
+      and one or two of his principal companions. A huge venison pasty formed
+      the staple of the repast, but hares and other small game were also upon
+      the table. Nor was the generous wine of the country wanting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight had several times glanced at Cuthbert, and at last exclaimed,
+      "I have it now. This is no attendant, sir minstrel, but that valiant young
+      knight who so often rode near King Richard in battle. He is, as I guess,
+      your companion in this quest; is it not so?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is," Cuthbert replied frankly. "I am, like yourself, a disinherited
+      knight, and my history resembles yours. Upon my return to England I found
+      another in possession of the land and titles that belonged to the noble I
+      followed, and which King Richard bestowed upon me. The Earl of Evesham was
+      doubtless known to you, and before his death King Richard, at his request,
+      bestowed upon me as his adopted son&mdash;although but a distant
+      connection&mdash;his title and lands and the hand of his daughter. Prince
+      John, who now rules in England, had however granted these things to one of
+      his favorites, and he having taken possession of the land and title,
+      though not, happily, of the lady, closed his door somewhat roughly in my
+      face. I found means, however, to make my mark upon him; but as our quarrel
+      could not be fought out to the end, and as the false knight had the aid of
+      Prince John, I am forced for awhile to postpone our settlement, and
+      meeting my good friend the minstrel, agreed to join him in his enterprise
+      to discover our lord the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight warmly grasped Cuthbert's hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am glad," he said, "to meet so true and valiant a knight. I have often
+      wondered at the valor with which you, although so young, bore yourself;
+      and there were tales afloat of strange adventures which you had undergone
+      in captivity for a time among the infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At Sir Adelbert's request Cuthbert related the story of his adventures
+      among the Saracens; and then Blondel, tuning his lute, sang several
+      canzonets which he had composed in the Holy Land, of feats of arms and
+      adventure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "How far are you," Cuthbert asked presently, when Blondel laid his lute
+      aside, "from the estates which were wrongfully wrested from you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But twenty leagues," the knight said. "My castle was on the Rhine,
+      between Coblentz and Mannheim."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Does the baron know that you are so near?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks that he does not," the knight replied, "but that he deems me to
+      have gone to the court of the emperor to seek for redress&mdash;which, he
+      guesses, I shall certainly fail to obtain."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "How many men have you with you?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Fifty men, all good and true," the knight said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Has it never entered your thoughts to attempt a surprise upon his
+      castle?" Cuthbert said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight was silent for a minute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "At times," he said at length, "thoughts of so doing have occurred to me;
+      but the castle is strong, and a surprise would be difficult indeed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If the baron is lulled in security at present," Cuthbert said, "and deems
+      you afar off, the watch is likely to be relaxed, and with a sudden
+      onslaught you might surely obtain possession. Blondel and myself are not
+      pressed for time, and the delay of a few days can make but little
+      difference. If, therefore, you think we could be of assistance to you in
+      such an attempt, my sword, and I am sure that of my friend, would be at
+      your disposal."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight sat for some time in silence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, generous knight," he said at last, "I am sorely tempted to avail
+      myself of your offer; but I fear that the enterprise is hopeless. The aid,
+      however, of your arm and knowledge of war would greatly add to my chances,
+      and if it pleases you we will ride to-morrow to a point where we can
+      obtain a sight of the baron's castle. When you see it you shall judge
+      yourself how far such an enterprise as you propose is possible."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is your own castle intact?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The walls are standing," he said; "but a breach has been made in them,
+      and at present it is wholly deserted."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Do you think," Cuthbert asked, "that if you succeeded in surprising and
+      defeating the garrison of the castle that you could then regain your own,
+      and hold it against your enemy?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think that I could," Sir Adelbert said. "The baron's domains are but
+      little larger than my own. Many of my retainers still live upon the
+      estate, and would, I am sure, gladly join me, if I were to raise my flag.
+      The baron, too, is hated by his neighbors, and could I inflict a crushing
+      blow upon him, methinks it would be so long a time before he could
+      assemble a force, that I might regain my castle and put it in an attitude
+      of defense before he could take the field against me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If," Cuthbert said, "we could surprise the castle, it might well be that
+      the baron would fall into your hands, and in that case you might be able
+      to make your own terms with him. How strong a force is he likely to have
+      in his castle?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Some fifty or sixty men," the knight replied; "for with such a force he
+      could hold the castle against an attack of ten times their number, and he
+      could in twelve hours call in his retainers, and raise the garrison to
+      three hundred or four hundred men."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Blondel warmly assented to Cuthbert's scheme, and it was settled that at
+      daybreak they should start to view the Castle of Rotherheim. At early dawn
+      they were in the saddle, and the three rode all day, until toward sunset
+      they stood on the crest of a hill looking down into the valley of the
+      Rhine.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The present aspect of that valley affords but a slight idea of its beauty
+      in those days. The slopes are now clad with vineyards, which, although
+      picturesque in idea, are really, to look at from a distance, no better
+      than so many turnip fields. The vines are planted in rows and trained to
+      short sticks, and as these rows follow the declivities of the hillside,
+      they are run in all directions, and the whole mountain side, from the
+      river far up, is cut up into little patches of green lines. In those days
+      the mountains were clad with forests, which descended nearly to the
+      riverside. Here and there, upon craggy points, were situate the fortalices
+      of the barons. Little villages nestled in the woods, or stood by the river
+      bank, and a fairer scene could not be witnessed in Europe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is Rotherheim," the knight said, pointing to a fortress standing on
+      a crag, which rose high above the woods around it; "and that," he said,
+      pointing to another some four miles away, similarly placed, "is my own."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert examined closely the fortress of Rotherheim. It was a large
+      building, with towers at the angles, and seemed to rise almost abruptly
+      from the edge of the rock. Inside rose the gables and round turrets of the
+      dwelling-place of the baron, and the only access was by a steep winding
+      path on the riverside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is indeed a strong place," Cuthbert said, "and difficult to take by
+      surprise. A watch no doubt is always kept over the entrance, and there we
+      can hope for no success. The only plan will be to scale the wall by means
+      of a ladder; but how the ladder is to be got to so great a height, I own
+      at present passes my comprehension." After much thought, Cuthbert went on,
+      "It might, methinks, be practicable for an archer to approach the walls,
+      and to shoot an arrow over the angle of the castle so that it would pass
+      inside the turret there, and fall in the forest beyond. If to this arrow
+      were attached a light cord, it could be gained by one on the other side,
+      and a stronger cord hauled over. To this could be attached a rope ladder,
+      and so this could be raised to the top of the wall. If a sentinel were
+      anywhere near he might hear the rope pulled across the battlements; but
+      if, as we may hope, a watch is kept only over the entrance, the operation
+      might be performed without attracting notice."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight was delighted with the project, which seemed perfectly
+      feasible, and it was agreed that the attempt should be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It will need," Sir Adelbert said, "an archer with a strong arm indeed to
+      shoot an arrow with a cord attached to it, however light, over the corner
+      of the castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that I can do that, for as a lad I was used to
+      the strong bows of my country. The first thing, however, will be to obtain
+      such a bow; but doubtless one can be purchased in one of the towns, which,
+      if not so strong as those to which I was accustomed, will at any rate
+      suffice for us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The party bivouacked in the woods for the night, for the horses had
+      already done a very long journey, and needed rest before starting back for
+      the Black Forest. At daybreak, however, they started, and at nightfall
+      rejoined their band. These were delighted when they heard the scheme that
+      had been set on foot, and all avowed their eagerness to join in the
+      attempt to restore their lord to his rights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days later they set out, having already procured from the nearest town
+      a strong bow, some arrows, a very light rope, and a stronger one from a
+      portion of which they manufactured a rope ladder capable of reaching from
+      the top of the wall to the rock below. The journey this time occupied two
+      days, as the men on foot were unable to march at the pace at which the
+      mounted party had traversed the ground. The evening of the second day,
+      however, saw them in sight of the castle. By Cuthbert's advice, Sir
+      Adelbert determined to give them twenty-four hours of rest, in order that
+      they might have their full strength for undertaking the task before them.
+      During the day Cuthbert, guided by the knight, made his way through the
+      woods to the foot of the rocks on which the castle stood. They were
+      extremely steep, but could be mounted by active men if unopposed from
+      above. Cuthbert measured the height with his eye from the top of the
+      castle wall to the place which he selected as most fitting from which to
+      shoot the arrow, and announced to the knight that he thought there would
+      be no difficulty in discharging an arrow over the angle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At nightfall the whole party made their way silently through the woods.
+      Three men were sent round to the side of the castle opposite that from
+      which Cuthbert was to shoot. The length of light string was carefully
+      coiled on the ground, so as to unwind with the greatest facility, and so
+      offer as little resistance to the flight of the arrow as might be. Then,
+      all being in readiness, Cuthbert attached the end to an arrow, and drawing
+      the bow to its full compass, let fly the arrow. All held their breath; but
+      no sound followed the discharge. They were sure, therefore, that the arrow
+      had not struck the wall, but that it must have passed clear over it. Half
+      an hour elapsed before they felt that the cord was pulled, and knew that
+      the men upon the other side had succeeded in finding the arrow and string
+      attached. The stronger cord was now fastened to that which the arrow had
+      carried, and this gradually disappeared in the darkness. A party now stole
+      up the rock, and posted themselves at the foot of the castle wall. They
+      took with them the coil of rope-ladder and the end of the rope. At length
+      the rope tightened, and to the end they attached the ladder. This again
+      ascended until the end only remained upon the ground, and they knew that
+      it must have reached the top of the wall. They now held fast, and knew
+      that those on the other side, following the instructions given them, would
+      have fastened the rope to a tree upon the opposite side. They were now
+      joined by the rest of the party, and Sir Adelbert leading the way, and
+      followed by Cuthbert and Blondel, began cautiously to ascend the rope
+      ladder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All this time no sound from the castle proclaimed that their intention was
+      suspected, or that any alarm had been given, and in silence they gained
+      the top of the wall. Here they remained quiet until the whole band were
+      gathered there, and then made their way along until they reached the
+      stairs leading to the courtyard. These they descended, and then, raising
+      his war-cry, Sir Adelbert sprang upon the men who, round a fire, were
+      sitting by the gate. These were cut down before they could leap to their
+      feet, and the party then rushed at the entrance to the dwelling-house. The
+      retainers of the castle, aroused by the sudden din, rushed from their
+      sleeping places, but taken completely by surprise, were unable to offer
+      any resistance whatever to the strong force which had, as if by magic,
+      taken possession of the castle. The surprise was complete, and with scarce
+      a blow struck they found themselves in possession. The baron himself was
+      seized as he rose from his bed, and his rage at finding himself in the
+      power of his enemy was so great as for some time to render him speechless.
+      Sir Adelbert briefly dictated to him the conditions upon which only he
+      should desist from using his power to hang him over his own gate. The
+      baron was instantly to issue orders to all his own retainers and tenantry
+      to lend their aid to those of Sir Adelbert in putting the castle of the
+      latter into a state of defense and mending the breach which existed. A sum
+      of money, equal to the revenues of which he had possessed himself, was to
+      be paid at once, and the knight was to retain possession of Rotherheim and
+      of the baron's person until these conditions were all faithfully carried
+      out. The baron had no resource but to assent to these terms, and upon the
+      following day Cuthbert and Blondel departed upon their way, overwhelmed
+      with thanks by Sir Adelbert, and confident that he would now be able to
+      regain and hold the possession of his estate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0026" id="link2HCH0026"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXVI. &mdash; KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO ENGLAND.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Journeying onward, Blondel and his companion stopped at many castles, and
+      were everywhere hospitably entertained. Arriving at Vienna they lingered
+      for some time, hoping there to be able to obtain some information of the
+      whereabouts of King Richard. Blondel in his songs artfully introduced
+      allusions to the captive monarch and to the mourning of all Christendom at
+      the imprisonment of its champion. These allusions were always well
+      received, and he found that the great bulk of the nobles of the empire
+      were indignant and ashamed at the conduct of the emperor in imprisoning
+      his illustrious rival. The secret of his prison place, however, appeared
+      to have been so well kept that no information whatever was obtainable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We must carry out our original plan," he said at length, "and journey
+      into the Tyrol. In one of the fortresses there he is most likely to be
+      confined."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaving the capital they wandered up into the mountains for weeks,
+      visiting one castle after another. It was no easy matter in all cases to
+      get so near to these prisons as to give a hope that their voice might be
+      heard within, or an answer received without. More than once crossbow bolts
+      were shot at them from the walls when they did not obey the sentinel's
+      challenge and move further away. Generally, however, it was in the daytime
+      that they sang. Wandering carelessly up, they would sit down within
+      earshot of the castle, open their wallets, and take out provisions from
+      their store, and then, having eaten and drunk, Blondel would produce his
+      lute and sing, as if for his own pleasure. It needed, however, four visits
+      to each castle before they could be sure that the captive was not there;
+      for the song had to be sung on each side. Sometimes they would cheat
+      themselves with the thought that they heard an answering voice; but it was
+      not until the end of the fourth week, when singing outside the castle of
+      Diernstein, that a full rich voice, when Blondel ceased, sang out the
+      second stanza of the poem. With difficulty Blondel and Cuthbert restrained
+      themselves from an extravagant exhibition of joy. They knew, however, that
+      men on the prison wall were watching them as they sat singing, and
+      Blondel, with a final strain taken from a ballad of a knight who, having
+      discovered the hiding-place of his lady love, prepared to free her from
+      her oppressors, shouldered his lute, and they started on their homeward
+      journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no delay now. At times they sang indeed at castles; but only
+      when their store was exhausted, for upon these occasions Blondel would be
+      presented with a handsome goblet or other solid token of the owner's
+      approval, and the sale of this at the next city would take them far on
+      their way. They thought it better not to pass through France, as Philip,
+      they knew, was on the watch to prevent any news of King Richard reaching
+      England. They therefore again passed through Brabant, and so by ship to
+      England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hearing that Longchamp, Bishop of Ely, one of Richard's vicegerents, was
+      over in Normandy, and rightly deeming him the most earnest of his
+      adherents, they at once recrossed the sea, and found the warlike prelate
+      at Rouen. Greatly delighted was he at hearing that Richard's hiding-place
+      had been discovered. He at once sent across the news to England, and
+      ordered it to be published far and wide, and himself announced it to the
+      barons of Normandy. Then with a gorgeous retinue, including Cuthbert and
+      Blondel, he started for Vienna, and arriving there demanded an interview
+      with the emperor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The news that it was now certain that Richard was imprisoned in a castle
+      of the emperor had already spread through Europe, and the bishop had been
+      received everywhere with tokens of sympathy; and so great was the feeling
+      shown by the counts and barons of the empire that the Emperor Henry felt
+      that he could no longer refuse to treat for the surrender of his captive.
+      Therefore he granted the interview which Longchamp demanded. The English
+      envoy was received by the emperor surrounded by his nobles. The prelate
+      advanced with great dignity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I come," he said, "in the name of the people of England to demand the
+      restoration of King Richard, most unjustly and unknightly detained a
+      prisoner in his passage through your dominions."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "King Richard was my foe," the emperor said, "open and secret, and I was
+      justified in detaining one who is alike my enemy and a scourge to Europe
+      as a prisoner, when fortune threw him in my hands. I am, however, willing
+      to put him to a ransom, and will upon the payment of one hundred and fifty
+      thousand marks allow him to go free."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I deny your right to detain him or to put him to ransom," the bishop
+      said. "But as you have the power, so my denial is useless. England is
+      poor, impoverished with war and by the efforts which she made in the
+      service of our holy religion. Nevertheless, poor as she is, she will raise
+      the sum you demand. There is not an Englishman who will not furnish all he
+      can afford for the rescue of our king. But once again, in the presence of
+      your nobles, I denounce your conduct as base and unkingly."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The emperor could with difficulty restrain his passion; but the sight of
+      the somber visages of his nobles showed that they shared in no slight
+      degree the feelings which the English envoy had so boldly announced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Before, however," the emperor said, "I surrender King Richard, he must be
+      tried by my peers of many and various crimes of which he is accused.
+      Should he be found guilty of these, no gold can purchase his release.
+      Should he, however, be acquitted, then as my word is given so shall it
+      be."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Although," the prelate said, "I deny your right to try our king, and
+      believe that he himself will refuse to accept your jurisdiction, yet I
+      fear not the result if our lord be left in the hands of the nobles of the
+      empire and not in yours. I can trust their honor and courtesy."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And turning upon his heel, without another word he quitted the apartment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An hour later the bishop and his following took horse and rode with all
+      speed to the north coast, and thence sailed for England. The news of the
+      amount of ransom filled the people with consternation; but preparations
+      were at once made for collecting the sum demanded. Queen Eleanor was
+      unceasing in her efforts to raise the money for the release of her
+      favorite son. The nobles contributed their jewels and silver; the people
+      gave contributions of goods, for money was so scarce in England that few
+      had the wherewithal to pay in coin. Prince John placed every obstacle in
+      the way of the collection; but the barons had since their successful stand
+      obtained the upper hand, and it was by intrigue only that he could hinder
+      the collection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime, popular opinion throughout Europe was strong upon the
+      side of King Richard. The pope himself wrote to the emperor on his behalf.
+      The barons of the empire were indignant at the shame placed upon their
+      country; and the emperor, although he would fain have thrown further
+      delays in the way, was obliged at last to order the first step to be
+      taken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A solemn diet was ordered to assemble at Worms. Here were collected all
+      the nobles of the empire, and before them King Richard was brought. It was
+      a grand assembly. Upon a raised throne on the daïs sat the emperor
+      himself, and beside him and near him were the great feudatories of the
+      empire, and along the sides of the walls were ranged in long rows the
+      lesser barons. When the doors were opened and King Richard entered, the
+      whole assembly, save the emperor, rose in respect to the captive monarch.
+      Although pale from his long confinement, the proud air of Richard was in
+      no way abated, and the eyes that had flashed so fearlessly upon the
+      Saracens looked as sternly down the long lines of the barons of Germany.
+      Of splendid stature and physique, King Richard was unquestionably the
+      finest man of his time. He was handsome, with a frank face, but with a
+      fierce and passionate eye. He wore his mustache with a short beard and
+      closely-cut whisker. His short curly hair was cropped closely to his head,
+      upon which he wore a velvet cap with gold coronet, while a scarlet robe
+      lined with fur fell over his coat of mail, for the emperor had deemed it
+      imprudent to excite the feeling of the assembly in favor of the prisoner
+      by depriving him of the symbols of his rank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard strode to the place prepared for him, and then turning to the
+      assembly he said, in a voice which rang through the hall:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Counts and lords of the Empire of Germany, I, Richard, King of England,
+      do deny your right to try me. I am a king, and can only be tried by my
+      peers and by the pope, who is the head of Christendom. I might refuse to
+      plead, refuse to take any part in this assembly, and appeal to the pope,
+      who alone has power to punish kings. But I will waive my rights. I rely
+      upon the honor and probity of the barons of Germany. I have done no man
+      wrong, and would appear as fearlessly before an assembly of peasants as
+      before a gathering of barons. Such faults as I may have, and none are
+      without them, are not such as those with which I am charged. I have slain
+      many men in anger, but none by treachery. When Richard of England strikes
+      he strikes in the light of day. He leaves poison and treachery to his
+      enemies, and I hurl back with indignation and scorn in the teeth of him
+      who makes them the charges brought against me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying King Richard took his seat amid a murmur of applause from the
+      crowded hall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trial then commenced. The accusations against Richard were of many
+      kinds. Chief among them was the murder of Conrad of Montferat; but there
+      were charges of having brought the Crusade to naught by thwarting the
+      general plans, by his arrogance in refusing to be bound by the decision of
+      the other leaders, and by having made a peace contrary to the interests of
+      the Crusaders. The list was a long one; but the evidence produced was
+      pitiably weak. Beyond the breath of suspicion, no word of real evidence
+      connecting him with the murder of Conrad of Montferat was adduced, and the
+      other charges were supported by no better evidence. Many of the German
+      barons who had been at the Crusades themselves came forward to testify to
+      the falsity of these charges, and the fact that Richard had himself placed
+      Conrad of Montferat upon the throne, and had no possible interest in his
+      death, was alone more than sufficient to nullify the vague rumors brought
+      against him. Richard himself in a few a scornful words disposed of this
+      accusation. The accusation that he, Richard of England, would stoop to
+      poison a man whom he could have crushed in an instant was too absurd to be
+      seriously treated.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am sure," the king said, "that not one person here believes this idle
+      tale. That I did not always agree with the other leaders is true; but I
+      call upon every one here to say whether, had they listened to me and
+      followed my advice, the Crusade would not have had another ending. Even
+      after Philip of France had withdrawn; even after I had been deserted by
+      John of Austria, I led the troops of the Crusaders from every danger and
+      every difficulty to within sight of the walls of Jerusalem. Had I been
+      supported with zeal, the holy city would have been ours; but the apathy,
+      the folly, and the weakness of the leaders brought ruin upon the army.
+      They thought not of conquering Jerusalem, but of thwarting me; and I
+      retort upon them the charge of having sacrificed the success of the
+      Crusade. As to the terms of peace, how were they made? I, with some fifty
+      knights and one thousand followers, alone remained in the Holy Land. Who
+      else, I ask, so circumstanced, could have obtained any terms whatever from
+      Saladin? It was the weight of my arm alone which saved Jaffa and Acre, and
+      the line of seacoast, to the Cross. And had I followed the example set me
+      by him of Austria and the Frenchman, not one foot of the Holy Land would
+      now remain in Christian hands."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trial was soon over, and without a single dissentient the King of
+      England was acquitted of all the charges brought against him. But the
+      money was not yet raised, and King Richard was taken back into the heart
+      of Germany. At length, by prodigious exertions, half the amount claimed
+      was collected, and upon the solicitations of the pope and of the counts of
+      his own empire, the emperor consented to release Richard upon receipt of
+      this sum, and his royal promise that the remainder should be made up.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Not as yet, however, were the intrigues at an end. Prince John and King
+      Philip alike implored the emperor to retain his captive, and offered to
+      him a larger sum than the ransom if he would still hold him in his hands.
+      Popular opinion, was, however, too strong. When the news of these
+      negotiations became bruited abroad the counts of the empire, filled with
+      indignation, protested against this shame and dishonor being brought upon
+      the country. The pope threatened him with excommunication; and at last the
+      emperor, feeling that he would risk his throne did he further insist, was
+      forced to open the prison gates and let the king free. Cuthbert, Blondel,
+      and a few other trusty friends were at hand, and their joy at receiving
+      their long-lost sovereign was indeed intense. Horses had been provided in
+      readiness, and without a moment's delay the king started, for even at the
+      last moment it was feared that the emperor might change his mind. This
+      indeed was the case. The king had not started many hours, when the arrival
+      of fresh messengers from Philip and John induced the emperor once more to
+      change his intentions, and a body of men were sent in pursuit of the king.
+      The latter fortunately made no stay on the way, but changing horses
+      frequently&mdash;for everywhere he was received with honor and attention&mdash;he
+      pushed forward for the coast of the North Sea, and arrived there two or
+      three hours only before his oppressors. Fortunately it was night, and
+      taking a boat he embarked without a moment's delay; and when the
+      emissaries of the emperor arrived the boat was already out of sight, and
+      in the darkness pursuit was hopeless.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On landing at Dover, the first to present himself before him was Prince
+      John, who, in the most abject terms besought pardon for the injuries he
+      had inflicted. King Richard waved him contemptuously aside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Go," he said, "and may I forget your injuries as speedily as you will
+      forget my pardon."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then taking horse, he rode on to London, where he was received with the
+      most lively acclamation by his subjects.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The first step of King Richard was to dispossess all the minions of John
+      from the castles and lands which had been taken from his faithful
+      adherents. Some of these resisted; but their fortresses were speedily
+      stormed. Sir Rudolph was not one of these. Immediately the news of King
+      Richard's arrival in England reached him, feeling that all was now lost,
+      he rode to the seacoast, took ship, and passed into France, and Cuthbert,
+      on his arrival at Evesham, found himself undisputed lord of the place. He
+      found that the hiding-place of his mother had not been discovered, and,
+      after a short delay to put matters in train, he, attended by a gallant
+      retinue, rode into Wiltshire to the castle of Sir Baldwin of Béthune. Here
+      he found the Lady Margaret safe and sound, and mightily pleased to see
+      him. She was now seventeen, and offered no objections whatever to the
+      commands of King Richard that she should at once bestow her hand upon the
+      Earl of Evesham. By the king's order, the wedding took place at London,
+      the king himself bestowing the bride upon his faithful follower, whom we
+      may now leave to the enjoyment of the fortune and wife he had so valiantly
+      won.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      THE END.
+    </h3>
+    <div style="height: 6em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+  <div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 13354 ***</div>
+</body>
+</html>
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #13354 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/13354)
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Boy Knight
+
+Author: G.A. Henty
+
+Release Date: September 2, 2004 [EBook #13354]
+[Last updated: August 4, 2013]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOY KNIGHT ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Ted Garvin, Annika Feilbach and PG Distributed Proofreaders
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BOY KNIGHT.
+
+A TALE OF THE CRUSADES.
+
+
+BY G.A. HENTY,
+
+_Author of "The Young Buglers," "Through the Fray," "The Cornet of
+Horse," "The Young Colonists," "In Times of Peril," etc., etc._
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+The Outlaws.
+
+CHAPTER II.
+A Rescue.
+
+CHAPTER III.
+The Capture of Wortham Hold.
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+The Crusades.
+
+CHAPTER V.
+Preparations.
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+The Lists.
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+Revenge.
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+The Attack.
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+The Princess Berengaria.
+
+CHAPTER X.
+Pirates.
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+In the Holy Land.
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+The Accolade.
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+In the Hands of the Saracens.
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+An Effort for Freedom.
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+A Hermit's Tale.
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+A Fight of Heroes.
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+An Alpine Storm.
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+Sentenced to Death.
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+Dresden.
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+Under the Greenwood.
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+The Attempt on the Convent.
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+A Dastardly Stratagem.
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+The False and Perjured Knight.
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+The Siege of Evesham Castle.
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+In Search of the King.
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+King Richard's Return to England.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BOY KNIGHT.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE OUTLAWS.
+
+
+It was a bright morning in the month of August, when a lad of some
+fifteen years of age, sitting on a low wall, watched party after party
+of armed men riding up to the castle of the Earl of Evesham. A casual
+observer glancing at his curling hair and bright open face, as also at
+the fashion of his dress, would at once have assigned to him a purely
+Saxon origin; but a keener eye would have detected signs that Norman
+blood ran also in his veins, for his figure was lither and lighter, his
+features more straightly and shapely cut, than was common among Saxons.
+His dress consisted of a tight-fitting jerkin, descending nearly to his
+knees. The material was a light-blue cloth, while over his shoulder hung
+a short cloak of a darker hue. His cap was of Saxon fashion, and he wore
+on one side a little plume of a heron. In a somewhat costly belt hung a
+light short sword, while across his knees lay a crossbow, in itself
+almost a sure sign of its bearer being of other than Saxon blood. The
+boy looked anxiously as party after party rode past toward the castle.
+
+"I would give something," he said, "to know what wind blows these knaves
+here. From every petty castle in the Earl's feu the retainers seem
+hurrying here. Is he bent, I wonder, on settling once and for all his
+quarrels with the Baron of Wortham? or can he be intending to make a
+clear sweep of the woods? Ah! here comes my gossip Hubert; he may tell
+me the meaning of this gathering."
+
+Leaping to his feet, the speaker started at a brisk walk to meet a
+jovial-looking personage coming down from the direction of the castle.
+The newcomer was dressed in the attire of a falconer, and two dogs
+followed at his heels.
+
+"Ah, Master Cuthbert," he said, "what brings you so near to the castle?
+It is not often that you favor us with your presence."
+
+"I am happier in the woods, as you well know, and was on my way thither
+but now, when I paused at the sight of all these troopers flocking in to
+Evesham. What enterprise has Sir Walter on hand now, think you?"
+
+"The earl keeps his own counsel," said the falconer, "but methinks a
+shrewd guess might be made at the purport of the gathering. It was but
+three days since that his foresters were beaten back by the landless
+men, whom they caught in the very act of cutting up a fat buck. As thou
+knowest, my lord though easy and well-disposed to all, and not fond of
+harassing and driving the people as are many of his neighbors, is yet to
+the full as fanatical anent his forest privileges as the worst of them.
+They tell me that when the news came in of the poor figure that his
+foresters cut with broken bows and draggled plumes--for the varlets had
+soused them in a pond of not over savory water--he swore a great oath
+that he would clear the forest of the bands. It may be, indeed, that
+this gathering is for the purpose of falling in force upon that
+evil-disposed and most treacherous baron, Sir John of Wortham, who has
+already begun to harry some of the outlying lands, and has driven off, I
+hear, many heads of cattle. It is a quarrel which will have to be fought
+out sooner or later, and the sooner the better, say I. Although I am no
+man of war, and love looking after my falcons or giving food to my dogs
+far more than exchanging hard blows, yet would I gladly don the buff and
+steel coat to aid in leveling the keep of that robber and tyrant, Sir
+John of Wortham."
+
+"Thanks, good Hubert," said the lad. "I must not stand gossiping here.
+The news you have told me, as you know, touches me closely, for I would
+not that harm should come to the forest men."
+
+"Let it not out, I beseech thee, Cuthbert, that the news came from me,
+for temperate as Sir Walter is at most times, he would, methinks, give
+me short shift did he know that the wagging of my tongue might have
+given warning through which the outlaws of the Chase should slip through
+his fingers."
+
+"Fear not, Hubert; I can be mum when the occasion needs. Can you tell
+me further, when the bands now gathering are likely to set forth?"
+
+"In brief breathing space," the falconer replied. "Those who first
+arrived I left swilling beer, and devouring pies and other provisions
+cooked for them last night, and from what I hear, they will set forth as
+soon as the last comer has arrived. Whichever be their quarry, they will
+try to fall upon it before the news of their arrival is bruited abroad."
+
+With a wave of his hand to the falconer the boy started. Leaving the
+road, and striking across the slightly undulated country dotted here and
+there by groups of trees, the lad ran at a brisk trot, without stopping
+to halt or breathe, until after half an hour's run he arrived at the
+entrance of a building, whose aspect proclaimed it to be the abode of a
+Saxon franklin of some importance. It would not be called a castle, but
+was rather a fortified house, with a few windows looking without, and
+surrounded by a moat crossed by a drawbridge, and capable of sustaining
+anything short of a real attack. Erstwood had but lately passed into
+Norman hands, and was indeed at present owned by a Saxon. Sir William de
+Lance, the father of the lad who is now entering its portals, was a
+friend and follower of the Earl of Evesham; and soon after his lord had
+married Gweneth, the heiress of all these fair lands--given to him by
+the will of the king, to whom by the death of her father she became a
+ward--Sir William had married Editha, the daughter and heiress of the
+franklin of Erstwood, a cousin and dear friend of the new Countess of
+Evesham.
+
+In neither couple could the marriage at first have been called one of
+inclination on the part of the ladies, but love came after marriage.
+Although the knights and barons of the Norman invasion would, no doubt,
+be considered rude and rough in these days of broadcloth and
+civilization, yet their manners were gentle and polished by the side of
+those of the rough though kindly Saxon franklins; and although the Saxon
+maids were doubtless as patriotic as their fathers and mothers, yet the
+female mind is greatly led by gentle manners and courteous address.
+Thus, then, when bidden or forced to give their hands to the Norman
+knights, they speedily accepted their lot, and for the most part grew
+contented and happy enough. In their changed circumstances it was
+pleasanter to ride by the side of their Norman husbands, surrounded by a
+gay cavalcade, to hawk and to hunt, than to discharge the quiet duties
+of mistress of a Saxon farmhouse. In many cases, of course, their lot
+was rendered wretched by the violence and brutality of their lords; but
+in the majority they were well satisfied with their lot, and these mixed
+marriages did more to bring the peoples together and weld them in one
+than all the laws and decrees of the Norman sovereigns.
+
+This had certainly been the case with Editha, whose marriage with Sir
+William had been one of the greatest happiness. She had lost him three
+years before the story begins, fighting in Normandy, in one of the
+innumerable wars in which our first Norman kings were constantly
+involved. On entering the gates of Erstwood Cuthbert had rushed hastily
+to the room where his mother was sitting, with three or four of her
+maidens, engaged in work.
+
+"I want to speak to you at once, mother," he said.
+
+"What is it now, my son?" said his mother, who was still young and very
+comely. Waving her hand to the girls they left her.
+
+"Mother," he said, when they were alone, "I fear me that Sir Walter is
+about to make a great raid upon the outlaws. Armed men have been coming
+in all the morning from the castles round, and if it be not against the
+Baron de Wortham that these preparations are intended, and methinks it
+is not, it must needs be against the landless men."
+
+"What would you do, Cuthbert?" his mother asked anxiously. "It will not
+do for you to be found meddling in these matters. At present you stand
+well in the favor of the earl, who loves you for the sake of his wife,
+to whom you are kin, and of your father, who did him good liegeman's
+service."
+
+"But, mother, I have many friends in the wood. There is Cnut, their
+chief, your own first cousin, and many others of our friends, all good
+men and true, though forced by the cruel Norman laws to refuge in the
+woods."
+
+"What would you do?" again his mother asked.
+
+"I would take Ronald my pony and ride to warn them of the danger that
+threatens."
+
+"You had best go on foot, my son. Doubtless men have been set to see
+that none from the Saxon homesteads carry the warning to the woods. The
+distance is not beyond your reach, for you have often wandered there,
+and on foot you can evade the eye of the watchers; but one thing, my
+son, you must promise, and that is, that in no case, should the earl and
+his bands meet with the outlaws, will you take part in any fray or
+struggle."
+
+"That will I willingly, mother," he said. "I have no cause for offense
+against the castle or the forest, and my blood and my kin are with both.
+I would fain save shedding of blood in a quarrel like this. I hope that
+the time may come when Saxon and Norman may fight side by side, and I
+may be there to see."
+
+A few minutes later, having changed his blue doublet for one of more
+sober and less noticeable color, Cuthbert started for the great forest,
+which then stretched to within a mile of Erstwood. In those days a large
+part of the country was covered with forest, and the policy of the
+Normans in preserving these woods for the chase tended to prevent the
+increase of cultivation.
+
+The farms and cultivated lands were all held by Saxons, who although
+nominally handed over to the nobles to whom William and his successors
+had given the fiefs, saw but little of their Norman masters. These
+stood, indeed, much in the position in which landlords stand to their
+tenants, payment being made, for the most part, in produce. At the edge
+of the wood the trees grew comparatively far apart, but as Cuthbert
+proceeded further into its recesses, the trees in the virgin forest
+stood thick and close together. Here and there open glades ran across
+each other, and in these his sharp eye, accustomed to the forest, could
+often see the stags starting away at the sound of his footsteps.
+
+It was a full hour's journey before Cuthbert reached the point for which
+he was bound. Here, in an open space, probably cleared by a storm ages
+before, and overshadowed by giant trees, was a group of men of all ages
+and appearances. Some were occupied in stripping the skin off a buck
+which hung from the bough of one of the trees. Others were roasting
+portions of the carcass of another deer. A few sat apart, some talking,
+others busy in making arrows, while a few lay asleep on the greensward.
+As Cuthbert entered the clearing several of the party rose to their
+feet.
+
+"Ah, Cuthbert," shouted a man of almost gigantic stature, who appeared
+to be one of the leaders of the party, "what brings you here, lad, so
+early? You are not wont to visit us till even, when you can lay your
+crossbow at a stag by moonlight."
+
+"No, no, Cousin Cnut," Cuthbert said, "thou canst not say that I have
+ever broken the forest laws, though I have looked on often and often,
+while you have done so."
+
+"The abettor is as bad as the thief," laughed Cnut, "and if the
+foresters caught us in the act, I wot they would make but little
+difference whether it was the shaft of my longbow or the quarrel from
+thy crossbow which brought down the quarry. But again, lad, why comest
+thou here? for I see by the sweat on your face and by the heaving of
+your sides that you have run fast and far."
+
+"I have, Cnut; I have not once stopped for breathing since I left
+Erstwood. I have come to warn you of danger. The earl is preparing for a
+raid."
+
+Cnut laughed somewhat disdainfully.
+
+"He has raided here before, and I trow has carried off no game. The
+landless men of the forest can hold their own against a handful of
+Norman knights and retainers in their own home."
+
+"Ay," said Cuthbert, "but this will be no common raid. This morning
+bands from all the holds within miles round are riding in, and at least
+five hundred men-at-arms are likely to do chase to-day."
+
+"Is it so?" said Cnut, while exclamations of surprise, but not of
+apprehension, broke from those standing round. "If that be so, lad, you
+have done us good service indeed. With fair warning we can slip through
+the fingers of ten times five hundred men, but if they came upon us
+unawares, and hemmed us in, it would fare but badly with us, though we
+should, I doubt not, give a good account of them before their
+battle-axes and maces ended the strife. Have you any idea by which road
+they will enter the forest, or what are their intentions?"
+
+"I know not," Cuthbert said; "all that I gathered was that the earl
+intended to sweep the forest, and to put an end to the breaches of the
+laws, not to say of the rough treatment that his foresters have met with
+at your hands. You had best, methinks, be off before Sir Walter and his
+heavily-armed men are here. The forest, large as it is, will scarce hold
+you both, and methinks you had best shift your quarters to Langholm
+Chase until the storm has passed."
+
+"To Langholm be it, then," said Cnut, "though I love not the place. Sir
+John of Wortham is a worse neighbor by far than the earl. Against the
+latter we bear no malice, he is a good knight and a fair lord; and could
+he free himself of the Norman notions that the birds of the air, and the
+beasts of the field, and the fishes of the water, all belong to Normans,
+and that we Saxons have no share in them, I should have no quarrel with
+him. He grinds not his neighbors, he is content with a fair tithe of the
+produce, and as between man and man is a fair judge without favor. The
+baron is a fiend incarnate; did he not fear that he would lose by so
+doing, he would gladly cut the throats, or burn, or drown, or hang every
+Saxon within twenty miles of his hold. He is a disgrace to his order,
+and some day, when our band gathers a little stronger, we will burn his
+nest about his ears."
+
+"It will be a hard nut to crack," Cuthbert said, laughing. "With such
+arms as you have in the forest the enterprise would be something akin to
+scaling the skies."
+
+"Ladders and axes will go far, lad, and the Norman men-at-arms have
+learned to dread our shafts. But enough of the baron; if we must be his
+neighbors for a time, so be it."
+
+"You have heard, my mates," he said, turning to his comrades gathered
+around him, "what Cuthbert tells us. Are you of my opinion, that it is
+better to move away till the storm is past than to fight against heavy
+odds, without much chance of either booty or victory?"
+
+A general chorus proclaimed that the outlaws approved of the proposal
+for a move to Langholm Chase. The preparations were simple. Bows were
+taken down from the boughs on which they were hanging, quivers slung
+across the backs, short cloaks thrown over the shoulders. The deer was
+hurriedly dismembered, and the joints fastened to a pole slung on the
+shoulders of two of the men. The drinking-cups, some of which were of
+silver, looking strangely out of place among the rough horn implements
+and platters, were bundled together, carried a short distance and
+dropped among some thick bushes for safety; and then the band started
+for Wortham.
+
+With a cordial farewell and many thanks to Cuthbert, who declined their
+invitations to accompany them, the retreat to Langholm commenced.
+
+Cuthbert, not knowing in which direction the bands were likely to
+approach, remained for awhile motionless, intently listening.
+
+In a quarter of an hour he heard the distant note of a bugle.
+
+It was answered in three different directions, and Cuthbert, who knew
+every path and glade of the forest, was able pretty accurately to
+surmise those by which the various bands were commencing to enter the
+wood.
+
+Knowing that they were still a long way off, he advanced as rapidly as
+he could in the direction in which they were coming. When by the sound
+of distant voices and the breaking of branches he knew that one, at
+least, of the parties was near at hand, he rapidly climbed a thick tree
+and ensconced himself in the branches, and there watched, secure and
+hidden from the sharpest eye, the passage of a body of men-at-arms fully
+a hundred strong, led by Sir Walter himself, accompanied by some half
+dozen of his knights.
+
+When they had passed Cuthbert again slipped down the tree and made at
+all speed for home. He reached it, so far as he knew, without having
+been observed by a single passer-by.
+
+After a brief talk with his mother he started for the castle, as his
+appearance there would divert any suspicion that might arise; and it
+would also appear natural that seeing the movements of so large a body
+of men, he should go up to gossip with his acquaintances there.
+
+When distant a mile from Evesham he came upon a small party.
+
+On a white palfrey rode Margaret, the little daughter of the earl. She
+was accompanied by her nurse and two retainers on foot.
+
+Cuthbert--who was a great favorite with the earl's daughter, for whom he
+frequently brought pets, such as nests of young owlets, falcons, and
+other creatures--was about to join the party when from a clump of trees
+near burst a body of ten mounted men.
+
+Without a word they rode straight at the astonished group. The retainers
+were cut to the ground before they had thought of drawing a sword in
+defense.
+
+The nurse was slain by a blow with a battle-ax, and Margaret, snatched
+from her palfrey, was thrown across the saddlebow of one of the mounted
+men, who then with his comrades dashed off at full speed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+A RESCUE.
+
+
+The whole of the startling scene of the abduction of the Earl of
+Evesham's daughter occupied but a few seconds. Cuthbert was so astounded
+at the sudden calamity that he remained rooted to the ground at the spot
+where, fortunately for himself, unnoticed by the assailants, he had
+stood when they first burst from their concealment.
+
+For a short time he hesitated as to the course he should take.
+
+The men-at-arms who remained in the castle were scarce strong enough to
+rescue the child, whose captors would no doubt be reinforced by a far
+stronger party lurking near.
+
+The main body of Sir Walter's followers were deep in the recesses of the
+forest, and this lay altogether out of the line for Wortham, and there
+would be no chance whatever of bringing them up in time to cut off the
+marauders on their way back.
+
+There remained only the outlaws, who by this time would be in Langholm
+Forest, perhaps within a mile or two of the castle itself.
+
+The road by which the horsemen would travel would be far longer than
+the direct line across country, and he resolved at once to strain every
+nerve to reach his friends in time to get them to interpose between the
+captors of the Lady Margaret and their stronghold.
+
+For an instant he hesitated whether to run back to Erstwood to get a
+horse; but he decided that it would be as quick to go on foot, and far
+easier so to find the outlaws.
+
+These thoughts occupied but a few moments, and he at once started at the
+top of his speed for his long run across the country.
+
+Had Cuthbert been running in a race of hare and hound, he would
+assuredly have borne away the prize from most boys of his age. At
+headlong pace he made across the country, every foot of which, as far as
+the edge of Langholm Chase, he knew by heart.
+
+The distance to the woods was some twelve miles, and in an hour and a
+half from the moment of his starting Cuthbert was deep within its
+shades. Where he would be likely to find the outlaws he knew not; and,
+putting a whistle to his lips, he shrilly blew the signal, which would,
+he knew, be recognized by any of the band within hearing.
+
+He thought that he heard an answer, but was not certain, and again
+dashed forward, almost as speedily as if he had but just started.
+
+Five minutes later a man stood in the glade up which he was running. He
+recognized him at once as one of Cnut's party.
+
+"Where are the band?" he gasped.
+
+"Half a mile or so to the right," replied the man.
+
+Guided by the man, Cuthbert ran at full speed, till, panting and scarce
+able to speak, he arrived at the spot where Cnut's band were gathered.
+
+In a few words he told them what had happened, and although they had
+just been chased by the father of the captured child, there was not a
+moment of hesitation in promising their aid to rescue her from a man
+whom they regarded as a far more bitter enemy, both of themselves and
+their race.
+
+"I fear we shall be too late to cut them off," Cnut said, "they have so
+long a start; but at least we will waste no time in gossiping."
+
+Winding a horn to call together some of the members of the band who had
+scattered, and leaving one at the meeting-place to give instructions to
+the rest, Cnut, followed by those assembled there, went off at a
+swinging trot through the glades toward Wortham Castle.
+
+After a rapid calculation of distances, and allowing for the fact that
+the baron's men--knowing that Sir Walter's retainers and friends were
+all deep in the forest, and even if they heard of the outrage could not
+be on their traces for hours--would take matters quietly, Cnut concluded
+that they had arrived in time.
+
+Turning off, they made their way along the edge of the wood, to the
+point where the road from Evesham ran through the forest.
+
+Scarcely had the party reached this point when they heard a faint
+clatter of steel.
+
+"Here they come!" exclaimed Cuthbert.
+
+Cnut gave rapid directions, and the band took up their posts behind the
+trees, on either side of the path.
+
+"Remember," Cnut said, "above all things be careful not to hit the
+child, but pierce the horse on which she is riding. The instant he
+falls, rush forward. We must trust to surprise to give us the victory."
+
+Three minutes later the head of a band of horsemen was seen through the
+trees. They were some thirty in number, and, closely grouped as they
+were together, the watchers behind the trees could not see the form of
+the child carried in their midst.
+
+When they came abreast of the concealed outlaws Cnut gave a sharp
+whistle, and fifty arrows flew from tree and bush into the closely
+gathered party of horsemen. More than half their number fell at once;
+some, drawing their swords, endeavored to rush at their concealed foes,
+while others dashed forward in the hope of riding through the snare into
+which they had fallen. Cuthbert had leveled his crossbow, but had not
+fired; he was watching with intense anxiety for a glimpse of the
+bright-colored dress of the child. Soon he saw a horseman separate
+himself from the rest and dash forward at full speed. Several arrows
+flew by him, and one or two struck the horse on which he rode.
+
+The animal, however, kept on its way.
+
+Cuthbert leveled his crossbow on the low arm of a tree, and as the rider
+came abreast of him touched the trigger, and the steel-pointed quarrel
+flew true and strong against the temple of the passing horseman. He fell
+from his horse like a stone, and the well-trained animal at once stood
+still by the side of his rider.
+
+Cuthbert leaped forward, and to his delight the child at once opened her
+arms and cried in a joyous tone:
+
+"Cuthbert!"
+
+The fight was still raging fiercely, and Cuthbert, raising her from the
+ground, ran with her into the wood, where they remained hidden until the
+combat ceased, and the last survivors of the baron's band had ridden
+past toward the castle.
+
+Then Cuthbert went forward with his charge and joined the band of
+outlaws, who, absorbed in the fight, had not witnessed the incident of
+her rescue, and now received them with loud shouts of joy and triumph.
+
+"This is a good day's work indeed for all," Cuthbert said; "it will make
+of the earl a firm friend instead of a bitter enemy; and I doubt not
+that better days are dawning for Evesham Forest."
+
+A litter was speedily made with boughs; on this Margaret was placed, and
+on the shoulders of two stout foresters started for home, Cnut and
+Cuthbert walking beside, and a few of the band keeping at a short
+distance behind, as a sort of rearguard, should the baron attempt to
+regain his prey.
+
+There was now no cause for speed, and Cuthbert in truth could scarce
+drag one foot before another, for he had already traversed over twenty
+miles, the greater portion of the distance at his highest rate of speed.
+
+Cnut offered to have a litter made for him also, but this Cuthbert
+indignantly refused; however, in the forest they came upon the hut of a
+small cultivator, who had a rough forest pony, which was borrowed for
+Cuthbert's use.
+
+It was late in the afternoon before they came in sight of Evesham
+Castle. From the distance could be seen bodies of armed men galloping
+toward it, and it was clear that only now the party were returning from
+the wood, and had learned the news of the disappearance of the earl's
+daughter, and of the finding of the bodies of her attendants.
+
+Presently they met one of the mounted retainers riding at headlong
+speed.
+
+"Have you heard or seen anything," he shouted, as he approached, "of the
+Lady Margaret? She is missing, and foul play has taken place."
+
+"Here I am, Rudolph," cried the child, sitting up on the rude litter.
+
+The horseman gave a cry of astonishment and pleasure, and without a word
+wheeled his horse and galloped past back at headlong speed toward the
+castle.
+
+As Cuthbert and the party approached the gate the earl himself,
+surrounded by his knights and followers, rode out hastily from the gate
+and halted in front of the little party. The litter was lowered, and as
+he dismounted from his horse his daughter sprang out and leaped into his
+arms.
+
+For a few minutes the confusion and babble of tongues were too great for
+anything to be heard, but Cuthbert, as soon as order was somewhat
+restored, stated what had happened, and the earl was moved to fury at
+the news of the outrage which had been perpetrated by the Baron of
+Wortham upon his daughter and at the very gates of his castle, and also
+at the thought that she should have been saved by the bravery and
+devotion of the very men against whom he had so lately been vowing
+vengeance in the depths of the forest.
+
+"This is not a time," he said to Cnut, "for talk or making promises, but
+be assured that henceforth the deer of Evesham Chase are as free to you
+and your men as to me. Forest laws or no forest laws, I will no more
+lift a hand against men to whom I owe so much. Come when you will to the
+castle, my friends, and let us talk over what can be done to raise your
+outlawry and restore you to an honest career again."
+
+Cuthbert returned home tired, but delighted with his day's work, and
+Dame Editha was surprised indeed with the tale of adventure he had to
+tell. The next morning he went over to the castle, and heard that a
+grand council had been held the evening before, and that it had been
+determined to attack Wortham Castle and to raze it to the ground.
+
+Immediately on hearing of his arrival, the earl, after again expressing
+his gratitude for the rescue of his daughter, asked him if he would go
+into the forest and invite the outlaws to join their forces with those
+of the castle to attack the baron.
+
+Cuthbert willingly undertook the mission, as he felt that this alliance
+would further strengthen the position of the forest men.
+
+When he arrived there was some considerable consultation and discussion
+between the outlaws as to the expediency of mixing themselves in the
+quarrels between the Norman barons. However, Cnut persuaded them that as
+the Baron of Wortham was an enemy and oppressor of all Saxons, it was in
+fact their own quarrel that they were fighting rather than that of the
+earl, and they therefore agreed to give their aid, and promised to be at
+the rendezvous outside the castle to be attacked soon after dawn next
+morning. Cuthbert returned with the news which gave great satisfaction
+to the earl.
+
+The castle was now a scene of bustle and business; armorers were at work
+repairing headpieces and breastplates, sharpening swords and
+battle-axes, while the fletchers prepared sheaves of arrows. In the
+courtyard a number of men were engaged oiling the catapults, ballistas,
+and other machines for hurling stones. All were discussing the chances
+of the assault, for it was no easy matter which they had set themselves
+to do. Wortham Hold was an extremely strong one, and it needed all and
+more than all the machines at their disposal to undertake so formidable
+an operation as a siege.
+
+The garrison, too, were strong and desperate; and the baron, knowing
+what must follow his outrage of the day before, would have been sure to
+send off messengers round the country begging his friends to come to
+his assistance. Cuthbert had begged permission of his mother to ask the
+earl to allow him to join as a volunteer, but she would not hear of it.
+Neither would she suffer him to mingle with the foresters. The utmost
+that he could obtain was that he might go as a spectator, with strict
+injunctions to keep himself out of the fray, and as far as possible
+beyond bow-shot of the castle wall.
+
+It was a force of some four hundred strong that issued from the wood
+early next morning to attack the stronghold at Wortham. The force
+consisted of some ten or twelve knights and barons, some one hundred and
+fifty or one hundred and sixty Norman men-at-arms, a miscellaneous
+gathering of other retainers, two hundred strong, and some eighty of the
+forest men. These last were not to fight under the earl's banner, but
+were to act on their own account. There were among them outlaws, escaped
+serfs, and some men guilty of bloodshed. The earl then could not have
+suffered these men to fight under his flag until purged in some way of
+their offenses.
+
+This arrangement suited the foresters well.
+
+Their strong point was shooting; and by taking up their own position,
+and following their own tactics, under the leadership of Cnut, they
+would be able to do far more execution, and that with less risk to
+themselves, than if compelled to fight according to the fashion of the
+Normans.
+
+As they approached the castle a trumpet was blown, and the herald
+advancing, demanded its surrender, stigmatized the Baron of Wortham as a
+false knight and a disgrace to his class and warned all those within
+the castle to abstain from giving him aid or countenance, but to submit
+themselves to the earl, Sir Walter of Evesham, the representative of
+King Richard.
+
+The reply to the summons was a burst of taunting laughter from the
+walls; and scarcely had the herald withdrawn than a flight of arrows
+showed that the besieged were perfectly ready for the fray.
+
+Indeed the baron had not been idle. Already the dispute between himself
+and the earl had come to such a point that it was certain that sooner or
+later open hostilities would break out.
+
+He had therefore been for some time quietly accumulating a large store
+of provisions and munitions of war, and strengthening the castle in
+every way.
+
+The moat had been cleaned out, and filled to the brim with water. Great
+quantities of heavy stones had been accumulated on the most exposed
+points of the walls, in readiness to hurl upon any who might try to
+climb. Huge sheaves of arrows and piles of crossbow bolts were in
+readiness, and in all, save the number of men, Wortham had for weeks
+been prepared for the siege.
+
+On the day when the attempt to carry off the earl's daughter had failed,
+the baron, seeing that his bold stroke to obtain a hostage which would
+have enabled him to make his own terms with the earl had been thwarted,
+knew that the struggle was inevitable.
+
+Fleet messengers had been sent in all directions. To Gloucester and
+Hereford, Stafford, and even Oxford, men had ridden, with letters to the
+baron's friends, beseeching them to march to his assistance.
+
+"I can," he said, "defend my hold for weeks. But it is only by aid from
+without that I can finally hope to break the power of this baggart
+[Transcriber's note: sic] earl."
+
+Many of those to whom he addressed his call had speedily complied with
+his demand, while those at a distance might be expected to reply later
+to the appeal.
+
+There were many among the barons who considered the mildness of the Earl
+of Evesham toward the Saxons in his district to be a mistake, and who,
+although not actually approving of the tyranny and brutality of the
+Baron of Wortham, yet looked upon his cause to some extent as their own.
+
+The Castle of Wortham stood upon ground but very slightly elevated above
+the surrounding country. A deep and wide moat ran round it, and this
+could, by diverting a rivulet, be filled at will.
+
+From the edge of the moat the walls rose high, and with strong flanking
+towers and battlements.
+
+There were strong works also beyond the moat opposite to the drawbridge;
+while in the center of the castle rose the keep, from whose summit the
+archers, and the machines for casting stones and darts, could command
+the whole circuit of defense.
+
+As Cuthbert, accompanied by one of the hinds of the farm, took his post
+high up in a lofty tree, where at his ease he could command a view of
+the proceedings, he marveled much in what manner an attack upon so fair
+a fortress would be commenced.
+
+"It will be straightforward work to attack the outwork," he said, "but
+that once won, I see not how we are to proceed against the castle
+itself. The machines that the earl has will scarcely hurl stones strong
+enough even to knock the mortar from the walls. Ladders are useless
+where they cannot be planted; and if the garrison are as brave as the
+castle is strong, methinks that the earl has embarked upon a business
+that will keep him here till next spring."
+
+There was little time lost in commencing the conflict.
+
+The foresters, skirmishing up near to the castle, and taking advantage
+of every inequality in the ground, of every bush and tuft of high grass,
+worked up close to the moat, and then opened a heavy fire with their
+bows against the men-at-arms on the battlements, and prevented their
+using the machines against the main force now advancing to the attack
+upon the outwork.
+
+This was stoutly defended. But the impetuosity of the earl, backed as it
+was by the gallantry of the knights serving under him, carried all
+obstacles.
+
+The narrow moat which encircled this work was speedily filled with great
+bundles of brushwood, which had been prepared the previous night. Across
+these the assailants rushed.
+
+Some thundered at the gate with their battle-axes, while others placed
+ladders by which, although several times hurled backward by the
+defenders, they finally succeeded in getting a footing on the wall.
+
+Once there, the combat was virtually over.
+
+The defenders were either cut down or taken prisoners, and in two hours
+after the assault began the outwork of Wortham Castle was taken.
+
+This, however, was but the commencement of the undertaking, and it had
+cost more than twenty lives to the assailants.
+
+They were now, indeed, little nearer to capturing the castle than they
+had been before.
+
+The moat was wide and deep. The drawbridge had been lifted at the
+instant that the first of the assailants gained a footing upon the wall.
+And now that the outwork was captured, a storm of arrows, stones, and
+other missiles was poured into it from the castle walls, and rendered it
+impossible for any of its new masters to show themselves above it.
+
+Seeing that any sudden attack was impossible, the earl now directed a
+strong body to cut down trees, and prepare a moveable bridge to throw
+across the moat.
+
+This would be a work of fully two days; and in the meantime Cuthbert
+returned to the farm.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+
+
+Upon his return home, after relating to his mother the events of the
+morning's conflict, Cuthbert took his way to the cottage inhabited by an
+old man who had in his youth been a mason.
+
+"Have I not heard, Gurth," he said, "that you helped to build the Castle
+of Wortham?"
+
+"No, no, young sir," he said; "old as I am, I was a child when the
+castle was built. My father worked at it, and it cost him, and many
+others, his life."
+
+"And how was that, prithee?" asked Cuthbert.
+
+"He was, with several others, killed by the baron, the grandfather of
+the present man, when the work was finished."
+
+"But why was that, Gurth?"
+
+"We were but Saxon swine," said Gurth bitterly, "and a few of us more or
+less mattered not. We were then serfs of the baron. But my mother fled
+with me on the news of my father's death. For years we remained far away
+with some friends in a forest near Oxford. Then she pined for her native
+air, and came back and entered the service of the franklin."
+
+"But why should your mother have taken you away?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"She always believed, Master Cuthbert, that my father was killed by the
+baron to prevent him giving any news of the secrets of the castle. He
+and some others had been kept in the walls for many months, and were
+engaged in the making of secret passages."
+
+"That is just what I came to ask you, Gurth. I have heard something of
+this story before, and now that we are attacking Wortham Castle, and the
+earl has sworn to level it to the ground, it is of importance if
+possible to find out whether any of the secret passages lead beyond the
+castle, and if so, where. Almost all the castles have, I have been told,
+an exit by which the garrison can at will make sorties or escape; and I
+thought that maybe you might have heard enough to give us some clue as
+to the existence of such a passage at Wortham."
+
+The old man thought for some time in silence and then said:
+
+"I may be mistaken, but methinks a diligent search in the copse near the
+stream might find the mouth of the outlet."
+
+"What makes you think that this is so, Gurth?"
+
+"I had been with my mother to carry some clothes to my father on the
+last occasion on which I saw him. As we neared the castle I saw my
+father and three other of the workmen, together with the baron, coming
+down from the castle toward the spot. As my mother did not wish to
+approach while the baron was at hand, we stood within the trees at the
+edge of the wood and watched what was being done. The baron came with
+them down to the bushes, and then they again came out, crossed the
+river, and one of them cut some willows, peeled them, and erected the
+white staves in a line toward the castle. They walked for a bit on each
+side, and seemed to be making calculations. Then they went back into the
+castle, and I never saw my father again."
+
+"Why did you not go in at once according to your intention?"
+
+"Because my mother said that she thought some important work was on
+hand, and that maybe the baron would not like that women should know
+aught of it, for he was of suspicious and evil mind. More than this I
+know not. The castle had already been finished and most of the masons
+discharged. There were, however, a party of serfs kept at work, and also
+some masons, and rumor had it that they were engaged in making the
+secret passages. Whether it was so or not I cannot say, but I know that
+none of that party ever left the castle alive. It was given out that a
+bad fever had raged there, but none believed it; and the report went
+about, and was I doubt not true, that all had been killed, to preserve
+the secret of the passage."
+
+Cuthbert lost no time in making use of the information that he had
+gained.
+
+Early next morning, at daybreak, he started on his pony to Wortham.
+
+As he did not wish the earl or his followers to know the facts that he
+had learned until they were proved, he made his way round the camp of
+the besiegers, and by means of his whistle called one of the foresters
+to him.
+
+"Where is Cnut?" he asked.
+
+"He is with a party occupied in making ladders."
+
+"Go to him," Cuthbert said, "and tell him to withdraw quietly and make
+his way here. I have an important matter on which I wish to speak to
+him."
+
+Cnut arrived in a few minutes, somewhat wondering at the message. He
+brightened greatly when Cuthbert told him what he had learned.
+
+"This is indeed important," he said. "We will lose no time in searching
+the copse you speak of. You and I, together with two of my most trusty
+men, with axes to clear away the brush, will do. At present a thing of
+this sort had best be kept between as few as may be."
+
+They started at once and soon came down upon the stream.
+
+It ran at this point in a little valley, some twenty or thirty feet
+deep. On the bank not far from the castle grew a small wood, and it was
+in this that Cuthbert hoped to find the passage spoken of by Gurth.
+
+The trees and brushwood were so thick that it was apparent at once that
+if the passage had ever existed it had been unused for some years.
+
+The woodmen were obliged to chop down dozens of young saplings to make
+their way up from the water toward the steeper part of the bank.
+
+The wood was some fifty yards in length, and as it was uncertain at
+which point the passage had come out, a very minute search had to be
+made.
+
+"What do you think it would be like, Cnut?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Like enough to a rabbit-hole, or more likely still there would be no
+hole whatever. We must look for moss and greenery, for it is likely that
+such would have been planted, so as to conceal the door from any
+passer-by, while yet allowing a party from inside to cut their way
+through it without difficulty."
+
+After a search of two hours, Cnut decided that the only place in the
+copse in which it was likely that the entrance to a passage could be
+hidden was a spot where the ground was covered thickly with ivy and
+trailing plants.
+
+"It looks level enough with the rest," Cuthbert said.
+
+"Ay, lad, but we know not what lies behind this thick screen of ivy.
+Thrust in that staff."
+
+One of the woodmen began to probe with the end of a staff among the ivy.
+For some time he was met by the solid ground, but presently the butt of
+the staff went through suddenly, pitching him on his head, amid a
+suppressed laugh from his comrades.
+
+"Here it is, if anywhere," said Cnut, and with their billhooks they at
+once began to clear away the thickly grown creepers.
+
+Five minutes' work was sufficient to show a narrow cut, some two feet
+wide, in the hillside, at the end of which stood a low door.
+
+"Here it is," said Cnut, with triumph, "and the castle is ours. Thanks,
+Cuthbert, for your thought and intelligence. It has not been used
+lately, that is clear," he went on. "These creepers have not been moved
+for years. Shall we go and tell the earl of our discovery? What think
+you, Cuthbert?"
+
+"I think we had better not," Cuthbert said.
+
+"We might not succeed in getting in, as the passage may have fallen
+further along; but I will speak to him and tell him that we have
+something on hand which may alter his dispositions for fighting
+to-morrow."
+
+Cuthbert made his way to the earl, who had taken possession of a small
+cottage a short distance from the castle.
+
+"What can I do for you?" Sir Walter said.
+
+"I want to ask you, sir, not to attack the castle to-morrow until you
+see a white flag waved from the keep."
+
+"But how on earth is a white flag to be raised from the keep?"
+
+"It may be," Cuthbert said, "that I have some friends inside who will be
+able to make a diversion in our favor. However, sir, it can do no harm
+if you will wait till then, and may save many lives. At what hour do you
+mean to attack ?"
+
+"The bridges and all other preparations to assist us across the moat
+will be ready to-night. We will advance then under cover of darkness,
+and as soon after dawn as may be attack in earnest."
+
+"Very well, sir," Cuthbert said. "I trust that within five minutes after
+your bugle has sounded the white flag will make its appearance on the
+keep, but it cannot do so until after you have commenced an attack, or
+at least a pretense of an attack."
+
+Two or three hours before daylight Cuthbert accompanied Cnut and
+twenty-five picked men of the foresters to the copse. They were provided
+with crowbars, and all carried heavy axes. The door was soon pried open.
+It opened silently and without a creak.
+
+"It may be," Cnut said, "that the door has not been opened as you say
+for years, but it is certain," and he placed his torch to the hinges,
+"that it has been well oiled within the last two or three days. No doubt
+the baron intended to make his escape this way, should the worst arrive.
+Now that we have the door open we had better wait quiet until the dawn
+commences. The earl will blow his bugle as a signal for the advance; it
+will be another ten minutes before they are fairly engaged, and that
+will be enough for us to break open any doors that there may be between
+this and the castle, and to force our way inside."
+
+It seemed a long time waiting before the dawn fairly broke--still longer
+before the earl's bugle was heard to sound the attack. Then the band,
+headed by Cnut and two or three of the strongest of the party entered
+the passage.
+
+Cuthbert had had some misgivings as to his mother's injunctions to take
+no part in the fray, and it cannot be said that in accompanying the
+foresters he obeyed the letter of her instructions. At the same time as
+he felt sure that the effect of a surprise would be complete and
+crushing, and that the party would gain the top of the keep without any
+serious resistance, he considered the risk was so small as to justify
+him in accompanying the foresters.
+
+The passage was some five feet high, and little more than two feet wide.
+It was dry and dusty, and save the marks on the ground of a human foot
+going and returning, doubtless that of the man who had oiled the lock
+the day before, the passage appeared to have been unused from the time
+that it left the hands of its builders.
+
+Passing along for some distance they came to another strong oaken door.
+This, like the last, yielded to the efforts of the crowbars of the
+foresters, and they again advanced. Presently they came to a flight of
+steps.
+
+"We must now be near the castle," Cnut said. "In fact, methinks I can
+hear confused noises ahead."
+
+Mounting the steps, they came to a third door; this was thickly studded
+with iron, and appeared of very great strength. Fortunately the lock was
+upon their side, and they were enabled to shoot the bolt; but upon the
+other side the door was firmly secured by large bolts, and it was fully
+five minutes before the foresters could succeed in opening it. It was
+not without a good deal of noise that they at last did so; and several
+times they paused, fearing that the alarm must have been given in the
+castle. As, however, the door remained closed, they supposed that the
+occupants were fully engaged in defending themselves from the attacks of
+the earl's party.
+
+When the door gave way they found hanging across in front of them a very
+thick arras, and pressing this aside they entered a small room in the
+thickness of the wall of the keep. It contained the merest slit for
+light, and was clearly unused. Another door, this time unfastened, led
+into a larger apartment, which was also at present unoccupied. They
+could hear now the shouts of the combatants without, the loud orders
+given by the leaders on the walls, the crack, as the stones hurled by
+the mangonels struck the walls, and the ring of steel as the arrows
+struck against steel cap and cuirass.
+
+"It is fortunate that all were so well engaged, or they would certainly
+have heard the noise of our forcing the door, which would have brought
+all of them upon us. As it is, we are in the heart of the keep. We have
+now but to make a rush up these winding steps, and methinks we shall
+find ourselves on the battlements. They will be so surprised that no
+real resistance can be offered to us. Now let us advance."
+
+So saying Cnut led the way upstairs, followed by the foresters,
+Cuthbert, as before, allowing five or six of them to intervene between
+him and the leader. He carried his short sword and a quarterstaff, a
+weapon by no means to be despised in the hands of an active and
+experienced player.
+
+Presently, after mounting some fifty or sixty steps, they issued on the
+platform of the keep. Here were gathered some thirty or forty men, who
+were so busied in shooting with crossbows, and in working machines
+casting javelins, stones, and other missiles upon the besiegers, that
+they were unaware of the addition to their numbers until the whole of
+the foresters had gathered on the summit, and at the order of Cnut
+suddenly fell upon them with a loud shout.
+
+Taken wholly by surprise by the foe, who seemed to have risen from the
+bowels of the earth by magic, the soldiers of the Baron of Wortham
+offered but a feeble resistance. Some were cast over the battlement of
+the keep, some driven down staircases, others cut down, and then,
+Cuthbert fastening a small white flag he had prepared to his
+quarterstaff, waved it above the battlements.
+
+Even now the combatants on the outer wall were in ignorance of what had
+happened in the keep; so great was the din that the struggle which had
+there taken place had passed unnoticed; and it was not until the
+fugitives, rushing out into the courtyard, shouted that the keep had
+been captured, that the besieged became aware of the imminence of the
+danger.
+
+[Illustration: CUTHBERT FASTENED A SMALL WHITE FLAG TO HIS QUARTER-STAFF
+AND WAVED IT ABOVE THE BATTLEMENTS.]
+
+Hitherto the battle had been going well for the defenders of the
+castle. The Baron of Wortham was indeed surprised at the feebleness of
+the assault. The arrows which had fallen in clouds upon the first day's
+attack upon the castle among his soldiers were now comparatively few and
+ineffective. The besiegers scarcely appeared to push forward their
+bridges with any vigor, and it seemed to him that a coldness had fallen
+upon them, and that some disagreement must have arisen between the
+foresters and the earl, completely crippling the energy of the attack.
+
+When he heard the words shouted from the courtyard below he could not
+believe his ears. That the keep behind should have been carried by the
+enemy appeared to him impossible. With a roar he called upon the bravest
+of his men to follow, and rushing across the courtyard, rapidly ascended
+the staircase. The movement was observed from the keep, and Cnut and a
+few of his men stationed themselves with their battle-axes at the top of
+various stairs leading below.
+
+The signal shown by Cuthbert had not passed unobserved. The earl, who
+had given instructions to his followers to make a mere feint of
+attacking, now blew the signal for the real onslaught. The bridges were
+rapidly run across the moat, ladders were planted, and the garrison
+being paralyzed and confused by the attack in their rear, as well as
+hindered by the arrows which now flew down upon them from the keep
+above, offered but a feeble resistance, and the assailants, led by Sir
+Walter himself, poured over the walls.
+
+Now there was a scene of confusion and desperate strife. The baron had
+just gained the top of the stairs, and was engaged in a fierce conflict
+with Cnut and his men, when the news reached him that the wall was
+carried from without. With an execration he again turned and rushed down
+the stairs, hoping by a vigorous effort to cast back the foe.
+
+It was, however, all too late; his followers, disheartened and alarmed,
+fought without method or order in scattered groups of threes and fours.
+They made their last stand in corners and passages. They knew there was
+but little hope of mercy from the Saxon foresters, and against these
+they fought to the last. To the Norman retainers, however, of the earl
+they offered a less determined resistance, throwing down their arms and
+surrendering at discretion.
+
+The baron, when fiercely fighting, was slain by an arrow from the keep
+above, and with his fall the last resistance ceased. A short time was
+spent in searching the castle, binding the prisoners, and carrying off
+the valuables that the baron had collected in his raids. Then a light
+was set to the timbers, the granaries were fired, and in a few minutes
+the smoke wreathing out of the various loopholes and openings told the
+country round that the stronghold had fallen, and that they were free
+from the oppressor at last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE CRUSADES.
+
+
+Warm thanks and much praise were bestowed upon Cuthbert for his share in
+the capture of the castle, and the earl, calling the foresters round
+him, then and there bestowed freedom upon any of them who might have
+been serfs of his, and called upon all his knights and neighbors to do
+the same, in return for the good service which they had rendered.
+
+This was willingly done, and a number of Cnut's party, who had before
+borne the stigma of escaped serfs, were now free men.
+
+We are too apt to forget, in our sympathy with the Saxons, that, fond as
+they were of freedom for themselves, they were yet severe masters, and
+kept the mass of the people in a state of serfage. Although their laws
+provided ample justice as between Saxon man and man, there was no
+justice for the unhappy serfs, who were either the original inhabitants
+or captives taken in war, and who were distinguished by a collar of
+brass or iron round their neck.
+
+Cnut's party had indeed long got rid of these badges, the first act of a
+serf when he took to the woods being always to file off his collar; but
+they were liable when caught to be punished, even by death, and were
+delighted at having achieved their freedom.
+
+"And what can I do for you, Cuthbert?" Sir Walter said, as they rode
+homeward. "It is to you that I am indebted: in the first place for the
+rescue of my daughter, in the second for the capture of that castle,
+which I doubt me much whether we should ever have taken in fair fight
+had it not been for your aid."
+
+"Thanks, Sir Walter," the lad replied. "At present I need nothing, but
+should the time come when you may go to the wars I would fain ride with
+you as your page, in the hope of some day winning my spurs also in the
+field."
+
+"So shall it be," the earl said, "and right willingly. But who have we
+here?"
+
+As he spoke a horseman rode up and presented a paper to the earl.
+
+"This is a notice," the earl said, after perusing it, "that King Richard
+has determined to take up the cross, and that he calls upon his nobles
+and barons to join him in the effort to free the holy sepulcher from the
+infidels. I doubt whether the minds of the people are quite prepared,
+but I hear that there has been much preaching by friars and monks in
+some parts, and that many are eager to join in the war."
+
+"Think you that you will go to the war, Sir Walter?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"I know not as yet; it must much depend upon the king's mood. For myself
+I care not so greatly as some do about this question of the Holy Land.
+There has been blood enough shed already to drown it, and we are no
+nearer than when the first swarms of pilgrims made their way thither."
+
+On Cuthbert's returning home and telling his mother all that had passed,
+she shook her head, but said that she could not oppose his wishes to go
+with the earl when the time should come, and that it was only right he
+should follow in the footsteps of the good knight his father.
+
+"I have heard much of these Crusades," he said; "canst tell me about
+them?"
+
+"In truth I know not much, my son; but Father Francis, I doubt not, can
+tell you all the particulars anent the affair."
+
+The next time that Father Francis, who was the special adviser of Dame
+Editha, rode over from the convent on his ambling nag, Cuthbert eagerly
+asked him if he would tell him what he knew of the Crusades.
+
+"Hitherto, my son," he said, "the Crusades have, it must be owned,
+brought many woes upon Europe. From the early times great swarms of
+pilgrims were accustomed to go from all parts of Europe to the holy
+shrines.
+
+"When the followers of the evil prophet took possession of the land,
+they laid grievous burdens upon the pilgrims, heavily they fined them,
+persecuted them in every way, and treated them as if indeed they were
+but the scum of the earth under their feet.
+
+"So terrible were the tales that reached Europe that men came to think
+that it would be a good deed truly to wrest the sepulcher of the Lord
+from the hands of these heathens. Pope Urban was the first to give
+authority and strength to the movement, and at a vast meeting at
+Claremont of thirty thousand clergy and four thousand barons, it was
+decided that war must be made against the infidel. From all parts of
+France men flocked to hear Pope Urban preach there; and when he had
+finished his oration the vast multitude, carried away by enthusiasm,
+swore to win the holy sepulcher or to die.
+
+"Mighty was the throng that gathered for the First Crusade. Monks threw
+aside their gowns and took to the sword and cuirass; even women and
+children joined in the throng. What, my son, could be expected from a
+great army so formed? Without leaders, without discipline, without
+tactics, without means of getting food, they soon became a scourge of
+the country through which they passed.
+
+"Passing through Hungary, where they greatly ravaged the fields, they
+came to Bulgaria. Here the people, struck with astonishment and dismay
+at this great horde of hungry people who arrived among them like
+locusts, fell upon them with the sword, and great numbers fell. The
+first band that passed into that country perished miserably, and of all
+that huge assembly, it may be said that, numbering at the start not less
+than two hundred and fifty thousand persons, only about one hundred
+thousand crossed into Asia Minor. The fate of these was no better than
+that of those who had perished in Hungary and Bulgaria. After grievous
+suffering and loss they at last reached Nicaea. There they fell into an
+ambuscade; and out of the whole of the undisciplined masses who had
+followed Peter the Hermit, it is doubtful whether ten thousand ever
+returned home.
+
+"This first attempt to rescue the holy sepulcher was followed by others
+equally wild, misguided, and unfortunate. Some of them indeed began
+their evil deeds as soon as they had left their home. The last of these
+bodies fell upon the Jews, who are indeed enemies of the Christian
+faith, but who have now, at least, nothing to do with the question of
+the holy sepulcher. As soon as they entered into Germany the Crusaders
+put them to death with horrible torture. Plunder and rapine indeed
+appeared to be the object of the Crusaders. On this as well as on most
+other preceding bands, their misdeeds drew down the vengeance of the
+people. At an early period of their march, and as soon as they reached
+Hungary, the people fell upon them, and put the greater portion to the
+sword.
+
+"Thus, in these irregular expeditions no less than five hundred thousand
+people are supposed to have perished. Godfrey de Bouillon was the first
+who undertook to lead a Crusade according to the military knowledge of
+the day. With him were his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, the Counts of
+Anault and St. Paul, and many other nobles and gentlemen, with their
+retainers, well armed and under good order; and so firm was the
+discipline of Duke Godfrey that they were allowed to pass freely by the
+people of the countries who had opposed the previous bands.
+
+"Through Hungary, Bulgaria, and Thrace he made his way; and though he
+met with many difficulties from Alexius, the crafty and treacherous
+Emperor of the Greeks, he at last succeeded in crossing into Asia. There
+he was joined by many from England, as well as from France and other
+countries. Duke Robert, the son of our first William, led a strong band
+of Normans to the war, as did the other great princes of France and
+Spain.
+
+"The army which crossed the narrow passage of the Hellespont is
+estimated at no less than seven hundred thousand fighting men. Of these
+one hundred thousand were knights clad in complete armor, the remainder
+were men-at-arms and bowmen.
+
+"Nicaea, the place which had been the scene of the massacre of Peter the
+Hermit's hosts, was taken after a desperate conflict, lasting for many
+weeks, and the Crusaders afterward defeated the Turks in a great battle
+near the town of Doryleum. After these successes disputes arose among
+the leaders, and Count Baldwin, brother of Duke Godfrey, left the main
+body with about fifteen hundred men, and founded a kingdom for himself
+in Mesopotamia.
+
+"The main body, slowly and painfully, and suffering from disease,
+famine, and the heat, made its way south. Antioch, a city of great
+strength and importance, was besieged, but it proved so strong that it
+resisted for many months, and was at last only taken by treachery.
+
+"After the capture of this place the sufferings of the Crusaders so far
+from being diminished were redoubled. They themselves during the siege
+had bought up all the food that could be brought from the surrounding
+country, while the magazines of the town were found, when an entry was
+effected, to be entirely deserted. The enemy, aided by a great Persian
+host, came down, and those who had been the besiegers were now besieged.
+However, when in the last strait the Christian army sallied out, and
+inspired with supernatural strength, defeated the Turks and Persians,
+with a slaughter of one hundred thousand men. Another slow movement to
+the south brought them into the Holy Land, and pressing forward, they
+came at last within sight of Jerusalem itself.
+
+"So fearful had been the losses of the Crusaders that of seven hundred
+thousand who crossed the Hellespont, not more than forty thousand
+reached the end of the pilgrimage. This fragment of an army, which had
+appeared before a very strongly fortified town, possessed no means of
+capturing the place--none of the machines of war necessary for the
+purpose, no provisions or munitions of any kind. Water was scarce also;
+and it appeared as if the remnant of the great army of Godfrey de
+Bouillon had arrived before Jerusalem only to perish there.
+
+"Happily just at this time a further band of Crusaders from Genoa, who
+had reached Jaffa, made their appearance. They were provided with
+stores, and had skilled workmen capable of making the machines for the
+siege. On July 14, 1099, the attack was made, and after resistance
+gallant and desperate as the assault, the Crusaders burst into the city,
+massacred the whole of the defenders and inhabitants, calculated at
+seventy thousand in number, and so became masters of the holy sepulcher.
+
+"The Sultan of Egypt was meanwhile advancing to the assistance of the
+Mohammedans of Syria; but Godfrey, with twenty thousand of his best men,
+advanced to meet the vast host, and scattered them as if they had been
+sheep. Godfrey was now chosen King of Jerusalem, and the rest of his
+army--save three hundred knights and two hundred soldiers, who agreed to
+remain with him--returned to their home. The news of the victory led
+other armies of Crusaders to follow the example of that of Godfrey; but
+as these were almost as completely without organization or leadership as
+those of Peter the Hermit, they suffered miserably on their way, and few
+indeed ever reached the Holy Land. Godfrey died in 1100, and his brother
+Baldwin succeeded him.
+
+"The history of the last hundred years has been full of fresh efforts to
+crush the Moslem power, but hitherto it cannot be said that fortune has
+attended the efforts of the Christians. Had it not been indeed for the
+devotion of the Knights of St. John and of the Templars, two great
+companies formed of men who devoted their lives to the holding of the
+sepulcher against the infidel, our hold of the Holy Land would have been
+lost.
+
+"Gradually the Saracens have wrested post after post from our hands.
+Edessa was taken in 1144, and the news of this event created an intense
+excitement. The holy St. Bernard stirred up all France, and Louis VII.
+himself took the vow and headed a noble army. The ways of God are not
+our ways, and although the army of Germany joined that of France, but
+little results came of this great effort.
+
+"The Emperor Conrad, with the Germans, was attacked by the Turk Saladin
+of Iconium, and was defeated with a loss of sixty thousand men. The King
+of France, with his army, was also attacked with fury, and a large
+portion of his force were slaughtered. Nothing more came of this great
+effort, and while the first Crusade seemed to show that the men-at-arms
+of Europe were irresistible, the second on the contrary gave proof that
+the Turks were equal to the Christian knights. Gradually the Christian
+hold of the Holy Land was shaken. In 1187, although fighting with
+extraordinary bravery, the small army of Christian Knights of the Temple
+and of St. John were annihilated, the King of Jerusalem was made
+prisoner, and the Christian power was crushed. Then Saladin, who
+commanded the Turks, advanced against Jerusalem, and forced it to
+capitulate.
+
+"Such, my boy, is the last sad news which has reached us; and no wonder
+that it has stirred the hearts of the monarchs of Europe, and that every
+effort will be again made to recapture the holy sepulcher, and to avenge
+our brethren who have been murdered by the infidels."
+
+"But, Father Francis, from your story it would seem that Europe has
+already sacrificed an enormous number of lives to take the holy
+sepulcher, and that after all the fighting, when she has taken it, it is
+only to lose it again."
+
+"That is so, my son; but we will trust that in future things will be
+better managed. The Templars and Hospitalers now number so vast a number
+of the best lances in Europe, and are grown to be such great powers,
+that we may believe that when we have again wrested the holy sepulcher
+from the hands of the infidels they will be able to maintain it against
+all assaults. Doubtless the great misfortunes which have fallen upon the
+Christian armies have been a punishment from heaven, because they have
+not gone to work in the right spirit. It is not enough to take up lance
+and shield, and to place a red cross upon the shoulder. Those who desire
+to fight the battle of the Lord must cleanse their hearts, and go forth
+in the spirit of pilgrims rather than knights. I mean not that they
+should trust wholly to spiritual weapons--for in truth the infidel is a
+foe not to be despised--but I mean that they should lay aside all
+thoughts of worldly glory and rivalry one against another."
+
+"And think you, Father, that such is the spirit with which King Richard
+and the other kings and nobles now preparing to go to the Holy Land are
+animated?"
+
+Father Francis hesitated.
+
+"It is not for me, my son, to judge motives, or to speak well or ill of
+the instruments who have been chosen for this great work. It is of all
+works the most praiseworthy, most holy. It is horrible to think that the
+holy shrines of Jerusalem should be in the hands of men who believe not
+in our Redeemer; and I hold it to be the duty of every man who can bear
+arms, no matter what his rank or his station, to don his armor and to go
+forth to battle in the cause. Whether success will crown the effort, or
+whether God wills it otherwise, it is not for man to discuss; it is
+enough that the work is there, and it is our duty to do it."
+
+"And think you, Father, that it will do good to England?"
+
+"That do I, my son, whether we gain the Holy Land or no. Methinks that
+it will do good service to the nation that Saxon and Norman should fight
+together under the holy cross. Hitherto the races have stood far too
+much apart. They have seen each other's bad qualities rather than good;
+but methinks that when the Saxon and the Norman stand side by side on
+the soil of the Holy Land, and shout together for England, it must needs
+bind them together, and lead them to feel that they are no longer
+Normans and Saxons, but Englishmen. I intend to preach on the village
+green at Evesham next Sunday morning on this subject, and as I know you
+are in communication with the forest men, I would, Cuthbert, that you
+would persuade them to come in to hear me. You were wondering what could
+be found for these vagrants. They have many of them long since lost the
+habits of honest labor. Many of them are still serfs, although most have
+been freed by the good earl and the knights his followers. Some of those
+who would fain leave the life in the woods still cling to it because
+they think that it would be mean to desert their comrades, who being
+serfs are still bound to lurk there; but methinks that this is a great
+opportunity for them. They are valiant men, and the fact that they are
+fond of drawing an arrow at a buck does not make them one whit the worse
+Christians. I will do my best to move their hearts, and if they will but
+agree together to take the cross, they would make a goodly band of
+footmen to accompany the earl."
+
+"Is the earl going?" Cuthbert asked eagerly.
+
+"I know not for certain," said Father Francis; "but I think from what I
+hear from his chaplain, Father Eustace, that his mind turns in that
+direction."
+
+"Then, Father, if he goes, I will go too," Cuthbert exclaimed. "He
+promised to take me as his page the first time he went to war."
+
+Father Francis shook his head.
+
+"I fear me, Cuthbert, this is far from the spirit in which we awhile ago
+agreed that men should go to the holy war."
+
+Cuthbert hung his head a little.
+
+"Ay, Father Francis, men; but I am a boy," he said, "and after all, boys
+are fond of adventure for adventure's sake. However, Father," he said,
+with a smile, "no doubt your eloquence on the green will turn me
+mightily to the project, for you must allow that the story you have told
+me this morning is not such as to create any very strong yearning in
+one's mind to follow the millions of men who have perished in the Holy
+Land."
+
+"Go to," said Father Francis, smiling, "thou art a pert varlet. I will
+do my best on Sunday to turn you to a better frame of mind."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+PREPARATIONS.
+
+
+Next Sunday a large number of people from some miles round were gathered
+on the green at Evesham, to hear Father Francis preach on the holy
+sepulcher. The forest men in their green jerkins mingled with the crowd,
+and a look of attention and seriousness was on the faces of all, for the
+news of the loss of the holy sepulcher had really exercised a great
+effect upon the minds of the people in England as elsewhere.
+
+Those were the days of pilgrimage to holy places, when the belief in the
+sanctity of places and things was overwhelming, and when men believed
+that a journey to the holy shrines was sufficient to procure for them a
+pardon for all their misdeeds. The very word "infidel" in those days was
+full of horror, and the thought that the holy places of the Christians
+were in the hands of Moslems affected all Christians throughout Europe
+with a feeling of shame as well as of grief.
+
+Among the crowd were many of the Norman retainers from the castle and
+from many of the holds around, and several knights with the ladies of
+their family stood a little apart from the edge of the gathering; for
+it was known that Father Francis would not be alone, but that he would
+be accompanied by a holy friar who had returned from the East, and who
+could tell of the cruelties which the Christians had suffered at the
+hands of the Saracens.
+
+Father Francis, at ordinary times a tranquil preacher, was moved beyond
+himself by the theme on which he was holding forth. He did not attempt
+to hide from those who stood around that the task to be undertaken was
+one of grievous peril and trial; that disease and heat, hunger and
+thirst, must be dared, as well as the sword of the infidel. But he spoke
+of the grand nature of the work, of the humiliation to Christians, of
+the desecration of the shrines, and of the glory which awaited those who
+joined the Crusade, whether they lived or whether they died in the Holy
+Land.
+
+His words had a strong effect upon the simple people who listened to
+him, but the feelings so aroused were as naught to the enthusiasm which
+greeted the address of the friar.
+
+Meager and pale, with a worn, anxious face as one who had suffered much,
+the friar, holding aloft two pieces of wood from the Mount of Olives
+tied together in the form of a cross, harangued the crowd. His words
+poured forth in a fiery stream, kindling the hearts, and stirring at
+once the devotion and the anger of his listeners.
+
+He told of the holy places, he spoke of the scenes of Holy Writ, which
+had there been enacted; and then he depicted the men who had died for
+them. He told of the knights and men-at-arms, each of whom proved
+himself again and again a match for a score of infidels. He spoke of the
+holy women, who, fearlessly and bravely, as the knights themselves, had
+borne their share in the horrors of the siege and in the terrible times
+which had preceded it.
+
+He told them that this misfortune had befallen Christianity because of
+the lukewarmness which had come upon them.
+
+"What profited it," he asked, "if a few knights who remained to defend
+the holy sepulcher were heroes? A few heroes cannot withstand an army.
+If Christendom after making a mighty effort to capture the holy
+sepulcher had not fallen away, the conquest which had been made with so
+vast an expenditure of blood would not have been lost. This is a work in
+which no mere passing fervor will avail; bravery at first, endurance
+afterward, are needed. Many men must determine not only to assist to
+wrest the holy sepulcher from the hands of the infidels, but to give
+their lives, so long as they might last, to retaining it. It is scarce
+to be expected that men with wives and families will take a view like
+this, indeed it is not to be desired. But there are single men, men of
+no ties, who can devote their whole lives, as did the Knights of the
+Orders of the Cross, to this great object. When their life has come to
+an end doubtless others will take up the banner that their hands can no
+longer hold. But for life it is, indeed, that many of humble as well as
+of princely class must bind themselves to take and defend to death the
+holy sepulcher."
+
+So, gradually raising the tone of his speech, the friar proceeded; until
+at length by his intense earnestness, his wild gesticulations, his
+impassioned words, he drew the whole of his listeners along with him;
+and when he ceased, a mighty shout of "To the Holy Land!" burst from his
+hearers.
+
+Falling upon their knees the crowd begged of him to give them the sign
+of the cross, and to bestow his blessing upon their swords, and upon
+their efforts.
+
+Father Francis had prepared, in contemplation of such a movement, a
+large number of small white crosses of cloth. These he and the friar now
+fastened to the shoulders of the men as they crowded up to receive it,
+holding their hands aloft, kissing the cross that the friar extended to
+them, and swearing to give their lives, if need be, to rescue the holy
+shrines from the infidel.
+
+When all had received the holy symbol, Father Francis again ascended the
+bank from which they had addressed the crowd:
+
+"Now go to your homes, my sons," he said. "Think of the oath that you
+have taken, and of the course that lies open to you when the time comes.
+When King Richard is prepared to start, then will you be called upon to
+fulfill your vows. It may be that all who have sworn may not be called
+upon to go. It needs that the land here should be tilled, it needs that
+there should be protectors for the women and children, it needs that
+this England of ours should flourish, and we cannot give all her sons,
+however willing they might be to take the cross. But the willingness
+which you will, I am sure, show to go if needs be, and to redeem your
+vows, will be sufficient. Some must go and some must stay; these are
+matters to be decided hereafter; for the time let us separate; you will
+hear when the hour for action arrives."
+
+A fortnight later the Earl of Evesham, who had been on a long journey to
+London, returned with full authority to raise and organize a force as
+his contingent to the holy wars.
+
+All was now bustle and activity in the castle. Father Francis informed
+him of the willingness of such of the forest men as he deemed fit to
+enlist under his banner; and the earl was much gratified at finding that
+the ranks of heavily-armed retainers whom he would take with him were to
+be swollen by the addition of so useful a contingent as that of one
+hundred skillful archers.
+
+Cuthbert was not long in asking for an interview with the earl.
+
+He had indeed great difficulty in persuading Dame Editha that he was old
+enough to share in the fatigues of so great an expedition, but he had
+Father Francis on his side; and between the influence of her confessor,
+and the importunities of her son, the opposition of the good lady fell
+to the ground.
+
+Cuthbert was already, for his age, well trained to arms. Many of the old
+soldiers at the castle who had known and loved his father had been ever
+ready to give lessons in the use of arms to Cuthbert, who was
+enthusiastic in his desire to prove as good a knight as his father had
+been. His friends, the outlaws, had taught him the use of the bow and of
+the quarterstaff; and Cuthbert, strong and well-built for his age, and
+having little to do save to wield the sword and the bow, had attained a
+very considerable amount of skill with each.
+
+He had too, which was unusual, a certain amount of book learning,
+although this, true to say, had not been acquired so cheerfully or
+willingly as the skill at arms. Father Francis had, however, taught him
+to read and to write--accomplishments which were at that time rare,
+except in the cloister. In those days if a knight had a firm seat in his
+saddle, a strong arm, a keen eye, and high courage, it was thought to be
+of little matter whether he could or could not do more than make his
+mark on the parchment. The whole life of the young was given to
+acquiring skill in arms; and unless intended for the convent, any idea
+of education would in the great majority of cases have been considered
+as preposterous.
+
+To do Cuthbert justice, he had protested with all his might against the
+proposition of Father Francis to his mother to teach him some clerkly
+knowledge. He had yielded most unwillingly at last to her entreaties,
+backed as they were by the sound arguments and good sense of Father
+Francis.
+
+The Earl of Evesham received Cuthbert's application very graciously.
+
+"Certainly, Cuthbert," he said, "you shall accompany me; first, on
+account of my promise to you; secondly, because from the readiness you
+displayed both in the matter of my daughter and of the attack on
+Wortham, you will be a notable aid and addition to my party; thirdly,
+from my friendship for your father and Dame Editha."
+
+This point being settled, Cuthbert at once assumed his new duties. There
+was plenty for him to do--to see that the orders of the earl were
+properly carried out; to bear messages to the knights who followed the
+earl's fortunes, at their various holds; to stand by and watch the
+armorers at work, and the preparation of the stores of arms and missiles
+which would be necessary for the expedition.
+
+Sometimes he would go round to summon the tenants of the various farms
+and lands, who held from the earl, to come to the castle; and here Sir
+Walter would, as far as might be without oppression, beg of them to
+contribute largely to the expedition.
+
+In these appeals he was in no slight way assisted by Father Francis, who
+pointed out loudly to the people that those who stayed behind were bound
+to make as much sacrifice of their worldly goods as those who went to
+the war might make of their lives. Life and land are alike at the
+service of God. Could the land be sold, it would be a good deed to sell
+it; but as this could not be, they should at least sell all that they
+could, and pledge their property if they could find lenders, in order to
+contribute to the needs of their lord, and the fitting out of this great
+enterprise.
+
+The preparations were at last complete, and a gallant band gathered at
+the castle ready for starting. It consisted of some two hundred
+men-at-arms led by six knights, and of one hundred bowmen dressed in
+Lincoln green, with quilted jerkins to keep out the arrows of the enemy.
+All the country from around gathered to see the start. Dame Editha was
+there, and by her side stood the earl's little daughter. The earl
+himself was in armor, and beside him rode Cuthbert in the gay attire of
+a page.
+
+Just at that moment, however, his face did not agree with his costume,
+for although he strove his best to look bright and smiling, it was a
+hard task to prevent the tears from filling his eyes at his departure
+from his mother. The good lady cried unrestrainedly, and Margaret joined
+in her tears. The people who had gathered round cheered lustily; the
+trumpets blew a gay fanfaronade, and the squire threw to the wind the
+earl's colors.
+
+It was no mere pleasure trip on which they were starting, for all knew
+that, of the preceding Crusades, not one in ten of those who had gone so
+gladly forth had ever returned.
+
+It must not be supposed that the whole of those present were animated by
+any strong religious feeling. No doubt there existed a desire, which was
+carefully fanned by the preaching of the priests and monks, to rescue
+the holy sepulcher from the hands of the Saracens; but a far stronger
+feeling was to be found in the warlike nature of the people in those
+days. Knights, men-at-arms, and indeed men of all ranks were full of a
+combative spirit. Life in the castle and hut was alike dull and
+monotonous, and the excitement of war and adventure was greatly looked
+for, both as a means of obtaining glory and booty, and for the change
+they afforded to the dreary monotony of life.
+
+There is little to tell of the journey of the Earl of Evesham's band
+through England to Southampton, at which place they took ship and
+crossed to France--or rather to Normandy, for in those days Normandy was
+regarded, as indeed it formed, a part of England.
+
+Cuthbert, as was natural to his age, was full of delight at all the
+varying scenes through which they passed. The towns were to him an
+especial source of wonder, for he had never visited any other than that
+of Worcester, to which he had once or twice been taken on occasions of
+high festival. Havre was in those days an important place, and being the
+landing-place of a great portion of the English bands, it was full of
+bustle and excitement. Every day ships brought in nobles and their
+followings.
+
+The King of England was already in Normandy hastening the preparations,
+and each band, as it landed, marched down to the meeting-place on the
+plains of Vezelay. Already they began to experience a taste of the
+hardships which they were to endure.
+
+In those days there was no regular supply train for an army, but each
+division or band supported itself by purchase or pillage, as the case
+might be, from the surrounding country.
+
+As the English troops were marching through a friendly country, pillage
+was of course strictly forbidden; but while many of the leaders paid for
+all they had, it must be owned that among the smaller leaders were many
+who took anything that they required with or without payment.
+
+The country was eaten up.
+
+The population in those days was sparse, and the movement of so large a
+number of men along a certain route completely exhausted all the
+resources of the inhabitants; and although willing to pay for all that
+his men required, the Earl of Evesham had frequently to lie down on the
+turf supperless himself.
+
+"If this is the case now," he said to Cuthbert, "what will it be after
+we have joined the French army? Methinks whatever we may do if we reach
+the Holy Land, that we have a fair chance of being starved before we
+sail."
+
+After a long succession of marches they arrived in sight of the great
+camp at Vezelay. It was indeed rather a canvas town than a camp. Here
+were gathered nearly one hundred thousand men, a vast host at any time,
+but in those days far greater in proportion to the strength of the
+countries than at present. The tents of the leaders, nobles, and other
+knights and gentlemen rose in regular lines, forming streets and
+squares.
+
+The great mass of troops, however, were contented to sleep in the open
+air; indeed the difficulties of carriage were so great that it was only
+the leaders who could carry with them their canvas abodes. Before each
+tent stood the lance and colors of its owner, and side by side in the
+center of the camp stood the royal pavilions of Philip of France and
+Richard of England, round which could be seen the gonfalons of all the
+nobles of Western Europe.
+
+Nothing could be gayer than the aspect of this camp as the party rode
+into it. They were rather late, and the great body of the host were
+already assembled.
+
+Cuthbert gazed with delight at the varied colors, the gay dresses, the
+martial knights, and the air of discipline and order which reigned
+everywhere.
+
+This was indeed war in its most picturesque form, a form which, as far
+as beauty is concerned, has been altogether altered, and indeed
+destroyed, by modern arms.
+
+In those days individual prowess and bravery went for everything. A
+handful of armored knights were a match for thousands of footmen, and
+battles were decided as much by the prowess and bravery of the leader
+and his immediate following as by that of the great mass of the army.
+
+The earl had the day before sent on a messenger to state that he was
+coming, and as the party entered the camp they were met by a squire of
+the camp-marshal, who conducted them to the position allotted to them.
+
+The earl's tent was soon erected, with four or five grouped around it
+for his knights, one being set aside for his squires and pages.
+
+When this was done Cuthbert strolled away to look at the varied sights
+of the camp. A military officer in these days would be scandalized at
+the scenes which were going on, but the strict, hard military discipline
+of modern times was then absolutely unknown.
+
+A camp was a moving town, and to it flocked the country people with
+their goods; smiths and armorers erected their forges; minstrels and
+troubadours flocked in to sing of former battles, and to raise the
+spirits of the soldiers by merry lays of love and war; simple countrymen
+and women came in to bring their presents of fowls or cakes to their
+friends in camp; knights rode to and fro on their gayly caparisoned
+horses through the crowd; the newly-raised levies, in many cases
+composed of woodmen and peasants who had not in the course of their
+lives wandered a league from their birthplaces, gaped in unaffected
+wonder at the sights around them; while last, but by no means least, the
+maidens and good wives of the neighborhood, fond then as now of brave
+men and gay dresses, thronged the streets of the camp, and joined in,
+and were the cause of, merry laughter and jest.
+
+Here and there, a little apart from the main stream of traffic, the
+minstrels would take up their position, and playing a gay air, the
+soldier lads and lasses would fall to and foot it merrily to the
+strains. Sometimes there would be a break in the gayety, and loud
+shouts, and perhaps fierce oaths, would rise. Then the maidens would fly
+like startled fawns, and men hasten to the spot; though the quarrel
+might be purely a private one, yet should it happen between the
+retainers of two nobles, the friends of each would be sure to strike in,
+and serious frays would arise before the marshal of the camp with his
+posse could arrive to interfere. Sometimes, indeed, these quarrels
+became so serious and desperate that alliances were broken up and great
+intentions frustrated by the quarrels of the soldiery.
+
+Here and there, on elevated platforms, or even on the top of a pile of
+tubs, were friars occupied in haranguing the soldiers, and in inspiring
+them with enthusiasm for the cause upon which they were embarked. The
+conduct of their listeners showed easily enough the motives which had
+brought them to war. Some stood with clasped hands and eager eyes,
+listening to the exhortations of the priests, and ready, as might be
+seen from their earnest gaze, to suffer martyrdom in the cause. More,
+however, stood indifferently round, or, after listening to a few words,
+walked on with a laugh or a scoff; indeed, preaching had already done
+all that lay in its power. All those who could be moved by exhortations
+of this kind were there, and upon the rest the discourses and sermons
+were thrown away.
+
+Several times in the course of his stroll round the camp Cuthbert
+observed the beginnings of quarrels, which were in each case only
+checked by the intervention of some knight or other person in authority
+coming past, and he observed that these in every instance occurred
+between men of the English and those of the French army.
+
+Between the Saxon contingent of King Richard's army and the French
+soldiers there could indeed be no quarrel, for the Saxons understood no
+word of their language; but with the Normans the case was different, for
+the Norman-French, which was spoken by all the nobles and their
+retainers in Britain, was as nearly as possible the same as that in use
+in France.
+
+It seemed, however, to Cuthbert, watching narrowly what was going on,
+that there existed by no means a good feeling between the men of the
+different armies; and he thought that this divergence so early in the
+campaign boded but little good for the final success of the expedition.
+
+When he returned to the tent the earl questioned him as to what he had
+seen, and Cuthbert frankly acknowledged that it appeared to him that the
+feeling between the men of the two armies was not good.
+
+"I have been," the earl said, "to the royal camp, and from what I hear,
+Cuthbert, methinks that there is reason for what you say. King Richard
+is the most loyal and gallant of kings, but he is haughty and hasty in
+speech. The Normans, too, have been somewhat accustomed to conquer our
+neighbors, and it may well be that the chivalry of France love us not.
+However, it must be hoped that this feeling will die away, and that we
+shall emulate each other only in our deeds on the battlefield."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+THE LISTS.
+
+
+The third day after the arrival of the Earl of Evesham there was a great
+banquet given by the King of France to King Richard and his principal
+nobles.
+
+Among those present was the Earl of Evesham, and Cuthbert as his page
+followed him to the great tent where the banquet was prepared.
+
+Here, at the top of the tent, on a raised daïs, sat the King of France,
+surrounded by his courtiers. The Earl of Evesham, having been conducted
+by the herald to the daïs, paid his compliments to the king, and was
+saluted by him with many flattering words.
+
+The sound of a trumpet was heard, and Richard of England, accompanied by
+his principal nobles, entered.
+
+It was the first time that Cuthbert had seen the king.
+
+Richard was a man of splendid stature and of enormous strength. His
+appearance was in some respects rather Saxon than Norman, for his hair
+was light and his complexion clear and bright. He wore the mustache and
+pointed beard at that time in fashion; and although his expression was
+generally that of frankness and good humor, there might be observed in
+his quick motions and piercing glances signs of the hasty temper and
+unbridled passion which went far to wreck the success of the enterprise
+upon which he was embarked.
+
+Richard possessed most of the qualities which make a man a great king
+and render him the idol of his subjects, especially in a time of
+semi-civilization, when personal prowess is placed at the summit of all
+human virtues. In all his dominions there was not one man who in
+personal conflict was a match for his king.
+
+Except during his fits of passion, King Richard was generous, forgiving,
+and royal in his moods. He was incapable of bearing malice. Although
+haughty of his dignity, he was entirely free from any personal pride,
+and while he would maintain to the death every right and privilege
+against another monarch, he could laugh and joke with the humblest of
+his subjects on terms of hearty good fellowship. He was impatient of
+contradiction, eager to carry out whatever he had determined upon; and
+nothing enraged him so much as hesitation or procrastination. The delays
+which were experienced in the course of the Crusade angered him more
+than all the opposition offered by the Saracens, or than the hardships
+through which the Christian host had to pass.
+
+At a flourish of trumpets all took their seats at dinner, their places
+being marked for them by a herald, whose duty it was to regulate nicely
+the various ranks and dignities.
+
+The Earl of Evesham was placed next to a noble of Brabant. Cuthbert took
+his place behind his lord and served him with wines and meats, the
+Brabant being attended by a tall youth, who was indeed on the verge of
+manhood.
+
+As the dinner went on the buzz of conversation became fast and furious.
+In those days men drank deep, and quarrels often arose over the cups.
+From the time that the dinner began Cuthbert noticed that the manner of
+Sir de Jacquelin Barras, Count of Brabant, was rude and offensive.
+
+It might be that he was accustomed to live alone with his retainers, and
+that his manners were rude and coarse to all. It might be that he had a
+special hostility to the English. At any rate, his remarks were
+calculated to fire the anger of the earl.
+
+He began the conversation by wondering how a Norman baron could live in
+a country like England, inhabited by a race but little above pigs.
+
+The earl at once fired up at this, for the Normans were now beginning to
+feel themselves English, and to resent attacks upon a people for whom
+their grandfathers had entertained contempt.
+
+He angrily repelled the attack upon them by the Brabant knight, and
+asserted at once that the Saxons were every bit as civilized, and in
+some respects superior to the Normans or French.
+
+The ill-feeling thus began at starting clearly waxed stronger as dinner
+went on. The Brabant knight drank deeply, and although his talk was not
+clearly directed against the English, yet he continued to throw out
+innuendos and side attacks, and to talk with a vague boastfulness, which
+greatly irritated Sir Walter.
+
+Presently, as Cuthbert was about to serve his master with a cup of wine,
+the tall page pushed suddenly against him, spilling a portion of the
+wine over his dress.
+
+"What a clumsy child!" he said scoffingly.
+
+"You are a rough and ill-mannered loon," Cuthbert said angrily. "Were
+you in any other presence I would chastise you as you deserve."
+
+The tall page burst into a mocking laugh.
+
+"Chastise me!" he said. "Why, I could put you in my pocket for a little
+hop-of-my-thumb as you are."
+
+"I think," said Sir Jacquelin--for the boys' voices both rose loud--to
+the earl, "you had better send that brat home and order him to be
+whipped."
+
+"Sir count," said the earl, "your manners are insolent, and were we not
+engaged upon a Crusade, it would please me much to give you a lesson on
+that score."
+
+Higher and higher the dispute rose, until some angry word caught the ear
+of the king.
+
+Amid the general buzz of voices King Philip rose, and speaking a word
+to King Richard, moved from the table, thus giving the sign for the
+breaking up of the feast.
+
+Immediately afterward a page touched the earl and Sir Jacquelin upon the
+shoulder, and told them that the kings desired to speak with them in the
+tent of the King of France.
+
+The two nobles strode through the crowd, regarding each other with eyes
+much like those of two dogs eager to fly at each other's throat.
+
+"My lords, my lords," said King Philip when they entered, "this is
+against all law and reason. For shame, to be brawling at my table. I
+would not say aught openly, but methinks it is early indeed for the
+knights and nobles engaged in a common work to fall to words."
+
+"Your majesty," said the Earl of Evesham, "I regret deeply what has
+happened. But it seemed from the time we sat down to the meal that this
+lord sought to pass a quarrel upon me, and I now beseech your majesty
+that you will permit us to settle our differences in the lists."
+
+King Richard gave a sound of assent, but the King of France shook his
+head gravely.
+
+"Do you forget," he said, "the mission upon which you are assembled
+here? Has not every knight and noble in these armies taken a solemn oath
+to put aside private quarrels and feuds until the holy sepulcher is
+taken? Shall we at this very going off show that the oath is a mere form
+of words? Shall we show before the face of Christendom that the knights
+of the cross are unable to avoid flying at each other's throats, even
+while on their way to wrest the holy sepulcher from the infidel? No,
+sirs, you must lay aside your feuds, and must promise me and my good
+brother here that you will keep the peace between you until this war is
+over. Whose fault it was that the quarrel began I know not. It may be
+that my Lord of Brabant was discourteous. It may be that the earl here
+was too hot. But whichever it be, it matters not."
+
+"The quarrel, sire," said Sir Jacquelin, "arose from a dispute between
+our pages, who were nigh coming to blows in your majesty's presence. I
+desired the earl to chide the insolence of his varlet, and instead of so
+doing he met my remarks with scorn."
+
+"Pooh, pooh," said King Richard, "there are plenty of grounds for
+quarrel without two nobles interfering in the squabbles of boys. Let
+them fight; it will harm no one. By the bye, your Majesty," he said,
+turning to the King of France with a laugh, "if the masters may not
+fight, there is no reason in the world why the varlets should not. We
+are sorely dull for want of amusement. Let us have a list to-morrow, and
+let the pages fight it out for the honor of their masters and their
+nations."
+
+"It were scarce worth while to have the lists set for two boys to
+fight," said the King of France.
+
+"Oh, we need not have regular lists," said King Richard. "Leave that
+matter in my hands. I warrant you that if the cockerels are well
+plucked, they will make us sport. What say you, gentlemen?"
+
+The Brabant noble at once assented, answering that he was sure that his
+page would be glad to enter the lists; and the earl gave a similar
+assent, for he had not noticed how great was the discrepancy between the
+size of the future combatants.
+
+"That is agreed, then," said King Richard joyously. "I will have a piece
+of ground marked out on the edge of the camp to-morrow morning. It shall
+be kept by my men-at-arms, and there shall be a raised place for King
+Philip and myself, who will be the judges of the conflict. Will they
+fight on foot or on horse?"
+
+"On foot, on foot," said the King of France. "It would be a pity that
+knightly exercises should be brought to scorn by any failure on their
+part on horseback. On foot at least it will be a fair struggle."
+
+"What arms shall they use?" the Brabant knight asked.
+
+"Oh, swords and battle-axes, of course," said King Richard with a laugh.
+
+"Before you go," King Philip said, "you must shake hands, and swear to
+let the quarrel between you drop, at least until after our return. If
+you still wish to shed each other's blood, I shall offer no hindrance
+thereto."
+
+The earl and Count Jacquelin touched each other's hands in obedience to
+the order, went out of the tent together, and strode off without a word
+in different directions.
+
+"My dear lad," the Earl of Evesham said on entering his tent where his
+page was waiting him, "this is a serious business. The kings have
+ordered this little count and myself to put aside our differences till
+after the Crusade, in accordance with our oath. But as you have in no
+wise pledged yourself in the same fashion, and as their majesties feel
+somewhat dull while waiting here, it is determined that the quarrel
+between the count and me, and between you and the count's page, shall be
+settled by a fight between you two in the presence of the kings."
+
+"Well, sir," Cuthbert said, "I am glad that it should be, seeing the
+varlet insulted me without any cause, and purposely upset the cup over
+me."
+
+"What is he like?" the earl asked. "Dost think that you are a fair
+match?"
+
+"I doubt not that we are fair match enough," Cuthbert said. "As you
+know, sir, I have been well trained to arms of all kinds, both by my
+father and by the men-at-arms at the castle, and could hold my own
+against any of your men with light weapons, and have then no fear that
+this gawky loon, twenty years old though he seems to be, will bring
+disgrace upon me or discredit upon my nation."
+
+"If thou thinkest so," the earl said, "the matter can go on. But had it
+been otherwise I would have gone to the king and protested that the
+advantage of age was so great that it would be murder to place you in
+the lists together."
+
+"There is," Cuthbert said, "at most no greater difference between us
+than between a strong man and a weak one, and these, in the ordeal of
+battle, have to meet in the lists. Indeed I doubt if the difference is
+so great, for if he be a foot taller than I, methinks that round the
+shoulders I should have the advantage of him."
+
+"Send hither my armorer," the earl said; "we must choose a proper suit
+for you. I fear that mine would be of little use; but doubtless there
+are some smaller suits among my friends."
+
+"The simpler and lighter the better," Cuthbert said. "I'd rather have a
+light coat of mail and a steel cap than heavy armor and a helmet which
+would press me down, and a visor through which I could scarce see. The
+lighter the better, for after all if my sword cannot keep my head,
+sooner or later the armor would fail to do so too."
+
+The armorer speedily arrived, and the knights and followers of the earl
+being called in and the case stated, there was soon found a coat of fine
+linked mail, which fitted Cuthbert well. As to the steel cap there was
+no difficulty whatever.
+
+"You must have a plume at least," the earl said, and took some feathers
+from his own casque and fastened them in. "Will you want a light sword
+and battle-ax?"
+
+"No," Cuthbert said, "my arms are pretty well used to those of the
+men-at-arms. I could wield my father's sword, and that was a heavy
+one."
+
+The lightest of the earl's weapons were chosen, and it was agreed that
+all was now ready for the conflict to-morrow.
+
+In the morning there was a slight bustle in the camp.
+
+The news that a fight was to take place between an English and a Brabant
+page, by the permission of the kings of England and France, that their
+majesties were to be present, and that all was to be conducted on
+regular rules, caused a stir of excitement and novelty in the camp.
+
+Nowhere is life duller than among a large body of men kept together for
+any time under canvas, and the thought of a combat of this novel kind
+excited general interest.
+
+In a meadow at a short distance from the camp a body of King Richard's
+men-at-arms marked off an oval space of about an acre. Upon one side of
+this a tent was pitched for the kings, and a small tent was placed at
+each end for the combatants. Round the inclosure the men-at-arms formed
+the ring, and behind them a dense body of spectators gathered, a place
+being set aside for nobles, and others of gentle blood.
+
+At the hour fixed the kings of England and France arrived together. King
+Richard was evidently in a state of high good humor, for he preferred
+the clash of arms and the sight of combat to any other pleasure.
+
+The King of France, on the other hand, looked grave. He was a far wiser
+and more politic king than Richard; and although he had consented to
+the sudden proposal, yet he felt in his heart that the contest was a
+foolish one, and that it might create bad feeling among the men of the
+two nationalities whichever way it went. He had reserved to himself the
+right of throwing down the baton when the combat was to cease, and he
+determined to avail himself of this right to put a stop to the conflict
+before either party was likely to sustain any deadly injury.
+
+When the monarchs had taken their places the trumpeters sounded their
+trumpets, and the two combatants advanced on foot from their ends of the
+lists. A murmur of surprise and dissatisfaction broke from the crowd.
+"My Lord of Evesham," the king said angrily to the earl, who with Count
+Jacquelin was standing by the royal party, "thou shouldst have said that
+the difference between the two was too great to allow the combat to be
+possible. The Frenchman appears to be big enough to take your page under
+his arm and walk off with him."
+
+The difference was indeed very striking. The French champion was arrayed
+in a full suit of knightly armor--of course without the gold spurs which
+were the distinguishing mark of that rank--and with his helmet and lofty
+plume of feathers he appeared to tower above Cuthbert, who, in his
+close-fitting steel cap and link armor seemed a very dwarf by the side
+of a giant.
+
+"It is not size, sire, but muscle and pluck will win in a combat like
+this. Your majesty need not be afraid that my page will disgrace me. He
+is of my blood, though the kinship is not close. He is of mixed Saxon
+and Norman strain, and will, believe me, do no discredit to either."
+
+The king's brow cleared, for in truth he was very proud of his English
+nationality, and would have been sorely vexed to see the discomfiture of
+an English champion, even though that champion were a boy.
+
+"Brother Philip," he said, turning to the king, "I will wager my gold
+chain against yours on yonder stripling."
+
+"Methinks that it were robbery to take your wager," the King of France
+said. "The difference between their bulk is disproportionate. However, I
+will not balk your wish. My chain against yours."
+
+The rule of the fight was that they were to commence with swords, but
+that either could, if he chose, use his battle-ax.
+
+The fight need scarcely be described at length, for the advantage was
+all one way. Cuthbert was fully a match in strength for his antagonist,
+although standing nigh a foot shorter. Constant exercise, however, had
+hardened his muscles into something like steel, while the teaching that
+he had received had embraced all what was then known of the use of arms.
+
+Science in those days there was but little of; it was a case rather of
+hard, heavy hitting, than of what we now call swordsmanship.
+
+With the sword Cuthbert gained but slight advantage over his adversary,
+whose superior height enabled him to rain blows down upon the lad, which
+he was with difficulty enabled to guard; but when the first paroxysm of
+his adversary's attack had passed he took to the offensive, and drove
+his opponent back step by step. With his sword, however, he was unable
+to cut through the armor of the Frenchman, but in the course of the
+encounter, guarding a severe blow aimed at him, his sword was struck
+from his hand, and he then, seizing his ax, made such play with it that
+his foe dropped his own sword and took to the same weapon.
+
+In this the superior height and weight of his opponent gave him even a
+greater advantage than with the sword, and Cuthbert knowing this, used
+his utmost dexterity and speed to avoid the sweeping blows showered upon
+him. He himself had been enabled to strike one or two sweeping strokes,
+always aiming at the same place, the juncture of the visor with the
+helmet. At last the Frenchman struck him so heavy a blow that it beat
+down his guard and struck his steel cap from his head, bringing him to
+the knee. In an instant he was up, and before his foe could be again on
+guard, he whirled his ax round with all its force, and bringing it just
+at the point of the visor which he had already weakened with repeated
+blows, the edge of the ax stove clean through the armor, and the page
+was struck senseless to the ground.
+
+A great shout broke from the English portion of the soldiery as
+Cuthbert leaned over his prostrate foe, and receiving no answer to the
+question "Do you yield?" rose to his feet, and signified to the squire
+who had kept near that his opponent was insensible.
+
+King Richard ordered the pursuivant to lead Cuthbert to the royal
+inclosure.
+
+"Thou art a brave lad and a lusty," the king said, "and hast borne thee
+in the fight as well as many a knight would have done. Wert thou older,
+I would myself dub thee knight; and I doubt not that the occasion will
+yet come when thou wilt do as good deeds upon the bodies of the Saracens
+as thou hast upon that long-shanked opponent of thine. Here is a gold
+chain; take it as a proof that the King of England holds that you have
+sustained well the honor of his country; and mark me, if at any time you
+require a boon, bring or send me that chain, and thou shalt have it
+freely. Sir Walter," he said, turning to the earl, "in this lad thou
+hast a worthy champion, and I trust me that thou wilt give him every
+chance of distinguishing himself. So soon as thou thinkest him fit for
+the knightly rank I myself will administer the accolade."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+REVENGE.
+
+
+After his interview with the king Cuthbert was led to his tent amid the
+hearty plaudits of the English troops.
+
+His own comrades flocked round him; the men of the greenwood, headed by
+Cnut, were especially jubilant over his victory.
+
+"Who would have thought," said the tall forester, "that the lad who but
+a short time ago was a child should now have sustained the honor of the
+country? We feel proud of you, Cuthbert; and trust us some day or other
+to follow wherever you may lead, and to do some deed which will attain
+for you honor and glory, and show that the men of Evesham are as doughty
+as any under King Richard's rule."
+
+"You must be wary, Cuthbert," the earl said to him that evening.
+"Believe me that you and I have made a foe, who, although he may not
+have the power, has certainly the will to injure us to the death. I
+marked the eye of Count Jacquelin during the fight, and again when you
+were led up to the king. There was hatred and fury in his eye. The page
+too, I hear, is his own nephew, and he will be the laughing-stock of the
+French camp at having been conquered by one so much younger than
+himself. It will be well to keep upon your guard, and not to go out at
+night unattended. Keep Cnut near you; he is faithful as a watch-dog, and
+would give his life, I am sure, for you. I will myself be also upon my
+guard, for it was after all my quarrel, and the fury of this fierce
+knight will vent itself upon both of us if the opportunity should come.
+I hear but a poor account of him among his confréres. They say he is one
+of those disgraces to the name of knight who are but a mixture of robber
+and soldier; that he harries all the lands in his neighborhood; and that
+he has now only joined the Crusade to avoid the vengeance which the
+cries of the oppressed people had invoked from his liege lord. I am told
+indeed that the choice was given him to be outlawed, or to join the
+Crusades with all the strength he could raise. Naturally he adopted the
+latter alternative; but he has the instincts of the robber still, and
+will do us an evil turn, if he have the chance."
+
+Two days later the great army broke up its camp and marched south. After
+a week's journeying they encamped near a town, and halted there two or
+three days in order to collect provisions for the next advance; for the
+supplies which they could obtain in the country districts were wholly
+insufficient for so great a host of men. Here the armies were to
+separate, the French marching to Genoa, the English to Marseilles, the
+town at which they were to take ship.
+
+One evening the earl sent Cuthbert with a message to another English
+lord, staying in the town at the palace of the bishop, who was a friend
+of his.
+
+Cnut accompanied Cuthbert, for he now made a point of seldom letting him
+out of his sight. It was light when they reached the bishop's palace,
+but here they were delayed for some time, and night had fallen when they
+sallied out.
+
+The town was already quiet, for the inhabitants cared not to show
+themselves in the streets now that such a large army of fierce men were
+in the neighborhood.
+
+The orders indeed of the monarchs were stringent, but discipline there
+was but little of, and the soldiery in those days regarded peaceful
+citizens as fair game; hence, when they came from the palace the streets
+of the city were already hushed and quiet, for the orders of the king
+had been peremptory that no men-at-arms, or others except those on duty,
+were to be away from their camp after nightfall. This order had been
+absolutely necessary, so many were the complaints brought in by country
+peasants and farmers of the doings of bands of soldiers.
+
+Cnut and Cuthbert proceeded along the streets unmolested for some
+distance. Occasionally a solitary passer-by, with hooded cape, hurried
+past. The moon was half full, and her light was welcome indeed, for in
+those days the streets were unlighted, and the pavement so bad that
+passage through the streets after dark was a matter of difficulty, and
+even of danger.
+
+Here and there before some roadside shrine a lamp dimly burned; before
+these they paused, and, as good Catholics, Cnut and Cuthbert crossed
+themselves. Just as they had passed one of these wayside shrines, a
+sudden shout was heard, and a party of eight or ten men sprang out from
+a side street and fell upon them.
+
+Cnut and Cuthbert drew their swords and laid about them heartily, but
+their assailants were too strong. Cnut was stricken to the ground, and
+Cuthbert, seeing that defense was hopeless, took to his heels and ran
+for his life. He was already wounded, but happily not so severely as in
+any way to disable him.
+
+Seeing that it was speed, and speed alone, which now could save him, he
+flung aside his belt and scabbard as he ran, and with rapid steps flew
+along the streets, not knowing whither he went, and striving only to
+keep ahead of his pursuers. They, more incumbered by arms and armor,
+were unable to keep up with the flying footsteps of a lad clothed in the
+light attire of a page; but Cuthbert felt that the blood running from
+his wound was weakening him fast, and that unless he could gain some
+refuge his course must speedily come to an end. Happily he saw at some
+little distance ahead of him a man standing by a door. Just as he
+arrived the door opened, and a glow of light from within fell on the
+road, showing that the person entering was a monk.
+
+Without a moment's hesitation Cuthbert rushed through the door, shouting
+"Sanctuary!" and sank almost fainting on the ground.
+
+The monks, accustomed to wild pursuits and scenes of outrage in those
+warlike days, hastily closed the door, barring it securely. In a moment
+there was a rush of men against it from without.
+
+One of the monks opened a lattice above the door.
+
+"What mean you," he said, "by this outrage? Know ye not that this is the
+Monastery of St. John, and that it is sacrilege to lay a hand of
+violence even against its postern? Begone," he said, "or we'll lodge a
+complaint before the king."
+
+The assailants, nothing daunted, continued to batter at the door; but at
+this moment the monks, aroused from their beds, hastened to the spot,
+and seizing bill and sword--for in those days even monks were obliged at
+times to depend upon carnal weapons--they opened the door, and flung
+themselves upon the assailants with such force that the latter,
+surprised and discomfited, were forced to make a hasty retreat.
+
+The doors were then again barred, and Cuthbert was carried up to a cell
+in the building, where the leech of the monastery speedily examined his
+wound, and pronounced that although his life was not in danger by it, he
+was greatly weakened by the loss of blood, that the wound was a serious
+one and that it would be some time before the patient would recover.
+
+[Illustration: THE DOORS WERE AGAIN BARRED, AND CUTHBERT WAS CARRIED TO
+A CELL.]
+
+It was two days before Cuthbert was sufficiently restored to be able to
+speak. His first question to the monk was as to his whereabouts, and how
+long he had been there. Upon being answered, he entreated that a
+messenger might be dispatched to the camp of the Earl of Evesham, to beg
+that a litter might be sent for him, and to inquire what had become of
+Cnut, whom he had last seen stricken down.
+
+The monk replied, "My son, I grieve to tell you that your request cannot
+be complied with. The army moved away yesternoon, and is now some
+twenty-five miles distant. There is nothing for you but patience, and
+when restored you can follow the army, and rejoin your master before he
+embarks at Marseilles. But how is it that a lad so young as you can have
+incurred the enmity of those who sought your life? For it is clear from
+the pertinacity with which they urged their attack that their object was
+not plunder, of which indeed they would get but little from you, but to
+take your life."
+
+Cuthbert recounted the circumstances which had led to the feud of the
+Count of Brabant against him, for he doubted not that this truculent
+knight was at the bottom of the attack.
+
+"After what has happened," the monk said, "you will need have caution
+when you leave here. The place where you have taken refuge is known to
+them, and should this wild noble persist in his desire for vengeance
+against you, he will doubtless leave some of his ruffians to watch the
+monastery. We will keep a lookout, and note if any strangers are to be
+seen near the gates; if we find that it is so, we shall consider what is
+best to be done. We could of course appeal to the mayor for protection
+against them, and could even have the strangers ejected from the town or
+cast into prison; but it is not likely that we should succeed in
+capturing more than the fellow who may be placed on the lookout, and the
+danger would be in no wise lessened to yourself. But there is time to
+talk over this matter before you leave. It will be another fortnight at
+least before you will be able to pursue your journey."
+
+Cuthbert gained strength more rapidly than the monk had expected. He was
+generously fed, and this and his good constitution soon enabled him to
+recover from the loss of blood; and at the end of five days he expressed
+his hope that he could on the following day pursue his journey. The monk
+who attended him shook his head.
+
+"Thou mightst, under ordinary circumstances, quit us to-morrow, for thou
+art well enough to take part in the ordinary pursuits of a page; but to
+journey is a different thing. You may have all sorts of hardships to
+endure; you may have even to trust for your life to your speed and
+endurance; and it would be madness for you to go until your strength is
+fully established. I regret to tell you that we have ascertained beyond
+a doubt that the monastery is closely watched. We have sent some of the
+acolytes out, dressed in the garbs of monks, and attended by one of our
+elder brethren; and in, each case, a monk who followed at a distance of
+fifty yards was able to perceive that they were watched. The town is
+full of rough men, the hangers-on of the army; some, indeed, are
+followers of laggard knights, but the greater portion are men who merely
+pursue the army with a view to gain by its necessities, to buy plunder
+from the soldiers, and to rob, and, if necessary, to murder should there
+be a hope of obtaining gold. Among these men your enemies would have
+little difficulty in recruiting any number, and no appeal that we could
+make to the mayor would protect you from them when you have left the
+walls. We must trust to our ingenuity in smuggling you out. After that,
+it is upon your own strength and shrewdness that you must rely for an
+escape from any snares that may be laid for you. You will see, then,
+that at least another three or four days are needed before you can set
+forth. Your countrymen are so far away that a matter of a few days will
+make but little difference. They will in any case be delayed for a long
+time at Marseilles before they embark; and whether you leave now or a
+month hence, you would be equally in time to join them before their
+embarkation--that is, supposing that you make your way through the
+snares which beset you."
+
+Cuthbert saw the justice of the reasoning, and it was another week
+before he announced himself as feeling absolutely restored to strength
+again, and capable of bearing as much exertion as he could have done
+before his attack.
+
+A long consultation was held with the prior and a monk who had acted as
+his leech, as to the best plan of getting Cuthbert beyond the walls of
+the city. Many schemes were proposed and rejected. Every monk who
+ventured beyond the walls had been closely scrutinized, and one or two
+of short stature had even been jostled in the streets, so as to throw
+back their hoods and expose a sight of their faces. It was clear, then,
+that it would be dangerous to trust to a disguise. Cuthbert proposed
+that he should leave at night, trusting solely to their directions as to
+the turnings he should take to bring him to the city walls, and that,
+taking a rope, he should there let himself down, and make the best of
+his way forward. This, however, the monks would not consent to, assuring
+him that the watch was so strictly kept round the monastery that he
+would inevitably be seen.
+
+"No," the prior said, "the method, whatever it is, must be as open as
+possible; and though I cannot at this moment hit upon a plan, I will
+think it over to-night, and putting my ideas with those of Father Jerome
+here, and the sacristan, who has a shrewd head, it will be hard if we
+cannot between us contrive some plan to evade the watch of those robber
+villains who beset the convent."
+
+The next morning, when the prior came in to see Cuthbert, the latter
+said: "Good father, I have determined not to endeavor to make off in
+disguise. I doubt not that your wit could contrive some means by which I
+should get clear of the walls without observation from the scouts of
+this villain noble. But once in the country, I should have neither horse
+nor armor, and should have hard work indeed to make my way down through
+France, even though none of my enemies were on my track. I will
+therefore, if it please you, go down boldly to the mayor and claim a
+protection and escort. If he will but grant me a few men-at-arms for one
+day's ride from the town, I can choose my own route, and riding out in
+mail, can then take my chance of finding my way down to Marseilles."
+
+"I will go down with you, my son," the prior said, "to the mayor. Two of
+my monks shall accompany us; and assuredly no insult will be offered to
+you in the street thus accompanied." Shortly afterward Cuthbert started
+as arranged, and soon arrived at the house of the mayor, Sir John de
+Cahors.
+
+Upon the prior making known to this knight whom he had brought with him
+the mayor exclaimed:
+
+"_Peste!_ young gentleman; you have caused us no small trouble and
+concern. We have had ridings to and fro concerning you, and furious
+messages from your fiery king. When in the morning a tall, stalwart
+knave dressed in green was found, slashed about in various places, lying
+on the pavement, the townsmen, not knowing who he was, but finding that
+he still breathed, carried him to the English camp, and he was claimed
+as a follower of the Earl of Evesham. There was great wrath and anger
+over this; and an hour later the earl himself came down and stated that
+his page was missing, and that there was reason to believe that he had
+been foully murdered, as he had accompanied the man found wounded.
+Fortunately the bulk of the armies had marched away at early dawn, and
+the earl had only remained behind in consequence of the absence of his
+followers. I assured the angry Englishman that I would have a thorough
+search made in the town; and although in no way satisfied, he rode off
+after his king with all his force, carrying with him the long-limbed man
+whom we had picked up. Two days after a message came back from King
+Richard himself, saying that unless this missing page were discovered,
+or if, he being killed, his murderers were not brought to justice and
+punished, he would assuredly on his return from the Holy Land burn the
+town over our ears. Your king is not a man who minces matters. However,
+threatened men live long, especially when the person who threatens is
+starting for a journey, from which, as like as not, he may never return.
+However, I have had diligent search made for you. All the houses of bad
+repute have been examined and their inhabitants questioned. But there
+are so many camp-followers and other rabble at present in the town that
+a hundred men might disappear without our being able to obtain a clew. I
+doubted not indeed that your body had been thrown in the river, and
+that we should never hear more of you. I am right glad that you have
+been restored; not indeed from any fear of the threats of the king your
+master, but because, from what the Earl of Evesham said, you were a lad
+likely to come to great fame and honor. The earl left in my charge your
+horse, and the armor which he said you wore at a tournament lately, in
+case we should hear aught of you."
+
+Cuthbert gave an exclamation of pleasure. His purse contained but a few
+pieces of silver, and being without arms except for his short dagger, or
+means of locomotion, the difficulties of the journey down to Marseilles
+had sorely puzzled him. But with his good horse between his knees, and
+his suit of Milan armor on his back, he thought that he might make his
+way through any dangers which threatened him.
+
+The prior now told the knight that circumstances had occurred which
+showed that it was known to the assailants of Cuthbert that he had taken
+refuge in the convent, over which a strict watch had been kept by
+Cuthbert's enemies.
+
+"If I could find the varlets I would hang them over the gates of the
+town," the knight said wrathfully. "But as at the present moment there
+are nearly as many rogues as honest men in the place it would be a
+wholesale hanging indeed to insure getting hold of the right people.
+Moreover, it is not probable that another attempt upon his life will be
+made inside our walls; and doubtless the main body of this gang are
+somewhere without, intending to assault him when he continues his
+journey, and they have left but a spy or two here to inform them as to
+his movements. I will give you any aid in my power, young sir. The army
+is by this time nigh Marseilles, and, sooth to say, I have no body of
+men-at-arms whom I could send as your escort for so long a distance. I
+have but a small body here, and they are needed, and sorely, too, to
+keep order within the walls."
+
+"I thought, sir," Cuthbert said, "that if you could lend me a party of
+say four men-at-arms to ride with me for the first day I could then
+trust to myself, especially if you could procure me one honest man to
+act as guide and companion. Doubtless they suppose that I should travel
+by the main road south; but by going the first day's journey either east
+or west, and then striking some southward road, I should get a fair
+start of them, throw all their plans out, and perchance reach Marseilles
+without interruption."
+
+The knight willingly agreed to furnish four men-at-arms, and a
+trustworthy guide who would at least take him as far south as Avignon.
+
+"I will," he said, "tell the men-at-arms off to-night. They shall be at
+the western gate at daybreak, with the pass permitting them to ride
+through. The guide shall be at the convent door half an hour earlier. I
+will send up to-night your armor and horse. Here is a purse which the
+Earl of Evesham also left for your use. Is there aught else I can do for
+you?"
+
+"Nothing, sir," Cuthbert said; "and if I regain the army in safety I
+shall have pleasure in reporting to King Richard how kindly and
+courteously you have treated me."
+
+The arrangements were carried out.
+
+An hour before daybreak Cuthbert was aroused, donned his armor and steel
+casque, drank a flask of wine, and ate a manchet of bread which the
+prior himself brought him, and then, with a cordial adieu to the kind
+monks, issued forth.
+
+The guide had just reached the gate, and together they trotted down the
+narrow streets to the west gate of the city, where four men-at-arms were
+awaiting them.
+
+The gates were at once opened, and Cuthbert and his little troop sallied
+forth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+THE ATTACK.
+
+
+All day they rode with their faces west, and before nightfall had made a
+journey of over forty miles. Then bestowing a largess upon the
+men-at-arms, Cuthbert dismissed them, and took up his abode at a
+hostelry, his guide looking to the two horses.
+
+Cuthbert was pleased with the appearance of the man who had been placed
+at his disposal. He was a young fellow of twenty-two or twenty-three,
+with an honest face. He was, he told Cuthbert, the son of a small farmer
+near Avignon; but having a fancy for trade, he had been apprenticed to a
+master smith. Having served his apprenticeship, he found that he had
+mistaken his vocation, and intended to return to the paternal vineyards.
+
+Cuthbert calculated that he would make at least four days' journey to
+the south before he could meet with any dangers. Doubtless his exit from
+the convent had been discovered, and the moment the gates of the city
+were opened the spy would have proceeded south to warn his comrades, and
+these would doubtless have taken a road which at a distance would again
+take them on to that by which Cuthbert would be now traveling. As,
+however, he rode fast, and made long marches each day, he hoped that he
+might succeed in distancing them. Unfortunately, upon the third day his
+horse cast his shoe, and no smith could be met with until the end of the
+day's journey. Consequently, but a short distance could be done and this
+at a slow pace. Upon the fifth day after their first start they arrived
+at a small town.
+
+The next morning Cuthbert on rising found that his guide did not present
+himself as usual. Making inquiries he found that the young man had gone
+out the evening before, and had not returned. Extremely uneasy at the
+circumstance, Cuthbert went to the city guard, thinking that perhaps his
+guide might have got drunk, and been shut up in the cells. No news,
+however, was to be obtained there, and after waiting some hours, feeling
+sure that some harm had befallen him, he gave notice to the authorities
+of his loss, and then mounting his horse, and leaving some money with
+the landlord of the hostelry to give to his guide in case the latter
+should return, he started at midday by the southern road.
+
+He felt sure now that he was overtaken, and determined to keep his eyes
+and faculties thoroughly on watch.
+
+The roads in those days were mere tracks. Here and there a little
+village was to be met with; but the country was sparsely cultivated, and
+traveling lonely work. Cuthbert rode fast, carefully avoiding all
+copses and small woods through which the road ran, by making a circuit
+round them and coming on to it again on the other side.
+
+His horse was an excellent one, the gift of the earl, and he had little
+fear, with his light weight, of being overtaken if he could once leave
+his enemies behind him.
+
+At length he approached an extensive forest, which stretched for miles
+on either side.
+
+Half a mile before he reached it the track divided.
+
+He had for some little time eased his horse down to a walk, as he felt
+that the wood would be the spot where he would in all probability be
+attacked, and he needed that his steed should be possessed of its utmost
+vigor.
+
+At the spot where the track branched a man in the guise of a mendicant
+was sitting. He begged for alms, and Cuthbert threw him a small coin.
+
+A sudden thought struck him as he heard a rustling in the bushes near.
+
+"Which is the nearest and best road to Avignon?" he said.
+
+"The right-hand road is the best and shortest," the beggar said. "The
+other makes a long circuit and leads through several marshes, which your
+honor will find it hard to pass."
+
+Cuthbert thanked him and moved forward, still at a walk, along the
+right-hand road.
+
+When he had gone about two hundred yards, and was hidden from the sight
+of the man he had left--the country being rough, and scattered with
+clumps of bushes--he halted, and, as he expected, heard the sound of
+horses' hoofs coming on at full gallop along the other road.
+
+"Your master must have thought me young indeed," he said, "to try and
+catch me with such a transparent trick as that. I do not suppose that
+accursed page has more than ten men with him, and doubtless has placed
+five on each road. This fellow was placed here to see which track I
+would follow, and has now gone to give the party on the left hand the
+news that I have taken this way. Had it not been for him I should have
+had to run the gantlet with four or five of my enemies. As it is, the
+path will doubtless be clear."
+
+So saying, he turned his horse, galloped back to the spot where the
+tracks separated, and then followed the left-hand route.
+
+As he had hoped, he passed through the wood without incident or
+interruption, and arrived safely that night at a small town, having seen
+no signs of his enemies.
+
+The next day he started again early, and rode on until midday, when he
+halted at a large village, at which was the only inn between the place
+from which he started and his destination. He declined the offer of the
+servant of the inn to take his horse round to the stable, telling the
+man to hold him outside the door and give him from a sieve a few
+handfuls of grain.
+
+Then he entered the inn and ate a hearty meal. As he appeared at the
+door he saw several men gathered near. With a single spring he threw
+himself into the saddle, just as a rush forward was made by those
+standing round. The man next to him sprang upon him, and endeavored to
+drag him from the saddle. Cuthbert drew the little dagger called a
+_miséricorde_ from his belt, and plunged it into his throat. Then
+seizing the short mace which hung at the saddlebow, he hurled it with
+all his force full in the face of his enemy, the page of Sir Philip, who
+was rushing upon him sword in hand. The heavy weapon struck him fairly
+between the eyes, and with a cry he fell back, his face completely
+smashed in by the blow, the sword which he held uplifted to strike
+flying far through the air.
+
+Cuthbert struck his spurs into his horse, and the animal dashed forward
+with a bound, Cuthbert striking with his long sword at one or two men
+who made a snatch at the reins. In another minute he was cantering out
+of the village, convinced that he had killed the leader of his foes, and
+that he was safe now to pursue the rest of his journey on to Marseilles.
+
+So it turned out.
+
+Without further incident he traveled through the south of France, and
+arrived at the great seaport. He speedily discovered the quarters in
+which the Earl of Evesham's contingent were encamped, and made toward
+this without delay. As he entered a wild shout of joy was heard, and
+Cnut ran forward with many gestures of delight.
+
+"My dear Cuthbert, my dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "Can it be true that
+you have escaped? We all gave you up; and although I did my best, yet
+had you not survived it I should never have forgiven myself, believing
+that I might have somehow done better, and have saved you from the
+cutthroats who attacked us."
+
+"Thanks, thanks, my good Cnut," Cuthbert cried. "I have been through a
+time of peril, no doubt; but as you see, I am hale and well--better,
+methinks, than you are, for you look pale and ill; and I doubt not that
+the wound which I received was a mere scratch to that which bore you
+down. It sounded indeed like the blow of a smith's hammer upon an
+anvil."
+
+"Fortunately, my steel cap saved my head somewhat," Cnut said, "and the
+head itself is none of the thinnest; but it tried it sorely, I confess.
+However, now that you are back I shall, doubt not, soon be as strong as
+ever I was. I think that fretting for your absence has kept me back more
+than the inflammation from the wound itself--but there is the earl at
+the door of his tent."
+
+Through the foresters and retainers who had at Cnut's shout of joy
+crowded up, Cuthbert made his way, shaking hands right and left with the
+men, among whom he was greatly loved, for they regarded him as being in
+a great degree the cause of their having been freed from outlawry, and
+restored to civil life again. The earl was really affected. As Cuthbert
+rode up he held out both arms, and as his page alighted he embraced him
+as a father.
+
+"My dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "What anxiety have we not suffered.
+Had you been my own son, I could not have felt more your loss. We did
+not doubt for an instant that you had fallen into the hands of some of
+the retainers of that villain count; and from all we could learn, and
+from the absence of any dead body by the side of that of Cnut, I
+imagined that you must have been carried off. It was clear that your
+chance of life, if you fell into the hands of that evil page, or his
+equally vile master, was small indeed. The very day that Cnut was
+brought in I visited the French camp, and accused him of having been the
+cause of your disappearance and Cnut's wounds. He affected the greatest
+astonishment at the charge. He had not, as he said, been out of the camp
+for two days. My accusation was unfounded and malicious, and I should
+answer this as well as the previous outrage, when the vow of the
+Crusaders to keep peace among themselves was at an end. Of course I had
+no means of proving what I said, or I would have gone direct to the king
+and charged him with the outrage. As it was I gained nothing by my
+pains. He has accompanied the French division to Genoa; but when we meet
+at Sicily, where the two armies are to rendezvous, I will bring the
+matter before the king, as the fact that his page was certainly
+concerned in it must be taken as showing that he was the instigator."
+
+"It would, my lord earl, be perhaps better," Cuthbert said, "if I might
+venture to advise, to leave the matter alone. No doubt the count would
+say that he had discharged his page after the tournament, and that the
+latter was only carrying out his private feud with me. We should not be
+able to disprove the story, and should gain no satisfaction by the
+matter."
+
+The earl admitted the justice of Cuthbert's reasoning, but reserved to
+himself the task of punishing the author of the outrage upon the first
+fitting opportunity.
+
+There was a weary delay at Marseilles before the expedition set sail.
+This was caused by the fact of the English fleet, which had been ordered
+to be there upon their arrival, failing to keep the agreement.
+
+The words English fleet badly describe the vessels which were to carry
+the English contingent to their destination. They were ships belonging
+to the maritime nations of Italy--the Venetians, Genoese, Pisans, etc.;
+for England at that time had but few of her own, and these scarcely
+fitted for the stormy navigation of the Bay of Biscay.
+
+King Richard, impatient as ever of delay, at last lost his temper, and
+embarked on board a ship with a few of his chosen knights, and set sail
+by himself for Sicily, the point at which the two armies of the
+expedition were to reunite. A few days after his departure the
+long-looked-for fleet arrived, and a portion of the English host
+embarked at once, and set sail for Sicily, where they were to be
+landed, and the ships were to return to fetch the remaining contingent.
+
+A sea voyage of this kind in those days was a serious matter. Long
+voyages were rare, and troops were carried very much upon the principle
+of herrings; that is, were packed as close as they could be, without any
+reference to their comfort. As the voyages seldom lasted more than
+twenty-four hours, this did not much matter, but during long voyages the
+discomforts, or as may be said sufferings, of the troops were
+considerable. So tightly packed were the galleys in which the English
+set sail from Marseilles that there was no walking about. Every man
+slept where he sat, and considered himself lucky indeed if he could
+obtain room sufficient to stretch himself at full length. Most slept
+sitting against bulwarks or other supports. In the cabins, where the
+knights, their pages and squires were placed, the crowding was of course
+less excessive, but even here the amount of space, which a subaltern
+traveling to India for the first time nowadays would grumble at, was
+considered amply sufficient for half a dozen knights of distinction. It
+was a week after sailing, when Cnut touched Cuthbert's arm as he came on
+deck one morning, and said:
+
+"Look, look, Cuthbert! that mountain standing up in the water has caught
+fire on the top. Did you ever see such a thing?"
+
+The soldiers crowded to the side of the vessel in intense astonishment
+and no little awe. From the top of a lofty and rugged hill, rising
+almost straight from the sea, flames were roaring up, smoke hung over
+the island, and stones were thrown into the air and rattled down the
+side of the hill, or fell into the sea with a splash.
+
+"That is a fearsome sight," Cnut said, crossing himself.
+
+"It looks as if it was the mouth of purgatory," exclaimed another,
+standing by.
+
+Cuthbert himself was amazed, for the instruction he had received from
+Father Francis was of too slight a nature to include the story of
+volcanoes. A priest, however, who accompanied the ship in the character
+of leech and confessor, explained the nature of the phenomenon to his
+astonished listeners, and told them that over on the mainland was a
+mountain which at times vomited forth such masses of stones and of
+liquid rock that it had swallowed up and covered many great cities.
+There was also, he told them, another mountain of the same sort, even
+more vast, on the island of Sicily itself; but that this had seldom, as
+far back as man could remember, done any great harm.
+
+Sailing on, in another day they arrived off the coast of Sicily itself,
+and sailing up the straits between it and the mainland they landed at
+Messina. Here a considerable portion of the French army had already
+arrived, having been brought down from Genoa.
+
+There was no news of the King of England; and, as often happens, the
+saying "The more haste the less speed," had been verified here.
+
+It was some days later before King Richard arrived, having been driven
+from his course by tempests, well-nigh cast ashore, and having besides
+gone through many adventures. Three weeks later the whole of the army of
+the Crusaders were gathered around Messina, where it was intended to
+remain some little time before starting. It was a gay time; and the
+kings vied with each other in entertainments, joustings, and
+tournaments. The Italian knights also made a brave show, and it might
+have been thought that this huge army of men were gathered there simply
+for amusement and feasting. In the tournaments every effort was made to
+prevent any feeling of national rivalry, and although parties of knights
+held their own against all comers, these were most carefully selected to
+represent several nationalities, and therefore victory, on whichsoever
+side it fell, excited no feelings of bitterness.
+
+Alone, King Richard was undoubtedly the strongest cavalier of the two
+armies. Against his ponderous strength no knight could keep his seat;
+and this was so palpable that after many victories King Richard was
+forced to retire from the lists from want of competitors, and to take
+his place on the daïs with the more peace-loving King of France.
+
+The gayety of the camp was heightened by the arrival of many nobles and
+dames from Italy. Here, too, came the Queen of Navarre, bringing with
+her the beautiful Princess Berengaria.
+
+"Methinks," the Earl of Evesham said to Cuthbert a fortnight after the
+arrival of the queen "that unless my eyes deceive me the princess is
+likely to be a cause of trouble."
+
+"In what way?" asked Cuthbert with surprise, for he had been struck with
+her marvelous beauty, and wondered greatly what mischief so fair a being
+could do.
+
+"By the way in which our good lord, the king, gazes upon her, methinks
+that it were like enough that he broke off his engagement with the
+Prince of France for the sake of the fair eyes of this damsel."
+
+"That were indeed a misfortune," Cuthbert said gravely, for he saw at
+once the anger which such a course would excite in the minds of the
+French king and his knights, who would naturally be indignant in the
+extreme at the slight put upon their princess. As day after day passed
+it became evident to all that the King of England was infatuated by the
+princess. Again he entered the lists himself, and as some fresh Italian
+knights and others had arrived, he found fresh opponents, and
+conspicuously laid the spoils of victory at the feet of the princess,
+whom he selected as the Queen of Beauty.
+
+All sorts of rumors now became current in camp; violent quarrels between
+the kings, and bad feelings between the French and English knights broke
+out again in consequence, and this more violently than before.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA.
+
+
+One night it chanced that Cuthbert was late in his return to camp, and
+his road took him through a portion of the French encampment; the night
+was dark, and Cuthbert presently completely lost all idea as to his
+bearings. Presently he nearly ran against a tent; he made his way to the
+entrance in order to crave directions as to his way--for it was a wet
+night; the rain was pouring in torrents, and few were about of whom he
+could demand the way--and, as he was about to draw aside the hangings,
+he heard words said in a passionate voice which caused him to withdraw
+his hand suddenly.
+
+"I tell you," said a voice, "I would rather drive a dagger myself into
+her heart than allow our own princess to be insulted by this hot-headed
+island dog."
+
+"It is sad indeed," said another, but in a calmer smoother tone, "that
+the success of a great expedition like this, which has for its object
+the recovery of the holy sepulcher from the infidels, should be wrecked
+by the headstrong fancies of one man. It is even, as is told by the old
+Grecian poet, as when Helen caused a great war between people of that
+nation."
+
+"I know nothing," another voice said, "either of Helen or the Greeks, or
+of their poets. They are a shifty race, and I can believe aught that is
+bad of them. But touching this princess of Navarre, I agree with our
+friend, it would be a righteous deed to poniard her, and so to remove
+the cause of dispute between the two kings, and, indeed, the two
+nations. This insult laid upon our princess is more than we, as French
+knights and gentlemen, can brook; and if the king says the word there is
+not a gentleman in the army but will be ready to turn his sword against
+the islanders."
+
+Then the smooth voice spoke again.
+
+"It would, my brethren, be wrong and useless to shed blood; but methinks
+that if this apple of discord could be removed a good work would be done
+not, as our friend the count has suggested, by a stab of the dagger;
+that indeed would be worse than useless. But surely there are scores of
+religious houses, where this bird might be placed in a cage without a
+soul knowing where she was, and where she might pass her life in prayer
+that she may be pardoned for having caused grave hazards of the failure
+of an enterprise in which all the Christian world is concerned."
+
+The voices of the speakers now fell, and Cuthbert was straining his ear
+to listen, when he heard footsteps approaching the tent, and he glided
+away into the darkness.
+
+With great difficulty be recovered the road to the camp, and when he
+reached his tent he confided to the Earl of Evesham what he had heard.
+
+"This is serious indeed," the earl said, "and bodes no little trouble
+and danger. It is true that the passion which King Richard has conceived
+for Berengaria bids fair to wreck the Crusade, by the anger which it has
+excited in the French king and his nobles; but the disappearance of the
+princess would no less fatally interfere with it, for the king would be
+like a raging lion deprived of his whelps, and would certainly move no
+foot eastward until he had exhausted all the means in his power of
+tracing his lost lady love. You could not, I suppose, Cuthbert, point
+out the tent where this conversation took place?"
+
+"I could not," Cuthbert answered; "in the darkness one tent is like
+another. I think I should recognize the voices of the speakers did I
+hear them again; indeed, one voice I did recognize; it was that of the
+Count of Brabant, with whom we had trouble before."
+
+"That is good," the earl said, "because we have at least an object to
+watch. It would never do to tell the king what you have heard. In the
+first place, his anger would be so great that it would burst all bounds,
+and would cause, likely enough, a battle at once between the two armies;
+nor would it have any good effect, for he of Brabant would of course
+deny the truth of your assertions, and would declare it was merely a
+got-up story to discredit him with the king, and so to wipe out the old
+score now standing between us. No, if we are to succeed, alike in
+preventing harm happening to the princess, and an open break between the
+two monarchs, it must be done by keeping a guard over the princess,
+unsuspected by all, and ourselves frustrating any attempt which may be
+made."
+
+Cuthbert expressed his willingness to carry out the instructions which
+the earl might give him; and, much disturbed by the events of the day,
+both earl and page retired to rest, to think over what plan had best be
+adopted.
+
+The princess was staying at the palace of the bishop of the town; this
+he, having another residence a short distance outside the walls, had
+placed at the disposal of the Queen of Navarre and her suite; and the
+first step of Cuthbert in the morning was to go into the town, to
+reconnoiter the position and appearance of the building. It was a large
+and irregular pile, and communicated with the two monasteries lying
+alongside of it. It would therefore clearly be a most difficult thing to
+keep up a complete watch on the exterior of so large a building. There
+were so many ways in which the princess might be captured and carried
+off by unscrupulous men that Cuthbert in vain thought over every plan by
+which it could be possible to safeguard her. She might be seized upon
+returning from a tournament or entertainment; but this was improbable,
+as the queen would always have an escort of knights with her, and no
+attempt could be successful except at the cost of a public fracas and
+much loss of blood. Cuthbert regarded as out of the question that an
+outrage of this kind would be attempted.
+
+The fact that one of the speakers in the tent had used the words "my
+sons," showed that one priest or monk, at least, was connected with the
+plot. It was possible that this man might have power in one of the
+monasteries, or he might be an agent of the bishop himself; and Cuthbert
+saw that it would be easy enough in the night for a party from one or
+other of the monasteries to enter by the door of communication with the
+palace, and carry off the princess without the slightest alarm being
+given. Once within the walls of the convent she could be either hidden
+in the dungeons or secret places, which buildings of that kind were sure
+to possess, or could be at once carried out by some quiet entrance, and
+taken into the country, or transferred to some other building in the
+town.
+
+When Cuthbert joined the earl he told him the observations that he had
+made, and Sir Walter praised the judgment which he had shown in his
+conclusions. The earl was of opinion that it would be absolutely
+necessary to get some clew as to the course which the abductors purposed
+to take; indeed it was possible that on after-consideration they might
+drop their plan altogether, for the words which Cuthbert had overheard
+scarcely betokened a plan completely formed and finally decided upon.
+
+The great point he considered, therefore, was that the tent of his old
+enemy should be carefully watched, and that an endeavor should be made
+to hear something of what passed within, which might give a clew to the
+plan fixed upon. They did not, of course, know whether the tent in which
+the conversation had been heard by Cuthbert was that of Sir de Jacquelin
+Barras, or of one of the other persons who had spoken; and Cuthbert
+suggested that the first thing would be to find out whether the count,
+after nightfall, was in the habit of going to some other tent, or
+whether, on the other hand, he remained within and was visited by
+others.
+
+It was easy, of course, to discover which was his tent; and Cuthbert
+soon got its position, and then took Cnut into his counsels.
+
+"The matter is difficult," Cnut said, "and I see no way by which a watch
+can be kept up by day; but after dark--I have several men in my band who
+can track a deer, and surely could manage to follow the steps of this
+baron without being observed. There is little Jack, who is no bigger
+than a boy of twelve, although he can shoot, and run, and play with the
+quarterstaff, or, if need be, with the bill, against the best man in the
+troop. I warrant me that if you show him the tent he will keep such
+sharp watch that no one shall enter or depart without his knowing where
+they go to. On a dark night he will be able to slip among the tents, and
+to move here and there without being seen. He can creep on his stomach
+without moving a leaf, and trust me the eyes of these French
+men-at-arms will look in vain for a glimpse of him."
+
+"You understand, Cnut, all that I want to know is whether the other
+conspirators in this matter visit his tent, or whether he goes to
+theirs."
+
+"I understand," Cnut said. "That is the first point to be arrived at."
+
+Three days later Cnut brought news that each night after dark a party of
+five men met in the tent that was watched; that one of the five always
+came out when all had assembled, and took his station before the
+entrance of the tent, so as to be sure that no eavesdropper was near.
+
+Cuthbert smiled.
+
+"It is a case of locking the door after the horse has gone."
+
+"What is to be done now?" Cnut asked.
+
+"I will talk with the earl before I tell you, Cnut. This matter is too
+serious for me to take a step without consulting Sir Walter."
+
+That night there was a long talk between the earl and his page as to the
+best course to be pursued. It was clear that their old enemy was the
+leading person in the plot, and that the only plan to baffle it with any
+fair chances of success was to keep a constant eye upon his movements,
+and also to have three or four of the sturdiest men of the band told off
+to watch, without being perceived, each time that the princess was in
+her palace.
+
+The Earl of Evesham left the arrangements entirely in the hands of his
+page, of whose good sense and sagacity he had a very high opinion.
+
+His own first impulse had been to go before the king and denounce the
+Count of Brabant. But the ill-will between them was already well known;
+for not only was there the original dispute at the banquet, but when the
+two armies had joined at Sicily, King Richard, who had heard from the
+earl of the attempt at the assassination of Cuthbert, had laid a
+complaint before King Philip of the conduct of his subject.
+
+Sir de Jacquelin Barras, however, had denied that he had any finger in
+the matter.
+
+"He had," he said, "discharged his page after the encounter with
+Cuthbert, and knew nothing further whatever of his movements."
+
+Although it was morally certain that the page could not have purchased
+the services of the men who assisted him, from his own purse, or gain
+them by any means of persuasion, but that they were either the followers
+of the Count of Brabant, or ruffians hired with his money, as no proof
+could be obtained the matter was allowed to drop.
+
+The earl felt, however, that an accusation against the count by him of
+an intention to commit a high crime, and this merely on the evidence of
+his page, would appear like an attempt to injure the fame of his rival.
+
+Feeling, therefore, that nothing could be done save to watch, he left
+the matter entirely in the hands of his page, telling him that he could
+take as many men-at-arms or archers as he might choose and use them in
+his name.
+
+Cnut entered warmly into Cuthbert's plans; and finally it was arranged
+between them that six of the archers should nightly keep watch opposite
+the various entrances of the bishop's palace and of the two monasteries
+joining. Of course, they could not patrol up and down without attracting
+attention, but they were to take up posts where they could closely
+observe the entrances, and were either to lie down and feign drunken
+sleep, or to conceal themselves within the shadow of an arch or other
+hiding-place.
+
+Down on the seashore Cuthbert made an arrangement with one of the owners
+of small craft lying there that ten of his men should sleep on board
+every night, together with some fishermen accustomed to the use of the
+oar.
+
+Cuthbert himself determined to be always with this party.
+
+Night after night passed, and so long a time went by that Cuthbert began
+to think the design must have been given up.
+
+However, he resolved to relax none of his watchfulness during the
+remaining time that the expedition might stop in Sicily.
+
+It was in January, three weeks after the first watch had been set, when
+one of the men who had been placed to watch the entrance to one of the
+monasteries leaped on board the craft and shook Cuthbert by the
+shoulder.
+
+"A party of some five men," he said, "have just issued out from the
+monastery. They are bearing a burden--what, I cannot see. They were
+making in the direction of the water. I whistled to Dion who was next to
+me in the lane. He is following them, and I came on to tell you to
+prepare."
+
+The night was pitch-dark, and it was difficult in the extreme to see any
+one moving at a short distance off.
+
+There were two or three streets that led from the monastery, which stood
+at the top of the town, toward the sea; and a party coming down might
+take any of these, according to the position in which the boat they were
+seeking was placed.
+
+Cuthbert now instantly sent five or six of his men with instructions to
+avoid all noise, along the line of the port, with orders to bring in
+word should anyone come down and take boat, or should they hear any
+noise in the town. He himself with the sailors loosed the ropes which
+fastened the boat to shore, got out the oars, and prepared to put off at
+a moment's notice.
+
+He was of course ignorant whether the abductor would try to carry the
+princess off by water, or would hide her in one of the convents of the
+town; but he was inclined to think that the former would be the course
+adopted; for the king in his wrath would be ready to lay the town in
+flames, and to search every convent from top to bottom for the princess.
+Besides, there would be too many aware of the secret.
+
+Cuthbert was not wrong in his supposition.
+
+Soon the man he had sent to the extreme right came running up with the
+news that a boat had embarked at the further end with a party of some
+ten men on board. As he came along he had warned the others, and in five
+minutes the whole party were collected in the craft, numbering in all
+twelve of Cuthbert's men and six sailors. They instantly put out, and
+rowed in the direction in which the boat would have gone, the boatmen
+expressing their opinion that probably the party would make for a vessel
+which was lying anchored at some little distance from shore. The
+bearings of the position of this ship was known to the boatmen, but the
+night was so dark that they were quite unable to find it. Orders had
+been given that no sound or whisper was to be heard on board the boat;
+and after rowing as far as they could the boatmen said they were in the
+direction of the ship.
+
+The boatmen all lay on their oars, and all listened intently. Presently
+the creaking of a pulley was heard in the still night, at a distance of
+a few hundred yards. This was enough. It was clear that the vessel was
+getting up sail. The boat's head was turned in that direction; the crew
+rowed steadily but noiselessly, and in a few minutes the tall mast of a
+vessel could be seen faintly against the sky. Just as they perceived the
+situation, a hail from on board showed that their approach was now
+observed.
+
+"Stretch to your oars," Cuthbert said, "we must make a dash for it now."
+
+The rowers bent to their work and in a minute the boat ran alongside the
+craft.
+
+As Cuthbert and his followers scrambled upon the deck they were attacked
+by those of the crew and passengers who were standing near; but it was
+evident at once that the chiefs of the expedition had not heard the
+hail, and that there was no general plan of defense against them.
+
+It was not until the last of them had gained a footing and were
+beginning to fight their way along the vessel that from below three or
+four men-at-arms ran up, and one in a tone of authority demanded what
+was the matter. When he heard the clash of swords and the shouts of the
+combatants he put himself at once at the head of the party and a fierce
+and obstinate fight now took place.
+
+The assailants had, however, the advantage.
+
+Cuthbert and his men were all lightly clad, and this on the deck of a
+ship lumbered with ropes and gear, and in the dark, was a great
+advantage, for the mailed men-at-arms frequently stumbled and fell. The
+fight lasted for several minutes. Cnut, who was armed with a heavy mace,
+did great service, for with each of his sweeping blows he broke down the
+guard of an opponent, and generally leveled him to the deck.
+
+The numbers at the beginning of the fight were not unequal, but the men
+to whom the vessel belonged made but a faint resistance when they
+perceived that the day was going against them. The men-at-arms, however,
+consisting of three, who appeared to be the leaders, and of eight
+pikemen fought stubbornly and well.
+
+Cuthbert was not long in detecting in the tones of the man who was
+clearly at the head of affairs the voice of Sir de Jacquelin Barras. To
+do him justice he fought with extreme bravery, and when almost all his
+followers were cut down or beaten overboard, he resisted stanchly and
+well. With a heavy two-handed sword he cleaved a space at the end of the
+boat, and kept the whole of Cuthbert's party at bay.
+
+At last Cnut, who had been engaged elsewhere, came to the front, and a
+tough fight ensued between them.
+
+It might have ended badly for the brave forester, for his lack of armor
+gave an enormous advantage to his opponent. Soon, however, the count's
+foot slipped on the boards of the deck, and before he could recover
+himself the mace of Cnut descended with tremendous force upon his head,
+which was unprotected, as he had taken off his casque on arriving at the
+ship. Without a word or a cry the count fell forward on the deck, killed
+as a bullock by a blow of a poleax.
+
+While this conflict had been going on, occasionally the loud screams of
+a woman had been heard below.
+
+Cuthbert, attended by Cnut and two of his followers, now descended.
+
+At the bottom of the steps they found a man-at-arms placed at the door
+of a cabin. He challenged as they approached, but being speedily
+convinced that the vessel was in their hands, and that his employer and
+party were all conquered, he made a virtue of necessity, and laid down
+his arms.
+
+"You had better go in alone," Cnut said, "Master Cuthbert. The lady is
+less likely to be frightened by your appearance than by us, for she must
+wonder indeed what is going on."
+
+On entering the cabin, which had evidently been fitted up for the use of
+a lady, Cuthbert saw standing at the other end the princess, whom of
+course he knew well by sight. A lamp was burning in the cabin, and by
+its light he could see that her face was deadly pale. Her robes were
+torn and disarranged, and she wore a look at once of grave alarm and
+surprise upon seeing a handsomely dressed page enter with a deep
+reverence.
+
+"What means this outrage, young sir? Whoever you be, I warn you that the
+King of England will revenge this indignity."
+
+"Your highness," Cuthbert said, "you have no further reason for alarm;
+the knaves who carried you off from the bishop's palace and conveyed you
+to this ship are all either killed or in our power. I am the page of the
+Earl of Evesham, a devoted follower of King Richard. Some of the designs
+of the bold men came to the ears of my lord, and he ordered me and a
+band of his followers to keep good guard over the palace and buildings
+adjoining. We were unable to gather our strength in time to prevent your
+being taken on board, but we lost no time in putting forth when we found
+that your abductors had taken boat, and by good fortune arrived here in
+time; a few minutes later, and the knaves would have succeeded in their
+object, for the sails were already being hoisted, and the vessel making
+way, when we arrived. Your abductors are all either killed or thrown
+overboard, and the vessel's head is now turned toward the shore, and I
+hope in a few minutes to have the honor of escorting you to the palace."
+
+The princess, with a sigh of much satisfaction and relief, sank on to a
+couch.
+
+"I am indeed indebted to you, young sir," she said. "Believe me, the
+Princess Berengaria is not ungrateful, and should it be ever in her
+power to do aught for your lord, or for yourself, or for those who have
+accompanied you to rescue her, believe me that she will do it."
+
+"May I be so bold as to ask a boon?" Cuthbert said, dropping on one knee
+before her.
+
+"It is granted at once, whatever it be, if in my power."
+
+"My boon is, lady," he said, "that you will do your best to assuage the
+natural anger which the King of England will feel at this bold and most
+violent attempt. That he should be told, is of course necessary; but,
+lady, much depends upon the telling, and I am sure that at your request
+the king would restrain his anger. Were it not for that, I fear that
+such quarrels and disputes might arise as would bring the two armies to
+blows, and destroy forever all hope of the successful termination of
+our joint enterprise."
+
+"You are a wise and good youth," the princess said, holding out her hand
+to Cuthbert, which, as duty bound, he placed to his lips. "Your request
+is wise and most thoughtful. I will use any poor influence which I may
+possess"--and Cuthbert could see that the blood came back now to the
+white face--"to induce King Richard to allow the matter to pass over.
+There is no reason why he should take up the case. I am no more under
+his protection than under that of the King of France, and it is to the
+latter I should appeal, for as I believe the men who abducted me were
+his subjects."
+
+"The leader of them, madam, was a certain Sir de Jacquelin Barras, a
+Count of Brabant, with whom my master has had an old feud, and who has
+been just killed by the leader of our men-at-arms. The others, who have
+had the most active hand in the matter, have also perished; and it
+would, I think be doubtful whether any clew could be obtained of those
+who were in league with them. The only man in the party who is alive was
+placed as a sentry at your door, and as he is but a man-at-arms we may
+be sure that he knows naught of the enterprise, but has merely carried
+out the orders of his master."
+
+The vessel had by this time brought up close to the port. The princess
+determined to wait on board until the first dawn was seen in the skies,
+and then under the escort of her deliverers to go back to the palace,
+before the town was moving. This plan was carried out, and soon after
+dawn the princess was safe in the palace from which she had been carried
+a few hours previously.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+PIRATES.
+
+
+It was not possible that a matter of this sort could be entirely hushed
+up. Not many hours passed before rumors were current of events which had
+taken place, though none knew what those events were.
+
+There were reports that the tire-woman of the Princess Berengaria had in
+the night discovered that her mistress' couch was unoccupied, that she
+had found signs of a struggle, and had picked up a dagger on the floor,
+where it had evidently fallen from the sheath; also it was said that the
+princess had returned at daylight escorted by an armed party, and that
+she was unable to obtain entrance to the palace until one of the ladies
+of the queen had been fetched down to order the sentries at the gate to
+allow her to enter.
+
+This was the news which rumor carried through the camp. Few, however,
+believed it, and none who could have enlightened them opened their lips
+upon the subject.
+
+It was known, however, that a messenger had come to King Richard early,
+and that he had at once mounted and ridden off to the bishop's palace.
+What had happened there none could say, but there were rumors that his
+voice had been heard in furious outbursts of passion. He remained there
+until the afternoon, when he sent for a number of his principal nobles.
+
+When these arrived they found him standing on a daïs in the principal
+hall of the palace, and he there formally introduced to them the
+Princess Berengaria as his affianced wife. The ceremony of the marriage,
+he told them, would shortly take place.
+
+This announcement caused a tremendous stir in both armies. The English,
+who had never been favorable to the alliance with the French princess,
+were glad to hear that this was broken off, and were well content that
+the Princess Berengaria should be their future queen, for her beauty,
+high spirit, and kindness had won all hearts.
+
+On the part of the French, on the other hand, there was great
+indignation, and for some time it was feared that the armies would come
+to open blows.
+
+King Philip, however, although much angered, was politic enough to
+deprecate any open outbreak. He knew that a dispute now began would not
+only at once put a stop to the Crusade, but that it might lead to more
+serious consequences at home. The fiery bravery of the English king,
+backed as it would be by the whole strength of his subjects, might
+render him a very formidable opponent; and the king felt that private
+grievances must be laid aside where the good of France was concerned.
+
+Still the coldness between the armies increased, their camps were moved
+further apart, and during the time that they remained in Sicily there
+was but little commerce between the two forces.
+
+As soon as the winter had broken the French monarch broke up his camp,
+and in March sailed for the Holy Land.
+
+The English had expected that the marriage ceremony of the king and
+Princess Berengaria would be celebrated before they left Sicily, but
+this was not the case. There were high joustings and _fêtes_ in honor of
+the princess, but the marriage was delayed. A fortnight after the French
+had sailed the English embarked in the two hundred ships which had been
+prepared, and sailed also on their way to Acre.
+
+It must not be supposed that the attempted abduction of the Princess
+Berengaria was unimportant in its results to Cuthbert.
+
+After returning from the palace the king, who had heard from her the
+details of what had taken place, and the names of her rescuers, sent for
+the Earl of Evesham. The latter had of course learned from Cuthbert all
+that had happened, and had expressed his high approval of his conduct,
+and his gratification at the result.
+
+"I learn, Sir Earl," said King Richard, "that it is to you that I am
+indebted for the rescue of the princess. She tells me that suspecting
+some plot you placed a guard around the bishop's palace, with a strong
+body on the shore ready to rescue her from the hands of any who might
+attempt to take her to sea."
+
+"It is as you say, sire," replied the earl; "but the whole merit of the
+affair rests upon my page, the lad whom you may remember as having
+fought with and conquered the French page, and of whose conduct you then
+approved highly. You may also remember that he escaped by some display
+of bravery and shrewdness the further attempts to assassinate him, and
+your majesty was good enough to make a complaint to King Philip of the
+conduct of one of his nobles on that head. It seems that some two months
+since the lad in coming through the French camp at night missed his way,
+and accidentally overheard a few words spoken in a voice which he
+recognized as that of his enemy. The name of your majesty being
+mentioned, he deemed it his duty to listen, and thus discovered that a
+plot was on foot for carrying off the princess. After consultation with
+me, we agreed upon the course to be adopted, namely, to place sentries
+round the bishop's place and the buildings adjoining, who should follow
+and bring word should she be taken to another place in town, while a
+band was placed on the shore in readiness to interfere at once to
+prevent her being carried away by sea. He undertook the management of
+all details, having with him a trusty squire who commands my Saxon
+bowmen."
+
+"For your own part I thank you, my lord," the king said, "and, believe
+me, you shall not find Richard ungrateful. As to your page, he appears
+brave and wise beyond his years. Were it not that I think that it would
+not be good for him, and might attract some envy upon the part of
+others, I would at once make him a knight. He already has my promise
+that I will do so on the first occasion when he can show his prowess
+upon the infidels. Bring him to me to-morrow, when the princess will be
+here with the Queen of Navarre at a banquet. I would fain thank him
+before her; and, although I have agreed--at the princess' earnest
+solicitation--to take no further notice of the matter, and to allow it
+to pass as if it had not been, yet I cannot forgive the treachery which
+has been used, and without letting all know exactly what has occurred
+would fain by my reception of your page let men see that something of
+great import has happened, of the nature of which I doubt not that rumor
+will give some notion."
+
+Upon the following day, therefore, Cuthbert to his confusion found
+himself the center of the royal circle. The king expressed himself to
+him in the most gracious manner, patting him on the shoulder, and said
+that he would be one day one of the best and bravest of his knights. The
+princess and the Queen of Navarre gave him their hands to kiss, and
+somewhat overwhelmed, he withdrew from the royal presence, the center of
+attention, and, in some minds, of envy.
+
+Cnut too did not pass unrewarded.
+
+His majesty, finding that Cnut was of gentle Saxon blood, gave him a
+gold chain in token of his favor, and distributed a heavy purse among
+the men who had followed him.
+
+When the British fleet, numbering two hundred ships, set sail from
+Sicily, it was a grand and martial sight. From the masts were the colors
+of England and those of the nobles who commanded; while the pennons of
+the knights, the bright plumes and mantles, the flash of armor and arms
+made the decks alive with light and color.
+
+The king's ship advanced in the van, and round him were the vessels
+containing his principal followers. The Queen of Navarre and the
+Princess Berengaria were with the fleet. Strains of music rose from the
+waters, and never were the circumstances of war exhibited in a more
+picturesque form.
+
+For two days the expedition sailed on, and then a change of a sudden and
+disastrous kind took place.
+
+"What is all this bustle about?" Cuthbert said to Cnut. "The sailors are
+running up the ladders, all seems confusion."
+
+"Methinks," said Cnut, "that we are about to have a storm. A few minutes
+ago scarce a cloud was to be seen; now that bank over there has risen
+halfway up the sky. The sailors are accustomed to these treacherous
+seas, and the warnings which we have not noticed have no doubt been
+clear enough to them."
+
+With great rapidity the sails of the fleet came down, and in five
+minutes its whole aspect was changed; but quickly as the sailors had
+done their work, the storm was even more rapid in its progress. Some of
+the ships whose crews were slower or less skillful than the others were
+caught by the gale before they could get their sails snug, and the great
+sheets of white canvas were blown from the bolt-ropes as if made of
+paper, and a blackness which could almost be felt covered the sea, the
+only light being that given by the frothing waters. There was no longer
+any thought of order. Each ship had to shift for herself; and each
+captain to do his best to save those under his charge, without thought
+of what might befall the others.
+
+In the ship which carried the Earl of Evesham's contingent, order and
+discipline prevailed. The earl's voice had been heard at the first puff
+of wind, shouting to the men to go below, save a few who might be of use
+to haul at ropes. His standard was lowered, the bright flags removed
+from the sides of the ship, the shields which were hanging over the
+bulwarks were hurriedly taken below, and when the gale smote them the
+ship was trim, and in readiness to receive it. A few square yards of
+sail alone were all that the captain had thought it prudent to keep
+spread, and in a minute from the time she was struck the lofty hulk was
+tearing along through the waters at a tremendous speed. Four of the best
+hands were placed at the helm; and here the captain took his post.
+
+The danger was now that in the darkness they might run against one of
+their consorts. Even in the war of the elements they could hear from
+time to time crashes as of vessels striking against each other, with
+shouts and cries. Once or twice from the darkness ships emerged, close
+on one hand or the other; but the steadiness of the captain in each case
+saved the ship from collision.
+
+As the storm continued these glimpses of other vessels became more and
+more rare, and the ship being a very fast sailer, the captain indulged
+the hope that he was now clear of the rest of the fleet.
+
+He now attempted to lie-to to the storm, but the wind was too strong.
+The ships in those days, too, were so high out of the water, and offered
+in themselves such a target to the wind, that it was useless to adopt
+any other maneuver than to run before it.
+
+For two days and nights the tempest raged.
+
+"What think you," the earl said to the captain, "of our position? Where
+are we, and where will the course upon which we are running take us?"
+
+"I cannot say with certainty," the captain said, "for the wind has
+shifted several times. I had hoped to gain the shelter of Rhodes, but a
+shift of wind bore us away from there, and I much fear that from the
+direction in which we have been running we must be very nigh on the
+coast of Africa."
+
+"_Peste!_" the earl said. "That would indeed be a speedy end to our
+Crusade. These Moors are pirates and cutthroats to a man; and even
+should we avoid the risk of being dashed to pieces, we should end our
+lives as slaves to one of these black infidels."
+
+Three hours later the captain's prophecies turned out right. Breakers
+were seen in various points in front, and with the greatest difficulty
+the vessel was steered through an opening between them; but in another
+few minutes she struck heavily, one of her masts went over the side, and
+she lay fast and immovable. Fortunately, the outside bank of sand acted
+as a sort of breakwater; had she struck upon this the good ship would
+have gone to pieces instantly; but although the waves still struck her
+with considerable force, the captain had good hope that she would not
+break up. Darkness came on; the tempest seemed to lull. As there was no
+immediate danger, and all were exhausted by the tossing which they had
+received during the last forty-eight hours, the crew of the Rose slept
+soundly.
+
+In the morning the sun rose brilliantly, and there was no sign of the
+great storm which had scattered the fleet of England. The shore was to
+be seen at a distance of some four miles. It was low and sandy, with
+lofty mountains in the distance. Far inland a white town with minaret
+and dome could be seen.
+
+"Know you where we are?" the earl asked.
+
+"As far as I can tell," the captain said, "we have been driven up the
+bay called the Little Syrtis--a place full of shoals and shallows, and
+abounding with pirates of the worst kind."
+
+"Think you that the ship has suffered injury?"
+
+"Whether she has done so or not," the captain said, "I fear greatly
+that she is fast in the sand, and even the lightening of all her cargo
+will scarce get her off; but we must try at least."
+
+"It is little time that we shall have to try, Master Captain," Cuthbert,
+who was standing close, said. "Me thinks those two long ships which are
+putting out from that town will have something to say to that."
+
+"It is too true," the captain said. "Those are the galleys of the
+Moorish corsairs. They are thirty or forty oars, draw but little water,
+and will be here like the wind."
+
+"What do you advise?" asked the earl. "The falconets which you have upon
+the poop can make but a poor resistance to boats that can row around us,
+and are no doubt furnished with heavy metal. They will quickly perceive
+that we are aground and defenseless, and will be able to plump their
+shot into us until they have knocked the good ship to pieces. However,
+we will fight to the last. It shall not be said that the Earl of Evesham
+was taken by infidel dogs and sold as a slave, without striking a blow
+in his defense."
+
+Cuthbert stood watching the corsairs, which were now rowing toward them
+at all speed.
+
+"Methinks, my lord," he said presently, "if I might venture to give an
+opinion, that we might yet trick the infidel."
+
+"As how, Cuthbert?" the earl said. "Speak out; you know that I have
+great faith in your sagacity."
+
+"I think, sir," the page said, "that did we send all your men below,
+leaving only the crew of the vessel on deck, they would take us for a
+merchant ship which has been wrecked here, and exercise but little care
+how they approach us. The men on deck might make a show of firing once
+or twice with the falconets. The pirates, disdaining such a foe, would
+row alongside. Once there, we might fasten one or both to our side with
+grapnels, and then, methinks, that English bill and bow will render us
+more than a match for Moorish pirates, and one of these craft can
+scarcely carry more men than we have. I should propose to take one of
+them by force, and drive the pirates overboard; take possession of, if
+possible, or beat off her consort; and then take the most valuable
+stores from the ship and make our way as best we can to the north."
+
+"Well thought of!" exclaimed the earl cordially. "You have indeed
+imagined a plan which promises well. What think you, captain?"
+
+"I think, my lord," the Genoese said, "that the plan is an excellent
+one, and promises every success. If your men will all go below, holding
+their arms in readiness for the signal, mine shall prepare grapnels and
+ropes, and the first of these craft which comes alongside they will lash
+so securely to the Rose that I warrant me she gets not away."
+
+These preparations were soon made.
+
+The soldiers, who at first had been filled with apprehension at the
+thought of slavery among the infidels, were now delighted at the
+prospect of a struggle ending in escape.
+
+The archers prepared their bows and arrows, and stood behind the
+portholes in readiness to pour a volley into the enemy; the men-at-arms
+grasped their pikes and swords; while above, the sailors moved hither
+and thither as if making preparations for defense, but in reality
+preparing the grapnels and ropes.
+
+One of the pirates was faster than the other, and soon coming within
+reach, opened fire upon the Rose with a heavy cannon, which she carried
+in her bow.
+
+The crew of the Rose replied with their falconets and sakers from the
+poop.
+
+The corsair at first did not keep her course direct for the ship, but
+rowed once or twice round her, firing as she did so. Then, apparently
+satisfied that no great precaution need be observed with a feebly-manned
+ship in so great a strait as the Rose, they set up a wild cry of
+"Allah!" and rowed toward her.
+
+In two minutes the corsair was alongside of the Rose, and the fierce
+crew were climbing up her sides. As she came alongside the sailors cast
+grapnels into her rigging, and fastened her to the Rose; and then a loud
+shout of "Hurrah for England!" was heard; the ports opened, and a volley
+of arrows was poured upon the astonished corsair; and from the deck
+above the assailants were thrown back into the galley, and a swarm of
+heavily armed men leaped down from the ship upon them.
+
+Taken by surprise, and indeed outnumbered, the resistance of the
+corsairs was but slight. In a close fierce _mêlée_ like this the
+light-armed Moors had but little chance with the mail-clad English,
+whose heavy swords and axes clove their defenses at a blow. The fight
+lasted but three minutes, and then the last of the corsairs was
+overboard.
+
+The men who rowed the galley had uttered the most piercing cries while
+this conflict had been raging. They were unable to take any part in it,
+had they been disposed to do so, for they were all slaves chained to the
+oars.
+
+Scarcely had the conflict ended when the other galley arrived upon the
+scene; but seeing what had happened, and that her consort had fallen
+into the hands of the English, she at once turned her head, and rowed
+back rapidly to the town from which she had come.
+
+Among the slaves who rowed the galley were many white men, and their
+cries of joy at their liberation greatly affected those who had thus
+unexpectedly rescued them. Hammers were soon brought into requisition,
+the shackles struck off them, and a scene of affecting joy took place.
+The slaves were of all nationalities, but Italians and Spaniards, French
+and Greeks formed the principal part. There was no time, however, to be
+lost; the arms and munitions of war were hastily removed from the Rose,
+together with the most valuable of the stores.
+
+The galley-slaves again took their places, and this time willingly, at
+the oars, the places of the weakest being supplied by the English,
+whose want of skill was made up by the alacrity with which they threw
+their strength into the work; and in an hour from the time that the
+galley had arrived alongside of the Rose, her head was turned north, and
+with sixty oars she was rowing at all speed for the mouth of the bay.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+IN THE HOLY LAND.
+
+
+As soon as the galley which had escaped reached the town from which it
+had started, it with three others at once set out in pursuit; while from
+a narrow creek two other galleys made their appearance.
+
+There were a few words of question among the English whether to stop and
+give battle to these opponents, or to make their way with all speed. The
+latter counsel prevailed; the earl pointing out that their lives were
+now scarcely their own, and that they had no right on their way to the
+holy sepulcher to risk them unnecessarily.
+
+Fortunately they had it in their hands to fight or escape, as they
+chose; for doubly banked as the oars now were there was little chance of
+the enemy's galleys overtaking them. Gradually as they rowed to sea the
+pursuing vessels became smaller and smaller to view, until at last they
+were seen to turn about and make again for land.
+
+After some consultation between the earl and the captain of the lost
+ship it was determined to make for Rhodes. This had been settled as a
+halting point for the fleet, and the earl thought it probable that the
+greater portion of those scattered by the storm would rendezvous there.
+
+So it proved; after a voyage, which although not very long was tedious,
+owing to the number of men cramped up in so small a craft, they came
+within sight of the port of Rhodes, and were greatly pleased at seeing a
+perfect forest of masts there, showing that at least the greater portion
+of the fleet had survived the storm.
+
+This was indeed the fact, and a number of other single ships dropped in
+during the next day or two.
+
+There was great astonishment on the part of the fleet when the long,
+swift galley was seen approaching, and numerous conjectures were offered
+as to what message the pirates could be bringing--for there was no
+mistaking the appearance of the long, dangerous-looking craft.
+
+When, upon her approach, the standard of the Earl of Evesham was seen
+flying on the bow, a great shout of welcome arose from the fleet; and
+King Richard himself, who happened to be on the deck of the royal ship,
+shouted to the earl to come on board and tell him what masquerading he
+was doing there. The earl of course obeyed the order, anchoring near the
+royal vessel, and going on board in a small boat, taking with him his
+page and squire.
+
+The king heard with great interest the tale of the adventures of the
+Rose; and when the Earl of Evesham said that it was to Cuthbert that was
+due the thought of the stratagem by which the galley was captured, and
+its crew saved from being carried away into hopeless slavery, the king
+patted the boy on the shoulder with such hearty force as nearly to throw
+Cuthbert off his feet.
+
+"By St. George!" said the monarch, "you are fated to be a very pink of
+knights. You seem as thoughtful as you are brave; and whatever your age
+may be, I declare that the next time your name is brought before me I
+will call a chapter of knights, and they shall agree that exception
+shall be made in your favor, and that you shall at once be admitted to
+the honorable post. You will miss your page, Sir Walter; but I am sure
+you will not grudge him that."
+
+"No, no, sire," said the earl. "The lad, as I have told your majesty, is
+a connection of mine--distant it is true, but one of the nearest I
+have--and it will give me the greatest pleasure to see him rising so
+rapidly, and on a fair way to distinguish himself so highly. I feel
+already as proud of him as if he were my own son."
+
+The fleet remained some two or three weeks at Rhodes, for many of the
+vessels were sorely buffeted and injured, masts were carried away as
+well as bulwarks battered in, and the efforts of the crews and of those
+of the whole of the artificers of Rhodes were called into requisition.
+Light sailing craft were sent off in all directions, for the king was in
+a fever of anxiety. Among the vessels still missing was that which bore
+the Queen of Navarre and the fair Berengaria.
+
+One day a solitary vessel was seen approaching. "Another of our lost
+sheep," the earl said, looking out over the poop.
+
+She proved, however, to be a merchant ship of Greece, and newly come
+from Cyprus.
+
+Her captain went on board the royal ship, and delivered a message to the
+king, to the effect that two of the vessels had been cast upon the coast
+of Cyprus, that they had been plundered by the people, the crews
+ill-treated and made prisoners by the king, and that the Queen of
+Navarre and the princess were in their hands.
+
+This roused King Richard into one of his furies. "Before I move a step
+toward the Holy Land," he said, "I will avenge these injuries upon this
+faithless and insolent king. I swear that I will make him pay dearly for
+having laid a hand upon these ladies."
+
+At once the signal was hoisted for all the vessels in a condition to
+sail to take on board water and provisions, and to prepare to sail for
+Cyprus; and the next morning at daybreak the fleet sailed out, and made
+their way toward that island, casting anchor off the harbor of
+Famagosta.
+
+King Richard sent a messenger on shore to the king, ordering him at once
+to release the prisoners; to make the most ample compensation to them;
+to place ships at their service equal to those which had been destroyed;
+and to pay a handsome sum of money as indemnity.
+
+The King of Cyprus, however, an insolent and haughty despot, sent back
+a message of defiance. King Richard at once ordered the anchors to be
+raised, and all to follow the royal ship.
+
+The fleet entered the harbor of Famagosta; the English archers began the
+fight by sending a flight of arrows into the town. This was answered
+from the walls by a shower of stones and darts from the machines.
+
+There was no time wasted. The vessels were headed toward the shore, and
+as the water was deep, many of them were able to run close alongside the
+rocky wharves. In an instant, regardless of the storm of weapons poured
+down by the defenders, the English leaped ashore.
+
+The archers kept up so terrible a rain of missiles against the
+battlements that the defenders could scarcely show themselves for an
+instant there, and the men-at-arms, placing ladders against them,
+speedily mounted, and putting aside all opposition, poured into the
+town. The effeminate Greek soldiers of the monarch could offer no
+effectual resistance whatever, and he himself fled from the palace and
+gained the open country, followed by a few adherents. The English gained
+a considerable booty, for in those days a town taken by assault was
+always looked upon as the property of the captors. The Queen of Navarre
+and the princess were rescued.
+
+King Richard, however, was not satisfied with the success he had gained,
+and was determined to punish this insolent little king. Accordingly the
+English were set in motion into the interior, and town after town
+speedily fell, or opened their gate to him. The king, deserted by his
+troops, and detested by his people for having brought so terrible a
+scourge upon them by his reckless conduct, now sued for peace; but King
+Richard would give him no terms except dethronement, and this he was
+forced to accept. He was deprived of his crown, and banished from the
+island.
+
+The king now, to the surprise of his barons, announced his intention of
+at once marrying the Princess Berengaria.
+
+Popular as he was, there was yet some quiet grumbling among his troops;
+as they said, with justice, they had been waiting nearly six months in
+the island of Sicily, and the king might well have married there,
+instead of a fresh delay being caused when so near their place of
+destination.
+
+However, the king as usual had his own way, and the marriage was
+solemnized amid great rejoicing and solemnity.
+
+It was a brilliant scene indeed in the cathedral of Limasol. There were
+assembled all the principal barons of England, together with a great
+number of the nobles of Cyprus.
+
+Certainly no better matched pair ever stood at the altar together, for
+as King Richard was one of the strongest and bravest men of his own or
+any other time, so Berengaria is admitted to have been one of the
+loveliest maidens.
+
+The air was rent with the acclamations of the assembled English host
+and of the numerous inhabitants of Limasol as they emerged from the
+cathedral. For a fortnight the town was given up to festivity;
+tournaments, joustings, banquets succeeded each other day after day, and
+the islanders, who were fond of pleasure, and indeed very wealthy, vied
+with the English in the entertainments which they gave in honor of the
+occasion.
+
+The festivities over, the king gave the welcome order to proceed on
+their voyage. They had now been joined by all the vessels left behind at
+Rhodes, and it was found that only a few were missing, and that the
+great storm, terrible as it had been, had inflicted less damage upon the
+fleet than was at first feared.
+
+Two days' sail brought them within sight of the white walls of Acre, and
+it was on June 8, 1191, that the fleet sailed into the port of that
+town. Tremendous acclamations greeted the arrival of the English army by
+the host assembled on the shores.
+
+Acre had been besieged for two years, but in vain; and even the arrival
+of the French army under Philip Augustus had failed to turn the scale.
+The inhabitants defended themselves with desperate bravery; every
+assault upon the walls had been repulsed with immense slaughter; and at
+no great distance off the Sultan Saladin, with a large army, was
+watching the progress of the siege.
+
+The fame of King Richard and the English was so great, however, that the
+besiegers had little doubt that his arrival would change the position of
+things; and even the French, in spite of the bad feeling which had
+existed in Sicily, joined with the knights and army of the King of
+Jerusalem in acclaiming the arrival of the English.
+
+Philip Augustus, the French king, was of a somewhat weak and wavering
+disposition. It would have been thought that after his dispute with King
+Richard he would have gladly done all in his power to carry Acre before
+the arrival of his great rival. To the great disappointment of the
+French, however, he declared that he would take no step in the general
+assault until the arrival of Richard; and although the French had given
+some assistance to the besiegers, the army had really remained passive
+for many weeks.
+
+Now, however, that the English had arrived, little time was lost; for
+the moment the dissensions and jealousies between the monarchs were
+patched up, the two hosts naturally imitated the example of their
+sovereigns, and French and English worked side by side in throwing up
+trenches against the walls, in building movable towers for the attack,
+and in preparing for the great onslaught.
+
+The French were the first to finish their preparations, and they
+delivered a tremendous assault upon the walls. The besieged, however,
+did not lose heart, and with the greatest bravery repulsed every
+attempt. The scaling ladders were hurled backward, the towers were
+destroyed by Greek fire; boiling oil was hurled down upon the men who
+advanced under the shelter of machines to undermine the walls; and
+after desperate fighting the French fell back, baffled and beaten.
+
+There was some quiet exultation in the English lines at the defeat of
+the French, for they believed that a better fortune would crown their
+own efforts. Such, however, to their surprise and mortification, was not
+the case. When their preparations were completed they attacked with
+splendid bravery. They were fighting under the eyes of their king and in
+sight of the French army, who had a few days before been baffled; and if
+bravery and devotion could have carried the walls of Acre, assuredly
+King Richard's army would have accomplished the task.
+
+It was, however, too great for them, and with vast loss the army fell
+back to its camp, King Richard raging like a wounded lion. Many of his
+barons had been killed in the assault, and the pikemen and men-at-arms
+had suffered heavily. The Earl of Evesham had been wounded; Cuthbert had
+taken no part in the assault, for the earl, knowing his bravery, had
+forbidden his doing so, as he foresaw the struggle would be of the most
+desperate character; and as it was not usual for pages to accompany
+their lords on the battlefield, Cuthbert could not complain of his being
+forbidden to take part in the fight.
+
+The earl, however, permitted him to accompany Cnut and the bowmen, who
+did great service by the accuracy of their aim, preventing by their
+storm of arrows the men on the battlements from taking steady aim and
+working their machines, and so saved the Earl of Evesham's troop and
+those fighting near him from suffering nearly as heavy loss as some of
+those engaged in other quarters.
+
+But while successful in beating off all assaults, the defenders of Acre
+were now nearly at the end of their resources. The Emperor Saladin,
+although he had collected an army of two hundred thousand men, yet
+feared to advance and give battle to the Crusaders in their own
+lines--for they had thrown up round their camp strong intrenchments to
+prevent the progress of the siege being disturbed by forces from
+without.
+
+The people of Acre seeing the time pass and no sign of a rescuing force,
+their provisions being utterly exhausted, and pestilence and fever
+making frightful ravages in the city, at last determined to surrender.
+
+For over two years they had made a resistance of the most valiant
+description, and now, despairing of success or rescue, and seeing the
+hosts of their besiegers increasing day by day, they hoisted a flag upon
+the walls and sent a deputation to the kings, asking for terms if they
+submitted. They would have done well had they submitted upon the arrival
+of the French and English reinforcements. For the monarchs, annoyed by
+the defeat of their forces and by the heavy losses they had sustained,
+and knowing that the besieged were now at their last crust, were not
+disposed to be merciful.
+
+However, the horrors which then attended the capture of cities in a war
+in which so little quarter was given on either side were avoided. The
+city was to be surrendered; the much-prized relic contained within its
+walls--said to be a piece of the true cross which had been captured by
+the Saracens at the battle of Tiberias, in which they had almost
+annihilated the Christian armies a few years before--was to be
+surrendered; the Christian prisoners in their hands were to be given up
+unharmed; and the inhabitants undertook to pay two hundred thousand
+pieces of gold to the kings within forty days, under the condition that
+the fighting men now taken prisoners were to be put to death should this
+ransom not be paid.
+
+The conquest of Acre was hailed throughout Christendom as a triumph of
+the highest importance. It opened again the gates of the Holy Land; and
+so tremendous was the strength of the fortress that it was deemed that
+if this stronghold were unable to resist effectually the arms of the
+Crusaders, and that if Saladin with so great an army did not dare to
+advance to its rescue, then the rest of the Holy Land would speedily
+fall under the hands of the invading army.
+
+With the fall of Acre, however, the dissensions between the two kings,
+which had for awhile been allowed to rest while the common work was to
+be done, broke out again with renewed intensity. The jealousy of Philip
+Augustus was raised to the highest point by the general enthusiasm of
+the combined armies for the valiant King of England, and by the
+authority which that monarch exercised in the councils. He therefore
+suddenly announced his intention of returning to France.
+
+This decision at first occasioned the greatest consternation in the
+ranks of the Crusaders; but this feeling was lessened when the king
+announced that he should leave a large portion of the French army
+behind, under the command of the Duke of Burgundy. The wiser councilors
+were satisfied with the change. Although there was a reduction of the
+total fighting force, yet the fact that it was now centered under one
+head, and that King Richard would now be in supreme command, was deemed
+to more than counterbalance the loss of a portion of the French army.
+
+Before starting on the march for Jerusalem King Richard sullied his
+reputation by causing all the defenders of Acre to be put to death,
+their ransom not having arrived at the stipulated time.
+
+Then the allied army set out upon their journey. The fleet cruised along
+near them, and from it they obtained all that was requisite for their
+wants, and yet, notwithstanding these advantages, the toil and fatigue
+were terrible. Roads scarcely existed, and the army marched across the
+rough and broken country. There was no straggling, but each kept his
+place; and if unable to do so, fell and died. The blazing sun poured
+down upon them with an appalling force; the dust which rose when they
+left the rocks and came upon flat, sandy ground almost smothered them.
+Water was only obtainable at the halts, and then was frequently
+altogether insufficient for the wants of the army; while in front, on
+flank, and in rear hovered clouds of the cavalry of Saladin.
+
+At times King Richard would allow parties of his knights to detach
+themselves from the force to drive off these enemies. But it was the
+chase of a lion after a hare. The knights in their heavy armor and
+powerful steeds were left behind as if standing still, by the fleet
+Bedouins on their desert coursers; and the pursuers, exhausted and worn
+out, were always glad to regain the ranks of the army.
+
+These clouds of cavalry belonging to the enemy did not content
+themselves with merely menacing and cutting off stragglers. At times,
+when they thought they saw an opening, they would dash in and attack the
+column desperately, sometimes gaining temporary advantages, killing and
+wounding many, then fleeing away again into the desert.
+
+Finding that it was impossible to catch these wary horsemen, King
+Richard ordered his bowmen to march outside his cavalry, so that when
+the enemy's horse approached within bowshot they should open upon them
+with arrows; then, should the horsemen persist in charging, the archers
+were at once to take refuge behind the lines of the knights.
+
+Day after day passed in harassing conflicts. The distance passed over
+each day was very small, and the sufferings of the men from thirst,
+heat, and fatigue enormous. Cuthbert could well understand now what he
+had heard of great armies melting away, for already men began to succumb
+in large numbers to the terrible heat, and the path traversed by the
+army was scattered with corpses of those who had fallen victims to
+sunstroke. Not even at night did the attacks of the enemy cease, and a
+portion of the harassed force was obliged to keep under arms to repel
+assaults.
+
+So passed the time until the army arrived at Azotus, and there, to the
+delight of the Crusaders, who only longed to get at their foes, they
+beheld the whole force of Saladin, two hundred thousand strong, barring
+their way. Had it not been for the stern discipline enforced by King
+Richard the knights of England and France would have repeated the
+mistake which had caused the extermination of the Christian force at
+Tiberias, and would have leveled their lances and charged recklessly
+into the mass of their enemies. But the king, riding round the flanks
+and front of the force, gave his orders in the sternest way, with the
+threat that any man who moved from the ranks should die by his hand.
+
+The army was halted, the leaders gathered round the king, and a hasty
+consultation was held. Richard insisted upon the fight being conducted
+upon the same principles as the march--that the line of archers should
+stand outside the knights, and should gall the advancing force with
+arrows till the last moment, and then retire among the cavalry, only to
+sally out again as the Bedouins fell back from the steel wall of
+horsemen.
+
+Cuthbert had now for the first time donned full armor, and rode behind
+the Earl of Evesham as his esquire, for the former esquire had been left
+behind, ill with fever at Acre.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+THE ACCOLADE.
+
+
+It was now a year since they had left England, and Cuthbert had much
+grown and widened out in the interval, and had never neglected an
+opportunity of practicing with arms; and the earl was well aware that he
+should obtain as efficient assistance from him in time of need as he
+could desire.
+
+This was the first time that Cuthbert, and indeed the great proportion
+of those present in the Christian host, had seen the enemy in force, and
+they eagerly watched the vast array. It was picturesque in the extreme,
+with a variety and brightness of color rivaling that of the Christian
+host. In banners and pennons the latter made a braver show; but the
+floating robes of the infidel showed a far brighter mass of color than
+the steel armor of the Christians.
+
+Here were people drawn from widely separated parts of Saladin's
+dominions. Here were Nubians from the Nile, tall and powerful men, jet
+black in skin, with lines of red and white paint on their faces, giving
+a ghastly and wild appearance to them. On their shoulders were skins of
+lions and other wild animals. They carried short bows, and heavy clubs
+studded with iron. By them were the Bedouin cavalry, light, sinewy men,
+brown as berries, with white turbans and garments. Near these were the
+cavalry from Syria and the plains of Assyria--wild horsemen with
+semi-barbarous armor and scarlet trappings. Here were the solid lines of
+the Egyptian infantry, steady troops, upon whom Saladin much relied.
+Here were other tribes, gathered from afar, each distinguished by its
+own particular marks. In silence did this vast array view awhile the
+solid mass of the Christians. Suddenly a strange din of discordant music
+from thousands of musical instruments--conches and horns, cymbals and
+drums, arose in wild confusion. Shouts of defiance in a dozen tongues
+and from two hundred thousand throats rose wild and shrill upon the air,
+while clear above all the din were heard the strange vibratory cries of
+the warriors from the Egyptian highlands.
+
+"One would think," said Cnut grimly to Cuthbert, "that the infidels
+imagine we are a flock of antelopes to be frightened by an outcry. They
+would do far better to save their wind for future use. They will want
+it, methinks, when we get fairly among them. Who would have thought that
+a number of men, heathen and infidel though they be, could have made so
+foul an outcry?"
+
+Cuthbert laughed.
+
+"Every one fights according to his own method, Cnut; and I am not sure
+that there is not some thing to be said for this outcry, for it is
+really so wild and fearful that it makes my blood almost curdle in my
+veins; and were it not that I know the proved valor of our knights and
+footmen, I should feel shaken by this terrible introduction to the
+fight."
+
+"I heed it no more," said Cnut, "than the outcry of wild fowl, when one
+comes upon them suddenly on a lake in winter. It means no more than
+that; and I reckon that they are trying to encourage themselves fully as
+much as to frighten us. However, we shall soon see. If they can fight as
+well as they can scream, they certainly will get no answering shouts
+from us. The English bulldog fights silently, and bite as hard as he
+will, you will hear little beyond a low growl. Now, my men," he said,
+turning to his archers, "methinks the heathen are about to begin in
+earnest. Keep steady; do not fire until you are sure that they are
+within range. Draw your bows well to your ears, and straightly and
+steadily let fly. Never heed the outcry or the rush, keep steady to the
+last moment. There is shelter behind you, and fierce as the attack may
+be, you can find a sure refuge behind the line of the knights."
+
+Cnut with his archers formed part of the line outside the array of
+English knights, and the arrows of the English bowmen fell fast as bands
+of the Bedouin horse circled round them in the endeavor to draw the
+Christians on to the attack. For some time Saladin persisted in these
+tactics. With his immense superiority of force he reckoned that if the
+Christian chivalry would but charge him, the victory of Tiberias would
+be repeated. Hemmed in by numbers, borne down by the weight of armor and
+the effects of the blazing sun, the knights would succumb as much to
+fatigue as to the force of their foes. King Richard's orders, however,
+were well obeyed, and at last the Moslem chief, urged by the entreaties
+of his leading emirs, who felt ashamed that so large a force should
+hesitate to attack one so vastly inferior in numbers, determined upon
+taking the initiative, and forming his troops in a semicircle round the
+Christian army, launched his horsemen to the attack. The instant they
+came within range a cloud of arrows from the English archers fell among
+them, but the speed at which the desert horses covered the ground
+rendered it impossible for the archers to discharge more than one or two
+shafts before the enemy were upon them. Quickly as they now slipped back
+and sought refuge under the lances of the knights, many of them were
+unable to get back in time, and were cut down by the Saracens. The rest
+crept between the horses or under their bellies into the rear, and there
+prepared to sally out again as soon as the enemy retired. The Christian
+knights sat like a wall of steel upon their horses, their lances were
+leveled, and brave as the Bedouin horsemen were, they felt to break this
+massive line was impossible. The front line, however, charged well up to
+the points of the lances, against which they hewed with their sharp
+scimiters, frequently severing the steel top from the ashpole, and then
+breaking through and engaging in hand-to-hand conflict with the knights.
+Behind the latter sat their squires, with extra spears and arms ready to
+hand to their masters; and in close combat, the heavy maces with their
+spike ends were weapons before which the light-clad horsemen went down
+like reeds before a storm.
+
+Hour after hour the Arab horsemen persisted in their attack, suffering
+heavily, but determined to conquer if possible. Then Saladin suddenly
+ordered a retreat, and at seeing their enemy fly, the impetuosity of the
+Crusaders at last broke out. With a shout they dashed after the foe.
+King Richard, knowing that his followers had already shown a patience
+far beyond what he could have expected, now headed the onslaught,
+performing prodigies of valor with his single arm, and riding from point
+to point to see that all was well.
+
+The early resistance of the infidel host was comparatively slight. The
+heavy mass of the Christian cavalry, with their leveled lances, swept
+through the ranks of the light horsemen, and trampled them down like
+grass beneath their feet; but every moment the resistance became more
+stubborn.
+
+Saladin, knowing the Christians would sooner or later assume the
+offensive, had gathered his troops line in line behind the front ranks,
+and as the force of the Crusaders' charge abated, so did the number of
+foes in their front multiply. Not only this, but upon either side chosen
+bands swept down, and ere long the Christians were brought to a stand,
+and all were fighting hand to hand with their enemies. The lances were
+thrown away now, and with ax and mace each fought for himself.
+
+The Earl of Evesham was one of a group of knights whom King Richard had
+that day ordered to keep close to his person, and around this group the
+fight raged most furiously.
+
+Saladin, aware of the extreme personal valor and warlike qualities of
+King Richard, set the greatest value upon his death or capture, and had
+ordered a large number of his best troops to devote their whole
+attention to attacking the King of England.
+
+The royal standard carried behind the king was a guide to their
+onslaught, and great as was the strength and valor of King Richard, he
+with difficulty was able to keep at bay the hosts that swept around him.
+
+Now that the lance had been abandoned for battle-ax, Cuthbert was able
+to take an active part in the struggle, his duties consisting mainly in
+guarding the rear of his master, and preventing his being overthrown by
+any sudden attack on the flank or from behind.
+
+King Richard was bent not only on defending himself from the attacks of
+his foes, but on directing the general course of the battle; and from
+time to time he burst, with his own trusty knights, through the ring of
+foes, and rode from point to point of the field, calling the knights
+together, exhorting them to steadiness, and restoring the fight where
+its fortunes seemed doubtful. At one time the impetuosity of the king
+led him into extreme danger. He had burst through the enemy surrounding
+him, and these, by order of their captain, allowed him to pass through
+their ranks, and then threw themselves together in his rear, to cut him
+off from the knights who rode behind. The maneuver was successful. The
+rush of horsemen fairly carried away the Christian knights, and one or
+two alone were able to make their way through.
+
+Amid the wild confusion that raged, where each man was fighting for his
+own life, and but little view of what was passing could be obtained
+through the barred visor, the fact that the king was separated from them
+was known to but few. Sir Walter himself was engaged fiercely in a
+hand-to-hand fight with four Bedouins who surrounded him, when Cuthbert
+shouted:
+
+"The king, Sir Walter! the king! He is cut off and surrounded! For
+heaven's sake ride to him. See! the royal standard is down."
+
+With a shout the earl turned, brained one of his foes with a sweep of
+his heavy ax, and, followed by Cuthbert, dashed to the assistance of the
+king. The weight of his horse and armor cleft through the crowd, and in
+a brief space he penetrated to the side of King Richard, who was borne
+upon by a host of foes. Just as they reached them a Bedouin who had been
+struck from his horse crawled beneath the noble charger of King Richard,
+and drove his scimiter deep into its bowels. The animal reared high in
+its sudden pain, and then fell on the ground, carrying the king, who was
+unable to disengage himself quickly enough.
+
+[Illustration: WITH A SHOUT THE EARL TURNED, FOLLOWED BY CUTHBERT, AND
+DASHED TO THE ASSISTANCE OF THE KING.]
+
+In an instant the Earl of Evesham had leaped from his horse and with his
+broad triangular shield extended, sought to cover him from the press of
+enemies. Cuthbert imitated his lord, and strove to defend the latter
+from attacks from the rear. For a moment or two the sweep of the earl's
+heavy ax and Cuthbert's circling sword kept back the foe, but this could
+not last. King Richard in vain strove to extricate his leg from beneath
+his fallen steed. Cuthbert saw at a glance that the horse still lived,
+and with a sudden slash of his sword he struck it on the hind quarter.
+Goaded by the pain the noble animal made a last effort to rise, but only
+to fall back dead. The momentary action was, however, sufficient for
+King Richard, who drew his leg from under it, and with his heavy
+battle-ax in hand, rose with a shout, and stood by the side of the earl.
+
+In vain did the Bedouins strive to cut down and overpower the two
+champions; in vain did they urge their horses to ride over them. With
+each sweep of his ax the king either dismounted a foe or clove in the
+head of his steed, and a wall of slain around them testified to the
+tremendous power of their arms. Still, even such warriors as these could
+not long sustain the conflict. The earl had already received several
+desperate wounds, and the king himself was bleeding from some severe
+gashes with the keen-edged scimiters. Cuthbert was already down, when a
+shout of "St. George!" was heard, and a body of English knights clove
+through the throng of Saracens and reached the side of King Richard.
+Close behind these in a mass pressed the British footmen with bill and
+pike, the enemy giving way foot by foot before their steady discipline.
+
+The king was soon on horseback again, and rallying his troops on, led
+them for one more great and final charge upon the enemy.
+
+The effect was irresistible. Appalled by the slaughter which they had
+suffered, and by the tremendous strength and energy of the Christian
+knights, the Saracens broke and fled; and the last reserves of Saladin
+gave way as the king, shouting his war-cry of "God help the holy
+sepulcher!" fell upon them. Once, indeed, the battle still seemed
+doubtful, for a fresh band of the enemy at that moment arrived and
+joined in the fray. The Crusaders were now, however, inspired with such
+courage and confidence that they readily obeyed the king's war-cry,
+gathered in a firm body, and hurled themselves upon this new foe. Then
+the Saracens finally turned and fled, and the Christian victory was
+complete.
+
+It was one of the features of this war that however thorough the
+victories of the Christians, the Saracens very speedily recovered from
+their effects. A Christian defeat was crushing and entire; the knights
+died as they stood, and defeat meant annihilation. Upon the other hand,
+the Saracens and Bedouins, when they felt that their efforts to win the
+battle were unsuccessful, felt no shame or humiliation in scattering
+like sheep. On their fleet horses and in their light attire they could
+easily distance the Christians, who never, indeed, dreamed of pursuing
+them. The day after the fight the enemy would collect again under their
+chiefs, and be as ready as before to renew their harassing warfare.
+
+On his return from the field the king assembled many of his principal
+knights and leaders, and summoned the Earl of Evesham, with the message
+that he was to bring his esquire with him. When they reached the tent
+the king said:
+
+"My lords, as some of you may be aware, I have this day had a narrow
+escape from death. Separated from you in the battle, and attended only
+by my standard-bearer, I was surrounded by the Saracens. I should
+doubtless have cleft my way through the infidel dogs, but a foul peasant
+stabbed my charger from below, and the poor brute fell with me. My
+standard-bearer was killed, and in another moment my nephew Arthur would
+have been your king, had it not been that my good lord here, attended by
+this brave lad, appeared. I have seen a good deal of fighting, but never
+did I see a braver stand than they made above my body. The Earl of
+Evesham, as you all know, is one of my bravest knights, and to him I can
+simply say, 'Thanks; King Richard does not forget a benefit like this.'
+But such aid as I might well look for from so stout a knight as the Earl
+of Evesham I could hardly have expected on the part of a mere boy like
+this. It is not the first time that I have been under a debt of
+gratitude to him; for it was his watchfulness and bravery which saved
+Queen Berengaria from being carried off by the French in Sicily. I
+deemed him too young then for the order of knighthood--although, indeed,
+bravery has no age; still for a private benefit, and that performed
+against allies, in name at least, I did not wish so far to fly in the
+face of usage as to make him a knight. I promised him then, however,
+that the first time he distinguished himself against the infidel he
+should win his spurs. I think that you will agree with me, my lords,
+that he has done so. Not only did he stand over me, and with great
+bravery defend Sir Walter from attacks from behind, but his ready wit
+saved me when even his sword and that of Sir Walter would have failed to
+do so. Penned down under poor Robin I was powerless to move until our
+young esquire, in an interval of slashing at his assailants, found time
+to give a sharp blow together with a shout to Robin. The poor beast
+tried to rise, and the movement, short as it was, enabled me to draw my
+leg from under him, and then with my mace I was enabled to make a stand
+until you arrived at my side. I think, my lords, that you will agree
+with me that Cuthbert, the son of Sir William de Lance, is fit for the
+honor of knighthood."
+
+A general chorus of approval arose from the assembly, and the king,
+bidding Cuthbert kneel before him, drew his sword and laid it across his
+shoulders, dubbing him Sir Cuthbert de Lance. When he had risen the
+great barons of England pressed round to shake his hand, and Cuthbert,
+who was a modest young fellow, felt almost ashamed at the honors which
+were bestowed upon him. The usual ceremonies and penances which young
+knights had to undergo before admission into the body--and which in
+those days were extremely punctilious, and indeed severe, consisting,
+among other things, in fasting, in watching the armor at night, in
+seclusion and religious services--were omitted when the accolade was
+bestowed for bravery in the field.
+
+The king ordered his armorer at once to make for Cuthbert a suit of the
+finest armor, and authorized him to carry on his shield a sword raising
+a royal crown from the ground, in token of the deed for which the honor
+of knighthood had been bestowed upon him.
+
+Upon his return to the earl's camp the news of his new dignity spread at
+once among the followers of Sir Walter, and many and hearty were the
+cheers that went up from the throats of the Saxon foresters, led by
+Cnut. These humble friends were indeed delighted at his success, for
+they felt that to him they owed very much; and his kindness of manner
+and the gayety of heart which he had shown during the hardships they had
+undergone since their start had greatly endeared him to them.
+
+Cuthbert was now to take rank among the knights who followed the banner
+of the earl. A tent was erected for him, an esquire assigned to him, and
+the lad as he entered his new abode felt almost bewildered at the
+change which had taken place in one short day--that he, at the age of
+sixteen, should have earned the honor of knighthood, and the approval of
+the King of England, expressed before all the great barons of the realm,
+was indeed an honor such as he could never have hoped for; and the
+thought of what his mother would say should the news reach her in her
+quiet Saxon home brought the tears into his eyes. He had not gone
+through the usual religious ceremonies, but he knelt in his tent alone,
+and prayed that he might be made worthy of the honors bestowed upon him;
+that he might fulfill the duties of a Christian knight fearlessly and
+honorably; that his sword might never be raised but for the right; that
+he might devote himself to the protection of the oppressed, and the
+honor of God; that his heart might be kept from evil; and that he might
+carry through life unstained his new escutcheon.
+
+If the English had thought that their victory would have gained them
+immunity from the Saracen attacks they were speedily undeceived. The
+host, indeed, which had barred their way had broken up; but its
+fragments were around them, and the harassing attacks began again with a
+violence and persistency even greater than before. The Crusaders,
+indeed, occupied only the ground upon which they stood. It was death to
+venture one hundred yards from the camp unless in a strong body; and the
+smallest efforts to bring in food from the country round were instantly
+met and repelled. Only in very strong bodies could the knights venture
+from camp even to forage for their horses, and the fatigues and
+sufferings of all were in no way relieved by the great victory of
+Azotus.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+IN THE HANDS OF THE SARACENS.
+
+
+The English had hoped that after one pitched battle they should be able
+to advance upon Jerusalem, but they had reckoned without the climate and
+illness.
+
+Although unconquered in the fray, the Christian army was weakened by its
+sufferings to such an extent that it was virtually brought to a
+standstill. Even King Richard, with all his impetuosity, dared not
+venture to cut adrift from the seashore and to march direct upon
+Jerusalem; that city was certainly not to be taken without a long siege,
+and this could only be undertaken by an army strong enough, not only to
+carry out so great a task, but to meet and defeat the armies which
+Saladin would bring up to the rescue, and to keep open the line down to
+Joppa, by which alone provisions and the engines necessary for the siege
+could be brought up. Hence the war resolved itself into a series of
+expeditions and detached fights.
+
+The British camp was thoroughly fortified, and thence parties of the
+knights sallied out and engaged in conflicts with the Saracens, with
+varying success. On several of these expeditions Cuthbert attended the
+earl, and behaved with a bravery which showed him well worthy of the
+honors which he had received.
+
+Upon one occasion the news reached camp that a party of knights, who had
+gone out to guard a number of footmen cutting forage and bringing it
+into camp, had been surrounded and had taken refuge in a small town,
+whose gates they had battered in when they saw the approach of an
+overwhelming host of the enemy. King Richard himself headed a strong
+force and advanced to their assistance. Their approach was not seen
+until within a short distance of the enemy, upon whom the Crusaders fell
+with the force of a thunderbolt, and cleft their way through their
+lines. After a short pause in the little town they prepared to again cut
+their way through, joined by the party who had there been besieged. The
+task was now, however, far more difficult; for the footmen would be
+unable to keep up with the rapid charge of the knights, and it was
+necessary not only to clear the way, but to keep it open for their exit.
+King Richard himself and the greater portion of his knights were to lead
+the charge; another party were to follow behind the footmen, who were
+ordered to advance at the greatest speed of which they were capable,
+while their rearguard by charges upon the enemy kept them at bay. To
+this latter party Cuthbert was attached.
+
+The Saracens followed their usual tactics, and this time with great
+success. Dividing as the king with his knights charged them, they
+suffered these to pass through with but slight resistance, and then
+closed in upon their track, while another and still more numerous body
+fell upon the footmen and their guard. Again and again did the knights
+charge through the ranks of the Moslems, while the billmen stoutly kept
+together and resisted the onslaughts of the enemy's cavalry. In spite of
+their bravery, however, the storm of arrows shot by the desert horsemen
+thinned their ranks with terrible rapidity. Charging up to the very
+point of the spears, these wild horsemen fired their arrows into the
+faces of their foe, and although numbers of them fell beneath the more
+formidable missiles sent by the English archers, their numbers were so
+overwhelming that the little band melted away. The small party of
+knights, too, were rapidly thinned, although performing prodigious deeds
+of valor. The Saracens when dismounted or wounded still fought on foot,
+their object being always to stab or hough the horses, and so dismount
+the riders. King Richard and his force, though making the most desperate
+efforts to return to the assistance of the rearguard, were baffled by
+the sturdy resistance of the Saracens, and the position of those in the
+rear was fast becoming hopeless.
+
+One by one the gallant little band of knights fell, and a sea of turbans
+closed over the fluttering plumes. Cuthbert, after defending himself
+with extreme bravery for a long time, was at last separated from the
+small remainder of his comrades by a rush of the enemy's horse, and when
+fighting desperately he received a heavy blow at the back of the head
+from the mace of a huge Nubian soldier, and fell senseless to the
+ground.
+
+When he recovered his consciousness the first impression upon his mind
+was the stillness which had succeeded to the din of battle; the shouts
+and war-cries of the Crusaders, the wild yells of the Moslems were
+hushed, and in their place was a quiet chatter in many unknown tongues,
+and the sound of laughter and feasting. Raising his head and looking
+round, Cuthbert saw that he and some ten of his comrades were lying
+together in the midst of a Saracen camp, and that he was a prisoner to
+the infidels. The sun streamed down with tremendous force upon them;
+there was no shelter; and though all were wounded and parched with
+thirst, the Saracens of whom they besought water, pointing to their
+mouths and making signs of their extreme thirst, laughed in their faces,
+and signified by a gesture that it was scarcely worth the trouble to
+drink when they were likely so soon to be put to death.
+
+It was late in the afternoon before any change was manifest. Then
+Cuthbert observed a stir in the camp; the men ran to their horses,
+leaped on their backs, and with wild cries of "Welcome!" started off at
+full speed. Evidently some personage was about to arrive, and the fate
+of the prisoners would be solved. A few words were from time to time
+exchanged between these, each urging the other to keep up his heart and
+defy the infidel. One or two had succumbed to their wounds during the
+afternoon, and only six were able to stand erect when summoned to do so
+by some of their guard, who made signs to them that a great personage
+was coming. Soon the shouts of the horsemen and other sounds announced
+that the great chief was near at hand, and the captives gathered from
+the swelling shouts of the Arabs that the new arrival was Sultan
+Suleiman--or Saladin, for he was called by both names--surrounded by a
+bodyguard of splendidly-dressed attendants. The emir, who was himself
+plainly attired, reined up his horse in front of the captives.
+
+"You are English," he said, in the _lingua-franca_, which was the medium
+of communication between the Eastern and Western peoples in those days.
+"You are brave warriors, and I hear that before you were taken you
+slaughtered numbers of my people. They did wrong to capture you and
+bring you here to be killed. Your cruel king gives no mercy to those who
+fall into his hands. You must not expect it here, you who without a
+pretense of right invade my country, slaughter my people, and defeat my
+armies. The murder of the prisoners of Acre has closed my heart to all
+mercy. There, your king put ten thousand prisoners to death in cold
+blood, a month after the capture of the place, because the money at
+which he had placed their ransom had not arrived. We Arabs do not carry
+huge masses of gold about with us; and although I could have had it
+brought from Egypt, I did not think that so brave a monarch as Richard
+of England could have committed so cruel an action in cold blood. When
+we are fresh from battle, and our wounds are warm, and our hearts are
+full of rage and fury, we kill our prisoners; but to do so weeks after a
+battle is contrary to the laws alike of your religion and of ours.
+However, it is King Richard who has sealed your doom, not I. You are
+knights, and I do not insult you with the offer of turning from your
+religion and joining me. Should one of you wish to save his life on
+these conditions, I will, however, promise him a place of position and
+authority among us."
+
+None of the knights moved to accept the offer, but each, as the eye of
+the emir ran along the line, answered with an imprecation of contempt
+and hatred. Saladin waved his hand, and one by one the captives were led
+aside, walking as proudly to their doom as if they had been going to a
+feast. Each wrung the hand of the one next to him as he turned, and then
+without a word followed his captors. There was a dull sound heard, and
+one by one the heads of the knights rolled in the sand.
+
+Cuthbert happened to be last in the line, and as the executioners laid
+hands upon him and removed his helmet, the eye of the sultan fell upon
+him, and he almost started at perceiving the extreme youth of his
+captive. He held his hand aloft to arrest the movements of the
+executioners, and signaled for Cuthbert to be brought before him again.
+
+"You are but a boy," he said. "All the knights who have hitherto fallen
+into my hands have been men of strength and power; how is it that I see
+a mere youth among their ranks, and wearing the golden spurs of
+knighthood?"
+
+"King Richard himself made me a knight," Cuthbert said proudly, "after
+having stood across him when his steed had been foully stabbed at the
+battle of Azotus, and the whole Moslem host were around him."
+
+"Ah!" said the emir, "were you one of the two who, as I have heard,
+defended the king for some time against all assaults? It were hard
+indeed to kill so brave a youth. I doubt me not that at present you are
+as firmly determined to die a Christian knight as those who have gone
+before you? But time may change you. At any rate for the present your
+doom is postponed."
+
+He turned to a gorgeously dressed noble next to him, and said:
+
+"Your brother, Ben Abin, is Governor of Jerusalem, and the gardens of
+the palace are fair. Take this youth to him as a present, and set him to
+work in his gardens. His life I have spared, in all else Ben Abin will
+be his master."
+
+Cuthbert heard without emotion the words which changed his fate from
+death to slavery. Many, he knew, who were captured in these wars were
+carried away as slaves to different parts of Asia, and it did not seem
+to him that the change was in any way a boon. However, life is dear, and
+it was but natural that a thought should leap into his heart that soon
+either the Crusaders might force a way into Jerusalem and there rescue
+him, or that he himself might in some way escape.
+
+The sultan having thus concluded the subject, turned away, and galloped
+off surrounded by his bodyguard.
+
+Those who had captured the Christians now stripped off the armor of
+Cuthbert; then he was mounted on a barebacked steed, and with four
+Bedouins, with their long lances, riding beside him, started for
+Jerusalem. After a day of long and rapid riding the Arabs stopped
+suddenly on the crest of a hill, with a shout of joy, and throwing
+themselves from their horses bent with their foreheads to the earth at
+the sight of their holy city.
+
+Cuthbert, as he gazed at the stately walls of Jerusalem, and the noble
+buildings within, felt bitterly that it was not thus that he had hoped
+to see the holy city. He had dreamed of arriving before it with his
+comrades, proud and delighted at their success so far, and confident in
+their power soon to wrest the town before them from the hands of the
+Moslems. Instead of this he was a slave--a slave to the infidel, perhaps
+never more to see a white face, save that of some other unfortunate like
+himself.
+
+Even now in its fallen state no city is so impressive at first sight as
+Jerusalem; the walls, magnificent in height and strength, and
+picturesque in their deep embattlements, rising on the edge of a deep
+valley. Every building has its name and history. Here is the church
+built by the first Crusaders; there the mighty mosque of Suleiman on the
+site of the Temple; far away on a projecting ridge the great building
+known as the Tomb of Moses; on the right beyond the houses rise the
+towers on the Roman walls; the Pool of Bethsaida lies in the hollow; in
+the center are the cupolas of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Among
+all the fairest cities of the world, there are none which can compare in
+stately beauty with Jerusalem. Doubtless it was a fairer city in those
+days, for long centuries of Turkish possession have reduced many of the
+former stately palaces to ruins. Then, as now, the banner of the Prophet
+floated over the high places; but whereas at present the population is
+poor and squalid, the city in those days contained a far larger number
+of inhabitants, irrespective of the great garrison collected for its
+defense.
+
+The place from which Cuthbert had his first sight of Jerusalem is that
+from which the best view is to be obtained--the crest of the Mount of
+Olives. After a minute or two spent in looking at the city the Arabs
+with a shout continued their way down into the valley. Crossing this
+they ascended the steep road to the walls, brandishing their lances and
+giving yells of triumph; then riding two upon each side of their
+prisoner, to protect him from any fanatic who might lay a hand upon him,
+they passed under the gate known as the Gate of Suleiman into the city.
+
+The populace thronged the streets; and the news brought by the horsemen
+that a considerable portion of the Christian host had been defeated and
+slain passed from mouth to mouth, and was received with yells of
+exultation. Execrations were heaped upon Cuthbert, who rode along with
+an air as quiet and composed as if he were the center of an ovation
+instead of that of an outburst of hatred.
+
+He would, indeed, speedily have been torn from his guards, had not these
+shouted that he was placed in their hands by Saladin himself for conduct
+to the governor. As the emir was as sharp and as ruthless with his own
+people as with the prisoners who fell into his hands, the name acted as
+a talisman, and Cuthbert and his escort rode forward without molestation
+until they reached the entrance to the palace.
+
+Dismounting, Cuthbert was now led before the governor himself, a stern
+and grave-looking man, sitting cross-legged on a divan surrounded by
+officers and attendants. He heard in silence the account given him by
+the escort, bowed his head at the commands of Suleiman, and, without
+addressing a word to Cuthbert, indicated to two attendants that he was
+to be removed into the interior of the house. Here the young knight was
+led to a small dungeon-like room; bread and dates with a cruse of water,
+were placed before him; the door was then closed and locked without, and
+he found himself alone with his thoughts.
+
+No one came near him that night, and he slept as soundly as he would
+have done in his tent in the midst of the Christian host. He was
+resolved to give no cause for ill-treatment or complaint to his captors,
+to work as willingly, as cheerfully, as was in his power, and to seize
+the first opportunity to make his escape, regardless of any risk of his
+life which he might incur in doing so.
+
+In the morning the door opened, and a black slave led him into the
+garden, which was surrounded by a very high and lofty wall. It was
+large, and full of trees and flowers, and far more beautiful than any
+garden that Cuthbert had seen in his native land. There were various
+other slaves at work; and an Arab, who appeared to be the head of the
+gardeners, at once appointed to Cuthbert the work assigned to him. A
+guard of Arabs with bow and spear watched the doings of the slaves.
+
+With one glance round, Cuthbert was assured that escape from this
+garden, at least, was not to be thought of, and that for the present
+patience alone was possible. Dismissing all ideas of that kind from his
+mind, he set to work with a steady attention to his task. He was very
+fond of flowers, and soon he became so absorbed in his work as almost to
+forget that he was a slave. It was not laborious--digging, planting,
+pruning and training the flowers, and giving them copious draughts of
+water from a large fountain in the center of the garden.
+
+The slaves were not permitted to exchange a word with each other. At the
+end of the day's work they were marched off to separate chambers, or,
+as they might be called, dungeons. Their food consisted of water, dried
+dates, and bread, and they had little to complain of in this respect;
+indeed, the slaves in the gardens of the governor's house at Jerusalem
+enjoyed an exceptionally favored existence. The governor himself was
+absorbed in the cares of the city. The head gardener happened to be a
+man of unusual humanity, and it was really in his hands that the comfort
+of the prisoners was placed.
+
+Sometimes in the course of the day veiled ladies would issue in groups
+from the palace, attended by black slaves with drawn scimiters. They
+passed without unveiling across the point where the slaves were at work,
+and all were forbidden on pain of death to look up, or even to approach
+the konak or pavilion, where the ladies threw aside their veils, and
+enjoyed the scent and sight of the flowers, the splash of murmuring
+waters, and the strains of music touched by skillful hands.
+
+Although Cuthbert wondered in his heart what these strange wrapped-up
+figures might look like when the veils were thrown back, he certainly
+did not care enough about the matter to run any risk of drawing the
+anger of his guards upon himself by raising his eyes toward them; nor
+did he ever glance up at the palace, which was also interdicted to the
+slaves. From the lattice casements during the day the strains of music
+and merry laughter often came down to the captives; but this, if
+anything, only added to the bitterness of their position, by reminding
+them that they were shut off for life from ever hearing the laughter of
+the loved ones they had left behind.
+
+For upward of a month Cuthbert remained steadily at work, and during
+that time no possible plan of escape had occurred to him, and he had
+indeed resigned himself to wait, either until, as he hoped, the city
+would be taken by the Christians, or until he himself might be removed
+from his present post and sent into the country, where, although his lot
+would doubtless be far harder, some chance of escape might open before
+him.
+
+One night, long after slumber had fallen upon the city, Cuthbert was
+startled by hearing his door open. Rising to his feet, he saw a black
+slave, and an old woman beside him. The latter spoke first in the
+_lingua-franca_:
+
+"My mistress, the wife of the governor, has sent me to ask your story.
+How is it that, although but a youth, you are already a knight? How is
+it that you come to be a slave to our people? The sultan himself sent
+you to her lord. She would fain hear through me how it has happened. She
+is the kindest of ladies, and the sight of your youth has touched her
+heart."
+
+With thanks to the unknown lady who had felt an interest in him,
+Cuthbert briefly related the events which had led to his captivity. The
+old woman placed on the ground a basket containing some choice fruit and
+white bread, and then departed with the negro as quietly as she had
+come, leaving Cuthbert greatly pleased at what had taken place.
+
+"Doubtless," he said to himself, "I shall hear again; and it may be that
+through the pity of this lady some means of escape may open to me."
+
+Although for some little time no such prospect appeared, yet the visits
+of the old woman, which were frequently repeated, were of interest to
+him, and seemed to form a link between him and the world.
+
+After coming regularly every night for a week she bade the young knight
+follow her, holding her finger to her lips in sign that caution must be
+observed. Passing through several passages, he was at length led into a
+room where a lady of some forty years of age, surrounded by several
+slaves and younger women, was sitting. Cuthbert felt no scruple in
+making a deep obeisance to her; the respect shown to women in the days
+of chivalry was very great, and Cuthbert, in bowing almost to the ground
+before the lady who was really his mistress, did not feel that he was
+humiliating himself.
+
+"Young slave," she said, "your story has interested us. We have
+frequently watched from the windows, and have seen how willingly and
+patiently you have worked; and it seems strange indeed that one so young
+should have performed such feats of bravery as to win the honor of
+knighthood from the hand of that greatest of warriors, Richard of
+England. What is it, we would fain learn from your lips, that stirs up
+the heart of the Christian world that they should launch their armies
+against us, who wish but to be left alone, and who have no grudge
+against them? This city is as holy to us as it is to you; and as we
+live around it, and all the country for thousands of miles is ours, is
+it likely that we should allow it to be wrested from us by strangers
+from a distance?"
+
+This was spoken in some Eastern language of which Cuthbert understood no
+word, but its purport was translated to him by the old woman who had
+hitherto acted as his mistress' messenger.
+
+Cuthbert reported the circumstances of the fight at Azotus, and
+endeavored to explain the feelings which had given rise to the Crusade.
+He then, at the orders of the lady, related the incidents of his voyage
+out, and something of his life at home, which was more interesting even
+than the tale of his adventures to his hearers, as to them the home-life
+of these fierce Christian warriors was entirely unknown.
+
+After an audience of two hours Cuthbert was conducted back to his cell,
+his mistress assuring him of her good-will, and promising to do all in
+her power to make his captivity as light as possible.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM.
+
+
+Two or three nights afterward the old woman again came to Cuthbert, and
+asked him, in her mistress' name, if in any way he could suggest a
+method of lightening his captivity, as his extreme youth and bravery of
+demeanor had greatly pleased her.
+
+Cuthbert replied that nothing but freedom could satisfy his longings;
+that he was comfortable and not over-worked, but that he pined to be
+back again with his friends.
+
+The old woman brought him on the following night a message to the effect
+that his mistress would willingly grant him his liberty, but as he was
+sent to her husband by the sultan, it would be impossible to free him
+openly.
+
+"From what she said," the old woman continued, "if you could see some
+plan of making your escape, she would in no way throw difficulties in
+your path; but it must not be known that the harem in any way connived
+at your escape, for my lord's wrath would be terrible, and he is not a
+man to be trifled with."
+
+Looking round at the high walls that surrounded the garden, Cuthbert
+said that he could think of no plan whatever for escaping from such a
+place; that he had often thought it over, but that it appeared to him to
+be hopeless. Even should he manage to scale these walls, he would only
+find himself in the town beyond, and his escape from that would be
+altogether hopeless. "Only," he said, "if I were transported to some
+country palace of the governor could I ever hope to make my escape." The
+next night the messenger brought him the news that his mistress was
+disposed to favor his escape in the way he had pointed out, and that she
+would in two or three days ask the governor for permission to pay a
+visit to their palace beyond the walls, and that with her she would take
+a number of gardeners--among them Cuthbert--to beautify the place.
+Cuthbert returned the most lively and hearty thanks to his patroness for
+her kind intentions, and hope began to rise rapidly in his heart.
+
+It is probable, however, that the black guards of the harem heard
+something of the intentions of their mistress, and that they feared the
+anger of the governor should Cuthbert make his escape, and should it be
+discovered that this was the result of her connivance. Either through
+this or through some other source the governor obtained an inkling that
+the white slave sent by the sultan was receiving unusual kindness from
+the ladies of the harem.
+
+Two nights after Cuthbert had begun to entertain bright hopes of his
+liberty, the door of the cell was softly opened. He was seized by four
+slaves, gagged, tied hand and foot, covered with a thick burnous, and
+carried out from his cell. By the sound of their feet he heard that they
+were passing into the open air, and guessed that he was being carried
+through the garden; then a door opened and was closed after them; he was
+flung across a horse like a bale of goods, a rope or two were placed
+around him to keep him in that position, and then he felt the animal put
+in motion, and heard by the trampling of feet that a considerable number
+of horsemen were around him. For some time they passed over the rough,
+uneven streets of the city; then there was a pause and exchange of
+watchword and countersign, a creaking of doors, and a lowering of a
+drawbridge, and the party issued out into the open country. Not for very
+long did they continue their way; a halt was called, and Cuthbert was
+taken off his horse.
+
+On looking round, he found that he was in the middle of a considerable
+group of men. Those who had brought him were a party of the governor's
+guards; but he was now delivered over to a large band of Arabs, all of
+whom were mounted on camels. One of these creatures he was ordered to
+mount, the bonds being loosed from his arms and feet. An Arab driver,
+with lance, bows, and arrows, and other weapons, took his seat on the
+neck of the animal, and then with scarcely a word the caravan marched
+off with noiseless step, and with their faces turned southward.
+
+It seemed to Cuthbert almost as a dream. A few hours before he had been
+exalted with the hope of freedom; now he was being taken away to a
+slavery which would probably end but with his life. Although he could
+not understand any of his captors, the repetition of a name led him to
+believe that he was being sent to Egypt as a present to some man in high
+authority there; and he doubted not that the Governor of Jerusalem,
+fearing that he might escape, and dreading the wrath of the sultan
+should he do so, had determined to transfer the troublesome captive to a
+more secure position and to safer hands.
+
+For three days the journey continued; they had now left the fertile
+lowlands of Palestine, and their faces were turned west. They were
+entering upon that sandy waste which stretches between the southern
+corner of Palestine and the land of Egypt, a distance which can be
+traveled by camels in three days, but which occupied the children of
+Israel forty years.
+
+At first the watch had been very sharply kept over the captive; but now
+that they had entered the desert the Arabs appeared to consider that
+there was no chance of an attempt to escape. Cuthbert had in every way
+endeavored to ingratiate himself with his guard. He had most willingly
+obeyed their smallest orders, had shown himself pleased and grateful for
+the dates which formed the staple of their repasts. He had assumed so
+innocent and quiet an appearance that the Arabs had marveled much among
+themselves, and had concluded that there must have been some mistake in
+the assertion of the governor's guard who had handed the prisoner over
+to them, that he was one of the terrible knights of King Richard's army.
+
+Cuthbert's heart had not fallen for a moment. He knew well that if he
+once reached Cairo all hope of escape was at an end; and it was before
+reaching that point that he determined if possible to make an effort for
+freedom. He had noticed particularly the camel which appeared to be the
+fleetest of the band; it was of lighter build than the rest, and it was
+with difficulty that its rider had compelled it to accommodate itself to
+the pace of the others. It was clear from the pains he took with it, by
+the constant patting and the care bestowed upon its watering and
+feeding, that its rider was extremely proud of it; and Cuthbert
+concluded that if an escape was to be made, this was the animal on which
+he must accomplish it.
+
+Upon arriving at the end of each day's journey the camels were allowed
+to browse at will, a short cord being tied between one of their hind and
+one of their fore-feet. The Arabs then set to work to collect sticks and
+to make a fire--not for cooking, for their only food was dried dates and
+some black bread, which they brought with them--but for warmth, as the
+nights were damp and somewhat chilly, as they sat round the fire,
+talked, and told stories. Before finally going off to rest each went out
+into the bushes and brought in his camel; these were then arranged in a
+circle around the Arabs, one of the latter being mounted as sentry to
+prevent any sudden surprise--not indeed that they had the smallest fear
+of the Christians, who were far distant; but then, as now, the Arabs of
+the desert were a plundering race, and were ever ready to drive off each
+other's camels or horses. Cuthbert determined that if flight was
+possible, it must be undertaken during the interval after the arrival at
+the halting-place and before the bringing in of the camels. Therefore,
+each day upon the halt he had pretended great fatigue from the rough
+motion of the camel, and had, after hastily eating the dates handed to
+him, thrown himself down, covered himself with his Arab robe, and
+feigned instant sleep. Thus they had in the three days from starting
+come to look upon his presence sleeping close to them as a matter of
+course.
+
+The second day after entering the desert, however, Cuthbert threw
+himself down by the side of an uprooted shrub of small size and about
+his own length. He covered himself as usual with his long, dark-blue
+robe, and pretended to go to sleep. He kept his eyes, however, on the
+alert through an aperture beneath his cloth, and observed particularly
+the direction in which the camel upon which he had set his mind wandered
+into the bushes. The darkness came on a very few minutes after they had
+halted, and when the Arabs had once settled round their fire Cuthbert
+very quietly shifted the robe from himself to the long low bush near
+him, and then crawled stealthily off into the darkness.
+
+He had no fear of his footfall being heard upon the soft sand, and was
+soon on his feet, looking for the camels. He was not long in finding
+them, or in picking out the one which he had selected. The bushes were
+succulent, and close to the camping-ground; indeed, it was for this that
+the halting-places were always chosen. It was not so easy, however, to
+climb into the high wooden saddle, and Cuthbert tried several times in
+vain. Then he repeated in a sharp tone the words which he had heard the
+Arabs use to order their camels to kneel, striking the animal at the
+same moment behind the fore-legs with a small switch. The camel
+immediately obeyed the order to which he was accustomed, and knelt down,
+making, however, as he did so, the angry grumble which those creatures
+appear to consider it indispensable to raise when ordered to do
+anything. Fortunately this noise is so frequently made, and the camels
+are so given to quarrel among themselves that although in the still air
+it might have been heard by the Arabs sitting a short hundred yards
+away, it attracted no notice, and Cuthbert, climbing into the seat,
+shook the cord that served as a rein, and the animal, rising, set off at
+a smooth, steady swing in the direction in which his head was
+turned--that from which they had that day arrived.
+
+Once fairly away from the camping-ground, Cuthbert, with blows of his
+stick, increased the speed of the camel to a long shuffling trot, and
+the fire in the distance soon faded out into the darkness.
+
+Cuthbert trusted to the stars as guides. He was not unarmed, for as he
+crawled away from his resting-place he had picked up one of the Arabs'
+spears and bow and arrows, and a large bag of dates from the spot where
+they had been placed when their owner dismounted. He was already clad in
+Eastern garb, and was so sunburnt and tanned that he had no fear
+whatever of any one at a distance detecting that he was a white man.
+
+Steering his course by the stars, he rode all night without stopping. He
+doubted not that he would have at least three hours' start, for the
+Arabs were sure to have sat that time round the fires before going out
+to bring in their camels. Even then they would suppose for some time
+that the animal upon which he was seated had strayed, and no pursuit
+would be attempted until it was discovered that he himself had made his
+escape, which might not be for a long time, as the Arabs would not think
+of looking under the cloth to see if he were there. He hoped, therefore,
+that he would reach the cultivated land long before he was overtaken. He
+had little fear but that he should then be able to journey onward
+without attracting attention.
+
+A solitary Arab when traveling rides straight, and his communications to
+those whom he meets are confined to the set form of two or three words,
+"May Allah protect you!" the regular greeting of Moslems when they meet.
+
+When morning broke Cuthbert, even when ascending to the top of a
+somewhat lofty mound, could see no signs of pursuers in the vast stretch
+of desert behind him. In front the ground was already becoming dotted
+here and there with vegetation, and he doubted not that after a few
+hours' ride he should be fairly in the confines of cultivated country.
+He gave his camel a meal of dates, and having eaten some himself, again
+set the creature in motion. These camels, especially those of good
+breed, will go on for three or four days with scarcely a halt; and there
+was no fear of that on which he rode breaking down from fatigue, for the
+journeys hitherto had been comparatively short.
+
+By midday Cuthbert had reached the cultivated lands of Palestine. Here
+and there over the plain villages were dotted, and parties of men and
+camels were to be seen. Cuthbert now arranged his robes carefully in
+Arab fashion, slung the long spear across his shoulders, and went boldly
+forward at a slinging trot, having little fear that a passer-by would
+have any suspicion whatever as to his being other than an Arab bent upon
+some rapid journey. He soon found that his hopes were justified. Several
+times he came upon parties of men whom he passed with the salute, and
+who scarcely raised their eyes as he trotted by them. The plain was an
+open one, and though cultivated here and there, there were large tracts
+lying unworked. There was no occasion therefore to keep to the road; so
+riding across country, and avoiding the villages as far as possible,
+stopping only at a stream to give his camel water, Cuthbert rode without
+ceasing until nightfall. Then he halted his camel near a wood, turned it
+in to feed on the young foliage, and wrapping himself in his burnous was
+soon asleep, for he ached from head to foot with the jolting motion
+which had now been continued for so many hours without an interval. He
+had little fear of being overtaken by the party he had left behind; they
+would, he was convinced, be many hours behind, and it was extremely
+improbable that they would hit upon the exact line which he had
+followed, so that even if they succeeded in coming up to him, they would
+probably pass him a few miles either to the right or left.
+
+So fatigued was he with his long journey that the next day he slept
+until after the sun had risen. He was awakened suddenly by being seized
+by a party of Arabs, who, roughly shaking him, questioned him as to
+where he came from, and what he was doing there. He saw at a glance that
+they were not with the party from which he had escaped, and he pointed
+to his lips to make signs that he was dumb. The Arabs evidently
+suspected that something was wrong. They examined the camel, and then
+the person of their captive. The whiteness of his skin at once showed
+them that he was a Frank in disguise, and without more ado or
+questioning, they tied him hand and foot, flung him across the camel,
+and, mounting their own animals, rode rapidly away.
+
+From the position of the sun Cuthbert saw that they were making their
+course nearly due east, and therefore that it could not be their
+intention to take him to Jerusalem, which was to the north of the line
+they were following. A long day's journey, which to Cuthbert seemed
+interminable, found them on the low spit of sand which runs along by the
+side of the Dead Sea. Behind, lofty rocks rose almost precipitously, but
+through a cleft in these the Arabs had made their way. Cuthbert saw at
+once that they belonged to some desert tribe over whom the authority of
+Suleiman was but nominal. When summoned for any great effort, these
+children of the desert would rally to his armies and fight for a short
+time; but at the first disaster, or whenever they became tired of the
+discipline and regularity of the army, they would mount their camels and
+return to the desert, generally managing on the way to abstract from the
+farms of those on their route either a horse, cattle, or some other
+objects which would pay them for the labors they had undergone.
+
+They were now near the confines of their own country, and apparently had
+no fear whatever of pursuit. They soon gathered some of the dead wood
+cast on the shores of the sea, and with these a fire was speedily
+lighted, and an earthenware pot was taken down from among their baggage:
+it was filled with water from a skin, and then grain having been placed
+in it, it was put among the wood ashes. Cuthbert, who was weary and
+aching in every limb from the position in which he had been placed on
+the camel, asked them by signs for permission to bathe in the lake. This
+was given principally apparently from curiosity, for but very few Arabs
+were able to swim; indeed, as a people they object so utterly to water
+that the idea of any one bathing for his amusement was to them a matter
+of ridicule.
+
+Cuthbert, who had never heard of the properties of the Dead Sea, was
+perfectly astonished upon entering the water to find that instead of
+wading in it up to the neck before starting to swim, as he was
+accustomed to do at home, the water soon after he got waist-deep took
+him off his feet, and a cry of astonishment burst from him as he found
+himself on rather than in the fluid. The position was so strange and
+unnatural that with a cry of alarm he scrambled over on to his feet, and
+made the best of his way to shore, the Arabs indulging in shouts of
+laughter at his astonishment and alarm. Cuthbert was utterly unable to
+account for the strange sensations he had experienced; he perceived that
+the water was horribly salt, and that which had got into his mouth
+almost choked him. He was, however, unaware that saltness adds to the
+weight of water, and so to the buoyancy of objects cast into it. The
+saltness of the fluid he was moreover painfully conscious of by the
+smarting of the places on his wrists and ankles where the cords had been
+bound that fastened him to the camel. Goaded, however, by the laughter
+of the Arabs, he determined once more to try the experiment of entering
+this strange sheet of water, which from some unaccountable cause
+appeared to him to refuse to allow anybody to sink in it. This time he
+swam about for some time, and felt a little refreshed. When he returned
+to the shore he soon re-attired himself in his Bedouin dress, and seated
+himself a little distance from his captors, who were now engaged in
+discussing the materials prepared by themselves. They made signs to
+Cuthbert that he might partake of their leavings, for which he was not a
+little grateful, for he felt utterly exhausted and worn out with his
+cruel ride and prolonged fasting.
+
+The Arabs soon wrapped themselves in their burnouses, and feeling
+confident that their captive would not attempt to escape from them in a
+place where subsistence would be impossible, paid no further attention
+to him beyond motioning to him to lie down at their side.
+
+Cuthbert, however, determined to make another effort to escape; for
+although he was utterly ignorant of the place in which he found himself,
+or of the way back, he thought that anything would be better than to be
+carried into helpless slavery into the savage country beyond the Jordan.
+An hour, therefore, after his captors were asleep he stole to his feet,
+and fearing to arouse them by exciting the wrath of one of the camels by
+attempting to mount him, he struck up into the hills on foot. All night
+he wandered, and in the morning found himself at the edge of a strange
+precipice falling abruptly down to a river, which, some fifty feet wide,
+ran at its foot. Upon the opposite side the bank rose with equal
+rapidity, and to Cuthbert's astonishment he saw that the cliffs were
+honeycombed by caves.
+
+Keeping along the edge for a considerable distance, he came to a spot
+where it was passable, and made his way down to the river bank. Here he
+indulged in a long drink of fresh water, and then began to examine the
+caves which perforated the rocks. These caves Cuthbert knew had formerly
+been the abode of hermits. It was supposed to be an essentially sacred
+locality, and between the third and fourth centuries of Christianity
+some twenty thousand monks had lived solitary lives on the banks of that
+river. Far away he saw the ruins of a great monastery, called Mar Saba,
+which had for a long time been the abode of a religious community, and
+which at the present day is still tenanted by a body of monks. Cuthbert
+made up his mind at once to take refuge in these caves. He speedily
+picked out one some fifty feet up the face of the rock, and
+approachable only with the greatest difficulty and by a sure foot. First
+he made the ascent to discover the size of the grotto, and found that
+although the entrance was but four feet high and two feet wide, it
+opened into an area of considerable dimensions. Far in the corner, when
+his eyes became accustomed to the light, he discovered a circle of
+ashes, and his conjectures that these caves had been the abode of men
+were therefore verified. He again descended, and collected a large
+bundle of grass and rushes for his bed. He discovered growing among the
+rocks many edible plants, whose seeds were probably sown there centuries
+before, and gathering some of these he made his way back to the cavern.
+The grass furnished him with an excellent bed, and he was soon asleep.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+A HERMIT'S TALE.
+
+
+The next day he discovered on his excursions plenty of eatable berries
+on the bushes; and now that he had no longer fear of hunger he resolved
+to stay for some little time, until his wounds, which had festered
+badly, had recovered, before making an attempt to rejoin the Christian
+army.
+
+One day when employed in gathering berries he was surprised by meeting a
+wild-looking figure, who appeared suddenly from one of the caves. It was
+that of a very old man, with an extremely long white beard flowing to
+his waist; his hair, which was utterly unkempt, fell to the same point.
+He was thin to an extraordinary extent, and Cuthbert wondered how a man
+could have been reduced to such a state of starvation, with so plentiful
+a supply of fruit and berries at hand.
+
+The old man looked at Cuthbert attentively, and then made the sign of
+the cross. Cuthbert gave a cry of joy, and repeated the sign. The old
+man at once came down from his cavern, and looked at him with surprise
+and astonishment, and then addressed him in the French language.
+
+"Are you a Christian truly; and if so, whence do you come?"
+
+Cuthbert at once explained that he had been taken prisoner when with
+King Richard's army, and had effected his escape. He also told the old
+man that he had been remaining for the last four days in a cave higher
+up the stream. The hermit--for he was one--beckoned him to follow him,
+and Cuthbert found himself in a cave precisely similar to that which he
+himself inhabited. There were no signs of comfort of any kind; a
+bed-place made of great stones stood in one corner, and Cuthbert,
+remembering the comforts of his own grassy couch, shuddered at the
+thought of the intense discomfort of such a sleeping-place. In another
+corner was an altar, upon which stood a rough crucifix, before which the
+hermit knelt at once in prayer, Cuthbert following his example. Rising
+again, the hermit motioned to him to sit down, and then began a
+conversation with him.
+
+It was so long since the hermit had spoken to any living being that he
+had almost lost the use of his tongue, and his sentences were slow and
+ill-formed. However, Cuthbert was able to understand him, and he to
+gather the drift of what Cuthbert told him. The old man then showed him
+that by touching a stone in the corner of his cave the apparently solid
+rock opened, and revealed an entrance into an inner cave, which was lit
+by a ray of light which penetrated from above.
+
+"This," he said, "was made centuries ago, and was intended as a refuge
+from the persecutors of that day. The caves were then almost all
+inhabited by hermits, and although many recked not of their lives, and
+were quite ready to meet death through the knife of the infidel, others
+clung to existence, and preferred to pass many years of penance on earth
+for the sake of atoning for their sins before called upon to appear
+before their Maker. If you are pursued it will be safer for you to take
+up your abode here. I am known to all the inhabitants of this country,
+who look upon me as mad, and respect me accordingly. None ever interfere
+with me, or with the two or three other hermits, the remains of what was
+once almost an army, who now alone survive. I can offer you no
+hospitality beyond that of a refuge; but there is water in the river
+below, fruits and berries in abundance on the shrubs. What would you
+have more?"
+
+Cuthbert accepted the invitation with thanks; for he thought that even
+at the worst the presence of this holy man would be a protection to him
+from any Arabs who might discover him.
+
+For three or four days he resided with the hermit, who, although he
+stretched his long lean body upon the hard stones of his bed, and passed
+many hours of the night kneeling on the stone floor in front of his
+altar, yet had no objection to Cuthbert making himself as comfortable as
+he could under the circumstances.
+
+At the end of the fourth day Cuthbert asked him how long he had been
+there, and how he came to take up his abode in so desolate and fearsome
+a place. The hermit was silent for a time, and then said:
+
+"It is long indeed since my thoughts have gone back to the day when I
+was of the world. I know not whether it would not be a sin to recall
+them; but I will think the matter over to-night, and if it appears to me
+that you may derive good from my narrative, I will relate it to you
+to-morrow."
+
+The next day Cuthbert did not renew the request, leaving it to the
+hermit to speak should he think fit. It was not until the evening that
+he alluded to the subject; and then taking his seat on a bank near the
+edge of the river, he motioned to Cuthbert to sit beside him, and began:
+
+"My father was a peer of France, and I was brought up at the court.
+Although it may seem strange to you, looking upon this withered frame,
+sixty-five years back I was as bold and comely a knight as rode in the
+train of the king, for I am now past ninety, and for sixty years I have
+resided here. I was a favorite of the king's, and he loaded me with
+wealth and honor. He, too, was young, and I joined with him in the mad
+carousals and feastings of the court. My father resided for the most
+part at one of his castles in the country, and I, an only son, was left
+much to myself. I need not tell you that I was as wild and as wicked as
+all those around me; that I thought little of God, and feared neither
+Him nor man.
+
+"It chanced that one of the nobles--I need not mention his name--whose
+castle lay in the same province as that of my father, had a lovely
+daughter, who, being an only child, would be his heiress. She was
+considered one of the best matches in France, and reports of her
+exceeding beauty had reached the court. Although my allowance from my
+father, and from the estates which the king had given me personally,
+should have been more than enough for my utmost wants, gambling and
+riotous living swallowed up my revenue faster than it came in, and I was
+constantly harassed by debt.
+
+"Talking one night at supper with a number of bold companions as to the
+means we should take for restoring our wasted fortunes, some said in
+jest that the best plan would be for one of us to marry the beauty of
+Dauphiny. I at once said that I would be the man to do it; the idea was
+a wild one, and a roar of laughter greeted my words. Her father was
+known to be a stern and rigid man, and it was certain that he would not
+consent to give his daughter to a spendthrift young noble like myself.
+When the laughter had subsided I repeated my intention gravely, and
+offered to wager large sums with all around the table that I would
+succeed.
+
+"On the morrow I packed up a few of my belongings, put in my valise the
+dress of a wandering troubadour, and taking with me only a trusty
+servant, started for Dauphiny. It would be tedious to tell you the
+means I resorted to to obtain the affections of the heiress. I had been
+well instructed in music and could play on the lute, and knew by heart
+large numbers of ballads, and could myself, in case of necessity, string
+verses together with tolerable ease. As a troubadour I arrived at the
+castle gate, and craved permission to enter to amuse its occupants.
+Troubadours then, as now, were in high esteem in the south, and I was at
+once made a welcome guest.
+
+"Days passed, and weeks; still I lingered at the castle, my heart being
+now as much interested as my pride in the wager which I had undertaken.
+Suffice it to say that my songs, and perhaps my appearance--for I cannot
+be accused of vanity now in saying nature had been bountiful to me--won
+my way to her heart. Troubadours were licensed folk, and even in her
+father's presence there was naught unseemly in my singing songs of love.
+While he took them as the mere compliments of a troubadour, the lady, I
+saw, read them as serious effusions of my heart.
+
+"It was only occasionally that we met alone; but ere long she confessed
+that she loved me. Without telling her my real name, I disclosed to her
+that I was of her own rank and that I had entered upon the disguise I
+wore in order to win her love. She was romantic, and was flattered by my
+devotion. I owned to her that hitherto I had been wild and reckless; and
+she told me at once that her father destined her for the son of an old
+friend of his, to whom it appeared she had been affianced while still a
+baby. She was positive that nothing would move her father. For the man
+she was to marry she entertained no kind of affection, and indeed had
+never seen him, as she had been brought up in a convent to the age of
+fifteen; and just before she had returned thence he had gone to finish
+his education at Padua.
+
+"She trembled when I proposed flight; but I assured her that I was
+certain of the protection of the king, and that he would, I was sure,
+when the marriage was once celebrated, use his influence with her father
+to obtain his forgiveness.
+
+"The preparations for her flight were not long in making. I purchased a
+fleet horse in addition to my own, and ordered my servant to bring it to
+a point a short distance from the castle gate. I had procured a long
+rope with which to lower her down from her lattice to the moat below,
+which was at present dry, intending myself to slide after her. The night
+chosen was one when I knew that the count was to have guests, and I
+thought that they would probably, as is the custom, drink heavily, and
+that there would be less fear of any watch being kept.
+
+"The guests arrived just at nightfall. I had feigned illness, and kept
+my room. From time to time I heard through the windows of the banqueting
+hall bursts of laughter. These gradually ceased; and at last when all
+was still I, after waiting some time, stole from my room with a rope in
+my hand to the apartment occupied by her. A slight tap at the door, as
+arranged, was at once answered, and I found her ready cloaked and
+prepared for the enterprise. She trembled from head to foot, but I
+cheered her to the best of my power, and at last she was in readiness to
+be lowered. The window was at a considerable height from the ground; but
+the rope was a long one, and I had no fear of its reaching the bottom.
+Fastening it round her waist, I began to lower her from the window.
+
+"The night was a windy one, and she swung backward and forward as she
+went down. By what chance it was I know not--for I had examined the rope
+and found it secure--but methinks in swaying backward and forward it
+may have caught a sharp stone, maybe it was a punishment from Heaven
+upon me for robbing a father of his child--but suddenly I felt there was
+no longer a weight on my arms. A fearful shriek rang through the air,
+and, looking out, I saw far below a white figure stretched senseless in
+the mud!
+
+"For a minute I stood paralyzed. But the cry had aroused others, and,
+turning round, I saw a man at the door with a drawn sword. Wild with
+grief and despair, and thinking, not of making my escape, or of
+concealing my part in what had happened, but rushing without an
+instant's delay to the body of her I loved so well, I drew my sword, and
+like a madman rushed upon him who barred the door. The combat was brief
+but furious, and nerved by the madness of despair I broke down his guard
+and ran him through the body. As he fell back, his face came in the full
+light of the moon, which streamed through the open door of the passage,
+and to my utter horror and bewilderment I saw that I had slain my
+father.
+
+"What happened after that night I know not. I believe that I made my
+escape from the castle and rushed round to the body of her whose life I
+had destroyed, and that there finding her dead, I ran wildly across the
+country. When I came to my senses months had passed, and I was the
+inmate of an asylum for men bereaved of their senses, kept by noble
+monks. Here for two years I remained, the world believing that I was
+dead. None knew that the troubadour whose love had cost the lady her
+life, who had slain the guest of her father, and had then disappeared,
+was the unhappy son of that guest. My friends in Paris when they heard
+of the tragedy of course associated it with me, but they all kept
+silent. The monks, to whom I confessed the whole story, were shocked
+indeed, but consoled me in my grief and despair by the assurance that
+however greatly I had sinned, the death of the lady had been accidental,
+and that if I were a parricide it was at least unintentionally.
+
+"My repentance was deep and sincere; and after awhile, under another
+name, I joined the army of the Crusaders, to expiate my sin by warring
+for the holy sepulcher. I fought as men fight who have no wish to live;
+but while all around me fell by sword and disease, death kept aloof from
+me. When the Crusade had failed I determined to turn forever from the
+world, and to devote my life to prayer and penance; and so casting aside
+my armor I made my way here, and took up my abode in a cave in this
+valley, where at that time were many thousands of other hermits--for the
+Saracens, while they gained much money from fines and exactions from
+pilgrims who came to Jerusalem, and fought stoutly against those who
+sought to capture that city, were in the main tolerant, and offered no
+hindrance to the community of men whom they looked upon as mad.
+
+"Here, my son, for more than sixty years have I prayed, with much
+fasting and penance. I trust now that the end is nearly at hand, and
+that my long life of mortification may be deemed to have obliterated the
+evil deeds which I did in my youth. Let my fate be a warning to you.
+Walk steadily in the right way; indulge not in feasting and evil
+companionship; and above all, do not enter upon evil deeds, the end of
+which no man can see."
+
+The hermit was silent, and Cuthbert, seeing that his thoughts had again
+referred to the past, wandered away, and left him sitting by the river
+side. Some hours later he returned and found the hermit kneeling before
+the altar; and the next morning the latter said:
+
+"I presume, my son, you do not wish to remain here as a hermit, as I
+have done? Methinks it were well that we made our arrangements for your
+return to the Christian host, who will, I hope, ere long be at the gates
+of Jerusalem."
+
+"I should like nothing better," Cuthbert said. "But ignorant as I am of
+the nature of the country, it seems to be nigh impossible to penetrate
+through the hosts of the Saracens to reach the camp of King Richard."
+
+"The matter is difficult and not without danger," the hermit said. "As
+to the nature of the country, I myself know but little, for my dealings
+with the natives have been few and simple. There are, however, several
+Christian communities dwelling among the heathen. They are poor, and are
+forced to live in little-frequented localities. Their Christianity may
+be suspected by their neighbors, but as they do no man harm, and carry
+on their worship in secret, they are little interfered with. There is
+one community among the hills between this and Jerusalem, and I can give
+you instructions for reaching this, together with a token which will
+secure you hospitality there, and they will no doubt do their best to
+forward you to another station. When you approach the flat country where
+the armies are maneuvering you must doubtless trust to yourself; but as
+far as the slopes extend, methinks that our friends will be able to pass
+you without great difficulty."
+
+Cuthbert's heart rose greatly at the prospect of once again entering
+upon an active life, and the next evening, with many thanks for his
+kindness, he knelt before the aged hermit to receive his blessing.
+
+With the instructions given him he had no difficulty in making his way
+through the mountains, until after some five hours' walk he found
+himself at a little village situated in a narrow valley.
+
+Going to the door of the principal hut he knocked, and upon entering
+showed the owner--who opened the door--a rosette of peculiar beads and
+repeated the name of Father Anselm. The peasant at once recognized it
+and bade Cuthbert welcome. He knew but a few words of French, although
+doubtless his ancestors had been of European extraction. In the morning
+he furnished Cuthbert with the sheepskin and short tunic which formed
+the dress of a shepherd, and dyeing his limbs and face a deep brown he
+himself started with Cuthbert on his journey to the next Christian
+community.
+
+This was a small one consisting of two huts only, built almost on the
+summit of a mountain, the inhabitants living partly on the milk and
+cheese of their goats and partly upon the scanty vegetables which grew
+around the huts.
+
+His welcome was as cordial as that of the night before; and the next
+morning, his former guide taking leave of him, the peasant in whose
+house he had slept again conducted him forward to another community.
+This was the last station and stood in a narrow gorge on the face of the
+hills looking down over the plain, beyond which in the far distance a
+faint line of blue sea was visible.
+
+This community was far more prosperous and well-to-do than those at
+which the previous nights had been passed. The head of the village
+appeared to be a personage of some importance; and although clinging in
+secret to his Christian faith, he and his belongings had so far adopted
+the usages of the Mussulmen that apparently no thought of their
+Christianity entered into the minds of the authorities. He was the owner
+of two or three horses and of some extensive vineyards and olive
+grounds. He was also able to speak French with some degree of fluency.
+
+At considerable length he explained to Cuthbert the exact position of
+the Christian army, which had moved some distance along the coast since
+Cuthbert had left it. It was, he said, exposed to constant attacks by
+the Saracens, who harassed it in every way, and permitted it no repose.
+He said that the high hopes which had been raised by the defeat of the
+Saracens at Azotus had now fallen, and that it was feared the Christians
+would not be able to force their way forward to Jerusalem. The great
+portion of their animals had died, and the country was so eaten up by
+the Saracen hosts that an advance upon Jerusalem without a large baggage
+train was next to impossible; and indeed if the Christians were to
+arrive before that city, they could effect nothing without the aid of
+the heavy machines necessary for battering the walls or effecting an
+escalade.
+
+Cuthbert was vastly grieved when he heard of the probable failure of the
+expedition, and he burned with eagerness to take his part again in the
+dangers and difficulties which beset the Christian army. His host
+pointed out to him the extreme difficulty and danger of his crossing the
+enemy's lines, but at the same time offered to do all in his power to
+assist him. After two days' stay at the village, and discussing the pros
+and cons of all possible plans, it was decided that the best chance lay
+in a bold effort. The host placed at his disposal one of his horses,
+together with such clothes as would enable him to ride as an Arab chief
+of rank and station; a long lance was furnished him, a short and heavy
+mace, and scimitar; a bag of dates was hung at the saddlebow; and with
+the sincerest thanks to his protector, and with a promise that should
+the Christian host win their way to Jerusalem the steed should be
+returned with ample payment, Cuthbert started on his journey.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+A FIGHT OF HEROES.
+
+
+The horse was a good and spirited one, and when he had once descended to
+the plains, Cuthbert rode gayly along, exulting in his freedom, and in
+once again possessing arms to defend himself should it be needed. His
+appearance was so exactly that of the horsemen who were continually
+passing and repassing that no observation whatever was attracted by it.
+Through villages, and even through camps, Cuthbert rode fearlessly, and
+arrived, without having once been accosted, near the main camp of the
+Saracens, which extended for miles parallel to the sea. But at a
+distance of some three leagues beyond could be seen the white tents of
+the Christian host, and Cuthbert felt that the time of trial was now at
+hand.
+
+He dismounted for an hour to allow his steed to rest itself, fed it with
+dates from his wallet, and gave it a drink of water at the stream. Then,
+when he felt that it had thoroughly recovered its strength and
+freshness, he remounted, and rode briskly on as before. He passed
+unchallenged, attracting no more notice than a person nowadays would do
+in walking along a crowded street. Without hesitation he passed through
+the tents and started across the open country. Bands of horsemen were
+seen here and there, some going, and some coming from the direction of
+the Christian camp. As it was doubtless supposed that he was on his way
+to join some band that had gone on in advance, the passage of the
+solitary horseman excited no comment until he approached within about
+two miles of the Christian camp. There were now, so far as he could see,
+no enemies between him and the point he so longed to gain. But at this
+minute a group of Arab horsemen, gathered, apparently on the lookout
+against any movement of the Christians, shouted to him "Halt!" demanding
+whither he was going.
+
+Up to this point Cuthbert had ridden at a gentle canter; but at the
+challenge he put spurs into his steed and made across the plain at full
+speed. With a wild yell the Arabs started in pursuit. They lay at first
+some two hundred yards on his right, and he had therefore a considerable
+start of them. His horse was fairly fresh, for the journey that he had
+made had only been about fifteen miles--an inconsiderable distance to an
+Arab steed. For half a mile he did not think that his pursuers gained
+much upon him, riding as they had done sideways. They had now gathered
+in his rear, and the nearest was some one hundred and fifty yards behind
+him. A quarter of a mile further he again looked around, and found that
+two of the Arabs, far better mounted than the others, had come within
+half the distance which separated them from him when he last glanced
+back. His horse was straining to the utmost, and he felt that it could
+do no more; he therefore prepared himself for a desperate fight should
+his pursuers overtake him. In another quarter of a mile they were but a
+short distance behind, and an arrow whizzing by Cuthbert's ear told him
+they had betaken themselves to their bows.
+
+Half a mile ahead he saw riding toward him a group of Christian knights;
+but he felt that it was too late for him to hope to reach them, and that
+his only chance now was to boldly encounter his pursuers. The main body
+of the Arabs was fully two hundred yards behind--a short distance when
+going at a gallop--which left him but little time to shake off the
+pursuit of the two immediately behind him.
+
+A sharp stinging pain in his leg told him that it was time to make his
+effort; and checking his horse, he wheeled suddenly round. The two Arabs
+with a yell rode at him with pointed lance. With his right hand Cuthbert
+grasped the short heavy mace which hung at his saddlebow, and being well
+practiced in the hurling of this weapon--which formed part of the
+education of a good knight--he cast it with all his force at the chest
+of the Arab approaching on that side. The point of the spear was within
+a few yards of his breast as he flung the mace; but his aim was true,
+for it smote the Saracen full on the chest, and hurled him from his
+horse as if struck with a thunderbolt. At the same instant Cuthbert
+threw himself flat on the neck of his steed and the lance of the Arab
+who came up on the other side passed harmlessly between his shoulders,
+tearing his clothes as it went. In an instant Cuthbert had wheeled his
+horse, and before the Arab could turn his steed Cuthbert, coming up from
+behind, had run him through the body.
+
+Short as the delay had been, the main body of the pursuers were scarcely
+fifty yards away; but Cuthbert now continued his flight toward the
+knights, who were galloping forward at full speed; and a moment
+afterward glancing back, he saw that his pursuers had turned and were in
+full flight.
+
+With a shout of joy he rode forward to the party who had viewed with
+astonishment this conflict between what appeared to be three of the
+infidels. Even louder than his first shout of exultation was the cry of
+joy which he raised at seeing among the party to whom he rode up the
+Earl of Evesham, who reined in his horse in astonishment, and drew his
+sword as the supposed enemy galloped toward him.
+
+"My lord, my lord!" Cuthbert said. "Thank Heaven I am safe with you
+again."
+
+The earl lowered his sword in astonishment.
+
+"Am I mad," he said, "or dreaming, or is this really Sir Cuthbert?"
+
+"It is I, sure enough," Cuthbert exclaimed, "although truly I look more
+like a Bedouin soldier than a Christian knight."
+
+"My dear boy!" exclaimed the earl, galloping forward and throwing his
+arms around Cuthbert's neck, "we thought you were dead. But by what
+wonderful fortune have you succeeded in escaping?"
+
+In a few words Cuthbert related the principal incidents of his
+adventures, and he was heartily congratulated by the assembled knights.
+
+There was, however, no time for long explanations. Large bodies of the
+Saracen horse were already sweeping down to capture, if possible, this
+small band of knights who had ventured so far from the camp; and as King
+Richard's orders were that none should venture upon conflicts except by
+his orders, the party reluctantly turned their horses and galloped back
+to the camp.
+
+Great as had been the earl's joy, it was, if possible, exceeded by that
+of Cnut on discovering in the Arab chief who rode up alongside the earl
+the lad he loved so well. Loud and hearty were the cheers which rang out
+from the earl's camp as the news spread, and Cuthbert was compelled to
+shake hands with the whole party before entering the earl's tent, to
+refresh himself and give the narrative of what had happened.
+
+Cuthbert, retiring to his tent with the Earl of Evesham, inquired of him
+what had taken place during his absence.
+
+"For," he said, "although but a short three days' march from here, I
+have been as one of the dead, and have heard nothing whatever of what
+has taken place."
+
+"Nothing could have gone worse," the earl said. "We have had nothing but
+dissensions and quarrels. First, the king fell out with the Archduke of
+Austria."
+
+"On what ground did this happen?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"For once," the earl said, "the king our master was wholly in the wrong,
+which is not generally the case. We had just taken Ascalon, and were
+hard at work fortifying the place. King Richard with his usual zeal, in
+order to encourage the army, seized heavy stones and himself bore them
+into their place. The archduke stood near with some of his knights: and
+it may be that the haughty Austrian looked somewhat superciliously at
+our king thus laboring.
+
+"'Why do you not make a show of helping?' King Richard said, going up to
+him. 'It would encourage the men, and show that the labor upon which we
+are engaged can be undertaken by all without derogation.'
+
+"To this the archduke replied:
+
+"'I am not the son of a mason!'
+
+"Whereupon Richard, whose blood no doubt had been excited by the air of
+the Austrian, struck him with his hand a fierce blow across the face. We
+nearly betook ourselves to our swords on both sides; but King Richard
+himself could have scattered half the Austrians, and these, knowing that
+against his impetuous valor they could do nothing, simply withdrew from
+our camp, and sailed the next day for home. Then the king, in order to
+conciliate some at least of his allies, conferred the crown of Jerusalem
+upon Conrad of Montferat. No sooner had he done this than Conrad was
+mysteriously wounded. By whom it was done none knew. Some say that it
+was by emissaries of the Old Man of the Mountain. Others affirm that it
+was the jealousy of some of the knights of the holy orders. But be that
+as it may, he died. Some of the French, ever jealous of the valor of our
+king, ascribed it to his orders. This monstrous accusation coming to the
+ears of King Richard, he had hot words with the Duke of Burgundy. In
+this I blame him not, for it is beyond all reason that a man like the
+king, whose faults, such as they are, arise from too much openness, and
+from the want of concealment of such dislikes as he may have, should
+resort to poison to free himself of a man whom he himself had but a day
+or two before appointed King of Jerusalem. However it be, the
+consequences were most unfortunate, for the result of the quarrel was
+that the Duke of Burgundy and his Frenchmen followed the example of the
+Austrians, and we were left alone. Before this we had marched upon
+Jerusalem. But the weather had been so bad, and our train was so
+insufficient to carry the engines of war, that we had been forced to
+fall back again. King Richard again advanced, and with much toil we went
+as far as the village of Bethany."
+
+"Why," Cuthbert exclaimed, "I passed through that village, and it is but
+three miles from the holy city."
+
+"That is so," the earl said; "and many of us, ascending the hill in
+front, saw Jerusalem. But even then it was certain that we must again
+retrace our steps; and when we asked King Richard to come to the crest
+of the hill to see the holy city, he refused to do so, saying, 'No;
+those who are not worthy of conquering Jerusalem should not look at it!'
+This was but a short time since, and we are now retracing our steps to
+Acre, and are treating with Saladin for a peace."
+
+"Then," Cuthbert said sadly, "all our hopes and efforts are thrown away;
+all this blood has been shed for nothing; and after the three great
+powers of Europe have engaged themselves solemnly in the war, we are
+baffled, and have to fall back before the hordes of the infidels."
+
+"Partly before them," the earl said, "partly as the result of our own
+jealousies and passions. Had King Richard been a lesser man than he is,
+we might have conquered Jerusalem. But he is so extraordinary a warrior
+that his glory throws all others into the shade. He is a good general,
+perhaps the best in Europe; and had he done nothing but lead, assuredly
+we should have carried out our purpose. See how ably he maneuvered the
+army at the fight of Azotus. Never was a more complete defeat than that
+which he inflicted there upon the Saracens; and although the fact that
+his generalship achieved this, might have caused some jealousy to the
+other commanders, this might have died away could he between the battles
+have been a general, and nothing more. But, alas! he is in addition a
+knight-errant--and such a knight-errant as Europe has never seen before.
+Wherever there is danger, Richard will plunge into the midst. There are
+brave men in all the three armies; but the strongest and bravest are as
+children to King Richard. Alone he can dart into ranks of the infidels,
+and cut a lane for himself by the strength of his right arm. More than
+this, when danger has threatened he has snatched up his battle-ax and
+dashed into the fray without helm or cuirass, performing such prodigies
+of valor and strength that it has been to his prowess alone that victory
+was to be ascribed. Hence he is the idol of all the soldiers, whatever
+their nationality; for he is as ready to rush to the rescue of a French
+or Austrian knight when pressed as to that of his own men. But the
+devotion which the whole army felt for him was as gall and wormwood to
+the haughty Austrian and the indolent Frenchman; and the retirement of
+the King of France, which left Richard in supreme command, was in every
+way unfortunate."
+
+Upon the following day the army again marched, and Cuthbert could not
+but notice the difference, not only in number but in demeanor, from the
+splendid array which had left Acre a few months before. There was little
+now of the glory of pennon and banner; the bright helms and cuirasses
+were rusted and dinted, and none seemed to care aught for bravery of
+show. The knights and men-at-arms were sunburnt and thin, and seemed but
+half the weight that they had been when they landed. Fatigue, hardship,
+and the heat had done their work; disease had swept off vast numbers.
+But the remains of the army were so formidable in their fighting powers
+that the Saracens, although following them at a distance in vast
+numbers, did not venture an attack upon them.
+
+A few days after their arrival at Acre, the king gave orders for the
+embarkation of the troops. Just as they were preparing to enter the
+ships a small vessel was seen entering the harbor. It drew up to the
+shore, and a knight leaped from it, and, inquiring where King Richard
+was to be found, made his way to the king, who was standing
+superintending the embarkation of some of the horses.
+
+"The Saracens, sire!" he exclaimed. "The Saracens are besieging Jaffa,
+and the place must be lost unless assistance arrives in a day or two."
+
+The king leaped on board the nearest ship, shouted to his leading
+officers to follow him, and gave orders to others to bring down the
+troops with all possible speed, to waste not a moment, and to see that
+all was done, and then, in five minutes after the receipt of the news he
+started for Jaffa. The Earl of Evesham and Cuthbert had been standing
+near the king when the order was given, and followed him at once on
+board the bark which he had chosen.
+
+"Ah, my gallant young knight," the king exclaimed, "I am right glad to
+see you with me. We shall have more fighting before we have done, and I
+know that that suits your mood as well as my own."
+
+The king's vessel was far in advance of any of the others, when early
+the following morning it arrived at Jaffa.
+
+"Your eyes are better than mine," the king said to Cuthbert. "Tell me
+what is that flag flying on the top of the town."
+
+Cuthbert looked at it earnestly.
+
+"I fear, sire, that it is the crescent. We have arrived too late."
+
+"By the holy cross," said King Richard, "that shall not be so; for if
+the place be taken, we will retake it."
+
+As the vessel neared the shore a monk ran out into the water up to his
+shoulders, and said to the king that the citadel still held out, and
+that even now the Saracens might be driven back. Without delay the king
+leaped into the water, followed by the knights and men-at-arms, and
+entering the gate, threw himself upon the infidels within, who, busy
+plundering, had not noticed the arrival of the ship.
+
+The war cry of "St. George! St. George!" which the king always shouted
+in battle, struck panic among the infidels; and although the king was
+followed but by five knights and a few men-at-arms, the Saracens, to the
+number of three thousand, fled before him, and all who tarried were
+smitten down. The king followed them out upon the plain, driving them
+before him as a lion would drive a flock of sheep, and then returned
+triumphant into the city.
+
+The next day, some more ships having arrived, King Richard found that in
+all, including the garrison, he could muster two thousand combatants.
+The enemy renewed the attack in great numbers, and the assaults upon
+the walls were continuous and desperate. King Richard, who loved
+fighting in the plain rather than behind walls, was impatient at this,
+and at one time so fierce was the attack that he resolved to sally out.
+Only ten horses remained in the town, and King Richard, mounting one,
+called upon nine of the knights to mount and sally out with him. The
+little band of ten warriors charged down upon the host of the Saracens
+and swept them before them. It was a marvelous sight indeed to see so
+small a group of horsemen dashing through a crowd of Saracen warriors.
+These, although at first beaten back, yet rallied, and the ten knights
+had great difficulty in fighting their way back to the town. When near
+the walls the Christians again made a stand, and a few knights sallied
+out from the town on foot and joined them. Among these was Cuthbert, the
+Earl of Evesham having accompanied King Richard in his charge. In all,
+seventeen knights were now rallied round the king. So fierce was the
+charge of the Saracens that the king ordered those on horseback to
+dismount, and with their horses in the center, the little body knelt
+with their lances opposed to the Saracens. Again and again the wild
+cavalry swept down upon this little force, but in vain did they attempt
+to break their ranks. The scene was indeed an extraordinary one. At last
+the king, seeing that the enemy were losing heart, again ordered the
+knights to mount, and these dashing among the enemy, completed their
+defeat.
+
+While this had been going on news came to the king that the Saracens
+from another side had made their way into Jaffa, and were massacring the
+Christians. Without, an instant's delay he flew to their succor,
+followed only by two knights and a few archers, the rest being so worn
+by their exertions as to be unable to move. The Mamelukes, the chosen
+guard of Saladin, had headed the attack; but even these were driven out
+from the town, and Richard dashed out from the city in their pursuit.
+One Saracen emir, distinguished for his stature and strength, ventured
+to match himself against the king, and rode boldly at him. But with one
+blow Richard severed his head, and his right shoulder and arm, from his
+body. Then having, by his single arm, put to rout the Saracens at this
+point, he dashed through them to the aid of the little band of knights
+who had remained on the defensive when he left them at the alarm of the
+city being entered. These were almost sinking with fatigue and wounds;
+but King Richard opened a way around them by slaying numbers of the
+enemy, and then charged again alone into the midst of the Mussulman
+host, and was lost to the sight of his companions. All thought that they
+would never see him again. But he soon reappeared, his horse covered
+with blood, but himself unwounded; and the attack of the enemy ceased.
+
+From the hour of daybreak, it is said, Richard had not ceased for a
+moment to deal out his blows, and the skin of his hand adhered to the
+handle of his battle-ax. This narration would appear almost fabulous,
+were it not that it is attested in the chronicles of several
+eye-witnesses, and for centuries afterward the Saracen women hushed
+their babes when fractious by threatening them with Malek-Rik, the name
+which they gave to King Richard.
+
+Glorious as was the success, it was a sad one, for several of the most
+devoted of the followers of King Richard were wounded badly, some few to
+death. Among these last, to the terrible grief of Cuthbert, was his
+friend and patron, the Earl of Evesham. The king, on taking off his
+armor, hurried to his tent.
+
+"The glory of this day is marred indeed," he said to the wounded knight,
+"if I am to lose you, Sir Walter."
+
+"I fear that it must even be so, my lord," the dying earl said. "I am
+glad that I have seen this day, for never did I think to witness such
+feats as those which your majesty has performed; and though the Crusade
+has failed, and the holy city remains in the hands of the infidel, yet
+assuredly no shadow of disgrace has fallen upon the English arms, and,
+indeed, great glory has accrued to us. Whatever may be said of the Great
+Crusade, it will at least be allowed by all men, and for all time, that
+had the princes and soldiers of other nations done as your majesty and
+your followers have done, the holy city would have fallen into our hands
+within a month of our putting foot upon the soil. Your majesty, I have a
+boon to ask."
+
+"You have but to name it, Sir Walter, and it is yours."
+
+"Sir Cuthbert, here," he said, pointing to the young knight, who was
+sorrowfully kneeling by his bedside, "is as a son to me. The
+relationship by blood is but slight, but by affection it is as close as
+though he were mine own. I have, as your majesty knows, no male heirs,
+and my daughter is but young, and will now be a royal ward. I beseech
+your majesty to bestow her in marriage, when the time comes, upon Sir
+Cuthbert. They have known each other as children, and the union will
+bring happiness, methinks, to both, as well as strength and protection
+to her; and further, if it might be, I would fain that you should bestow
+upon him my title and dignity."
+
+"It shall be so," the king said. "When your eyes are closed, Sir Walter,
+Sir Cuthbert shall be Earl of Evesham, and, when the time comes, the
+husband of your daughter."
+
+Cuthbert was too overwhelmed with grief to feel a shadow of exaltation
+at the gracious intimation of the king; although, even then, a thought
+of future happiness in the care of the fair young lady Marguerite passed
+before his mind. For the last time the king gave his hand to his
+faithful servant, who pressed it to his lips, and a few minutes
+afterward breathed his last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+AN ALPINE STORM.
+
+
+The tremendous exertions which King Richard had made told upon him, and
+attacks of fever succeeded each other at short intervals. This, however,
+mattered the less, since negotiations were now proceeding between him
+and Saladin. It was impossible, with the slight means at his disposal,
+for Richard further to carry on the Crusade alone. Moreover, pressing
+news had arrived from his mother in England, urging him to return, as
+his brother John was intriguing against him, and had already assumed all
+but the kingly title. Saladin was equally desirous of peace. His wild
+troops were, for the most part, eager to return to their homes, and the
+defeats which they had suffered, and the, to them, miraculous power of
+King Richard's arm, had lowered their spirit and made them eager to be
+away. Therefore he consented without difficulty to the terms proposed.
+By these, the Christians were to surrender Ascalon, but were to keep
+Jaffa, Tyre, and the fortresses along the coast. All hostilities were to
+be suspended on both sides for the space of three years, three months,
+three weeks, three days, and three hours, when Richard hoped to return
+again and to recommence the struggle.
+
+Between the sultan and King Richard a feeling approaching that of
+friendship had sprung up during the campaign. Saladin was himself brave
+in the extreme, and exposed his life as fearlessly as did his Christian
+rival, and the two valiant leaders recognized the great qualities of
+each other. Several times during the campaign when Richard had been ill,
+the emir had sent him presents of fruit and other matters, to which
+Richard had responded in the same spirit. An interview had taken place
+between them which further cemented their friendship; and when Richard
+promised to return again at the end of the truce with a far larger army,
+and to accomplish the rescue of the holy city, the sultan smiled, and
+said that it appeared that valor alone was not sufficient to conquer in
+the Holy Land, but that if Jerusalem were to fall into the hands of the
+Christians, it could fall into no worthier hands than those of
+Malek-Rik.
+
+So, with many mutual courtesies, the great rivals separated, and soon
+after King Richard and the little remnant of his army embarked on board
+ship, and set sail for England.
+
+It was on October 11, 1192, that Richard Coeur de Lion left Palestine.
+Soon after they started a storm suddenly burst upon them, and dispersed
+them in various directions. The ship in which Queen Berengaria was
+carried arrived safely in Sicily; but that in which King Richard was
+borne was missing, and none of his fellow-voyagers knew what had become
+of him. Sir Cuthbert was in the same vessel as the king, and the bark
+was driven upon the Island of Corfu. All reached shore in safety, and
+King Richard then hired three small vessels, in which he sailed to the
+port of Zara, whence he hoped to reach the domains of his nephew, Otho
+of Saxony, the son of his sister Matilda. The king had with him now but
+two of his knights, Baldwin of Béthune, and Cuthbert of Evesham. Cnut
+was with his feudal chief--for such Cuthbert had now, by his accession
+to the rank of Earl of Evesham, become--and three or four English
+archers.
+
+"I fear, my lords," the king said to his knights as he sat in a little
+room in an inn at Zara, "that my plight is a bad one. I am surrounded by
+enemies, and, alas! I can no longer mount my steed and ride out as at
+Jaffa to do battle with them. My brother, John Lackland, is scheming to
+take my place upon the throne of England. Philip of France, whose mind
+is far better at such matters than at setting armies in the field, is in
+league with him. The Emperor Henry has laid claim to the throne of
+Sicily. Leopold of Austria has not forgiven me the blow I struck him in
+the face at Ascalon, and the friends of Conrad of Montferat are
+spreading far and wide the lie that I was the instigator of his murder.
+Sure never had a poor king so many enemies, and few have ever had so
+small a following as I have now. What think you, my lords? What course
+would you advise that I should adopt? If I can reach Saxony doubtless
+Otho will aid me. But hence to Dresden is a long journey indeed. I have
+neither credit nor funds to hire a ship to take us by sea. Nor would
+such a voyage be a safe one, when so many of my enemies' ships are on
+the main. I must needs, I think, go in disguise, for my way lies wholly
+through the country of my enemies."
+
+"Surely," Cuthbert said, "no potentate could for very shame venture to
+detain your majesty on your way from the Holy Land, where you have
+wrought such great deeds. Were I in your place, I would at once proclaim
+myself, mount my horse, have my banner carried before me, and ride
+openly on. You have, too, another claim, namely, that of being
+shipwrecked, and even in war-time nations respect those whom the force
+of God has thrown upon their shores."
+
+"I fear me, Sir Cuthbert," Sir Baldwin said, "that you overrate the
+chivalry of our master's enemies. Had we been thrown on the shores of
+France, Philip perhaps would hesitate to lay hands upon the king; but
+these petty German princelings have no idea of the observances of true
+chivalry. They are coarse and brutal in their ways; and though in
+outward form following the usage of knighthood, they have never been
+penetrated with its spirit. If the friends of Conrad of Montferat lay
+hands upon King Richard I fear that no scruples will prevent them from
+using their advantage to the utmost. Even their emperor I would not
+trust. The course which you advise would no doubt be in accordance with
+the spirit of King Richard; but it would be madness for him to judge
+other people's spirit by his own, and it would be rushing into the
+lion's den to proclaim himself here. I should recommend, if I might
+venture to do so, that his majesty should assume a false name, and that
+we should travel in small parties so as to attract no attention, each
+making his way to Saxony as best he may."
+
+There was silence for a minute or two, and then the king with a sigh
+said:
+
+"I fear that you are right, Sir Baldwin, and that there is no chivalry
+among these swinish German lords. You shall accompany me. Not, Sir
+Cuthbert," he observed kindly, noticing a look of disappointment upon
+the face of the young knight, "that I estimate your fidelity one whit
+lower than that of my brave friend; but he is the elder and the more
+versed in European travel, and may manage to bring matters through
+better than you would do. You will have dangers enough to encounter
+yourself, more even than I shall, for your brave follower, Cnut, can
+speak no language but his own, and your archers will be hard to pass as
+any other than what they are. You must be my messenger to England,
+should you arrive there without me. Tell my mother and wife where you
+left me, and that, if I do not come home I have fallen into the hands
+of one or other of my bitter foes. Bid them bestir themselves to hold
+England for me against my brother John, and, if needs be, to move the
+sovereigns of Europe to free me from the hands of my enemies. Should a
+ransom be needed, I think that my people of England will not grudge
+their goods for their king."
+
+The following day the king bade farewell to his faithful followers,
+giving his hand to kiss, not only to Sir Cuthbert, but to Cnut and his
+archers.
+
+"You have done me brave service," he said, "and I trust may yet have
+occasion to do it again. These are bad times when Richard of England has
+naught wherewith to reward his friends. But," he said, taking a gold
+chain from his neck and breaking it with his strong fingers into five
+fragments, "that is for you, Cnut, and for your four archers, in
+remembrance of King Richard."
+
+The men, albeit hardened by many scenes of warfare, yet shed tears
+plenteously at parting with the king.
+
+"We had better," Cuthbert said to them when they were alone, "delay here
+for a few days. If we are taken, the news that some Englishmen have been
+captured making their way north from Zara will spread rapidly, and may
+cause the enemies of Richard to be on the lookout for him, suspecting
+that the ship which bore us may also have carried him; for the news that
+he is missing will spread rapidly through Europe, and will set all his
+enemies on the alert."
+
+In accordance with this plan they delayed for another ten days at Zara,
+and then, hiring a small boat, were landed some thirty miles further
+along the coast. Cuthbert had obtained for Cnut the dress of a palmer,
+as in this he would pass almost unquestioned, and his silence might be
+accounted for on the ground that he had taken a vow of silence. He
+himself had placed on his coat armor a red cross, instead of the white
+cross borne by the English knights, and would now pass as a French
+knight. Similar changes were made in the dress of his followers, and he
+determined to pass as a French noble who had been wrecked on his way
+home, and who was returning through Germany to France. The difficulties
+in his own case would not be serious, as his French would pass muster
+anywhere in Germany. The greatest difficulty would be with his
+attendants; but he saw no way of avoiding this.
+
+Cuthbert's object, when with his little party he separated from King
+Richard, was to make his way to Verona, thence cross by Trent into
+Bavaria, and so to journey to Saxony. Fortunately he had at the storming
+of Acre become possessed of a valuable jewel, and this he now sold, and
+purchased a charger for himself. He had little fear of any trouble in
+passing through the north of Italy, for this was neutral ground, where
+knights of all nations met, and where, neither as an English nor a
+French Crusader, would he attract either comment or attention.
+
+It was a slow journey across the northern plains, as of course he had to
+accommodate his pace to that of his men. Cnut and the archers had
+grumbled much at the change of the color of the cross upon their
+jerkins; and, as Cnut said, would have been willing to run greater
+perils under their true colors than to affect to belong to any other
+nationality. On their way they passed through Padua, and there stopped a
+few days. Cuthbert could but feel, in looking at the splendor of this
+Italian city, the courteous manner of its people, and the university,
+which was even then famous, how far in advance were those stately cities
+of Italy to Western Europe. His followers were as much surprised as
+himself at the splendors of the city. Here they experienced no trouble
+or annoyance whatever, for to the cities of Italy knights of all
+nations resorted, learned men came to study, philosophers to dispute,
+and as these brought their attendants with them, you might in the
+streets of Padua and its sister cities hear every language in Europe
+spoken.
+
+From Padua they journeyed to Verona, marveling greatly at the richness
+of the country. The footmen, however, grumbled at the flatness of the
+plain, and said that it was as bad as marching in the Holy Land. On
+their right, however, the slopes of the Alps, thickly clad with forests,
+reached down nearly to the road, and Cuthbert assured them that they
+would have plenty of climbing before they had done. At Verona they
+tarried again, and wondered much at the great amphitheater, then almost
+perfect. Cuthbert related to Cnut and the archers how men had there been
+set to fight while the great stone benches round were thronged with men
+and women looking on at their death struggles, and said that not
+unfrequently British captives were brought hither and made to contend in
+the arena. The honest fellows were full of indignation and horror at the
+thought of men killing themselves to give sport to others. They were
+used to hard knocks, and thought but little of their life, and would
+have betaken themselves to their bows and bills without hesitation in
+case of a quarrel. But to fight in cold blood for amusement seemed to
+them very terrible.
+
+Cuthbert would then have traveled on to Milan, at that time next to Rome
+the richest city in Europe, but he longed to be back in England, and was
+the more anxious as he knew that King Richard would be passing through
+great dangers, and he hoped to meet him at the court of Saxony. His
+money, too, was fast running out, and he found that it would be beyond
+his slender means to extend his journey so far. At Verona, then, they
+turned their back on the broad plains of Lombardy, and entered the
+valley of the Trent.
+
+So far no observation whatever had been excited by the passage of the
+English knight. So many Crusaders were upon their way home, many in
+grievous plight, that the somewhat shabby retinue passed unnoticed. But
+they were now leaving Italy, and entering a country where German was
+spoken. Trent, in those days an important city, was then, and is still,
+the meeting place of Italy and Germany. Both tongues are here spoken;
+but while the Italian perhaps preponderates, the customs, manners, and
+mode of thought of the people belong to those of the mountaineers of the
+Tyrol rather than of the dwellers on the plains.
+
+"You are choosing a stormy time," the landlord of the hostelry where
+they put up said to Cuthbert. "The winter is now at hand, and storms
+sweep across the passes with terrible violence. You had better, at the
+last village you come to in the valley, obtain the services of a guide,
+for should a snowstorm come on when you are crossing, the path will be
+lost, and nothing will remain but a miserable death. By daylight the
+road is good. It has been cut with much trouble, and loaded mules can
+pass over without difficulty. Poles have been erected at short distances
+to mark the way when the snow covers it. But when the snowstorms sweep
+across the mountains it is impossible to see ten paces before you, and
+if the traveler leaves the path he is lost."
+
+"But I suppose," Cuthbert said, "that even in winter travelers pass
+over?"
+
+"They do," the host said. "The road is as open in winter as in summer,
+although, of course, the dangers are greater. Still, there is nothing to
+prevent vigorous men from crossing over when the storms come on. Now,
+too, with the snow already lying in the upper forests, the wolves are
+abroad, and should you be attacked by one of those herds, you will find
+it hard work to defend your lives. Much has been done to render the
+road safe. At the distance of every league stone houses have been
+erected, where travelers can find shelter either from the storm or from
+the attacks of wolves or bears, for these, too, abound in the forests,
+and in summer there is fine hunting among them. You are, as I see,
+returning from the Holy Land, an are therefore used to heat rather than
+cold, so I should advise you before you leave this city to buy some
+rough cloaks to shield you from the cold. You can obtain them for your
+followers very cheaply, made of the mountain goat or of sheepskins, and
+even those of bearskin well dressed are by no means dear."
+
+Obtaining the address of a merchant who kept these things, Cuthbert
+proceeded thither; and purchased five cloaks of goatskin with hoods to
+pull over their heads for his followers while for himself he obtained
+one of rather finer material.
+
+Another two days' journey brought them to the foot of the steep ascent,
+and here they hired the services of a guide. The ascent was long and
+difficult, and in spite of the praises which the host had bestowed upon
+the road, it was so steep that Cuthbert was, for the most part, obliged
+to walk, leading his steed, whose feet slipped on the smooth rock, and
+as in many places a false step would have thrown them down many hundreds
+of feet into the valley below, Cuthbert judged it safer to trust himself
+to his own feet. He disincumbered himself of his helmet and gorget, and
+placed these upon the horse's back. At nightfall they had attained a
+very considerable height, and stopped at one of the small refuges of
+which the landlord had spoken.
+
+"I like not the look of the weather," the guide said in the morning--at
+least that was what Cuthbert judged him to say, for he could speak no
+word of the man's language. His actions, however, as he looked toward
+the sky, and shook his head, spoke for themselves, and Cuthbert, feeling
+his own powerlessness in a situation so novel to him, felt serious
+misgivings at the prospect.
+
+The scenery was now very wild. On all sides crags and mountain tops
+covered with snow glistened in the sun. The woods near the path were
+free of snow; but higher up they rose black above the white ground. The
+wind blew keenly, and all rejoiced in the warm cloaks which they had
+obtained; for even with the protection of these they had found the cold
+bitter during the night.
+
+"I like not this country," Cnut said. "We grumbled at the heat of
+Palestine, but I had rather march across the sand there than in this
+inhospitable frozen region. The woods look as if they might contain
+specters. There is a silence which seems to be unnatural, and my
+courage, like the warmth of my body, is methinks oozing out from my
+fingers."
+
+Cuthbert laughed.
+
+"I have no doubt that your courage would come again much quicker than
+the warmth, Cnut, if there were any occasion for it. A brisk walk will
+set you all right again, and banish these uneasy fancies. To-night we
+shall be at the highest point, and to-morrow begin to descend toward
+Germany."
+
+All day the men kept steadily on. The guide from time to time looked
+apprehensively at the sky; and although in the earlier part of the day
+Cuthbert's inexperienced eye saw nothing to cause the slightest
+uneasiness, toward the afternoon the scene changed. Light clouds began
+to gather on the top of all the hills and to shut the mountain peaks
+entirely from view. The wind moaned between the gorges and occasionally
+swept along in such sudden gusts that they could with difficulty retain
+their feet. The sky became gradually overcast, and frequently light
+specks of snow, so small as to be scarcely perceptible, were driven
+along on the blast, making their faces smart by the force with which
+they struck them.
+
+"It scarcely needs our guide's face," Cuthbert said, "to tell us that a
+storm is at hand, and that our position is a dangerous one. As for me, I
+own that I feel better pleased now that the wind is blowing, and the
+silence is broken, than at the dead stillness which prevailed this
+morning. After all, methinks that a snowstorm cannot be more dreaded
+than a sandstorm, and we have faced those before now."
+
+Faster and faster the snow came down, until at last the whole air seemed
+full of it, and it was with difficulty that they could stagger forward.
+Where the path led across open places the wind swept away the snow as
+fast as it fell, but in the hollows the track was already covered; and
+feeling the difficulty of facing the blinding gale, Cuthbert now
+understood the urgency with which his host had insisted upon the danger
+of losing the track. Not a word was spoken among the party as they
+plodded along. The guide kept ahead, using the greatest caution wherever
+the path was obliterated by the snow, sometimes even sounding with his
+iron-shod staff to be sure that they were upon the level rock. In spite
+of his warm cloak Cuthbert felt that he was becoming chilled to the
+bone. His horse could with difficulty keep his feet; and Cnut and the
+archers lagged behind.
+
+"You must keep together, lads," he shouted. "I have heard that in these
+mountains when sleepiness overpowers the traveler, death is at hand.
+Therefore, come what may, we must struggle on."
+
+Many times the gale was so violent that they were obliged to pause and
+take shelter under the side of a rock or precipice until the fury of the
+blast had passed; and Cuthbert eagerly looked out for the next refuge.
+At last they reached it, and the guide at once entered. It was not that
+in which he had intended to pass the night, for this lay still higher;
+but it would have been madness to attempt to go further in the face of
+such a gale. He signed to Cuthbert that it was necessary at once to
+collect firewood, and he himself proceeded to light some brands which
+had been left by previous travelers. Cuthbert gave directions to Cnut
+and the archers; and these, feeling that life depended upon a good fire
+being kept up, set to with a will, cutting down shrubs and branches
+growing in the vicinity of the hut. In half an hour a huge fire blazed
+in the refuge; and as the warmth thawed their limbs, their tongues were
+unloosened, and a feeling of comfort again prevailed.
+
+"If this be mountaineering, my lord," Cnut said, "I trust that never
+again may it be my fortune to venture among the hills. How long, I
+wonder, do the storms last here? I was grumbling all the way up the hill
+at the load of provisions which the guide insisted that each of us
+should bring with him. As it was to be but a three days' journey before
+we reached a village on the other side, I wondered why he insisted upon
+our taking food enough to last us at least for a week. But I understand
+now, and thank him for his foresight; for if this storm goes on we are
+assuredly prisoners here for so long as it may continue."
+
+The horse had to be brought into the hut, for it would have been death
+for it to have remained outside.
+
+"What is that?" Cnut said presently, as a distant howl was heard between
+the lulls of the storm. The guide muttered some word which Cuthbert did
+not understand. But he said to Cnut, "I doubt not that it is wolves.
+Thank God that we are safe within this refuge, for here not even the
+most ravenous beasts could make their way."
+
+"Pooh!" Cnut said contemptuously. "Wolves are no bigger than dogs. I
+have heard my grandfather say that he shot one in the forest, and that
+it was no bigger than a hound. We should make short work of them."
+
+"I know not," Cuthbert said. "I have heard tales of these animals which
+show that they must be formidable opponents. They hunt in great packs,
+and are so furious that they will attack parties of travelers; many of
+these have perished miserably, horses and men, and nothing but their
+swords and portions of their saddles have remained to tell where the
+battle was fought."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+SENTENCED TO DEATH.
+
+
+Just before arriving at the refuge they had passed along a very steep
+and dangerous path. On one side the rock rose precipitously, ten feet
+above their heads. On the other was a fall into the valley below. The
+road at this point was far wider than usual.
+
+Presently the howl of a wolf was heard near, and soon the solitary call
+was succeeded by the howling of great numbers of animals. These speedily
+surrounded the hut, and so fierce were their cries that Cnut changed his
+opinion as to the ease with which they could be defeated, and allowed
+that he would rather face an army of Saracens than a troop of these
+ill-conditioned animals. The horse trembled in every limb at the sound
+of the howling of the wolves; and cold as was the night, in spite of the
+great fire that blazed on the hearth, his coat became covered with the
+lather of fear. Even upon the roof above the trampling of the animals
+could be heard; and through the open slits of the windows which some
+travelers before them had stuffed with straw, they could hear the fierce
+breathing and snorting of the savage beasts, who scratched and tore to
+make an entrance.
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that we might launch a few arrows through
+these loopholes. The roof appears not to be over strong; and should some
+of them force an entrance, the whole pack might follow."
+
+Dark as was the night, the black bodies were visible against the white
+snow, and the archers shot several arrows forth, each stretching a wolf
+dead on the ground. Those killed were at once pounced upon by their
+comrades and torn to pieces; and this mark of savageness added to the
+horror which those within felt of the ferocious animals. Suddenly there
+was a pause in the howling around the hut, and then Cnut, looking forth
+from the loophole, declared that the whole body had gone off at full
+speed along the path by which they had reached the refuge. Almost
+immediately afterward a loud shout for help was heard, followed by the
+renewed howling and yelping of the wolves.
+
+"Good heavens!" Cuthbert exclaimed. "Some traveler coming after us is
+attacked by these horrible beasts. Let us sally out, Cnut. We cannot
+hear a Christian torn to pieces by these beasts, without lending him a
+hand."
+
+In spite of the angry shouts and entreaties of the guide, the door was
+thrust open, and the party, armed with their axes and bows, at once
+rushed out into the night. The storm had for the moment abated and they
+had no difficulty in making their way along the track. In fifty yards
+they came to a bend of the path, and saw, a little distance before them,
+a black mass of animals covering the road, and congregated round a
+figure who stood with his back to the rock. With a shout of
+encouragement they sprang forward, and in a few moments were in the
+midst of the savage animals, who turned their rage against them at once.
+They had fired two or three arrows apiece, as they approached, into
+them; and now throwing down their bows, the archers betook themselves to
+their swords, while Cuthbert with his heavy battle-axe hewed and cut at
+the wolves as they sprang toward him. In a minute they had cleared their
+way to the figure, which was that of a knight in complete armor. He
+leaned against the rock completely exhausted, could only mutter a word
+of thanks through his closed visor. At a short distance off a number of
+the wolves were gathered, rending and tearing the horse of the knight;
+but the rest, soon recovering from their surprise, attacked with fury
+the little party. The thick cloaks of the archers stood them in good
+stead against the animal's teeth, and standing in a group with their
+backs to the rock, they hewed and cut vigorously at their assailants.
+The numbers of these, however, appeared almost innumerable, and fresh
+stragglers continued to come along the road, and swell their body. As
+fast as those in front fell, their heads cleft with the axes of the
+party, fresh ones sprang forward; and Cuthbert saw that in spite of the
+valor and strength of his men, the situation was well-nigh desperate. He
+himself had been saved from injury by his harness, for he still had on
+his greaves and leg pieces.
+
+"Keep together," he shouted to his men, "and each lend aid to the other
+if he sees him pulled down. Strike lustily for life, and hurry not your
+blows, but let each toll." This latter order he gave perceiving that
+some of the archers, terrified by this furious army of assailants with
+gaping mouths and glistening teeth, were striking wildly, and losing
+their presence of mind.
+
+The combat, although it might have been prolonged, could yet have had
+but one termination, and the whole party would have fallen. At this
+moment, however, a gust of wind, more furious than any which they had
+before experienced, swept along the gorge, and the very wolves had to
+crouch on their stomachs to prevent themselves being hurled by its fury
+into the ravine below. Then even above the storm a deep roar was heard.
+It grew louder and louder. The wolves, as if struck with terror, leaped
+to their feet, and scattered on either way along the path at full
+speed.
+
+"What sound can this be?" Cnut exclaimed in an awe-struck voice. "It
+sounds like thunder; but it is regular and unbroken; and, my lord,
+surely the earth quakes under our feet!"
+
+Louder and louder grew the roar.
+
+"Throw yourselves down against the wall of rock," Cuthbert shouted,
+himself setting the example.
+
+A moment afterward, from above a mighty mass of rock and snow poured
+over like a cascade, with a roar and sound which nigh stunned them. For
+minutes--it seemed for hours to them--the deluge of snow and rock
+continued. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it ceased, and a silence
+as of death reigned over the place.
+
+"Arise," Cuthbert said; "the danger, methinks, is past. It was what men
+call an avalanche--a torrent of snow slipping down from the higher
+peaks. We have had a narrow escape indeed."
+
+By this time the knight whom they had rescued was able to speak, and
+raising his visor, he returned his deepest thanks to those who had come
+so opportunely to his aid.
+
+"I was well-nigh exhausted," he said, "and it was only my armor which
+saved me from being torn to pieces. A score of them had hold of me; but
+fortunately my mail was of Milan proof, and even the jaws and teeth of
+these enormous beasts were unable to pierce it."
+
+"The refuge is near at hand," Cuthbert said. "It is but a few yards
+round yonder point. It is well that we heard your voice. I fear that
+your horse has fallen a victim."
+
+Assisting the knight, who in spite of his armor was sorely bruised and
+exhausted, they made their way back to the refuge. Cnut and the archers
+were all bleeding freely from various wounds inflicted upon them in the
+struggle, breathless and exhausted from their exertions, and thoroughly
+awe-struck by the tremendous phenomenon of which they had been
+witnesses, and which they had only escaped from their good fortune in
+happening to be in a place so formed that the force of the avalanche had
+swept over their heads. The whole of the road, with the exception of a
+narrow piece four feet in width, had been carried away. Looking upward,
+they saw that the forest had been swept clear, not a tree remaining in a
+wide track as far as they could see up the hill. The great bowlders
+which had strewn the hillside, and many of which were as large as
+houses, had been swept away like straws before the rush of snow, and for
+a moment they feared that the refuge had also been carried away. Turning
+the corner, however, they saw to their delight that the limits of the
+avalanche had not extended so far, the refuges, as they afterward
+learned, being so placed as to be sheltered by overhanging cliffs from
+any catastrophe of this kind.
+
+They found the guide upon his knees, muttering his prayers before a
+cross, which he had formed of two sticks laid crosswise on the ground
+before him; and he could scarce believe his eyes when they entered, so
+certain had he considered it that they were lost. There were no longer
+any signs of the wolves. The greater portion, indeed, of the pack had
+been overwhelmed by the avalanche, and the rest, frightened and scared,
+had fled to their fastnesses in the woods.
+
+The knight now removed his helmet, and discovered a handsome young man
+of some twenty-four or twenty-five years old.
+
+"I am," he said, "Baron Ernest of Kornstein. To whom do I owe my life?"
+
+"In spite of my red cross," Cuthbert said, "I am English. My name is Sir
+Cuthbert, and I am Earl of Evesham. I am on my return from the Holy Land
+with my followers; and as we are passing through countries where many
+of the people are hostile to England, we have thought it as well for a
+time to drop our nationality. But to you I do not hesitate to tell the
+truth."
+
+"You do well," the young knight said, "for, truth to say, the people of
+these parts bear but little love to your countrymen. You have saved my
+life when I was in the sorest danger. I had given myself up for lost,
+for even my armor could not have saved me long from these wretches; and
+my sword and life are at your disposal. You are young indeed," he said,
+looking with surprise at Cuthbert, who had now thrown back the hood of
+his cloak, "to have gained the honor of knighthood. You scarce look
+eighteen years of age, although, doubtless, you are older."
+
+"I am scarce seventeen," Cuthbert said; "but I have had the good fortune
+to attract the notice of King Richard, and to have received the
+knighthood from his sword."
+
+"None more worthy," said the young knight, "for although King Richard
+may be fierce and proud, he is the worthiest knight in Christendom, and
+resembles the heroes of romance rather than a Christian king."
+
+"He is my lord and master," Cuthbert said, "and I love him beyond all
+men, and would give my life for his. He is the kindest and best of
+masters; and although it be true that he brooks no opposition, yet is it
+only because his own bravery and eagerness render hateful to him the
+indolence and cowardice of others."
+
+They now took their seats round the fire. The archers, by the advice of
+the guide, rubbed their wounds with snow, and then applied bandages to
+them. The wallets were opened, and a hearty supper eaten; and all,
+wrapping themselves in their fur cloaks, were soon asleep.
+
+For four days the gale continued, keeping the party prisoners in the
+hut. On the fifth the force of the wind abated, and the snow ceased to
+fall. They were forced to take the door off its hinges to open it, for
+the snow had piled up so high that the chimney alone of the hut remained
+above its surface. With great difficulty and labor they cleared a way
+out, and then the guide again placing himself at their head, they
+proceeded on their way. The air was still and cold, and the sky of a
+deep, dark blue, which seemed even darker in contrast with the whiteness
+of the snow. At times they had great difficulty in struggling through
+the deep drifts; but for the most part the wind had swept the path
+clear. Where it was deepest, the tops of the posts still showed above
+the snow, and enabled the guide to direct their footsteps. They were,
+however, obliged to travel slowly, and it was three days before they
+gained the village on the northern slope of the mountains, having slept
+at refuges by the road.
+
+"What are your plans?" the knight asked Sir Cuthbert that night, as they
+sat by the fire of the hostelry. "I would warn you that the town which
+you will first arrive at is specially hostile to your people, for the
+baron, its master, is a relation of Conrad of Montferat, who is said to
+have been killed by order of your king."
+
+"It is false," Cuthbert said. "King Richard had appointed him King of
+Jerusalem; and, though he liked him not, thought him the fittest of
+those there to exercise sovereignty. He was the last man who would have
+had an enemy assassinated; for so open is he of disposition that he
+would have fought hand to hand with the meanest soldier of his army had
+he desired to kill him."
+
+"I doubt not that it is so, since you tell me," the knight said
+courteously. "But the people here have taken that idea into their minds,
+and it will be hard to disabuse them. You must therefore keep up your
+disguise as a French knight while passing through this neighborhood.
+Another week's journeying, and you will reach the confines of Saxony,
+and there you will, as you anticipate, be safe. But I would not answer
+for your life were you discovered here to be of English birth. And now
+tell me if there is aught that I can do for you. I will myself accompany
+you into the town, and will introduce you as a French knight, so that no
+suspicion is likely to lie upon you, and will, further, ride with you to
+the borders of Saxony. I am well known, and trust that my company will
+avert all suspicion from you. You have told me that your purse is
+ill-supplied; you must suffer me to replenish it. One knight need not
+fear to borrow of another; and I know that when you have returned to
+your home you will bestow the sum which I now give you upon some holy
+shrine in my name, and thus settle matters between us."
+
+Cuthbert without hesitation accepted the offer, and was well pleased at
+finding his purse replenished, for its emptiness had caused him serious
+trouble. Cuthbert's steed was led by one of the archers, and he himself
+walked gayly alongside of Sir Ernest, followed by his retainers. Another
+long day's march brought them down to Innsbruck, where they remained
+quietly for a week. Then they journeyed on until they emerged from the
+mountains, crossed the Bavarian frontier, and arrived at Fussen, a
+strong city, with well-built walls and defenses.
+
+They at once proceeded to the principal hostelry, where the young baron
+was well known, and where great interest was excited by the news of the
+narrow escape which he had had from the attack of the wolves. A journey
+across the Alps was in those days regarded as a very perilous enterprise
+in the winter season, and the fact that he should have been rescued from
+such a strait appeared almost miraculous. They stayed for two days
+quietly in the city, Cuthbert declining the invitation of the young
+noble to accompany him to the houses of his friends, as he did not wish
+that any suspicion should be excited as to his nationality, and
+preferred remaining quiet to having forced upon him the necessity of
+making false statements. As to his followers, there was no fear of the
+people among whom they mixed detecting that they were English. To the
+Bavarian inhabitants, all languages, save their native German, were
+alike unintelligible; and even had French been commonly spoken, the
+dialects of that tongue, such as would naturally be spoken by archers
+and men-at-arms, would have been a Greek to those accustomed only to
+Norman French.
+
+Upon the third day, however, an incident occurred which upset Cuthbert's
+calculations, and nearly involved the whole party in ruin. The town was,
+as the young baron had said, governed by a noble who was a near relation
+of Conrad of Montferat, and who was the bitter enemy of the English. A
+great _fête_ had been given in honor of the marriage of his daughter,
+and upon this day the young pair were to ride in triumph through the
+city. Great preparations had been made; masks and pageants of various
+kinds manufactured; and the whole townspeople, dressed in their holiday
+attire, were gathered in the streets. Cuthbert had gone out, followed by
+his little band of retainers, and taken their station to see the passing
+show. First came a large body of knights and men-at-arms, with gay
+banners and trappings. Then rode the bridegroom, with the bride carried
+in a litter by his side. After this came several allegorical
+representations. Among these was the figure of a knight bearing the arms
+of Austria. Underneath his feet, on the car, lay a figure clad in a
+royal robe, across whom was thrown a banner with the leopards of
+England. The knight stood with his foot on this figure.
+
+This representation of the dishonor of England at the hands of Austria
+elicited great acclamations from the crowd. Cuthbert clinched his teeth
+and grasped his sword angrily, but had the sense to see the folly of
+taking any notice of the insult. Not so with Cnut. Furious it the insult
+offered to the standard of his royal master, Cnut, with a bound, burst
+through the ranks of the crowd, leaped on to the car, and with a buffet
+smote the figure representing Austria into the road, and lifted the flag
+of England from the ground. A yell of indignation and rage was heard.
+The infuriated crowd rushed forward. Cnut, with a bound, sprang from the
+car, and, joining his comrades, burst through those who attempted to
+impede them, and darted down a by-street.
+
+Cuthbert, for the moment amazed at the action of his follower, had on
+the instant drawn his sword and joined the archers. In the crowd,
+however, he was for a second separated from them; and before he could
+tear himself from the hands of the citizens who had seized him, the
+men-at-arms accompanying the procession surrounded him, and he was led
+away by them to the castle, the guards with difficulty protecting him
+from the enraged populace. Even at this moment Cuthbert experienced a
+deep sense of satisfaction at the thought that his followers had
+escaped. But he feared that alone, and unacquainted with the language of
+the country, they would find it difficult indeed to escape the search
+which would be made for them, and to manage to find their way back to
+their country. For himself, he had little hopes of liberty, and scarcely
+more of life. The hatred of the baron toward the English would now be
+heightened by the daring act of insult to the arms of Austria, and this
+would give a pretext for any deed of violence which might be wrought.
+
+Cuthbert was, after a short confinement, brought before the lord baron
+of the place, in the great hall of the castle.
+
+"Who art thou, sir," the noble exclaimed, "who darest to disturb the
+marriage procession of my daughter, and to insult the standard of the
+emperor my master?"
+
+"I am Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, a baron of England," Cuthbert said
+fearlessly, "and am traveling homeward from the Holy Land. My garb as a
+Crusader should protect me from all interruption; and the heedless
+conduct of my retainer was amply justified by the insult offered to the
+arms of England. There is not one of the knights assembled round you who
+would not in like manner have avenged an insult offered to those of
+Austria; and I am ready to do battle in the lists with any who choose to
+say that the deed was a foul or improper one. In the Holy Land Austrians
+and English fought side by side; and it is strange indeed to me that on
+my return, journeying through the country of the emperor, I should find
+myself treated as an enemy, and see the arms of King Richard exposed to
+insult and derision by the burghers of this city."
+
+As Cuthbert had spoken he threw down his mailed glove, and several of
+the knights present stepped forward to pick it up. The baron, however,
+waved them back.
+
+"It is no question," he said, "of honorable fight. This is a follower of
+the murderer of my good cousin of Montferat, who died under the hands of
+assassins set upon him by Richard of England."
+
+"It is false!" Cuthbert shouted. "I denounce it as a foul lie, and will
+maintain it with my life."
+
+"Your life is already forfeited," the baron said, "both by your past
+connection with Richard of England and as the insulter of the arms of
+Austria. You die, and to-morrow at noon your head shall be struck off in
+the great square before my castle."
+
+Without another word Cuthbert was hurried off to his cell, and there
+remained, thinking moodily over the events of the day, until nightfall.
+He had no doubt that his sentence would be carried out, and his anxiety
+was rather for his followers than for himself. He feared that they would
+make some effort on his behalf, and would sacrifice their own lives in
+doing so, without the possibility of assisting him.
+
+The next morning he was led out to the square before the castle. It was
+a large flagged courtyard. Upon one side was the entrance to the castle,
+one of whose wings also formed a second side to the square. The side
+facing this was formed by the wall of the city, and the fourth opened
+upon a street of the town. This side of the square was densely filled
+with citizens, while the men-at-arms of the baron and a large number of
+knights were gathered behind a scaffold erected in the center. Upon this
+was a block, and by the side stood a headsman. As Cuthbert was led
+forward a thrill of pleasure ran through him at perceiving no signs of
+his followers, who he greatly feared might have been captured in the
+night, and brought there to share his fate.
+
+As he was led forward the young noble whose life he had saved advanced
+to the baron, and dropping on one knee before him, craved the life of
+Cuthbert, relating the event by which he had saved his life in the
+passage of the mountains. The baron frowned heavily.
+
+"Though he had saved the life of every noble in Bavaria," he said, "he
+should die. I have sworn an oath that every Englishman who fell into my
+hands should expiate the murder of my kinsman; and this fellow is,
+moreover, guilty of an outrage to the arms of Austria."
+
+The young Sir Ernest drew himself up haughtily.
+
+"My lord baron," he said, "henceforth I renounce all allegiance to you,
+and I will lay the case before the emperor, our common master, and will
+cry before him at the outrage which has thus been passed upon a noble
+gentleman. He has thrown down the glove, and challenged any of your
+knights, and I myself am equally ready to do battle in his cause."
+
+The baron grew red with passion, and he would have ordered the instant
+arrest of the young man, but as Sir Ernest was connected by blood with
+many present, and was indeed one of the most popular among the nobles of
+the province, the baron simply waved him aside, and ordered Cuthbert to
+be led to the block. The young Englishman was by the executioner
+divested of his armor and helmet, and stood in the simple attire worn by
+men of rank at that time. He looked around, and holding up his hand,
+conveying alike a farewell and a command to his followers to remain in
+concealment, he gazed round the crowd, thinking that he might see among
+them in some disguise or other the features of Cnut, whose tall figure
+would have rendered him conspicuous in a crowd. He failed, however, to
+see any signs of him, and turning to the executioner, signified by a
+gesture that he was ready.
+
+At this instant an arrow from the wall above pierced the brain of the
+man, and he fell dead in his tracks. A roar of astonishment burst from
+the crowd. Upon the city wall at this point was a small turret, and on
+this were five figures. The wall around was deserted, and for the moment
+these men were masters of the position.
+
+"Seize those insolent varlets!" the baron shouted, shaking his sword
+with a gesture of fury at them.
+
+His words, however, were arrested, for at the moment another arrow
+struck him in the throat, and he fell back into the arms of those around
+him.
+
+Quickly now the arrows of the English archers flew into the courtyard.
+The confusion which reigned there was indescribable. The citizens with
+shouts of alarm took to their heels. The men-at-arms were powerless
+against this rain of missiles, and the knights, hastily closing their
+visors, shouted contradictory orders, which no one obeyed.
+
+In the confusion no one noticed the prisoner. Seizing a moment when the
+attention of all was fixed upon the wall, he leaped from the platform,
+and making his way unnoticed through the excited crowd of men-at-arms,
+darted down a narrow lane that divided the castle from the wall. He ran
+along until, one hundred yards further, he came to a staircase by which
+access to the battlements was obtained. Running lightly up this, he kept
+along the wall until he reached the turret.
+
+"Thanks, my noble Cnut!" he exclaimed, "and you, my brave fellows. But I
+fear you have forfeited your lives. There is no escape. In a minute the
+whole force of the place will recover from their confusion, and be down
+upon us from both sides."
+
+"We have prepared for that," Cnut said. "Here is a rope hanging down
+into the moat."
+
+Glancing over, Cuthbert saw that the moat was dry; and after a final
+discharge of arrows into the crowd, the six men slid one after another
+down the rope and made their way at full speed across the country.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+DRESDEN.
+
+
+It was some ten minutes before the men-at-arms rallied sufficiently from
+their surprise to obey orders. Two bodies were then drawn up, and
+proceeded at a rapid pace toward the staircases leading to the wall, one
+on each side of the turret in which they believed that the little body
+of audacious assailants were still lying. Having reached the wall, the
+soldiers advanced, covering themselves with their shields, for they had
+learned the force with which an English clothyard shaft drawn by a
+strong hand flies. Many had been killed by these missiles passing
+through and through the cuirass and backpiece. No reply being obtained
+to the summons to surrender, they proceeded to break in with their
+battle-axes the door of the little turret. Rushing in with ax and pike,
+they were astonished to find the place empty. A glance over the wall
+showed the rope still hanging, and the manner of the escape became
+manifest. The fugitives were already out of sight, and the knights,
+furious at the escape of the men who had bearded them in the heart of
+the city with such audacity, and had slain the lord baron and several of
+his knights, gave orders that an instant pursuit should be organized. It
+was, however, a full half hour before the city gates were thrown open,
+and a strong troop of knights and mounted men issued out.
+
+Cuthbert had been certain that an instant pursuit would be set on foot,
+and the moment that he was out of sight of the battlements he changed
+the direction in which he had started, and turning at right angles,
+swept round the city, still keeping at a distance, until he reached the
+side next the mountains, and then plunged into the woods on the lower
+slopes of the hills.
+
+"They will," he said, as they halted breathless from their run, "follow
+the road toward the south, and scour the country for awhile before it
+occurs to their thick German skulls that we have doubled back on our
+tracks. Why, what is it, Cnut?"
+
+This exclamation was provoked by the forester throwing himself on his
+knees before Sir Cuthbert, and imploring his pardon for the dire strait
+into which his imprudence had drawn him.
+
+"It was a dire strait, certainly, Cnut. But if you got me into it, at
+least you have extricated me; and never say more about it, for I myself
+was near committing the imprudence to which you gave way, and I can well
+understand that your English blood boiled at the sight of the outrage to
+the flag of England. Now, let us waste no time in talk, but, keeping to
+the foot of this mountain, make along as far as we can to the west. We
+must cling to the hills for many days' march before we venture again to
+try to cross the plains. If possible, we will keep on this way until we
+reach the confines of the country of the Swiss, who will assuredly give
+us hospitality, and who will care little for any threats of these German
+barons, should they hear that we have reached their asylum."
+
+By nightfall they had already traveled many leagues, and making a fire
+in the wood, Cuthbert asked Cnut for an account of what had taken place
+on the previous day.
+
+"We ran for life, Sir Cuthbert, and had not noticed that you had been
+drawn into the fray. Had we done so, we would have remained, and sold
+our lives with yours; but hoping that you had passed unnoticed in the
+crowd, and that you would find some means to rejoin us we kept upon our
+way. After running down three streets we passed a place where a
+courtyard with stables ranged round it was open. There were none about,
+and we entered, and taking refuge in a loft hid ourselves beneath some
+provender. There we remained all night, and then borrowing some apparel
+which some of the stablemen had hung upon the walls, we issued into the
+town. As we neared the great square we saw some men employed in erecting
+a platform in the midst, and a suspicion that all might not be right,
+and that you might have fallen into the hands of these German dogs,
+beset our minds. After much consultation we determined to see what the
+affair meant, and making our way on to the walls which, indeed, were
+entirely deserted, we took refuge in that turret where you saw us.
+Seeing the crowd gather, and being still more convinced that some
+misfortune was about to occur, I again went back to the stables, where I
+had noticed a long rope used by the carters for fastening their loads to
+the wagons. With this I returned, for it was clear that if we had to
+mingle in this business it would be necessary to have a mode of escape.
+Of the rest you are aware. We saw the knights coming out of the castle,
+with that portly baron, their lord, at their head. We saw the block and
+the headsman upon the platform, and were scarcely surprised when you
+were led out, a prisoner, from the gates. We judged that what did happen
+would ensue. Seeing that the confusion wrought by a sudden attack from
+men perched up aloft as we were, commanding the courtyard, and being
+each of us able to hit a silver mark at the distance of one hundred
+yards, would be great indeed, we judged that you might be able to slip
+away unobserved, and were sure that your quick wit would seize any
+opportunity which might offer. Had you not been able to join us, we
+should have remained in the turret and sold our lives to the last, as,
+putting aside the question that we could never return to our homes,
+having let our dear lord die here, we should not, in our ignorance of
+the language and customs of the country, have ever been able to make our
+way across it. We knew, however, that before this turret was carried we
+could show these Germans how five Englishmen, when brought to bay, can
+sell their lives."
+
+They had not much difficulty in obtaining food in the forest, for game
+abounded, and they could kill as many deer as seemed fit to them. As
+Cnut said, it was difficult to believe that they were not back again in
+the forest near Evesham, so similar was their life to that which they
+had led three years before. To Cnut and the archers, indeed, it was a
+pleasanter time than any which they had passed since they had left the
+shores of England, and they blithely marched along, fearing little any
+pursuit which might be set on foot, and, indeed, hearing nothing of
+their enemies. After six days' travel they came upon a rude village, and
+here Cuthbert learned from the people--with much difficulty, however,
+and pantomime, for neither could understand a word spoken by the
+other--that they were now in one of the Swiss cantons, and therefore
+secure from all pursuit by the Germans. Without much difficulty Cuthbert
+engaged one of the young men of the village to act as their guide to
+Basle, and here, after four days' traveling, they arrived safely. Asking
+for the residence of the burgomaster, Cuthbert at once proceeded
+thither, and stated that he was an English knight on the return from the
+Crusades; that he had been foully entreated by the Lord of Fussen, who
+had been killed in a fray by his followers; and that he besought
+hospitality and refuge from the authorities of Basle.
+
+"We care little," the burgomaster said, "what quarrel you may have had
+with your neighbors. All who come hither are free to come and go as they
+list, and you, as a knight on the return from the Holy Land, have a
+claim beyond that of an ordinary traveler."
+
+The burgomaster was himself able to speak French, and summoning several
+of the councilors of the town, he requested Cuthbert to give a narrative
+of his adventures; which he did. The councilors agreed with the
+burgomaster that Cuthbert must be received hospitably; but the latter
+saw that there was among many of them considerable doubt as to the
+expediency of quarreling with a powerful neighbor. He therefore said to
+the burgomaster:
+
+"I have no intention, honorable sir, of taking up any prolonged
+residence here. I only ask to be furnished with a charger and arms, and
+in payment of these I will leave this gold chain, the gift of King
+Richard himself, as a gage, and will on my return to my country forward
+to you the value of the arms and horse, trusting that you will return
+the chain to me."
+
+The burgomaster, however, said that the city of Basle was not so poor
+that it need take the gage of an honorable knight, but that the arms and
+charger he required should be given him in a few hours, and that he
+might pay the value in London to a Jew merchant there who had relations
+with one at Basle. Full instructions were given to him, and he resolved
+to travel down upon the left bank of the Rhine, until he reached
+Lorraine, and thence to cross into Saxony. The same afternoon the
+promised horse and arms were provided, and Cuthbert, delighted again to
+be in harness, and thanking courteously the burgomaster and council for
+their kindness, started with his followers on his journey north. These
+latter had been provided with doublets and other garments suitable to
+the retinue of a knight, and made a better show than they had done since
+they first left England.
+
+Leaving Basle, they traveled along the left side of the Rhine by easy
+stages. The country was much disturbed, owing to the return and
+disbandment of so many of the troops employed in the Crusades. These,
+their occupation being gone, scattered over the country, and France and
+Germany alike were harassed by bands of military robbers. The wild
+country between the borders of Switzerland and Lorraine was specially
+vexed, as the mountains of the Vosges afforded shelter, into which the
+freebooters could not be followed by the troops of the duke.
+
+Upon the evening of the third day they reached a small inn standing in a
+lonely position near the foot of the mountains.
+
+"I like not the look of this place," Cuthbert said; "but as we hear that
+there is no other within a distance of another ten miles, we must e'en
+make the best of it."
+
+The host received them with extreme and even fawning civility, which by
+no means raised him in the estimation of Cuthbert or Cnut. A rough meal
+was taken, and they then ascended to the rude accommodation which had
+been provided. It was one large room barely furnished. Upon one side
+straw was thickly littered down--for in those days beds among the common
+people were unknown. In a sort of alcove at the end was a couch with a
+rough mattress and coverlet. This Cuthbert took possession of, while his
+followers stretched themselves upon the straw.
+
+"Methinks," Cnut said, "that it were well that one should keep watch at
+the door. I like not the look of our host, and we are near the spot
+where the bands of the robbers are said to be busy."
+
+Toward morning the archer on guard reported that he could hear the sound
+of many approaching footsteps. All at once sprang to their feet, and
+betook themselves to their arms. Looking from the window they saw a
+large party of rough men, whose appearance at once betokened that they
+were disbanded soldiers--a title almost synonymous in those days with
+that of robber. With the united strength of the party the truckle bed
+was carried from the alcove and placed against the door. Cuthbert then
+threw open the window, and asked in French what they wanted. One of the
+party, who appeared to be the leader, said that the party had better
+surrender immediately. He promised them good treatment, and said that
+the knight would be put to ransom, should it be found that the valuables
+upon his person were not sufficient to pay the worshipful company
+present for the trouble which they had taken in waiting upon him. This
+sally was received with shouts of laughter. Cuthbert replied quietly
+that he had no valuables upon his person; that if they took him there
+were none would pay as much as a silver mark for the ransom of them all;
+and that the only things that they had to give were sharp arrows and
+heavy blows.
+
+"You talk bravely, young sir," the man said. "But you have to do with
+men versed in fight, and caring but little either for knocks or for
+arrows. We have gone through the Crusades, and are therefore held to be
+absolved from all sin, even that so great as would be incurred in the
+cutting of your knightly throat."
+
+"But we have gone through the Crusades also," Cuthbert said, "and our
+persons are sacred. The sin of slitting our weazands, which you speak
+of, would therefore be so great that even the absolution on which you
+rely would barely extend to it."
+
+"We know most of those who have served in the Holy Land," the man said
+more respectfully than he had yet spoken, "and would fain know with whom
+we speak."
+
+"I am an Englishman, and a follower of King Richard," Cuthbert said,
+"and am known as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham. As I was the youngest among
+the knights who fought for the holy sepulcher, it may be that my
+appearance is known to you?"
+
+"Ah," the other said, "you are he whom they called the Boy Knight, and
+who was often in the thick of the fray, near to Richard himself. How
+comes it, Sir Cuthbert, that you are here?"
+
+"The fleet was scattered on its return," Cuthbert replied, "and I landed
+with my followers, well-nigh penniless, at Zara, and have since made my
+way across the Tyrol. I have, then, as you may well suppose, neither
+silver nor gold about my person; and assuredly neither Philip of France
+nor John of Austria would give a noble for my ransom; and it would be
+long, methinks, to wait ere John of England would care to ransom one of
+King Richard's followers."
+
+The brigands spoke for awhile among themselves, and then the leader
+said:
+
+"You speak frankly and fairly, Sir Knight, and as you have proved
+yourself indeed a doughty giver of hard blows, and as I doubt not that
+the archers with you can shoot as straight and as fast as the rest of
+the Saxon breed, we will e'en let you go on your way, for your position
+is but little better than ours, and dog should not rob dog."
+
+"Thanks, good fellow," Cuthbert said. "We trust that in any case we
+might have made a strong defense against you; but it would be hard if
+those who have fought together in the Holy Land should slay each other
+in this lonely corner of Lorraine."
+
+"Are you seeking adventures or employment, Sir Knight? For if so,
+myself and comrades here would gladly take service with you; and it may
+be that with a clump of spears you might obtain engagement, either under
+the Duke of Lorraine or he of Cleves."
+
+"Thanks for your offer," Cuthbert replied; "but at present my face is
+turned toward England. King Richard needs all his friends; and there is
+so little chance of sack or spoil, even should we have--which God
+forfend--civil war, that I fear I could ill reward the services which
+you offer me."
+
+The leader and his men shouted an adieu to Cuthbert and departed for the
+mountains, leaving the latter well pleased with his escape from a fight
+of which the result was doubtful.
+
+Journeying on without further adventure, they came to Nancy, and were
+there kindly received by the duke, who was not at that time upon good
+terms with Philip of France, and was therefore well disposed toward the
+English. Cuthbert inquired from him whether any news had been heard of
+King Richard? but received as a reply that the duke had heard nothing of
+him since he sailed from Palestine.
+
+"This is strange," Cuthbert said, "for I myself have journeyed but
+slowly, and have met with many delays. King Richard should long ere this
+have reached Saxony; and I fear much that some foul treatment has
+befallen him. On our way we found how bitter was the feeling among those
+related to Conrad of Montferat against him; and the Archduke John is
+still smarting from the blow which King Richard struck him at Ascalon.
+But surely they would not be so unknightly as to hinder so great a
+champion of Christendom as King Richard on his homeward way?"
+
+"The Archduke John is crafty and treacherous," the duke said; "and the
+emperor himself would, I think, be not sorry to lay hand upon the King
+of England, were it only to do pleasure to Philip of France. Assuredly,
+however the anger and indignation of all Christendom will be aroused
+should the king's passage be interrupted, for it were indeed a gross
+breach of hospitality to seize upon a man who has the double claim of
+being a champion of Christendom and a shipwrecked man. However, it is
+early yet to be uneasy, and it may be that in a few days we may have
+news of the arrival of the king in Saxony. He may have encountered
+difficulties similar to those which you yourself have met with. The
+country is everywhere disturbed, and it is not only in my forests that
+bands of outlawed men are to be met with. At present there is peace in
+Europe. It may last indeed but a short time. But so long as it
+continues, so long must the mountains and woods be full of desperate
+men. Were war declared between any two princes these would flock to the
+banners of him who would pay them highest, and a war which could end in
+the entire destruction of the armies of both combatants would be a
+blessing to Europe."
+
+After entertaining Cuthbert courteously for three days, the Duke of
+Lorraine bade him adieu, and gave him an escort of men-at-arms to the
+borders of the Rhine, where he would find the way open to the domains of
+the Duke of Saxony. Without adventure Cuthbert and his followers arrived
+at Dresden, and he immediately presented himself at the castle of the
+duke. The instant that he sent in his name as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, a
+knight of King Richard, he was conducted to the presence of the duke and
+of his wife, the sister of King Richard.
+
+"Are you bearer of news of my brother Richard?" the duke said, advancing
+a step to meet the young knight as he entered the hall.
+
+"Alas! my lord duke, I am not," Cuthbert said; "but had hoped to gain
+tidings from you."
+
+"From me?" the duke said in surprise. "What should lead you to believe
+that I have any news of King Richard later than that which others have
+received? The last I heard of him was upon the day of his departure from
+the Holy Land, before the storm arose which scattered his fleet, and I
+am ignorant whether he has foundered at sea, or whether, as some
+suppose, his vessel may have been taken captive by the Moors."
+
+"I bear you later tidings," Cuthbert said, "than those you have
+received. I was on board the ship with King Richard. We were wrecked
+upon the Island of Corfu and there hiring a small ship, we proceeded to
+Zara. King Richard determined to make his way across the Tyrol to this
+place; but he thought that it would attract attention to him were he
+accompanied by so large a party. Therefore he, with Sir Baldwin of
+Béthune, and a few followers, started north, while I with my men kept
+west through the north of Italy, and then crossed by the pass over
+Trent."
+
+"How long is it since you left my brother?" the duchess asked anxiously.
+
+"It is now over a month since I bade him adieu," Cuthbert answered.
+
+"Then he should have been heard of long since," the duchess said. "What
+fate can have befallen him?"
+
+"Judging from my own experience," Cuthbert said, "I fear that he may
+have come to harm at the hands of the friends of Conrad of Montferat,
+who falsely allege that the death of their kinsman was caused by King
+Richard. The Archduke John, too, owes him no good-will; and even the
+emperor is evilly disposed toward him. The king traveled under an
+assumed name; but it might well be that he would be recognized upon the
+way. His face was known to all who fought in the East; and his lordly
+manner and majestic stature could ill be concealed beneath a merchant's
+garb. Still, lady, as I have been so long in making my way across, it
+may be that King Richard has been similarly delayed without danger
+befalling him, and it could hardly be that so important a man as the
+King of England would be detained, or come to any misfortune, without
+the news being bruited abroad."
+
+In spite of Cuthbert's reassuring words, the duke and duchess were
+greatly alarmed at the news of King Richard's disappearance, although
+indeed consoled to find that their previous fears, that he had been
+drowned in the storm or captured by the Moorish corsairs, were
+unfounded.
+
+They now requested from Cuthbert the story of what had befallen him
+since he left the king; and this he related at some length. The duke was
+greatly interested, and begged Cuthbert at least to remain at his court
+until some news might arrive of King Richard.
+
+For a month Cuthbert tarried at the castle of the Duke of Saxony, where
+he was nobly entertained, and treated as a guest of much honor. Cnut and
+the archers were delighted at the treatment they received, for never in
+their lives had they been so royally entertained. Their Saxon tongue was
+nigh enough akin to the language spoken here to be understood; and their
+tales of adventure in the Holy Land rendered them as popular among the
+retainers of the duke as their master became with the duke and duchess.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+UNDER THE GREENWOOD.
+
+
+At the end of a month, news came from England that Sir Baldwin of
+Béthune had returned there, bearing the news that the king had been
+arrested at Gortz, only two days' journey north of the Adriatic--that he
+had been recognized, and at once captured. He had offered no resistance,
+finding indeed that it would be hopeless so to do. Sir Baldwin had been
+permitted to depart without molestation. He believed that the folk into
+whose hands he had fallen were retainers of the Archduke John. This
+news, although sad in itself, was yet in some degree reassuring to the
+duke and his wife; for they felt that while the followers of Conrad of
+Montferat would not hesitate to put King Richard to death should he fall
+into their hands, the Archduke John would not dare to bring upon himself
+the indignation of Europe by such treatment of his royal captive.
+Cuthbert at once determined to return to England to see Sir Baldwin, and
+to ascertain what steps were being taken for the discovery of the prison
+in which King Richard was confined, and for his release therefrom; and
+also to establish himself in his new dignity as Earl of Evesham.
+Therefore, bidding adieu to the duke and duchess, he started north. The
+duke furnished him with letters of introduction to the princes through
+whose countries he would travel; and again crossing the Rhine, he
+journeyed through the territories of the Dukes of Cleves and Brabant,
+and reached the mouth of Scheldt without interruption. There taking
+ship, he sailed for London.
+
+It was a long and stormy passage between the mouth of the Scheldt and
+London. The vessel in which Cuthbert had shipped was old and somewhat
+unseaworthy, and several times in the force of the gale all on board
+gave up hope for their lives. At last, however, they reached the mouth
+of the Thames, and dropping up with the tide, reached London eight days
+after their embarkation. The noble charger which the King of Saxony had
+presented to Cuthbert had suffered greatly, and he feared at one time
+that the poor animal would succumb to the effects of the tempest.
+However, after entering into smooth water it recovered itself, and on
+landing near the Tower he found that it was able to support his weight.
+Cnut and the archers were, like Cuthbert, delighted to have their feet
+again upon English soil; and although London did not now strike them
+with the same wonder which it would have done had they first visited it
+before starting on their journey--for in many respects it was greatly
+behind some of the continental cities--yet the feeling of home, and the
+pleasure of being able to understand the conversation of those around
+them, made the poor fellows almost beside themselves with joy. Beyond
+the main political incidents Cuthbert had heard little of what had
+passed in England since his departure; and putting up at a hostelry, he
+inquired of the host whether Sir Baldwin of Béthune was in London, or
+whether he was away on his estates. The landlord did not know. There
+were, he said, but few nobles at court, and London was never so dull as
+at present. As Cuthbert did not wish his coming home to be known to John
+until he had learned something of the position of affairs, he dispatched
+Cnut to the Tower to inquire privately of some of the officials about
+the place whether Sir Baldwin was there. Cnut soon returned with the
+news that he had not been at the court since his return from the Holy
+Land, and that he was living at his castle down in Dorsetshire. After
+some hesitation Cuthbert resolved to set out to see his friend, and
+after six days' travel he arrived at the castle of the knight.
+
+Sir Baldwin received him with immense joy. He had not heard of him since
+they parted at Zara, and he feared that a fate similar to that which had
+befallen King Richard had overtaken Cuthbert, even if he were still
+alive.
+
+"Have you seen aught of the king, our master?" the good knight inquired.
+
+"Nothing," Cuthbert said. "I know no more than yourself. Indeed, I hoped
+to have learned something from you as to the king."
+
+"I was separated from him at Gortz, and while he was taken a prisoner to
+the archduke, I was allowed to pursue my way. I had many difficulties
+and dangers, and was some weeks in finding my way back. Nothing was
+known of the king when I returned. Indeed, I was the first bearer of any
+definite news concerning him since the day when he sailed from Acre.
+Three weeks ago, as you may have learned, the news came that he is now
+detained in captivity by the emperor, who demanded his delivery by the
+Archduke John, into whose hands he first fell. But where he is no one
+exactly knows. The news has created an immense excitement in the
+kingdom, and all are resolved to sacrifice any of their treasures which
+may be demanded in order to satisfy the ransom which the recreant
+emperor has placed upon the king. Shame is it indeed that a Christian
+sovereign should hold another in captivity. Still more, when that other
+was returning through his dominions as a Crusader coming from the Holy
+Land, when his person should be safe, even to his deadliest enemy. It
+has long been suspected that he was in the hands either of the emperor
+or of the archduke, and throughout Europe the feeling of indignation has
+been strong; and I doubt not, now that the truth is known, this feeling
+will be stronger than ever."
+
+"But now that it is known," Cuthbert said, "I suppose there will be no
+delay in ransoming the king."
+
+"There will be no delay in raising the ransom," Sir Baldwin said. "But
+the kingdom is very impoverished by war, by the exactions of Prince
+John, and by those of Langley, who held it for King Richard. He was a
+loyal servant of the king, but an exacting and rapacious prelate.
+However, I doubt not that the rents of the English nobles will soon be
+charged with sums sufficient for the ransom; and if this avail not, not
+one of them will grudge their silver flagons and vessels to melt down to
+make the total required. But we must not flatter ourselves that he will
+obtain his liberty so soon as the money is raised. Prince John has long
+been yearning for sovereignty. He has long exercised the real, if not
+the nominal, power, and he has been intriguing with the pope and Philip
+of France for their support for his seizing the crown. He will throw
+every obstacle in the way, as, we may be sure, will Philip of France,
+Richard's deadly enemy. And now about yourself, Sir Cuthbert; tell me
+what has befallen you since we last met."
+
+Cuthbert related the adventures which had befallen him, and heard those
+of Sir Baldwin.
+
+"You have not, I suppose," the latter remarked, "as yet seen Prince
+John?"
+
+"No," Cuthbert replied, "I thought it better to come down to ask you to
+advise me on the position of affairs before I attempted to see him."
+
+"You did well," Sir Baldwin said. "When I arrived, I found that the
+proper officials had, according to King Richard's instructions, draw up
+the patent conferring upon you the lands and title of Earl of Evesham,
+before leaving Acre, and had received the king's signature to it. This
+was attested by several of the nobles who were with us and who returned
+safely to England. Prince John, however, declared that he should not
+give any heed to the document; that King Richard's power over this realm
+had ceased before he made it; and that he should bestow the earldom upon
+whomsoever he chose. As a matter of fact, it has been given to Sir
+Rudolph Fleming, a Norman knight and a creature of the prince. The king
+has also, I hear, promised to him the hand of the young Lady Margaret,
+when she shall become of marriageable age. At present she is placed in a
+convent in Worcester. The abbess is, I believe, a friend of the late
+earl, and the girl had been with her for some time previously. Indeed
+she went there, I think, when her father left England. This lady was
+ordered to give up her charge to the guardianship of Sir Rudolph; but
+she refused to do so, saying that it would not be convenable for a young
+lady to be under the guardianship of a bachelor knight having no lady at
+the head of his establishment, and that therefore she should retain her,
+in spite of the orders of the prince. Prince John, I hear, flew into a
+fury at this; but he did not dare to provoke the anger of the whole of
+the clergy by ordering the convent to be violated. And indeed, not only
+would the clergy have been indignant, but many of the great nobles would
+also have taken their part, for there can be no doubt that the
+contention of the abbess was reasonable; and there is among all the
+friends of King Richard a very strong feeling of anger at your having
+been deprived of the earldom. This, however, has so far not found much
+vent in words, for as it was uncertain whether you would ever return to
+claim your rights, it was worth no one's while to embroil himself
+unnecessarily with the prince on such a subject. God knows that there
+are subjects enough of dispute between John Lackland and the English
+barons without any fresh ones arising. The kingdom is in a state of
+disturbance. There have been several risings against Prince John's
+authority; but those have been, so far, suppressed. Now that we know
+where King Richard is, and hope for his return ere very long, it is
+probable that peace will be maintained; but should treachery prevail,
+and King Richard's return be prevented, you may be sure that John will
+not be permitted to mount the throne without the determined resistance
+of a large number of the nobles."
+
+"But," Cuthbert said, "John is not the successor to the throne. Prince
+Arthur of Brittany was named by King Richard from the first as his
+successor. He is so by blood and by right, and John can have no pretense
+to the throne so long as he lives."
+
+"That is so," Sir Baldwin said. "But unhappily in England at present
+might makes right, and you may be sure that at King Richard's death, be
+it when it may, Prince John will make a bold throw for the throne, and,
+aided as he will be by the pope and by Philip of France, methinks that
+his chances are better than those of the young prince. A man's power, in
+warlike times, is more than a boy's. He can intrigue and promise and
+threaten, while a boy must be in the hands of partisans. I fear that
+Prince Arthur will have troubled times indeed before he mounts the
+throne of England. Should Richard survive until he becomes of age to
+take the field himself and head armies, he may succeed, for all speak
+well of him as a boy of singular sweetness of disposition, while Prince
+John is detested by all save those who flatter and live by him. But
+enough for the present of politics, Cuthbert; let us now to table. It is
+long since we two feasted together; and, indeed, such meals as we took
+in the Holy Land could scarcely have been called feasts. A boar's head
+and a good roasted capon are worthy all the strange dishes that we had
+there. I always misdoubted the meat, which seemed to me to smack in
+flavor of the Saracens, and I never could bring myself to inquire whence
+that strange food was obtained. A stoup of English ale, too, is worth
+all the Cyprus wines, especially when the Cyprus wines are half-full of
+the sand of the desert. Pah! it makes my throat dry to think of those
+horrible meals. So you have brought Cnut and your four archers safely
+back with you?"
+
+"Yes," Cuthbert said, smiling. "But they were, I can assure you, a heavy
+weight on me, in spite of their faithfulness and fidelity. Their
+ignorance of the language brought most of my troubles upon me, and Cnut
+had something of the nature of a bull in him. There are certain things
+which he cannot stomach, and when he seeth them he rageth like a wild
+beast, regardless altogether of safety or convenience."
+
+In the evening the two knights again talked over the course which
+Cuthbert should adopt. The elder knight's opinion was that his young
+friend had best formally claim the title by writing to the king-at-arms,
+and should also announce his return to Prince John, signing himself "Sir
+Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham;" but that, in the present state of things, it
+would be unwise for him to attempt to regain his position, should, as
+was certain to be the case, Prince John refuse to recognize him.
+
+"You are very young yet," Sir Baldwin said, "not eighteen, I think, and
+can afford to wait, at any rate, to see whether King Richard returns.
+Should he come back, he will see all these wrongs are righted; and one
+of his first cares would assuredly be to cast this usurper out of his
+stolen dignities. How old is the Lady Margaret?"
+
+"She is fifteen," Cuthbert said. "She was three years younger than I."
+
+"I wish she had been younger," Sir Baldwin said. "At fifteen she is not
+by custom fairly marriageable; but men can strain these points when they
+choose; and I fear that the news of your coming will hasten both the
+prince and Sir Rudolph in their determination to strengthen the claim of
+this usurper by marriage with the heiress of Evesham. The Lady Margaret
+and her friends can of course claim that she is a royal ward, and that
+as such the king alone can dispose of her person and estates. But
+unfortunately force overrides argument."
+
+"But surely," Cuthbert said, "they will never venture to take her by
+force from the convent?"
+
+"They venture a great many strange things in England now," Sir Baldwin
+said; "and Worcester is perilously near to Evesham. With a clump of
+twenty spears, Sir Rudolph might break into the convent and carry off
+the young lady, and marry her by force; and although the Church might
+cry out, crying would be of little avail when the deed was done; and a
+handsome present on the part of Sir Rudolph might go far to shut the
+mouths of many of the complainants, especially as he will be able to say
+that he has the king's sanction for what he did."
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that if such be the case it would be
+perilous indeed to wait for King Richard's return. Assuredly Sir Rudolph
+would not tarry until she attained the age of seventeen, and it may well
+be that two years may yet pass before King Richard comes back. It seems
+to me the wiser part will be that I should give Prince John no notice
+that I am in England. As you say, such notice would be of no avail in
+recovering my lands and title, but it would put the prince upon his
+guard; and assuredly he and his minions would press forward their
+measures to obtain possession of the person of the Lady Margaret;
+while, on the other hand, no harm can come of my maintaining silence."
+
+"I think that you are right, Sir Cuthbert. It were indeed best that your
+enemies should suppose you either dead or in some dungeon in the Tyrol.
+What would you then do?"
+
+"I would return to my old home," Cuthbert said. "My lady mother is, I
+trust, still alive. But I will not appear at her house, but will take
+refuge in the forest there. Cnut, and the archers with him, were all at
+one time outlaws living there, and I doubt not that there are many good
+men and true still to be found in the woods. Others will assuredly join
+when they learn that Cnut is there, and that they are wanted to strike a
+blow for my rights. I shall then bide my time. I will keep a strict
+watch over the castle and over the convent. As the abbess is a friend
+and relative of Lady Margaret's, I may obtain an interview with her, and
+warn her of the dangers that await her, and ask if she be willing to
+fulfill the promise of her father and King Richard's will, in accepting
+me as her husband when due time shall arrive, and whether she will be
+willing that I should take such steps as I may to deliver her from the
+persecution of Sir Rudolph. If, as I trust, she assents to this, I will
+keep a watch over the convent as well as the castle, and can then either
+attack the latter or carry her off from the former, as the occasion may
+appear to warrant. There are plenty of snug cottages round the forest,
+where she can remain in concealment in the care of some good farmer's
+wife for months, and we shall be close at hand to watch over her. With
+the aid of the forest men, Sir Walter took the castle of Sir John of
+Wortham; and although Evesham is a far grander pile than that, yet
+methinks it could be carried by a sudden assault; and we know more of
+war now than we did then. Prince John may deny me the right of being
+the Earl of Evesham; but methinks before many months I can, if I choose,
+become its master."
+
+"Be not too hasty in that matter," Sir Baldwin said. "You might capture
+the castle with the aid of your outlaws; but you could scarcely hold it.
+The prince has, ere now, with the aid of those faithful to him and his
+foreign mercenaries, captured stronger holds than that of Evesham; and
+if you turn his favorite out, you would have a swarm of hornets around
+you such as the walls of Evesham could not keep out. It would therefore
+be worse than useless for you to attempt what would be something like an
+act of rebellion against Prince John's authority, and would give him
+what now he has no excuse for, a ground for putting a price upon your
+head--and cutting it off if he got the opportunity. You might now
+present yourself boldly at court, and although he might refuse to
+recognize your title of earl, yet, as a knight and a Crusader who has
+distinguished himself greatly in the Holy Land, he dare not interfere
+with your person, for this would be resented by the whole of the
+chivalry of England. Still, I agree with you that your best course is to
+keep your return a secret. You will then be unwatched and unnoticed, and
+your enemies will take their time in carrying their designs into
+effect."
+
+Two days later Cuthbert, attended by his faithful retainers, left Sir
+Baldwin's castle, and traveled by easy stages through Wiltshire and the
+confines of Gloucestershire up to Worcester. He had been supplied by Sir
+Baldwin with suitable attire for himself and his followers, and now rode
+as a simple knight, without arms or cognizance, journeying from one part
+to another. All the crosses and other crusading signs were laid aside,
+and there was nothing to attract any attention to him upon his passage.
+Cuthbert had at first thought of going direct to the convent of
+Worcester, and asking for an interview with Lady Margaret; but he
+reflected that it might be possible that some of the myrmidons of Sir
+Rudolph might be keeping a watch over that building to see that Lady
+Margaret was not secretly removed to some other place of refuge, and
+that the appearance of a knight before its doors would excite comment
+and suspicion. He therefore avoided the town, and journeyed straight to
+the forest, where he had so often roamed with Cnut and the outlaws.
+
+Here he found that matters had but little changed since he was last
+there. Many of those who had fought with him in the Holy Land, and who
+had returned by sea, had again taken to the forest, joined by many new
+men whom the exactions of Sir Rudolph had already goaded into revolt.
+Cnut was received with enthusiasm, and when he presented Cuthbert to
+them as the rightful heir of Evesham and the well-known friend of the
+foresters, their enthusiasm knew no bounds. They at once accepted him as
+their lord and master, and promised to obey his orders, and to lay down
+their lives, if necessary, in his cause, as they knew that it was he who
+had formerly obtained the pardon of the forest band, and who had fought
+with them in their attack on Wortham Castle.
+
+To Cuthbert's great delight he heard that his mother was in good health,
+although she had for some months been grievously fretting over his
+disappearance and supposed death. Cuthbert hesitated whether he should
+proceed at once to see her; but he feared that the shock of his
+appearance might be too much for her, and that her expressions of joy
+might make the retainers and others aware of his arrival, and the news
+might in some way reach the ears of those at the castle. He therefore
+dispatched Cnut to see her, and break the news to her cautiously, and to
+request her to arrange for a time when she would either see Cuthbert at
+some place at a distance from the house, or would so arrange that the
+domestics should be absent and that he would have an interview with her
+there unobserved.
+
+Cnut was absent some hours, and on his return told Cuthbert that he had
+seen Dame Editha, and that her joy on hearing of her son's safe arrival
+had caused her no harm, but rather the reverse. The news that King
+Richard had bestowed upon him the title and lands of Evesham was new to
+her, and she was astonished indeed to hear of his elevation. Having
+heard much of the character of the pretending earl, she had great fears
+for the safety of Cuthbert, should his residence in the neighborhood get
+to his ears; and although sure of the fidelity of all her retainers, she
+feared that in their joy at their young master's return they might let
+slip some incautious word which would come to the ears of some of those
+at the castle. She therefore determined to meet him at a distance. She
+had arranged that upon the following day she would give out that she
+intended to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Dunstan, which lay at
+the edge of the forest, to thank him for her recovery from illness, and
+to pray for the safety of her son. She would be carried thither in a
+litter, and her journey would excite no comment whatever. She would take
+with her four of her most trusted retainers, and would on her arrival at
+the shrine send them to a distance, in order to pay her devotions
+undisturbed. Cuthbert was to be near, and the moment he saw them depart,
+to enter.
+
+This arrangement was carried out, and the joy of Dame Editha at again
+meeting her son was deep indeed. He had left her a lad of fifteen. He
+now returned a youth of nearly eighteen, stout and strong beyond his
+age, and looking far older than he was, from the effect of the hot sun
+of Syria and of the hardships through which he had gone. That he should
+win his spurs upon the first opportunity the earl had promised her, and
+she doubted not that he would soon attain the rank which his father had
+held. But that he should return to her a belted earl was beyond her
+wildest thoughts. This, however, was but little in her mind then. It was
+her son, and not the Earl of Evesham, whom she clasped in her arms.
+
+As the interview must necessarily be a short one, Cuthbert gave her but
+a slight outline of what had happened since they parted, and the
+conversation then turned upon the present position, and upon the steps
+which had best be taken.
+
+"Your peril is, I fear, as great here as when you were fighting the
+infidels in the Holy Land," she said. "Sir Rudolph has not been here
+long; but he has proved himself a cruel and ruthless master. He has
+driven forth many of the old tenants and bestowed their lands upon his
+own servants and retainers. The forest laws he carries out to the
+fullest severity, and has hung several men who were caught infringing
+them. He has laid such heavy burdens on all the tenants that remain that
+they are fairly ruined, and if he stay here long he will rule over a
+desert. Did he dream of your presence here, he would carry fire and
+sword through the forest. It is sad indeed to think that so worthless a
+knave as this should be a favorite of the ruler of England. But all men
+say that he is so. Thus were you to attack him, even did you conquer and
+kill him, you would have the enmity of Prince John to contend with; and
+he spareth none, man or woman, who stand in his way. It will be a bad
+day indeed for England should our good King Richard not return. I will,
+as you wish me, write to my good cousin, the Lady Abbess of St. Anne's,
+and will ask that you may have an interview with the Lady Margaret, to
+hear her wishes and opinions concerning the future, and will pray her to
+do all that she can to aid your suit with the fair young lady, and to
+keep her at all events safe from the clutches of the tyrant of Evesham."
+
+Three days later a boy employed as a messenger by Dame Editha brought a
+note to Cuthbert, saying that she had heard from the Abbess of St.
+Anne's, who would be glad to receive a visit from Cuthbert. The abbess
+had asked his mother to accompany him; but this she left for him to
+decide. Cuthbert sent back a message in reply that he thought it would
+be dangerous for her to accompany him, as any spy watching would report
+her appearance, and inquiries were sure to be set on foot as to her
+companion. He said that he himself would call at the convent on the
+following evening after nightfall, and begged her to send word to the
+abbess to that effect, in order that he might, when he presented
+himself, be admitted at once.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+
+
+Upon the following evening Cuthbert proceeded to Worcester. He left his
+horse some little distance outside the town, and entered on foot. Having
+no apprehension of an attack, he had left all his pieces of armor
+behind, and was in the quiet garb of a citizen. Cnut attended him--for
+that worthy follower considered himself as responsible that no harm of
+any sort should befall his young master. The consequences of his own
+imprudence in the Tyrol were ever before his mind, and he determined
+that from henceforth there should be no want of care on his part. He
+accompanied Cuthbert to within a short distance of the convent, and took
+up his position in the shade of a house, whence he could watch should
+any one appear to be observing Cuthbert's entrance.
+
+Upon ringing the bell Cuthbert told the porteress, as had been arranged,
+that he had called on a message from Dame Editha, and he was immediately
+ushered into the parlor of the convent, where, a minute or two later, he
+was joined by the lady abbess. He had when young been frequently to the
+convent, and had always been kindly received.
+
+"I am indeed glad to see you, Sir Cuthbert," she said, "though I
+certainly should not have recognized the lad who used to come here with
+my cousin in the stalwart young knight I see before me. You are indeed
+changed and improved. Who would think that my gossip Editha's son would
+come to be the Earl of Evesham! The Lady Margaret is eager to see you;
+but I think that you exaggerate the dangers of her residence here. I
+cannot think that even a minion of Prince John would dare to violate the
+sanctity of a convent."
+
+"I fear, good mother," Cuthbert said, "that when ambition and greed are
+in one scale, reverence for the holy church will not weigh much in the
+other. Had King Richard been killed upon his way home, or so long as
+nothing was heard of him, Sir Rudolph might have been content to allow
+matters to remain as they were, until at least Lady Margaret attained an
+age which would justify him in demanding that the espousal should be
+carried out. But the news which has now positively been ascertained,
+that the king is in the hands of the emperor, and the knowledge that
+sooner or later his freedom will be obtained, will hasten the friends of
+the usurper to make the most of their advantage. He knows that the king
+would at once upon his return annul the nomination of Sir Rudolph to the
+earldom which had previously been bestowed upon me. But he may well
+think that if before that time he can secure in marriage the person of
+the late earl's daughter, no small share of the domains may be allotted
+to him as her dowry, even if he be obliged to lay by his borrowed
+honors. You will, unless I am greatly mistaken, hear from him before
+long."
+
+The abbess looked grave.
+
+"There is much in what you say, Sir Cuthbert; and indeed a certain
+confirmation is given to it by the fact that only yesterday I received a
+letter from Sir Rudolph, urging that now the Lady Margaret is past the
+age of fifteen, and may therefore be considered marriageable, the will
+of the prince should be carried into effect, and that she should for the
+present be committed to the charge of the Lady Clara Boulger, who is
+the wife of a friend and associate of Sir Rudolph. He says that he
+should not wish to press the marriage until she attains the age of
+sixteen, but that it were well that his future wife should become
+accustomed to the outside world, so as to take her place as Castellan of
+Evesham with a dignity befitting the position. I wrote at once to him
+saying that in another year it would, in my poor judgment, be quite time
+to think about such worldly matters; that at the present the Lady
+Margaret was receiving an education suitable to her rank; that she was
+happy here; and that unless constrained by force--of which, I said, I
+could not suppose that any possibility existed--I should not surrender
+the Lady Margaret into any hands whatsoever, unless, indeed, I received
+the commands of her lawful guardian, King Richard."
+
+"You said well, holy mother," Sir Cuthbert said. "But you see the hawks
+scent the danger from afar, and are moving uneasily already. Whether
+they consider it so pressing that they will dare to profane the convent,
+I know not. But I am sure that should they do so, they will not hesitate
+a moment at the thought of the anger of the church. Prince John has
+already shown that he is ready, if need be, to oppose the authority of
+the holy father, and he may well, therefore, despise any local wrath
+that might be excited by an action which he can himself disavow, and for
+which, even at the worst, he need only inflict some nominal punishment
+upon his vassal. Bethink thee, lady, whether it would not be safer to
+send the Lady Margaret to the care of some person, where she may be
+concealed from the search of Sir Rudolph."
+
+"I would gladly do so," the abbess said, "did I know of such a person or
+such a place. But it is difficult indeed, for a young lady of rank to be
+concealed from such sharp searchers as Sir Rudolph would be certain to
+place upon her track. Your proposal that she should take refuge in the
+house of some small franklin near the forest, I cannot agree to. In the
+first place, it would demean her to be so placed; and in the second, we
+could never be sure that the report of her residence there might not
+reach the ears of Sir Rudolph. As a last resource, of course, such a
+step would be justifiable, but not until at least overt outrages have
+been attempted. Now I will call Lady Margaret in."
+
+The young girl entered with an air of frank gladness, but was startled
+at the alteration which had taken place in her former playfellow, and
+paused and looked at the abbess, as if inquiring whether this could be
+really the Cuthbert she had known. Lady Margaret was fifteen in years;
+but she looked much younger. The quiet seclusion in which she had lived
+in the convent had kept her from approaching that maturity which as an
+earl's daughter, brought up in the stir and bustle of a castle, she
+would doubtless have attained.
+
+"This is indeed Sir Cuthbert," the abbess said, "your old playfellow,
+and the husband destined for you by your father and by the will of the
+king."
+
+Struck with a new timidity, the girl advanced, and, according to the
+custom of the times, held up her cheek to be kissed. Cuthbert was almost
+as timid as herself.
+
+"I feel, Lady Margaret," he said, "a deep sense of my own unworthiness
+of the kindness and honor which the dear lord your father bestowed upon
+me; and were it not that many dangers threaten, and that it were
+difficult under the circumstances to find one more worthy of you, I
+would gladly resign you into the hands of such a one were it for your
+happiness. But believe me that the recollection of your face has
+animated me in many of the scenes of danger in which I have been placed;
+and although even in fancy my thoughts scarcely ventured to rise so
+high, yet I felt as a true knight might feel for the lady of his love."
+
+"I always liked you, Sir Cuthbert," the girl said frankly, "better than
+any one else next to my father, and gladly submit myself to his will. My
+own inclinations indeed, so far as is maidenly, go with his. These are
+troubled times," she said anxiously, "and our holy mother tells me that
+you fear some danger is overhanging me."
+
+"I trust that the danger may not be imminent," Cuthbert answered. "But
+knowing the unscrupulous nature of the false Earl of Evesham, I fear
+that the news that King Richard is found will bestir him to early
+action. But you can rely, dear lady, on a careful watch being kept over
+you night and day; and should any attempt be made to carry you away, or
+to put force upon you, be assured that assistance will be at hand. Even
+should any attempt succeed, do not lose heart, for rescue will certainly
+be attempted; and I must be dead, and my faithful followers crushed,
+before you can become the bride of Sir Rudolph."
+
+Then turning to other subjects, he talked to her of the life he had led
+since he last saw her. He told her of the last moments of her father,
+and of the gallant deeds he had done in the Holy Land.
+
+After waiting for two hours, the abbess judged that the time for
+separation had arrived; and Cuthbert, taking a respectful adieu of his
+young mistress, and receiving the benediction of the abbess, departed.
+
+He found Cnut on guard at the point where he had left him.
+
+"Have you seen aught to give rise to suspicion?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Yes," Cnut said, "the place is undoubtedly watched. Just after you had
+entered a man came from that house yonder and went up to the gate, as if
+he would fain learn by staring at its iron adornments the nature of him
+who had passed in. Then he re-entered his house, and if I mistake not is
+still on the watch at that casement. If we stand here for a minute or
+two, perchance he may come out to see what delays you in this dark
+corner, in which case I may well give him a clout with my ax which will
+settle his prying."
+
+"Better not," Cuthbert said. "We can retire round this corner and so
+avoid his observation; and were his body found slain here, suspicion
+would be at once excited in the mind of his employer. At present he can
+have no ground for any report which may make the knight uneasy, for he
+can but know that a gentleman has entered, and remained for two hours at
+the convent, and he will in no way connect my visit with the Lady
+Margaret."
+
+They had just turned the corner which Cuthbert indicated, when a man
+came up rapidly behind them and almost brushed them as he passed,
+half-turning round and trying to gaze into their faces. Cnut at once
+assumed the aspect of an intoxicated person, and stretching forth his
+foot, with a dexterous shove pushed the stranger into the gutter. The
+latter rose with a fierce cry of anger; but Cnut with a blow of his
+heavy fist again stretched him on the ground, this time to remain quiet
+until they had walked on and passed out of sight.
+
+"A meddling fool," Cnut grumbled. "He will not, methinks, have much to
+report to Sir Rudolph this time. Had I thought that he had seen your
+face, I would have cleft his skull with no more hesitation than I send
+an arrow into the brain of a stag in the forest."
+
+As they journeyed along Cuthbert informed Cnut of what the abbess had
+told him; and the latter agreed that a watch must be placed on the
+convent, and that a force must be kept as near as possible at hand so
+as to defeat any attempt which might be made.
+
+The next day one of the forest men who had been a peaceable citizen, but
+who had been charged with using false weights and had been condemned to
+lose his ears, repaired to Worcester. His person was unknown there, as
+he had before lived at Gloucester. He hired a house in the square in
+which the convent was situated, giving out that he desired to open a
+house of business for the sale of silks, and for articles from the Low
+Countries. As he paid down earnest-money for the rent no suspicion
+whatever was excited. He at once took up his abode there, having with
+him two stout serving-men, and a 'prentice boy; and from that time two
+sets of watchers observed without ceasing what passed at the Convent of
+St. Anne.
+
+At a distance of half a mile from the road leading between Worcester and
+Evesham stood a grange, which had for some time been disused, the ground
+belonging to it having been sequestrated and given to the lord of an
+adjoining estate, who did not care to have the grange occupied. In this
+ten men, headed by Cnut, took up their residence, blocking up the window
+of the hall with hangings, so that the light of the fire kindled within
+would not be observed.
+
+Two months passed on without any incident of importance. The feeling
+between the outlaws in the forest and the retainers of the false Earl of
+Evesham was becoming much imbittered. Several times the foresters of the
+latter, attempting pursuit of men charged with breaking the game laws,
+were roughly handled. These on making their report were sent back again,
+supported by a force of footmen; but these, too, were driven back, and
+the authority of Sir Rudolph was openly defied.
+
+Gradually it came to his ears that the outlaws were commanded by a man
+who had been their leader in times gone by, but who had been pardoned,
+and had, with a large number of his band, taken service in the army of
+the Crusaders; also, that there was present a stranger, whose manner and
+the deference paid to him by Cnut proclaimed him to be of gentle blood.
+This news awakened grave uneasiness on the part of Sir Rudolph. The
+knight caused inquiries to be made, and ascertained that Cnut had been
+especially attached to the young Cuthbert, and that he had fought under
+the Earl of Evesham's banner. It seemed possible then that with him had
+returned the claimant for the earldom; and in that case Sir Rudolph felt
+that danger menaced him, for the bravery of the Earl of Evesham's
+adopted son had been widely spoken of by those who had returned from the
+Holy Land.
+
+Sir Rudolph was a man of forty, tall and dark, with Norman features. He
+held the Saxons in utter contempt, and treated them as beings solely
+created to till the land for the benefit of their Norman lords. He was
+brave and fearless, and altogether free from the superstition of the
+times. Even the threats of the pope, which although Prince John defied
+them yet terrified him at heart, were derided by his follower, who
+feared no one thing in the world, save, perhaps, the return of King
+Richard from captivity.
+
+No sooner had the suspicion that his rival was in the neighborhood
+possessed him than he determined that one of two things must be carried
+out: either Sir Cuthbert must be killed, or the Lady Margaret must be
+carried off and forced to accept him as her husband. First he endeavored
+to force Sir Cuthbert to declare himself and to trust to his own arm to
+put an end to his rival. To that end he caused a proclamation to be
+written, and to be affixed to the door of the village church at the fair
+of Evesham.
+
+Cnut and several of his followers were there, all quietly dressed as
+yeomen. Seeing a crowd round the door of the church, he pressed forward.
+Being himself unable to read writing, he asked one of the burgesses what
+was written upon the paper which caused such excitement.
+
+"It is," the burgess said, "in the nature of a cartel or challenge from
+our present lord, Sir Rudolph. He says that it having come to his ears
+that a Saxon serf, calling himself Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, is
+lurking in the woods and consorting with outlaws and robbers, he
+challenges him to appear, saying that he will himself, grievously
+although he would demean himself by so doing, yet condescend to meet him
+in the lists with sword and battle-ax, and to prove upon his body the
+falseness of his averments. Men marvel much," the burgess continued, "at
+this condescension on the earl's part. We have heard indeed that King
+Richard, before he sailed for England, did, at the death of the late
+good earl, bestow his rank and the domains of Evesham upon Sir Cuthbert,
+the son of the Dame Editha. Whether it be true or not, we cannot say;
+but it seems strange that such honor should have been bestowed upon one
+so young. In birth indeed he might aspire to the rank, since his father,
+Sir Walter, was a brave knight, and the mother, Dame Editha, was of good
+Saxon blood, and descended from those who held Evesham before the
+arrival of the Normans."
+
+Cnut's first impulse was to stride forward and to tear down the
+proclamation. But the remembrance of his solemn determination not in
+future to act rashly came across him, and he decided to take no steps
+until he had reported the facts to his master, and taken his counsel
+thereon.
+
+Cuthbert received the news with much indignation.
+
+"There is naught that I should like better," he said, "than to try my
+strength against that of this false traitor. But although I have proved
+my arm against the Saracens, I think not that it is yet strong enough to
+cope against a man who, whatsoever be his faults, is said to be a
+valiant knight. But that would not deter me from attempting the task. It
+is craftily done on the part of Sir Rudolph. He reckons that if I appear
+he will kill me; that if I do not appear, I shall be branded as a
+coward, and my claims brought into disrepute. It may be, too, that it is
+a mere ruse to discover if I be in the neighborhood. Some rumors thereof
+may have reached him, and he has taken this course to determine upon
+their truth. He has gone too far, and honest men will see in the cartel
+itself a sign that he misdoubts him that my claims are just; for were I,
+as he says, a Saxon serf, be sure that he would not condescend to meet
+me in the lists as he proposes. I trust that the time will come when I
+may do so. But at present I will submit to his insult rather than
+imperil the success of our plans, and, what is of far greater
+importance, the safety and happiness of the Lady Margaret, who, did
+aught befall me, would assuredly fall into his hands."
+
+After some thought, however, Cuthbert drew up an answer to the knight's
+proclamation. He did not in this speak in his own name, but wrote as if
+the document were the work of Cnut. It was worded as follows: "I, Cnut,
+a free Saxon and a leader of bowmen under King Richard in the Holy Land,
+do hereby pronounce and declare the statements of Sir Rudolph, miscalled
+the Earl of Evesham, to be false and calumnious. The earldom was, as
+Rudolph well knows, and as can be proved by many nobles and gentlemen of
+repute who were present with King Richard, granted to Sir Cuthbert, King
+Richard's true and faithful follower. When the time shall come Sir
+Cuthbert will doubtless be ready to prove his rights. But at present
+right has no force in England, and until the coming of our good King
+Richard must remain in abeyance. Until then, I support the title of Sir
+Cuthbert, and do hereby declare Sir Rudolph a false and perjured knight;
+and warn him that if he falls into my hands it will fare but badly with
+him, as I know it will fare but badly with me should I come into his."
+
+At nightfall the cartel of Sir Rudolph was torn down from the church and
+that of Cnut affixed in its place. The reading thereof caused great
+astonishment in Evesham, and the rage of Sir Rudolph, when the news came
+to his ears, was very great. Cuthbert was sure that this affair would
+quicken the intentions of Sir Rudolph with regard to the Lady Margaret,
+and he received confirmation of this in a letter which the abbess sent
+him, saying that she had received another missive from Sir Rudolph,
+authoritatively demanding in the king's name the instant surrender of
+Lady Margaret to him. That night forty archers stole, one by one,
+quietly into Worcester, entering the town before the gates were shut,
+and so mingling with the citizens that they were unobserved. When it was
+quite dark they quietly took their way, one by one, to the square in
+which stood the convent, and were admitted into the shop of Master
+Nicholas, the silk mercer.
+
+The house was a large one, with its floors overhanging each the one
+beneath it, as was the custom of the time, and with large casements
+running the whole width of the house.
+
+The mercer had laid by a goodly store of provisions, and for three days
+the troop, large as it was, was accommodated there. Cuthbert himself was
+with them, Cnut remaining at the grange with the ten men originally sent
+there.
+
+On the third day Sir Rudolph, with a number of knights and men-at-arms,
+arrived in the town, giving out that he was passing northward, but he
+would abide that night at the hostelry. A great many of his men-at-arms
+did, as those on the watch observed, enter one by one into the town. The
+people of Worcester were somewhat surprised at this large accompaniment
+of the earl, but thought no harm. The Abbess of St. Anne's, however, was
+greatly terrified, as she feared that some evil design might be intended
+against her. She was, however, reassured in the evening by a message
+brought by a boy, to the effect that succor would be near, whatsoever
+happened.
+
+At midnight a sudden uproar was heard in the streets of Worcester.
+
+A party of men fell upon the burgesses guarding the gate of the town,
+disarmed them, and took possession of it. At the same time those who had
+put up at the hostelry with Sir Rudolph suddenly mounted their horses,
+and with a great clatter rode down the streets to the convent of St.
+Anne. Numbers of men on foot also joined, and some sixty in all suddenly
+appeared before the great gate of the convent. With a thundering noise
+they knocked at the door, and upon the grating being opened Sir Rudolph
+himself told the porteress who looked through it that she was to go at
+once to the abbess and order her to surrender the body of the Lady
+Margaret to him, in accordance with the order of Prince John; adding,
+that if within the space of five minutes the order was not complied
+with, he would burst in the gates of the convent and take her for
+himself. In another minute a casement opened above, and the abbess
+herself appeared.
+
+"Rash man," she said to Sir Rudolph, "I warn you against committing the
+sin of sacrilege. Neither the orders of Prince John nor of any other
+potentate can override the rights of the holy church; and should you
+venture to lay the hand of force upon this convent you will be placed
+under the anathema of the church, and its spiritual terrors will be
+directed against you."
+
+"I am prepared to risk that, holy mother," Sir Rudolph said, with a
+laugh. "So long as I am obeying the orders of my prince, I care naught
+for those of any foreign potentate, be he pope or be he emperor. Three
+minutes of the time I gave you have elapsed, and unless within two more
+the Lady Margaret appears at the gate I will batter it down; and you may
+think yourself lucky if I do not order my men to set light to it and to
+smoke you out of your hole."
+
+The abbess closed the window, and as she did so the long row of
+casements in the house of Master Nicholas were opened from top to
+bottom, and a volley of sixty clothyard arrows was poured into the group
+closely standing round the gate. Many fell, killed outright, and shouts
+of rage and pain were heard arising.
+
+Furious at this unexpected attack, Sir Rudolph turned and commanded
+those with him to attack the house whence this volley of missiles had
+come. But even while he spoke another flight of arrows, even more deadly
+than the last, was poured forth. One of the knights standing by the side
+of Sir Rudolph fell, shot through the brain. Very many of the common
+men, undefended by harness, fell shot through and through; and an arrow
+piercing the joint of the armor of Sir Rudolph wounded him in the
+shoulder. In vain the knight stormed and raged and ordered his men to
+advance. The suddenness of the attack seemed to his superstitious
+followers a direct answer from heaven to the words of the abbess. Their
+number was already seriously lessened, and those who were in case to do
+so at once took flight and scattered through the city, making for the
+gate, which had already been seized by Sir Rudolph's men.
+
+Finding himself alone with only a few of his knights and principal
+men-at-arms remaining, while the storm of arrows continued unabated, Sir
+Rudolph was forced to order his men to retreat with many fierce threats
+of the vengeance which he would hereafter take.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM.
+
+
+The return of Sir Rudolph's party to Evesham was not unmarked by
+incident, for as they passed along the road, from an ambush in a wood
+other archers, whose numbers they could not discover, shot hard upon
+them, and many fell there who had escaped from the square at Worcester.
+When the list was called upon the arrival at the castle, it was found
+that no less than thirty of those who had set out were missing, while
+many others were grievously wounded.
+
+The noise of the tumult in the square of the convent aroused the whole
+town of Worcester. Alarm bells were rung; and the burgesses, hastily
+arming themselves, poured into the streets. Directed by the sound, they
+made their way to the square, and were astonished at finding it entirely
+deserted, save for some twenty men, lying dead or dying in front of the
+gate of the convent, pierced with long arrows. They speedily found that
+Sir Rudolph and his troop had departed; and further inquiry revealed the
+fact that the burgher guard at one of the gates had been overpowered and
+were prisoners in the watchroom. These could only say that they were
+suddenly seized, all being asleep save the one absolutely on guard. They
+knew nothing more than that a few minutes later there was a great
+clatter of horsemen and men on foot leaving the city. Unable to find any
+solution to this singular circumstance, but satisfied that Sir Rudolph
+had departed, and that no more disturbance was likely to arise that
+night, the burgesses again betook themselves to their beds, having
+closed the gates and placed a strong guard over them, determining next
+morning to sift the affair to the bottom.
+
+In the morning the leading burgesses met in council, and finding none
+who could give them any information, the mayor and two of the councilors
+repaired to the convent, where they asked for an interview with the lady
+abbess. Mightily indignant were they at hearing that Sir Rudolph had
+attempted to break into the convent, and to carry off a boarder residing
+there. But the abbess herself could give them no further news. She said
+that after she retired from the window she heard great shouts and cries,
+and that almost immediately afterward the whole of the party in front
+hastily retired.
+
+That Sir Rudolph had been attacked by a party of archers was evident;
+but whence they had shot, or how they had come upon the spot at the
+time, or whither they had gone, were mysteries that could not be solved.
+In the search which the authorities made, however, it was discovered
+that the house of the draper, Master Nicholas, was closed. Finding that
+summonses to open were unanswered, the door was broken in, and the
+premises were found in confusion. No goods of any kind were discovered
+there, but many bales filled with dried leaves, bark of trees, and other
+worthless matters. Such goods as had been displayed in the window had
+clearly been carried away. Searching the house, they found signs that a
+considerable number of men had been concealed there, and although not
+knowing whence the body of archers could have come, they concluded that
+those who defeated the attempt of Sir Rudolph must have been hidden in
+the draper's house. The singularity of this incident gave rise to great
+excitement; but the indignation against Sir Rudolph was in no way
+lessened by the fact that his attempt had been defeated, not by the
+townsmen themselves, but by some unknown force.
+
+After much consultation on the part of the council, it was resolved that
+a deputation, consisting of the mayor and the five senior councilors,
+should resort to London, and there demand from the prince redress for
+the injury put upon their town by Sir Rudolph. These worthy merchants
+betook themselves to London by easy stages, and upon their arrival there
+were kept for some days before they could obtain an interview with King
+John. When they appeared before him and commenced telling their story
+the prince fell into sudden rage.
+
+"I have heard of this matter before," he said, "and am mightily angry
+with the people of Worcester, inasmuch as they have dared to interfere
+to prevent the carrying out of my commands. The Earl of Evesham has
+written to me, that thinking to scare the abbess of St. Anne's into a
+compliance with the commands which I had laid upon her, and to secure
+the delivery of a contumacious ward of the crown, he had pretended to
+use force, having, however, no idea of carrying his threats into effect.
+When, as he doubted not, the abbess was on the point of yielding up the
+ward, the good knight was suddenly set upon by the rascals of the town,
+who slew some of his companions and followers, and did grievously
+ill-treat the remainder. This," said the prince, "you now pretend was
+done by a party of men of whose presence in the town you had no
+cognizance. Your good sense must be small, if you think that I should
+believe such a tale as this. It is your rascaldom at Worcester which
+interfered to prevent my will being carried out, and I have a goodly
+mind to order the troop of Sir Charles Everest, which is now marching
+toward Evesham, to sack the town, as a punishment for its rebellion. As,
+however, I am willing to believe that you and the better class of
+burgesses were in ignorance of the doings of the rougher kind, I will
+extend mercy toward the city, and will merely inflict a fine of three
+thousand golden marks upon it."
+
+The mayor attempted humbly to explain and to entreat; but the prince was
+seized with a sudden passion, and threatened if he said more he would at
+once cast him and his fellows into durance. Therefore, sadly crestfallen
+at the result of their mission, the mayor and councilors returned to
+Worcester, where their report caused great consternation. This was
+heightened by the fact that upon the following day Sir Charles Everest,
+with five hundred mercenaries of the prince, together with Sir Rudolph
+and his following, and several other barons favorable to the cause of
+the prince, were heard to be approaching the town.
+
+Worcester was capable of making a stout defense, but seeing that no help
+was likely to be forthcoming, and fearing the utter ruin of the town
+should it be taken by storm, the council, after sitting many hours in
+deliberation, determined to raise the money required to pay the fine
+inflicted by the prince. The bolder sort were greatly averse to this
+decision, especially as a letter had been received, signed "Cuthbert,
+Earl of Evesham," offering, should the townspeople decide to resist the
+unjust demands of Prince John, to enter the town with one hundred and
+fifty archers to take part in its defense. With this force, as the more
+ardent spirits urged, the defeat of any attempt to carry it by storm
+would be assured. But the graver men argued that even if defeated for
+the first time further attempts would be made, and as it was likely that
+King Richard would not return for a long time, and that Prince John
+might become sovereign of England, sooner or later the town must be
+taken, and, in any case, its trade would for a long time be destroyed,
+and great suffering inflicted upon all; therefore, that it was better to
+pay the fine now than to risk all these evils, and perhaps the
+infliction of a heavier impost upon them.
+
+The abbess was kept informed by friends in the council of the course of
+the proceedings. She had in the meantime had another interview with Sir
+Cuthbert and had determined, seeing that Prince John openly supported
+the doings of his minion, it would be better to remove the Lady Margaret
+to some other place, as no one could say how the affair might terminate;
+and with five hundred mercenaries at his back, Sir Rudolph would be so
+completely master of the city that he would be able in broad daylight,
+did he choose, to force the gates of the convent and carry off the
+king's ward.
+
+Accordingly, two days before the arrival of the force before the walls
+of Worcester, Lady Margaret left the convent by a postern gate in the
+rear, late in the evening. She was attended by two of the sisters, both
+of whom, as well as herself, were dressed as country women. Mules were
+in readiness outside the city gates, and here Sir Cuthbert, with an
+escort of archers, was ready to attend them. They traveled all night,
+and arrived in the morning at a small convent situated five miles from
+the city of Hereford. The abbess here was a cousin of the Superior of
+St. Anne's, and had already consented to receive Lady Margaret. Leaving
+her at the door, and promising that, as far as possible, he would keep
+watch over her, and that even in the worst she need never despair, Sir
+Cuthbert left her and returned to the forest.
+
+The band there assembled varied considerably in numbers, for provisions
+could not be found continually for a large body of men. The forest was
+indeed very extensive, and the number of deer therein large. Still, for
+the feeding of one hundred and fifty men many animals are required, and
+other food. The franklins in the neighborhood were all hostile to Sir
+Rudolph, whom they regarded as a cruel tyrant, and did their utmost in
+the way of supplies for those in the forest. Their resources, however,
+were limited, and it was found necessary to scatter the force, and for a
+number of them to take up their residence in places a short distance
+away, forty only remaining permanently on guard.
+
+Sir Rudolph and his friends entered Worcester, and there received with
+great hauteur the apologies of the mayor and council, and the assurance
+that the townspeople were in nowise concerned in the attack made upon
+him. To this he pretended disbelief. The fine demanded was paid, the
+principal portion in gold, the rest in bills signed by the leading
+merchants of the place; for after every effort it had been found
+impossible to collect such a sum within the city.
+
+The day after he arrived he again renewed his demand to the abbess for
+the surrender of the Lady Margaret; this time, however, coming to her
+attended only by two squires, and by a pursuivant bearing the king's
+order for the delivery of the damsel. The abbess met him at the gate,
+and informed him that the Lady Margaret was no longer in her charge.
+
+"Finding," she said in a fearless tone, "that the holy walls of this
+convent were insufficient to restrain lawless men, and fearing that
+these might be tempted to acts of sacrilege, which might bring down upon
+them the wrath of the church and the destruction of their souls, I have
+sent her away."
+
+"Whither has she gone?" Sir Rudolph demanded, half-mad with passion.
+
+"That I decline to say," the lady abbess replied. "She is in good hands;
+and when King Richard returns his ward shall be delivered to him at
+once."
+
+"Will you take oath upon the Bible that she is not within these walls?"
+Sir Rudolph exclaimed.
+
+"My word is sufficient," the lady abbess replied calmly. "But should it
+be necessary, I should be ready to swear upon the relics that she is not
+here."
+
+A few hours later Sir Rudolph, attended by his own party and by one
+hundred of Sir Charles Everest's mercenaries, returned to his castle.
+
+Three days afterward, as Cuthbert was sitting at a rude but hearty meal
+in the forest, surrounded by Cnut and his followers, a hind entered
+breathless. Cuthbert at once recognized him as one of the servitors of
+his mother.
+
+"What is it?" he exclaimed, leaping to his feet.
+
+"Terrible news, Master Cuthbert, terrible news!" exclaimed the man. "The
+wicked earl came down this morning, with fifty of his men, set fire to
+the house, and all its buildings and stacks, and has carried off the
+lady, your mother, a prisoner to the castle, on a charge, as he said, of
+harboring traitors."
+
+A cry of fury broke from Cnut and his men.
+
+"The false traitor shall bitterly regret this outrage," Cuthbert
+exclaimed.
+
+He had in the first excitement seized his arms, and his followers
+snatched up their bows, as if for instant warfare. A few moments'
+reflection, however, showed to Cuthbert the impossibility of his
+attacking a fortress like Evesham, garrisoned by a strong body of
+well-armed men, with only the archers of the forest, without implements
+necessary for such an assault.
+
+"Send at once, Cnut," he said, "and call in all the band. We cannot take
+the castle; but we will carry fire and sword round its walls. We will
+cut off all communication from within or from without. If attacked by
+large forces, we will retire upon the wood, returning to our posts
+without the walls as soon as the force is withdrawn. These heavily armed
+men can move but slowly, while we can run at full speed. There cannot be
+more than some twenty horsemen in the castle; and methinks with our
+arrows and pikes we can drive these back if they attempt to fall upon
+us."
+
+Cnut at once sent off swift-footed messengers to carry out Cuthbert's
+orders, and on the following day the whole of the band were again
+assembled in the woods. Just as Cuthbert was setting them in motion a
+distant blast of a horn was heard.
+
+"It is," Cuthbert exclaimed, "the note calling for a parley. Do you,
+Cnut, go forward, and see what is demanded. It is probably a messenger
+from Sir Rudolph."
+
+After half an hour's absence Cnut returned, bringing with him a
+pursuivant or herald. The latter advanced at once toward Cuthbert, who,
+now in his full knightly armor, was evidently the leader of the party.
+
+"I bear to you, Sir Cuthbert, falsely calling yourself Earl of Evesham,
+a message from Sir Rudolph. He bids me tell you that the traitress, Dame
+Editha, your mother, is in his hands, and that she has been found guilty
+of aiding and abetting you in your war against Prince John, the regent
+of this kingdom. For that offense she has been condemned to die."
+
+Here he was interrupted by a cry of rage which broke from the assembled
+foresters. Continuing unmoved, he said:
+
+"Sir Rudolph, being unwilling to take the life of a woman, however
+justly forfeited by the law, commands me to say that if you will deliver
+yourself up to him by to-morrow at twelve the Dame Editha shall be
+allowed to go free. But that if by the time the dial points to noon you
+have not delivered yourself up, he will hang her over the battlements of
+the castle."
+
+Cuthbert was very pale, and he waved his hand to restrain the fury which
+animated the outlaws.
+
+"This man," he said to them, "is a herald, and, as such, is protected by
+all the laws of chivalry. Whatsoever his message, it is none of his. He
+is merely the mouthpiece of him who sent him." Then, turning to the
+herald, he said, "Tell the false knight, your master, on my part, that
+he is a foul ruffian, perjured to all the vows of knighthood; that this
+act of visiting upon a woman the enmity he bears her son will bring upon
+him the execration of all men; and that the offer which he makes me is
+as foul and villainous as himself. Nevertheless, knowing his character,
+and believing that he is capable of keeping his word, tell him that by
+to-morrow at noon I will be there; that the lady, my mother, is to leave
+the castle gates as I enter them; and that though by his foul device he
+may encompass my death, yet that the curse of every good man will light
+upon him, that he will be shunned as the dog he is, and that assuredly
+Heaven will not suffer that deeds so foul should bring with them the
+prize he seeks to gain."
+
+The herald bowed, and, escorted by two archers to the edge of the
+forest, returned to Evesham Castle.
+
+After his departure an animated council took place. Cnut and the
+outlaws, burning with indignation, were ready to attempt anything. They
+would, had Cuthbert given the word, have attacked the castle that very
+night. But Cuthbert pointed out the absolute impossibility of their
+carrying so strong a place by such an assault, unprovided with engines
+for battering down the gates. He said that surprise would be impossible,
+as the knight would be sure to take every precaution against it; and
+that in the event of such an attack being attempted, he would possibly
+carry his threat into execution, and murder Dame Editha before their
+eyes. Cnut was like a madman, so transported with fury was he; and the
+archers were also beside themselves. Cuthbert alone retained his
+calmness. Retiring apart from the others, he paced slowly backward and
+forward among the trees, deliberating upon the best course to be
+pursued. The archers gathered round the fire and passed the night in
+long and angry talk, each man agreeing that in the event of their
+beloved leader being sacrificed by Sir Rudolph, they would one and all
+give their lives to avenge him by slaying the oppressor whensoever he
+ventured beyond the castle gates.
+
+After a time, Cuthbert called Cnut to him, and the two talked long and
+earnestly. Cnut returned to his comrades with a face less despairing
+than that he had before worn, and sent off at once a messenger with all
+speed to a franklin near the forest to borrow a stout rope some fifty
+feet in length, and without telling his comrades what the plans of Sir
+Cuthbert were, bade them cheer up, for that desperate as the position
+was, all hope was not yet lost.
+
+"Sir Cuthbert," he said, "has been in grievous straits before now, and
+has gone through them. Sir Rudolph does not know the nature of the man
+with whom he has to deal, and we may trick him yet."
+
+At eleven o'clock the next day from the walls of Evesham Castle a body
+of archers one hundred and fifty strong were seen advancing in solid
+array.
+
+"Think you, Sir Rudolph," one of his friends, Sir Hubert of Gloucester,
+said to him, "that these varlets think of attacking the castle?"
+
+"They might as well think of scaling heaven," Sir Rudolph said. "Evesham
+could resist a month's siege by a force well equipped for the purpose;
+and were it not that good men are wanted for the king's service, and
+that these villains shoot straight and hard, I would open the gates of
+the castle and launch our force against them. We are two to one as
+strong as they, and our knights and mounted men-at-arms could alone
+scatter that rabble."
+
+Conspicuous upon the battlements a gallows had been erected.
+
+The archers stopped at a distance of a few hundred yards from the
+castle, and Sir Cuthbert advanced alone to the edge of the moat.
+
+"Sir Rudolph of Eresby, false knight and perjured gentleman," he shouted
+in a loud voice, "I, Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, do denounce you as
+foresworn and dishonored, and do challenge you to meet me here before
+the castle in sight of your men and mine, and decide our quarrel as
+Heaven may judge with sword and battle-ax."
+
+Sir Rudolph leaned over the battlements, and said: "It is too late,
+varlet. I condescended to challenge you before, and you refused. You
+cannot now claim what you then feared to accept. The sun on the dial
+approaches noon, and unless you surrender yourself before it reaches the
+mark, I will keep my word, and the traitress, your mother, shall swing
+from that beam."
+
+Making a sign to two men-at-arms, these brought forward Dame Editha and
+so placed her on the battlements that she could be seen from below. Dame
+Editha was still a very fair woman, although nigh forty years had rolled
+over her head. No sign of fear appeared upon her face, and in a firm
+voice she cried to her son:
+
+"Cuthbert, I beg--nay, I order you to retire. If this unknightly lord
+venture to carry out his foul threats against me, let him do so. England
+will ring with the dastardly deed, and he will never dare show his face
+again where Englishmen congregate. Let him do his worst. I am prepared
+to die."
+
+A murmur rose from the knights and men-at-arms standing round Sir
+Rudolph. Several of his companions had from the first, wild and
+reckless as they were, protested against Sir Rudolph's course, and it
+was only upon his solemn assurance that he intended but to frighten Sir
+Cuthbert into surrender, and had no intention of carrying his threats
+against the lady into effect, that they had consented to take part in
+the transaction. Even now, at the fearless words of the Saxon lady
+several of them hesitated, and Sir Hubert of Gloucester stepped forward
+to Sir Rudolph.
+
+"Sir knight," he said, "you know that I am your true comrade and the
+faithful servant of Prince John. Yet in faith would I not that my name
+should be mixed up in so foul a deed. I repent me that I have for a
+moment consented to it. But the shame shall not hang upon the escutcheon
+of Hubert of Gloucester that he stood still when such foul means were
+tried. I pray you, by our long friendship, and for the sake of your own
+honor as a knight, to desist from this endeavor. If this lady be guilty,
+as she well may be of aiding her son in his assaults upon the soldiers
+of Prince John, then let her be tried, and doubtless the court will
+confiscate her estates. But let her son be told that her life is in no
+danger, and that he is free to go, being assured that harm will not come
+to her."
+
+"And if I refuse to consent to allow my enemy, who is now almost within
+my hand, to escape," Sir Rudolph said, "what then?"
+
+"Then," said the knight, "I and my following will at once leave your
+walls, and will clear ourselves to the brave young knight yonder of all
+hand in this foul business."
+
+A murmur of agreement from several of those standing round showed that
+their sentiments were in accordance with those of Sir Hubert.
+
+"I refuse," said Rudolph passionately. "Go, if you will. I am master of
+my actions, and of this castle."
+
+Without a word, Sir Hubert and two others of the knights present turned,
+and briefly ordering their men-at-arms to follow them, descended the
+staircase to the courtyard below. Their horses were brought out, the men
+fell into rank, and the gates of the castle were thrown open.
+
+"Stand to arms!" Sir Cuthbert shouted to the archers. "They are going to
+attempt a sortie." And hastily he retired to the main body of his men.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+THE FALSE AND PERJURED KNIGHT.
+
+
+As the band of knights and their retainers issued from the gate a
+trumpeter blew a parley, and the three knights advanced alone toward the
+group of archers.
+
+"Sir Cuthbert de Lance," Sir Hubert said, "in the name of myself and my
+two friends here we ask your pardon for having so far taken part in this
+foul action. We did so believing only that Sir Rudolph intended the
+capture of your lady mother as a threat. Now that we see he was in
+earnest, we wash our hands of the business; and could we in any way
+atone for our conduct in having joined him, we would gladly do so
+consistently only with our allegiance to the prince regent."
+
+Cuthbert bowed courteously.
+
+"Thanks for your words, Sir Hubert. I had always heard yourself and the
+knights here spoken of as brave and gallant gentlemen, whose sole fault
+was that they chose to take part with a rebel prince rather than with
+the King of England. I rejoice that you have cleared your name of so
+foul a blot as this would have placed upon it, and I acknowledge that
+your conduct now is knightly and courteous. But I can no more parley.
+The sun is within a few minutes of twelve, and I must surrender, to meet
+such fate as may befall me."
+
+So saying, with a bow he left them, and again advanced to the castle
+gate.
+
+"Sir Rudolph," he shouted, "the hour is at hand. I call upon you to
+deliver, outside the gate, the lady, my mother. Whether she wills it or
+not, I call upon you to place her beyond the gate, and I give you my
+knightly word that as she leaves it I enter it."
+
+Dame Editha would then have attempted resistance; but she saw that it
+would be useless. With a pale face she descended the steps, accompanied
+by the men-at-arms. She knew that any entreaty to Sir Rudolph would be
+vain, and with the courage of her race she mentally vowed to devote the
+rest of her life to vengeance for her son.
+
+As the gate opened and she was thrust forth, for a moment she found
+herself in the arms of her son.
+
+"Courage, mother!" he whispered; "all may yet be well."
+
+Cnut was waiting a few paces behind, and offering his hand to Dame
+Editha, he led her to the group of archers, while Cuthbert, alone,
+crossed the drawbridge and entered the portal, the heavy portcullis
+falling after him.
+
+Cnut, immediately ordering four of his men to escort Dame Editha to the
+wood with all speed, advanced with his men toward the walls. All had
+strung their bows and placed their arrows on the ground in front of them
+in readiness for instant use. Cnut himself, with two others carrying the
+rope, advanced to the edge of the moat. None observed their doings, for
+all within the castle were intent upon the proceedings there.
+
+In the courtyard Sir Rudolph had taken his post, with the captain of the
+mercenaries beside him, and the men-at-arms drawn up in order. He smiled
+sardonically as Cuthbert entered.
+
+"So, at last," he said, "this farce is drawing to an end. You are in my
+power, and for the means which I have taken to capture you, I will
+account to the prince. You are a traitor to him; you have attacked and
+slaughtered many of my friends; you are an outlaw defying the law; and
+for each of these offenses your head is forfeited."
+
+"I deny," Cuthbert said, standing before him, "your right to be my
+judge. By my peers only can I be tried. As a knight of England and as
+rightful lord of this castle, I demand to be brought before a jury of my
+equals."
+
+"I care nothing for rights or for juries," said Sir Rudolph. "I have the
+royal order for your execution, and that order I shall put into effect,
+although all the knights and barons in England objected."
+
+Cuthbert looked round to observe the exact position in which he was
+standing. He knew, of course, every foot of the castle, and saw that but
+a short distance behind a single row of armed men was the staircase
+leading to the battlements.
+
+"False and perjured knight," he said, taking a step forward, "I may die;
+but I would rather a thousand deaths than such a life as yours will be
+when this deed is known in England. But I am not yet dead. For myself, I
+could pardon you; but for the outrage to my mother--" and with a sudden
+movement he struck Sir Rudolph in the face with all his strength with
+his mailed hand.
+
+With the blood gushing from his nostrils, the knight fell backward, and
+Sir Cuthbert, with a bound, before the assembly could recover from their
+astonishment at the deed, burst through the line of men-at-arms, and
+sprang up the narrow staircase. A score of men-at-arms started in
+pursuit; but Sir Cuthbert gained the battlements first, and without a
+moment's hesitation sprang upon them and plunged forward, falling into
+the moat fifty feet below. Here he would have perished miserably, for in
+his heavy armor he was of course unable to swim a stroke, and his
+weight took him at once into the mud of the moat. At its margin,
+however, Cnut stood awaiting him, with one end of the rope in his hand.
+In an instant he plunged in, and diving to the bottom grasped Cuthbert
+by the body, and twisted the rope round him. The two archers on the bank
+at once hauled upon it, and in a minute Sir Cuthbert was dragged to the
+bank.
+
+By this time a crowd of men-at-arms appeared upon the battlements. But
+as they did so the archers opened a storm of arrows upon them, and
+quickly compelled them to find shelter. Carried by Cnut and the men with
+him--for he was insensible--Sir Cuthbert was quickly conveyed to the
+center of the outlaws, and these at once in a compact body began their
+retreat to the wood. Cuthbert quickly recovered consciousness, and was
+soon able to walk. As he did so the gates of the castle were thrown
+open, and a crowd of men-at-arms, consisting of the retainers of the
+castle and the mercenaries of Prince John, sallied forth. So soon as
+Cuthbert was able to move the archers started at a brisk run, several of
+them carrying Cuthbert's casque and sword, and others assisting him to
+hurry along. The rear ranks turned as they ran and discharged flights of
+arrows at the enemy, who, more heavily armed and weighted, gained but
+slowly upon them.
+
+Had not Sir Rudolph been stunned by the blow dealt him by Cuthbert he
+would himself have headed the pursuit, and in that case the foresters
+would have had to fight hard to make their retreat to their fastness.
+The officer in command of the mercenaries, however, had no great stomach
+for the matter. Men were hard to get, and Prince John would not have
+been pleased to hear that a number of the men whom he had brought with
+such expense from foreign parts had been killed in a petty fray.
+Therefore after following for a short time he called them off, and the
+archers fell back into the forest.
+
+Here they found Dame Editha, and for three days she abode among them,
+living in a small hut in the center of the forest. Then she left, to
+take up her abode until the troubles were past with some kin who lived
+in the south of Gloucestershire.
+
+Although the lady abbess had assured Cuthbert that the retreat of Lady
+Margaret was not likely to be found out, he himself, knowing how great a
+stake Sir Rudolph had in the matter, was still far from being easy. It
+would not be difficult for the latter to learn through his agents that
+the lady superior of the little convent near Hereford was of kin to her
+of St. Anne's, and, close as a convent is, yet the gossiping of the
+servants who go to market was certain to let out an affair so important
+as the arrival of a young lady to reside under the charge of the
+superior. Cuthbert was not mistaken as to the acuteness of his enemy.
+The relationship between the two lady superiors was no secret, and after
+having searched all the farmhouses and granges near the forest, and
+being convinced that the lady abbess would have sent her charge rather
+to a religious house than to that of a franklin, Sir Rudolph sought
+which of those within the circuit of a few miles would be likely to be
+the one selected. It was not long before he was enabled to fix upon that
+near Hereford, and spies going to the spot soon found out from the
+country people that it was a matter of talk that a young lady of rank
+had been admitted by the superior. Sir Rudolph hesitated whether to go
+himself at the head of a strong body of men and openly to take her, or
+to employ some sort of device. It was not that he himself feared the
+anathema of the church; but he knew Prince John to be weak and
+vacillating, at one time ready to defy the thunder of the pope, the next
+cringing before the spiritual authority. He therefore determined to
+employ some of his men to burst into the convent and carry off the
+heiress, arranging that he himself, with some of his men-at-arms, should
+come upon them in the road, and make a feigned rescue of her, so that,
+if the lady superior laid her complaint before the pope's legate he
+could deny that he had any hand in the matter, and could even take
+credit for having rescued her from the men who had profaned the convent.
+That his story would be believed mattered but little. It would be
+impossible to prove its falsity, and this was all that he cared for.
+
+This course was followed out. Late one evening the lady superior was
+alarmed by a violent knocking at the door. In reply to questions asked
+through the grill, the answer was given, "We are men of the forest, and
+we are come to carry the Lady Margaret of Evesham off to a secure
+hiding-place. The Lord of Evesham has discovered her whereabouts, and
+will be here shortly, and we would fain remove her before he arrives."
+
+"From whom have you warrant?" the lady superior said. "I surrender her
+to no one, save to the lady abbess of St. Anne's. But if you have a
+written warrant from Sir Cuthbert, the rightful Lord of Evesham, I will
+lay the matter before the Lady Margaret, and will act as it may seem fit
+to her."
+
+"We have no time for parleying," a rough voice said. "Throw open the
+gate at once, or we will break it down."
+
+"Ye be no outlaws," the lady superior said, "for the outlaws are men who
+fear God and respect the church. Were ye what ye say, ye would be
+provided with the warrants that I mention. I warn you, therefore, that
+if you use force, you will be excommunicated, and placed under the ban
+of the church."
+
+The only answer was a thundering assault upon the gate, which soon
+yielded to the blows. The sisters and novices ran shrieking through the
+corridors at this rude uproar. The lady superior, however, stood calmly
+awaiting the giving way of the gate.
+
+"Where is the Lady Margaret?" the leader of the party, who were dressed
+in rough garb, and had the seeming of a band of outlaws, demanded.
+
+"I will say nothing," she said, "nor do I own that she is here."
+
+"We will soon take means to find out," the man exclaimed. "Unless in
+five minutes she is delivered to us, we will burn your place to the
+ground."
+
+The lady abbess was insensible to the threat; but the men rushing in,
+seized some sisters, who, terrified out of their wits by this irruption,
+at once gave the information demanded, and the men made their way to the
+cell where the Lady Margaret slept.
+
+The girl had at once risen when the tumult commenced, doubting not in
+her mind that this was another attempt upon the part of her enemy to
+carry her off. When, therefore, she heard heavy footsteps approaching
+along the gallery--having already hastily attired herself--she opened
+the door and presented herself.
+
+"If you seek the Lady Margaret of Evesham," she said calmly, "I am she.
+Do not harm any of the sisters here. I am in your power, and will go
+with you at once. But I beseech you add not to your other sins that of
+violence against holy women."
+
+The men, abashed by the calm dignity of this young girl, abstained from
+laying hands upon her, but merely motioned to her to accompany them.
+Upon their way they met the man who appeared to be their leader, and he,
+well pleased that the affair was over, led the way to the courtyard.
+
+"Farewell, my child," the abbess exclaimed. "God will deliver you from
+the power of these wicked men. Trust in Him, and keep up your courage.
+Wickedness will not be permitted to triumph upon the earth; and be
+assured that the matter shall be brought to the ears of the pope's
+legate, and of Prince John himself."
+
+She could say no more, for the men, closing round the weeping girl,
+hurried her out from the convent. A litter awaited them without, and in
+this the young lady was placed, and, borne upon the shoulders of four
+stout men, she started at a fast pace, surrounded closely by the rest of
+the band.
+
+It was a dark night, and the girl could not see the direction in which
+she was being taken; but she judged from the turn taken upon leaving the
+convent that it was toward Evesham. They had proceeded some miles, when
+a trampling of horses was heard, and a body of armed men rode up. For a
+moment Lady Margaret's heart gave a leap, for she thought that she had
+been rescued by her friends. There was a loud and angry altercation, a
+clashing of swords, and a sound of shouting and cries outside the
+litter. Then it was placed roughly on the ground, and she heard the
+sound of the footsteps of her first captors hurrying away. Then the
+horsemen closed round the litter, and the leader dismounted.
+
+"I am happy indeed, Lady Margaret," he said, approaching the litter, "to
+have been able to save you from the power of these villains.
+Fortunately, word came to me that the outlaws in the forest were about
+to carry you off, and that they would not hesitate even to desecrate the
+walls of the convent. Assembling my men-at-arms, I at once rode to your
+rescue, and am doubly happy to have saved you, first, as a gentleman,
+secondly, as being the man to whom our gracious prince has assigned you
+as a wife. I am Sir Rudolph, Earl of Evesham."
+
+As from the first the girl had been convinced that she had fallen into
+the power of her lawless suitor, this came upon her as no surprise.
+
+"Whether your story is true, Sir Rudolph," she said, "or not, God knows,
+and I, a poor weak girl, will not pretend to venture to say. It is
+between you and your conscience. If, as you say, you have saved me from
+the power of the outlaws, I demand that, as a knight and a gentleman,
+you return with me at once to the convent from which I was taken by
+force."
+
+"I cannot do that," Sir Rudolph said. "Fortune has placed you in my
+hands, and has enabled me to carry out the commands of the prince.
+Therefore, though I would fain yield to your wishes and so earn your
+good-will, which above all things I wish to obtain, yet my duty toward
+the prince commands me to utilize the advantage which fate has thrown in
+my hands."
+
+"You must do as you will, Sir Rudolph," the girl said with dignity. "I
+believe not your tale. You sought before, in person, to carry me off,
+but failed, and you have now employed other means to do so. The tale of
+your conduct to Dame Editha has reached my ears, and I hold you a
+foresworn knight and a dishonored man, and as such I would rather die
+than become your wife, although as yet I am but a child, and have no
+need to talk of weddings for years to come."
+
+"We need not parley here," the knight said coldly. "We shall have plenty
+of time when at my castle."
+
+The litter was now lifted, placed between two horses, and proceeded
+rapidly on its journey. Although the hope was but faint, yet until the
+gates of the castle closed upon them the Lady Margaret still hoped that
+rescue might reach her. But the secret had been too well kept, and it
+was not until the following day that the man who had been placed in a
+cottage near the convent arrived in all haste in the forest, to say that
+it was only in the morning that he had learned that the convent had been
+broken open by men disguised as archers, and the Lady Margaret carried
+off.
+
+Four days elapsed before Sir Rudolph presented himself before the girl
+he had captured. So fearfully was his face bruised and disfigured by the
+blow from the mailed hand of Cuthbert three weeks before, that he did
+not wish to appear before her under such unfavorable circumstances, and
+the captive passed the day gazing from her casement in one of the rooms
+in the upper part of the keep, toward the forest whence she hoped rescue
+would come.
+
+Within the forest hot discussions were going on as to the best course to
+pursue. An open attack was out of the question, especially as upon the
+day following the arrival there of Lady Margaret three hundred more
+mercenaries had marched in from Worcester, so that the garrison was now
+raised to five hundred men.
+
+"Is there no way," Cnut exclaimed furiously, "by which we might creep
+into this den, since we cannot burst into it openly?"
+
+"There is a way from the castle," Cuthbert said, "for my dear lord told
+me of it one day when we were riding together in the Holy Land. He said
+then that it might be that he should never return, and that it were well
+that I should know of the existence of this passage, which few besides
+the earl himself knew of. It is approached by a very heavy slab of stone
+in the great hall. This is bolted down, and as it stands under the great
+table passes unnoticed, and appears part of the ordinary floor. He told
+me the method in which, by touching a spring, the bolts were withdrawn
+and the stone could be raised. Thence a passage a quarter of a mile
+long leads to the little chapel standing in the hollow, and which, being
+hidden among the trees, would be unobserved by any party besieging the
+castle. This of course was contrived in order that the garrison, or any
+messenger thereof, might make an exit in case of siege."
+
+"But if we could escape," Cnut asked, "why not enter by this way?"
+
+"The stone is of immense weight and strength," Cuthbert replied, "and
+could not be loosed from below save with great labor and noise. There
+are, moreover, several massive doors in the passage, all of which are
+secured by heavy bolts within. It is therefore out of the question that
+we could enter the castle by that way. But were we once in, we could
+easily carry off the lady through this passage."
+
+The large force which Sir Rudolph had collected was not intended merely
+for the defense of the castle, for the knight considered that with his
+own garrison he could hold it against a force tenfold that which his
+rival could collect. But he was determined if possible to crush out the
+outlaws of the forest, for he felt that so long as this formidable body
+remained under an enterprising leader like Sir Cuthbert, he would never
+be safe for a moment, and would be a prisoner in his own castle.
+
+Cuthbert had foreseen that the attack was likely to be made, and had
+strengthened his band to the utmost. He felt, however, that against so
+large a force of regularly armed men, although he might oppose a stout
+resistance and kill many, yet that in the end he must be conquered.
+Cnut, however, suggested to him a happy idea, which he eagerly grasped.
+
+"It would be a rare sport," Cnut said, "when this armed force comes out
+to attack us, if we could turn the tables by slipping in, and taking
+their castle."
+
+"The very thing," Cuthbert exclaimed. "It is likely that he will use the
+greater portion of his forces, and that he will not keep above fifty or
+sixty men, at the outside, in the castle. When they sally out we will at
+first oppose a stout resistance to them in the wood, gradually falling
+back. Then, at a given signal, all save twenty men shall retire hastily,
+and sweeping round make for the castle. Their absence will not be
+noticed, for in this thick wood it is difficult to tell whether twenty
+men or two hundred are opposing you among the bushes; and the twenty who
+remain must shoot thick and fast to make believe that their numbers are
+great, retiring sometimes, and leading the enemy on into the heart of
+the wood."
+
+"But supposing, Sir Cuthbert, that they should have closed the gates and
+lifted the drawbridge? We could not gain entrance by storming, even if
+only twenty men held the walls, until long after the main body would
+have returned."
+
+Cuthbert thought for some time, and then said, "Cnut, you shall
+undertake this enterprise. You shall fill a cart high with faggots, and
+in it shall conceal a dozen of your best men. You, dressed as a serf,
+shall drive the oxen, and when you reach the castle shall say, in answer
+to the hail of the sentry, that you are bringing in the tribute of wood
+of your master the franklin of Hopeburn. They will then lower the
+drawbridge and open the gates; and when you have crossed the bridge and
+are under the portcullis, spring out suddenly, cut loose the oxen so
+that they will not draw the cart further in, cut the chains of the
+drawbridge so that it cannot be drawn off, and hold the gate for a
+minute or two until we arrive."
+
+"The plan is capital," Cnut exclaimed. "We will do the proud Norman yet.
+How he will storm when he finds us masters of his castle! What then
+will you do, Sir Cuthbert?"
+
+"We can hold the castle for weeks," Cuthbert said, "and every day is in
+our favor. If we find ourselves forced to yield to superior numbers, we
+can at last retire through the passage I have spoken of, and must then
+scatter and each shift for himself until these bad days be past."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM CASTLE.
+
+
+Upon the day before starting out to head the expedition against the
+outlaws, Sir Rudolph sent word to the Lady Margaret that she must
+prepare to become his wife at the end of the week. He had provided two
+tiring maids for her by ordering two of the franklins to send in their
+daughters for that purpose, and these mingled their tears with
+Margaret's at the situation in which they were placed. She replied
+firmly to the messenger of the knight that no power on earth could
+oblige her to marry him. He might drive her to the altar; but though he
+killed her there, her lips should refuse to say the words which would
+unite them.
+
+The following morning, early, the castle rang with the din of
+preparation. The great portion of the mercenaries were encamped in tents
+outside the walls, for, spacious as it was, Evesham could hardly contain
+four hundred men in addition to its usual garrison. The men-at-arms were
+provided with heavy axes to cut their way through the bushes. Some
+carried bundles of straw, to fire the wood should it be found
+practicable to do so; and as it was now summer and the wind was blowing
+high, Sir Rudolph hoped that the dry grass and bushes would catch, and
+would do more even than his men-at-arms in clearing the forest of those
+whom he designated the villains infesting it. They had, too, with them
+several fierce dogs trained to hunting the deer, and these, the knight
+hoped, would do good service in tracking the outlaws. He and the knights
+and the men-at-arms with him were all dismounted, for he felt that
+horses would in the forest be an incumbrance, and he was determined
+himself to lead the way to the men-at-arms.
+
+When they reached the forest they were saluted by a shower of arrows;
+but as all were clad in mail, these at a distance effected but little
+harm. As they came closer, however, the clothyard arrows began to pierce
+the coarse and ill-made armor of the foot soldiers, although the finer
+armor of the knights kept out the shafts which struck against it. Sir
+Rudolph and his knights leading the way, they entered the forest and
+gradually pressed their invisible foe backward through the trees. The
+dogs did good service, going on ahead and attacking the archers; but,
+one by one, they were soon shot, and the assailants left to their own
+devices. Several attempts were made to fire the wood. But these failed,
+the fire burning but a short time and then dying out of itself. In
+addition to the fighting men, Sir Rudolph had impressed into the service
+all the serfs of his domain, and these, armed with axes, were directed
+to cut down the trees as the force proceeded, Sir Rudolph declaring that
+he would not cease until he had leveled the whole forest, though it
+might take him months to do so.
+
+The assailants gained ground steadily, the resistance being less severe
+than Sir Rudolph had anticipated. Several small huts and clearings in
+the forest which had been used by the outlaws, and round which small
+crops had been planted, were destroyed, and all seemed to promise well
+for the success of the enterprise.
+
+It was about two hours after they had left the castle, when a heavy cart
+filled with fagots was seen approaching its gates. The garrison, who had
+not the least fear of any attack, paid no attention to it until it
+reached the edge of the moat. Then the warder, seeing that it contained
+fagots, lowered the drawbridge without question, raised the portcullis,
+and opened the gates.
+
+"From whom do you bring this wood?" he asked as the man driving the oxen
+began to cross the bridge.
+
+"From the franklin of Hopeburn."
+
+"It is well," said the warder, "for he is in arrear now, and should have
+sent in the firewood two months since. Take it to the woodhouse at the
+other end of the court."
+
+The heavy wagon crossed the drawbridge, but as it was entering the gate
+it came suddenly to a stop. With a blow of his ox goad Cnut leveled the
+warder to the ground, and cutting the cords of the bullocks, drove them
+into the yard ahead. As he did so the pile of fagots fell asunder, and
+twelve men armed with bow and pike leaped out. The men-at-arms standing
+near, lounging in the courtyard, gave a shout of alarm, and the
+garrison, surprised at this sudden cry, ran to their arms. At first they
+were completely panic-stricken. But seeing after a time how small was
+the number of their assailants, they took heart and advanced against
+them. The passage was narrow, and the twelve men formed a wall across
+it. Six of them with their pikes advanced, the other six with bent bows
+standing behind them and delivering their arrows between their heads.
+The garrison fought stoutly, and although losing many, were pressing the
+little band backward. In vain the assistant-warder tried to lower the
+portcullis, or to close the gates. The former fell on to the top of the
+wagon, and was there retained. The gates also were barred by the
+obstacle. The chains of the drawbridge had at once been cut. Cnut
+encouraged his followers by his shouts, and armed with a heavy ax, did
+good service upon the assailants. But four of his party had fallen, and
+the rest were giving way, when a shout was heard, and over the
+drawbridge poured Cuthbert and one hundred and fifty of the outlaws of
+the forest. Struck with terror at this attack, the garrison drew back,
+and the foresters poured into the yard. For a few minutes there was a
+fierce fight; but the defenders of the castle, disheartened and taken by
+surprise, were either cut down or, throwing down their arms, cried for
+quarter.
+
+Ten minutes after the wagon had crossed the drawbridge the castle was
+safely in possession of Sir Cuthbert. The bridge was raised, the wagon
+removed, the portcullis lowered, and to the external eye all remained as
+before.
+
+Cuthbert at once made his way to the chamber where the Lady Margaret was
+confined, and her joy at her deliverance was great indeed. So unlimited
+was her faith in Sir Cuthbert that she had never lost confidence; and
+although it did not seem possible that in the face of such disparity of
+numbers he could rescue her from the power of Sir Rudolph, yet she had
+not given up hope. The joy of the farmers' daughters who had been
+carried off to act as her attendants was little inferior to her own; for
+once in the power of this reckless baron, the girls had small hopes of
+ever being allowed to return again to their parents.
+
+The flag of Sir Rudolph was thrown down from the keep, and that of the
+late earl hoisted in its stead; for Cuthbert himself, although he had
+assumed the cognizance which King Richard had granted him, had not yet
+any flag or pennon emblazoned with it.
+
+No words can portray the stupefaction and rage of Sir Rudolph when a man
+who had managed to slip unobserved from the castle at the time of its
+capture bore the news to him in the forest. All opposition there had
+ceased, and the whole of the troops were engaged in aiding the peasants
+in cutting wide roads through the trees across the forest, so as to make
+it penetrable by horsemen in every direction. It was supposed that the
+outlaws had gradually stolen away through the thickets and taken to the
+open country, intending to scatter to their homes, or other distant
+hiding-places; and the news that they had by a ruse captured the castle
+came as a thunder-clap.
+
+Sir Rudolph's first impulse was to call his men together and to march
+toward the castle. The drawbridge was up and the walls bristled with
+armed men. It was useless to attempt a parley; still more useless to
+think of attacking the stronghold without the proper machines and
+appliances. Foaming with rage, Sir Rudolph took possession of a cottage
+near, camped his men around and prepared for a siege.
+
+There were among the mercenaries many men accustomed to the use of
+engines of war. Many, too, had aided in making them; and these were at
+once set to work to construct the various machines in use at that time.
+Before the invention of gunpowder, castles such as those of the English
+barons were able to defy any attack by an armed force for a long period.
+Their walls were so thick that even the balistas, casting huge stones,
+were unable to breach them except after a very long time. The moats
+which surrounded them were wide and deep, and any attempt at storming by
+ladders was therefore extremely difficult; and these buildings were
+consequently more often captured by famine than by other means. Of
+provisions, as Sir Rudolph knew, there was a considerable supply at
+present in the castle, for he had collected a large number of bullocks
+in order to feed the strong body who had been added to the garrison. The
+granaries, too, were well stored; and with a groan Sir Rudolph thought
+of the rich stores of French wines which he had collected in his
+cellars.
+
+After much deliberation with the knights with him and the captain of the
+mercenaries, it was agreed in the first instance to attempt to attack
+the place by filling up a portion of the moat and ascending by scaling
+ladders. Huge screens of wood were made, and these were placed on
+wagons; the wagons themselves were filled with bags of earth, and a
+large number of men getting beneath them shoved the ponderous machines
+forward to the edge of the moat. The bags of stones and earth were then
+thrown in, and the wagons pushed backward to obtain a fresh supply. This
+operation was of course an exceedingly slow one, a whole day being
+occupied with each trip of the wagons. They were not unmolested in their
+advance, for, from the walls, mangonels and other machines hurled great
+stones down upon the wooden screens, succeeding sometimes, in spite of
+their thickness, in crashing through them, killing many of the men
+beneath. The experiment was also tried of throwing balls of Greek fire
+down upon the wood; but as this was green and freshly felled it would
+not take fire, but the flames dropping through, with much boiling pitch
+and other materials, did grievously burn and scald the soldiers working
+below it. Upon both sides every device was tried. The crossbowmen among
+the mercenaries kept up a fire upon the walls to hinder the defenders
+from interfering with the operations, while the archers above shot
+steadily, and killed many of those who ventured within range of their
+bows.
+
+After ten days' labor a portion of the moat some twenty yards in length
+was filled with bags of earth, and all was ready for the assault. The
+besiegers had prepared great numbers of strong ladders, and these were
+brought up under shelter of the screens. Then, all being ready, the
+trumpets sounded for the assault, and the troops moved forward in a
+close body, covering themselves with their shields so that no man's head
+or body was visible, each protecting the one before him with his shield
+held over him. Thus the body presented the appearance of a great
+scale-covered animal. In many respects, indeed, the warfare of those
+days was changed in no way from that of the time of the Romans. In the
+twelve hundred years which had elapsed between the siege of Jerusalem
+and the days of the Crusades there had been but little change in arms or
+armor, and the operations which Titus undertook for the reduction of the
+Jewish stronghold differed but little from those which a Norman baron
+employed in besieging his neighbor's castle.
+
+Within Evesham Castle all was contentment and merriment during these
+days. The garrison had no fear whatever of being unable to repel the
+assault when it should be delivered. Huge stones had been collected in
+numbers on the walls, caldrons of pitch, beneath which fires kept
+simmering, stood there in readiness. Long poles with hooks with which to
+seize the ladders and cut them down were laid there; and all that
+precaution and science could do was prepared.
+
+Cuthbert passed much of the day, when not required upon the walls,
+chatting with the Lady Margaret, who, attended by her maidens, sat
+working in her bower. She had learned to read from the good nuns of the
+convent--an accomplishment which was by no means general, even among the
+daughters of nobles; but books were rare, and Evesham boasted but few
+manuscripts. Here Margaret learned in full all the details of Cuthbert's
+adventures since leaving England, and the fondness with which as a child
+she had regarded the lad grew gradually into the affection of a woman.
+
+The courage of the garrison was high, for although they believed that
+sooner or later the castle might be carried by the besiegers, they had
+already been told by Cnut that there was a means of egress unknown to
+the besiegers, and that when the time came they would be able to escape
+unharmed. This, while it in no way detracted from their determination to
+defend the castle to the last, yet rendered their task a far lighter and
+more agreeable one than it would have been had they seen the gallows
+standing before them as the end of the siege.
+
+As the testudo, as it was called in those days, advanced toward the
+castle, the machines upon the walls--catapults, mangonels and
+arbalasts--poured forth showers of stones and darts upon it, breaking up
+the array of shields and killing many; and as these openings were made,
+the archers, seizing their time, poured in volleys of arrows. The
+mercenaries, however, accustomed to war, advanced steadily, and made
+good their footing beneath the castle wall, and proceeded to rear their
+ladders. Here, although free from the action of the machines, they were
+exposed to the hand missiles, which were scarcely less destructive. In
+good order, and with firmness, however, they reared the ladders, and
+mounted to the assault, covering themselves as well as they could with
+their shields. In vain, however, did they mount. The defenders poured
+down showers of boiling pitch and oil, which penetrated the crevices of
+their armor and caused intolerable torment. Great stones were toppled
+over from the battlements upon them; and sometimes the ladders, seized
+by the poles with hooks, were cast backward, with all upon them, on the
+throng below. For half an hour, encouraged by the shouts of Sir Rudolph
+and their leaders, the soldiers strove gallantly; but were at last
+compelled to draw off, having lost nigh one hundred men, without one
+gaining a footing upon the walls.
+
+That evening another council of war was held without. Already some large
+machines for which Sir Rudolph had sent had arrived. In anticipation of
+the possibility of failure, two castles upon wheels had been prepared,
+and between these a huge beam with an iron head was hung. This was upon
+the following day pushed forward on the newly-formed ground across the
+moat. Upon the upper part of each tower were armed men who worked
+machines casting sheaves of arrows and other missiles. Below were those
+who worked the ram. To each side of the beam were attached numerous
+cords, and with these it was swung backward and forward, giving heavy
+blows each stroke upon the wall. The machines for casting stones, which
+had arrived, were also brought in play, and day and night these
+thundered against the walls; while the ram repeated its ceaseless blows
+upon the same spot, until the stone crumbled before it.
+
+Very valiantly did the garrison oppose themselves to these efforts. But
+each day showed the progress made by the besiegers. Their forces had
+been increased, Prince John having ordered his captain at Gloucester to
+send another one hundred men to the assistance of Sir Rudolph. Other
+towers had now been prepared. These were larger than the first, and
+overtopped the castle walls. From the upper story were drawbridges, so
+formed as to drop from the structures upon the walls, and thus enable
+the besiegers to rush upon them. The process was facilitated by the fact
+that the battlements had been shot away by the great stones, and there
+was a clear space on which the drawbridges could fall. The attack was
+made with great vigor; but for a long time the besieged maintained their
+post, and drove back the assailants as they poured out across the
+drawbridges on to the wall. At last Cuthbert saw that the forces opposed
+to him were too numerous to be resisted, and gave orders to his men to
+fall back upon the inner keep.
+
+Making one rush, and clearing the wall of those who had gained a
+footing, the garrison fell back hastily, and were safely within the
+massive keep before the enemy had mustered in sufficient numbers upon
+the wall to interfere with them. The drawbridge was now lowered, and the
+whole of the assailants gained footing within the castle. They were
+still far from having achieved a victory. The walls of the keep were
+massive and strong, and its top far higher than the walls, so that from
+above a storm of arrows poured down upon all who ventured to show
+themselves. The keep had no windows low enough down for access to be
+gained; and those on the floors above were so narrow, and protected by
+bars, that it seemed by scaling the walls alone could an entry be
+effected. This was far too desperate an enterprise to be attempted, for
+the keep rose eighty feet above the courtyard. It was upon the door,
+solid and studded with iron, that the attempt had to be made.
+
+Several efforts were made by Sir Rudolph, who fought with a bravery
+worthy of a better cause, to assault and batter down the door. Protected
+by wooden shields from the rain of missiles from above, he and his
+knights hacked at the door with their battle-axes. But in vain. It had
+been strengthened by beams behind, and by stones piled up against it.
+Then fire was tried. Fagots were collected in the forest, and brought;
+and a huge pile having been heaped against the door, it was lighted. "We
+could doubtless prolong the siege for some days, Lady Margaret," said
+Cuthbert, "but the castle is ours; and we wish not, when the time comes
+that we shall again be masters of it, that it should be a mere heap of
+ruins. Methinks we have done enough. With but small losses on our side,
+we have killed great numbers of the enemy, and have held them at bay for
+a month. Therefore, I think that to-night it will be well for us to
+leave the place."
+
+Lady Margaret was rejoiced at the news that the time for escape had
+come, for the perpetual clash of war, the rattling of arrows, the
+ponderous thud of heavy stones caused a din very alarming to a young
+girl; and although the room in which she sat, looking into the inner
+court of the castle, was not exposed to missiles, she trembled at the
+thought that brave men were being killed, and that at any moment a shot
+might strike Cuthbert, and so leave her without a friend or protector.
+
+Content with having destroyed the door, the assailants made no further
+effort that evening, but prepared in the morning to attack it, pull down
+the stones filled behind it, and force their way into the keep. There
+was, with the exception of the main entrance, but one means of exit, a
+small postern door behind the castle, and throughout the siege a strong
+body of troops had been posted here, to prevent the garrison making a
+sortie. Feeling secure therefore that upon the following day his enemies
+would fall into his power, Sir Rudolph retired to rest.
+
+An hour before midnight the garrison assembled in the hall. The table
+was removed, and Cuthbert having pressed the spring, which was at a
+distance from the stone and could not be discovered without a knowledge
+of its existence, the stone turned aside by means of a counterpoise, and
+a flight of steps was seen. Torches had been prepared. Cnut and a chosen
+band went first; Cuthbert followed, with Lady Margaret and her
+attendants; and the rest of the archers brought up the rear, a trusty
+man being left in charge at last with orders to swing back the stone
+into its place, having first hauled the table over the spot, so that
+their means of escape should be unknown.
+
+The passage was long and dreary, the walls were damp with wet, and the
+massive doors so swollen by moisture that it was with the greatest
+difficulty they could be opened. At last, however, they emerged into
+the little friary in the wood. It was deserted, the priest who usually
+dwelt there having fled when the siege began. The stone which there, as
+in the castle, concealed the exit, was carefully closed, and the party
+then emerged into the open air. Here Cuthbert bade adieu to his
+comrades. Cnut had very anxiously begged to be allowed to accompany him
+and share his fortunes, and Cuthbert had promised him that if at any
+time he should again take up arms in England, he would summon him to his
+side, but that at present as he knew not whither his steps would be
+turned, it would be better that he should be unattended. The archers had
+all agreed to scatter far and wide through the country, many of them
+proceeding to Nottingham and joining the bands in the forest of
+Sherwood.
+
+Cuthbert himself had determined to make his way to the castle of his
+friend, Sir Baldwin, and to leave the Lady Margaret in his charge. Cnut
+hurried on at full speed to the house of a franklin, some three miles
+distant. Here horses were obtained and saddled, and dresses prepared;
+and when Cuthbert with Lady Margaret arrived there, no time was lost.
+Dressed as a yeoman, with the Lady Margaret as his sister, he mounted a
+horse, with her behind him on a pillion. The other damsels also mounted,
+as it would not have been safe for them to remain near Evesham. They
+therefore purposed taking refuge in a convent near Gloucester for the
+present. Bidding a hearty adieu to Cnut, and with thanks to the franklin
+who had aided them, they set forward on their journey. By morning they
+had reached the convent, and here the two girls were left, and Cuthbert
+continued his journey. He left his charge at a convent a day's ride
+distant from the castle of Sir Baldwin, as he wished to consult the
+knight first as to the best way of her entering the castle without
+exciting talk or suspicion.
+
+Sir Baldwin received him with joy. He had heard something of his doings,
+and the news of the siege of Evesham had been noised abroad. He told him
+that he was in communication with many other barons, and that ere long
+they hoped to rise against the tyranny of Prince John, but that at
+present they were powerless, as many, hoping that King Richard would
+return ere long, shrank from involving the country in a civil war. When
+Cuthbert told him that the daughter of his old friend was at a convent
+but a day's ride distant, and that he sought protection for her, Sir
+Baldwin instantly offered her hospitality.
+
+"I will," he said, "send my good wife to fetch her. Some here know your
+presence, and it would be better therefore that she did not arrive for
+some days, as her coming will then seem to be unconnected with yourself.
+My wife and I will, a week hence, give out that we are going to fetch a
+cousin of my wife's to stay here with her; and when we return no
+suspicion will be excited that she is other than she seems. Should it be
+otherwise, I need not say that Sir Baldwin of Béthune will defend his
+castle against any of the minions of Prince John. But I have no fear
+that her presence here will be discovered. What think you of doing in
+the meantime?"
+
+"I am thinking," Cuthbert said, "of going east. No news has been
+obtained of our lord the king save that he is a prisoner in the hands of
+the emperor; but where confined, or how, we know not. It is my intent to
+travel to the Tyrol, and to trace his steps from the time that he was
+captured. Then, when I obtain knowledge of the place where he is kept, I
+will return, and consult upon the best steps to be taken. My presence in
+England is now useless. Did the barons raise the standard of King
+Richard against the prince, I should at once return and join them. But
+without land or vassals, I can do nothing here, and shall be indeed like
+a hunted hare, for I know that the false earl will move heaven and earth
+to capture me."
+
+Sir Baldwin approved of the resolution; but recommended Cuthbert to take
+every precaution not to fall himself into the hands of the emperor;
+"for," he said, "if we cannot discover the prison of King Richard, I
+fear that it would be hopeless indeed ever to attempt to find that in
+which a simple knight is confined."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+IN SEARCH OF THE KING.
+
+
+The following day, with many thanks, Cuthbert started from the castle,
+and in the first place visited the convent, and told Lady Margaret that
+she would be fetched in a few days by Sir Baldwin and his wife. He took
+a tender adieu of her, not without many forebodings and tears upon her
+part; but promising blithely that he would return and lead her back in
+triumph to her castle, he bade adieu and rode for London.
+
+He had attired himself as a merchant, and took up his abode at a
+hostelry near Cheapside. Here he remained quietly for some days, and,
+mixing among the people, learned that in London as elsewhere the
+rapacity of Prince John had rendered him hateful to the people, and that
+they would gladly embrace any opportunity of freeing themselves from his
+yoke. He was preparing to leave for France, when the news came to him
+that Prince John had summoned all the barons faithful to him to meet him
+near London, and had recalled all his mercenaries from different parts
+of the country, and was gathering a large army; also, that the barons
+faithful to King Richard, alarmed by the prospect, had raised the royal
+standard, and that true men were hurrying to their support. This
+entirely destroyed the plans that he had formed. Taking horse again, and
+avoiding the main road, by which he might meet the hostile barons on
+their way to London, he journeyed down to Nottingham. Thence riding
+boldly into the forest, he sought the outlaws, and was not long ere he
+found them. At his request he was at once taken before their leader, a
+man of great renown both for courage and bowmanship, one Robin Hood.
+This bold outlaw had long held at defiance the sheriff of Nottingham,
+and had routed him and all bodies of troops who had been sent against
+him. With him Cuthbert found many of his own men; and upon hearing that
+the royal standard had been raised, Robin Hood at once agreed to march
+with all his men to join the royal force. Messengers were dispatched to
+summon the rest of the forest band from their hiding-places, and a week
+later Cuthbert, accompanied by Robin Hood and three hundred archers, set
+out for the rendezvous. When they arrived there they found that Sir
+Baldwin had already joined with his retainers, and was by him most
+warmly received, and introduced to the other barons in the camp, by whom
+Cuthbert was welcomed as a brother. The news that Prince John's army was
+approaching was brought in a fortnight after Cuthbert had joined the
+camp, and the army in good order moved out to meet the enemy.
+
+The forces were about equal. The battle began by a discharge of arrows;
+but Robin Hood and his men shot so true and fast that they greatly
+discomfited the enemy; and King John's mercenaries having but little
+stomach for the fight, and knowing how unpopular they were in England,
+and that if defeated small mercy was likely to be shown to them, refused
+to advance against the ranks of the loyal barons, and falling back
+declined to join in the fray. Seeing their numbers so weakened by this
+defection, the barons on the prince's side hesitated, and surrounding
+the prince advised him to make terms with the barons while there was yet
+time. Prince John saw that the present was not a favorable time for him,
+and concealing his fury under a mask of courtesy, he at once acceded to
+the advice of his followers, and dispatched a messenger to the barons
+with an inquiry as to what they wanted of him. A council was held, and
+it was determined to demand the dismissal of the mercenaries and their
+dispatch back to their own country; also that John would govern only as
+his brother's representative; that the laws of the country should be
+respected; that no taxes should be raised without the assent of the
+barons; that all men who had taken up arms against his authority should
+be held free; and that the barons on Prince John's side should return
+peaceably home and disband their forces. Seeing, under the
+circumstances, that there was no way before him but to yield to these
+demands, Prince John accepted the terms. The mercenaries were ordered to
+march direct to London, and orders were given that ships should be at
+once prepared to take them across to Normandy, and the barons marched
+for their homes.
+
+Satisfied, now that the mercenaries were gone, that they could
+henceforth hold their ground against Prince John, the royal barons also
+broke up their forces. Robin Hood with his foresters returned to
+Sherwood; and Cuthbert, bidding adieu to Sir Baldwin, rode back to
+London, determined to carry out the plan which he had formed. He was the
+more strengthened in this resolution, inasmuch as in the royal camp he
+had met a friend from whom he parted last in the Holy Land. This was
+Blondel, the minstrel of King Richard, whose songs and joyous music had
+often lightened the evening after days of fighting and toil in
+Palestine. To him Cuthbert confided his intention, and the minstrel
+instantly offered to accompany him.
+
+"I shall," he said, "be of assistance to you. Minstrels are like
+heralds. They are of no nationality, and can pass free where a
+man-at-arms would be closely watched and hindered. Moreover, it may be
+that I might aid you greatly in discovering the prison of the king. So
+great is the secrecy with which this has been surrounded that I question
+if any inquiries you could make would enable you to trace him. My voice,
+however, can penetrate into places where we cannot enter. I will take
+with me my lute, and as we journey I will sing outside the walls of each
+prison we come to one of the songs which I sang in Palestine. King
+Richard is himself a singer and knows my songs as well as myself. If I
+sing a verse of some song which I wrote there and which, therefore,
+would be known only to him, if he hears it he may follow with the next
+verse, and so enable us to know of his hiding-place."
+
+Cuthbert at once saw the advantages which such companionship would bring
+him, and joyfully accepted the minstrel's offer, agreeing himself to go
+as serving man to Blondel. The latter accompanied him to London. Here
+their preparations were soon made, and taking ship in a merchantman
+bound for the Netherlands, they started without delay upon their
+adventure.
+
+The minstrels and troubadours were at that time a privileged race in
+Europe, belonging generally to the south of France, although produced in
+all lands. They traveled over Europe singing the lays which they
+themselves had composed, and were treated with all honor at the castles
+where they chose to alight. It would have been considered as foul a deed
+to use discourtesy to a minstrel as to insult a herald. Their persons
+were, indeed, regarded as sacred, and the knights and barons strove to
+gain their good-will by hospitality and presents, as a large proportion
+of their ballads related to deeds of war; and while they would write
+lays in honor of those who courteously entertained them, they did not
+hesitate to heap obloquy upon those who received them discourteously,
+holding them up to the gibes and scoffs of their fellows. In no way,
+therefore, would success be so likely to attend the mission of those who
+set out to discover the hiding-place of King Richard as under the guise
+of a minstrel and his attendant. No questions would be asked them; they
+could halt where they would, in castle or town, secure of hospitality
+and welcome. Blondel was himself a native of the south of France,
+singing his songs in the soft language of Languedoc. Cuthbert's Norman
+French would pass muster anywhere as being that of a native of France;
+and although when dressed as a servitor attention might be attracted by
+his bearing, his youth might render it probable that he was of noble
+family, but that he had entered the service of the minstrel in order to
+qualify himself some day for following that career. He carried a long
+staff, a short sword, and at his back the lute or small harp played upon
+by the troubadour. Blondel's attire was rich, and suitable to a person
+of high rank.
+
+They crossed to the Scheldt, and thence traveled by the right bank of
+the Rhine as far as Mannheim, sometimes journeying by boat, sometimes on
+foot. They were also hospitably entertained, and were considered to more
+than repay their hosts by the songs which Blondel sang.
+
+At Mannheim they purchased two horses, and then struck east for Vienna.
+
+The journey was not without danger, for a large portion of this part of
+Europe was under no settled government, each petty baron living in his
+own castle, and holding but slight allegiance to any feudal lord, making
+war upon his neighbor on his own account, levying blackmail from
+travelers, and perpetually at variance with the burghers of the towns.
+
+The hills were covered with immense forests, which stretched for many
+leagues in all directions, and these were infested by wolves, bears, and
+robbers.
+
+The latter, however, although men without pity or religion, yet held the
+troubadours in high esteem, and the travelers without fear entered the
+gloomy shades of the forest.
+
+They had not gone far when their way was barred by a number of armed
+men.
+
+"I am a minstrel," Blondel said; "and as such doubt not that your
+courtesy will be extended to me."
+
+"Of a surety," the leader said; "the gay science is as much loved and
+respected in the greenwood as in the castle; and moreover, the purses of
+those who follow it are too light to offer any temptation to us. We
+would pray you, however, to accompany us to our leader, who will
+mightily rejoice to see you, for he loves music, and will gladly be your
+host so long as you will stay with him."
+
+Blondel, without objection, turned his horse's head and accompanied the
+men, followed by Cuthbert. After half an hour's traveling they came to a
+building which had formerly been a shrine, but which was now converted
+to the robbers' headquarters. The robber chief, on hearing from his
+followers the news that a minstrel had arrived, came forward to meet
+him, and courteously bade him welcome.
+
+"I am Sir Adelbert, of Rotherheim," he said, "although you see me in so
+poor a plight. My castle and lands have been taken by my neighbor, with
+whom for generations my family have been at feud. I was in the Holy Land
+with the emperor, and on my return found that the baron had taken the
+opportunity of my absence, storming my castle and seizing my lands. In
+vain I petitioned the emperor to dispossess this traitorous baron of my
+lands, which by all the laws of Christendom should have been respected
+during my absence. The emperor did indeed send a letter to the baron to
+deliver them up to me; but his power here is but nominal, and the baron
+contemptuously threw the royal proclamation into the fire and told the
+messenger that what he had taken by the sword he would hold by the
+sword; and the emperor having weightier matters on hand than to set
+troops in motion to redress the grievances of a simple knight, gave the
+matter no further thought. I have therefore been driven to the forest,
+where I live as best I may with my followers, most of whom were
+retainers upon my estate, and some my comrades in the Holy Land. I make
+war upon the rich and powerful, and beyond that do harm to no man. But,
+methinks," he continued, "I know your face, gentle sir."
+
+"It may well be so, Sir Adelbert," the minstrel said, "for I too was in
+the Holy Land. I followed the train of King Richard, and mayhap at some
+of the entertainments given by him you have seen my face. My name is
+Blondel."
+
+"I remember now," the knight said. "It was at Acre that I first saw you,
+and if I remember rightly you can wield the sword as well as the lute."
+
+"One cannot always be playing and singing," Blondel said, "and in lack
+of amusement I was forced to do my best against the infidel, who indeed
+would have but little respected my art had I fallen into his hands. The
+followers of the prophet hold minstrels but in slight reverence."
+
+"What is the news of King Richard?" the knight said. "I have heard that
+he was lost on the voyage homeward."
+
+"It is not so," Blondel said. "He landed safely on the coast, and was
+journeying north with a view of joining his sister at the court of
+Saxony, when he was foully seized and imprisoned by the Archduke John."
+
+"That were gross shame indeed," the knight said, "and black treachery on
+the part of Duke John. And where is the noble king imprisoned?"
+
+"That," said Blondel, "no man knows. On my journey hither I have
+gathered that the emperor claimed him from the hand of the archduke, and
+that he is imprisoned in one of the royal fortresses, but which I know
+not. And indeed, sir knight, since you are well disposed toward him, I
+may tell you that the purport of my journey is to discover if I can the
+place of his confinement. He was a kind and noble master, and however
+long my search may be, I will yet obtain news of him."
+
+The knight warmly applauded the troubadour's resolution, and was turning
+to lead him into his abode, when his eye fell upon Cuthbert.
+
+"Methinks I know the face of your attendant as well as your own; though
+where I can have seen him I know not. Was he with you in the Holy Land?"
+
+"Yes," Blondel said, "the youth was also there; and doubtless you may
+have noticed him, for he is indeed of distinguished and of good family."
+
+"Then let him share our repast," the knight said, "if it seems good to
+you. In these woods there is no rank, and I myself have long dropped my
+knightly title, and shall not reassume it until I can pay off my score
+to the Baron of Rotherheim, and take my place again in my castle."
+
+The minstrel and Cuthbert were soon seated at the table with the knight
+and one or two of his principal companions. A huge venison pasty formed
+the staple of the repast, but hares and other small game were also upon
+the table. Nor was the generous wine of the country wanting.
+
+The knight had several times glanced at Cuthbert, and at last exclaimed,
+"I have it now. This is no attendant, sir minstrel, but that valiant
+young knight who so often rode near King Richard in battle. He is, as I
+guess, your companion in this quest; is it not so?"
+
+"It is," Cuthbert replied frankly. "I am, like yourself, a disinherited
+knight, and my history resembles yours. Upon my return to England I
+found another in possession of the land and titles that belonged to the
+noble I followed, and which King Richard bestowed upon me. The Earl of
+Evesham was doubtless known to you, and before his death King Richard,
+at his request, bestowed upon me as his adopted son--although but a
+distant connection--his title and lands and the hand of his daughter.
+Prince John, who now rules in England, had however granted these things
+to one of his favorites, and he having taken possession of the land and
+title, though not, happily, of the lady, closed his door somewhat
+roughly in my face. I found means, however, to make my mark upon him;
+but as our quarrel could not be fought out to the end, and as the false
+knight had the aid of Prince John, I am forced for awhile to postpone
+our settlement, and meeting my good friend the minstrel, agreed to join
+him in his enterprise to discover our lord the king."
+
+The knight warmly grasped Cuthbert's hand.
+
+"I am glad," he said, "to meet so true and valiant a knight. I have
+often wondered at the valor with which you, although so young, bore
+yourself; and there were tales afloat of strange adventures which you
+had undergone in captivity for a time among the infidels."
+
+At Sir Adelbert's request Cuthbert related the story of his adventures
+among the Saracens; and then Blondel, tuning his lute, sang several
+canzonets which he had composed in the Holy Land, of feats of arms and
+adventure.
+
+"How far are you," Cuthbert asked presently, when Blondel laid his lute
+aside, "from the estates which were wrongfully wrested from you?"
+
+"But twenty leagues," the knight said. "My castle was on the Rhine,
+between Coblentz and Mannheim."
+
+"Does the baron know that you are so near?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Methinks that he does not," the knight replied, "but that he deems me
+to have gone to the court of the emperor to seek for redress--which, he
+guesses, I shall certainly fail to obtain."
+
+"How many men have you with you?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Fifty men, all good and true," the knight said.
+
+"Has it never entered your thoughts to attempt a surprise upon his
+castle?" Cuthbert said.
+
+The knight was silent for a minute.
+
+"At times," he said at length, "thoughts of so doing have occurred to
+me; but the castle is strong, and a surprise would be difficult indeed."
+
+"If the baron is lulled in security at present," Cuthbert said, "and
+deems you afar off, the watch is likely to be relaxed, and with a sudden
+onslaught you might surely obtain possession. Blondel and myself are not
+pressed for time, and the delay of a few days can make but little
+difference. If, therefore, you think we could be of assistance to you in
+such an attempt, my sword, and I am sure that of my friend, would be at
+your disposal."
+
+The knight sat for some time in silence.
+
+"Thanks, generous knight," he said at last, "I am sorely tempted to
+avail myself of your offer; but I fear that the enterprise is hopeless.
+The aid, however, of your arm and knowledge of war would greatly add to
+my chances, and if it pleases you we will ride to-morrow to a point
+where we can obtain a sight of the baron's castle. When you see it you
+shall judge yourself how far such an enterprise as you propose is
+possible."
+
+"Is your own castle intact?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"The walls are standing," he said; "but a breach has been made in them,
+and at present it is wholly deserted."
+
+"Do you think," Cuthbert asked, "that if you succeeded in surprising and
+defeating the garrison of the castle that you could then regain your
+own, and hold it against your enemy?"
+
+"I think that I could," Sir Adelbert said. "The baron's domains are but
+little larger than my own. Many of my retainers still live upon the
+estate, and would, I am sure, gladly join me, if I were to raise my
+flag. The baron, too, is hated by his neighbors, and could I inflict a
+crushing blow upon him, methinks it would be so long a time before he
+could assemble a force, that I might regain my castle and put it in an
+attitude of defense before he could take the field against me."
+
+"If," Cuthbert said, "we could surprise the castle, it might well be
+that the baron would fall into your hands, and in that case you might be
+able to make your own terms with him. How strong a force is he likely to
+have in his castle?"
+
+"Some fifty or sixty men," the knight replied; "for with such a force he
+could hold the castle against an attack of ten times their number, and
+he could in twelve hours call in his retainers, and raise the garrison
+to three hundred or four hundred men."
+
+Blondel warmly assented to Cuthbert's scheme, and it was settled that at
+daybreak they should start to view the Castle of Rotherheim. At early
+dawn they were in the saddle, and the three rode all day, until toward
+sunset they stood on the crest of a hill looking down into the valley of
+the Rhine.
+
+The present aspect of that valley affords but a slight idea of its
+beauty in those days. The slopes are now clad with vineyards, which,
+although picturesque in idea, are really, to look at from a distance, no
+better than so many turnip fields. The vines are planted in rows and
+trained to short sticks, and as these rows follow the declivities of the
+hillside, they are run in all directions, and the whole mountain side,
+from the river far up, is cut up into little patches of green lines. In
+those days the mountains were clad with forests, which descended nearly
+to the riverside. Here and there, upon craggy points, were situate the
+fortalices of the barons. Little villages nestled in the woods, or stood
+by the river bank, and a fairer scene could not be witnessed in Europe.
+
+"That is Rotherheim," the knight said, pointing to a fortress standing
+on a crag, which rose high above the woods around it; "and that," he
+said, pointing to another some four miles away, similarly placed, "is my
+own."
+
+Cuthbert examined closely the fortress of Rotherheim. It was a large
+building, with towers at the angles, and seemed to rise almost abruptly
+from the edge of the rock. Inside rose the gables and round turrets of
+the dwelling-place of the baron, and the only access was by a steep
+winding path on the riverside.
+
+"It is indeed a strong place," Cuthbert said, "and difficult to take by
+surprise. A watch no doubt is always kept over the entrance, and there
+we can hope for no success. The only plan will be to scale the wall by
+means of a ladder; but how the ladder is to be got to so great a height,
+I own at present passes my comprehension." After much thought, Cuthbert
+went on, "It might, methinks, be practicable for an archer to approach
+the walls, and to shoot an arrow over the angle of the castle so that it
+would pass inside the turret there, and fall in the forest beyond. If to
+this arrow were attached a light cord, it could be gained by one on the
+other side, and a stronger cord hauled over. To this could be attached a
+rope ladder, and so this could be raised to the top of the wall. If a
+sentinel were anywhere near he might hear the rope pulled across the
+battlements; but if, as we may hope, a watch is kept only over the
+entrance, the operation might be performed without attracting notice."
+
+The knight was delighted with the project, which seemed perfectly
+feasible, and it was agreed that the attempt should be made.
+
+"It will need," Sir Adelbert said, "an archer with a strong arm indeed
+to shoot an arrow with a cord attached to it, however light, over the
+corner of the castle."
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that I can do that, for as a lad I was used
+to the strong bows of my country. The first thing, however, will be to
+obtain such a bow; but doubtless one can be purchased in one of the
+towns, which, if not so strong as those to which I was accustomed, will
+at any rate suffice for us."
+
+The party bivouacked in the woods for the night, for the horses had
+already done a very long journey, and needed rest before starting back
+for the Black Forest. At daybreak, however, they started, and at
+nightfall rejoined their band. These were delighted when they heard the
+scheme that had been set on foot, and all avowed their eagerness to join
+in the attempt to restore their lord to his rights.
+
+Two days later they set out, having already procured from the nearest
+town a strong bow, some arrows, a very light rope, and a stronger one
+from a portion of which they manufactured a rope ladder capable of
+reaching from the top of the wall to the rock below. The journey this
+time occupied two days, as the men on foot were unable to march at the
+pace at which the mounted party had traversed the ground. The evening
+of the second day, however, saw them in sight of the castle. By
+Cuthbert's advice, Sir Adelbert determined to give them twenty-four
+hours of rest, in order that they might have their full strength for
+undertaking the task before them. During the day Cuthbert, guided by the
+knight, made his way through the woods to the foot of the rocks on which
+the castle stood. They were extremely steep, but could be mounted by
+active men if unopposed from above. Cuthbert measured the height with
+his eye from the top of the castle wall to the place which he selected
+as most fitting from which to shoot the arrow, and announced to the
+knight that he thought there would be no difficulty in discharging an
+arrow over the angle.
+
+At nightfall the whole party made their way silently through the woods.
+Three men were sent round to the side of the castle opposite that from
+which Cuthbert was to shoot. The length of light string was carefully
+coiled on the ground, so as to unwind with the greatest facility, and so
+offer as little resistance to the flight of the arrow as might be. Then,
+all being in readiness, Cuthbert attached the end to an arrow, and
+drawing the bow to its full compass, let fly the arrow. All held their
+breath; but no sound followed the discharge. They were sure, therefore,
+that the arrow had not struck the wall, but that it must have passed
+clear over it. Half an hour elapsed before they felt that the cord was
+pulled, and knew that the men upon the other side had succeeded in
+finding the arrow and string attached. The stronger cord was now
+fastened to that which the arrow had carried, and this gradually
+disappeared in the darkness. A party now stole up the rock, and posted
+themselves at the foot of the castle wall. They took with them the coil
+of rope-ladder and the end of the rope. At length the rope tightened,
+and to the end they attached the ladder. This again ascended until the
+end only remained upon the ground, and they knew that it must have
+reached the top of the wall. They now held fast, and knew that those on
+the other side, following the instructions given them, would have
+fastened the rope to a tree upon the opposite side. They were now joined
+by the rest of the party, and Sir Adelbert leading the way, and followed
+by Cuthbert and Blondel, began cautiously to ascend the rope ladder.
+
+All this time no sound from the castle proclaimed that their intention
+was suspected, or that any alarm had been given, and in silence they
+gained the top of the wall. Here they remained quiet until the whole
+band were gathered there, and then made their way along until they
+reached the stairs leading to the courtyard. These they descended, and
+then, raising his war-cry, Sir Adelbert sprang upon the men who, round a
+fire, were sitting by the gate. These were cut down before they could
+leap to their feet, and the party then rushed at the entrance to the
+dwelling-house. The retainers of the castle, aroused by the sudden din,
+rushed from their sleeping places, but taken completely by surprise,
+were unable to offer any resistance whatever to the strong force which
+had, as if by magic, taken possession of the castle. The surprise was
+complete, and with scarce a blow struck they found themselves in
+possession. The baron himself was seized as he rose from his bed, and
+his rage at finding himself in the power of his enemy was so great as
+for some time to render him speechless. Sir Adelbert briefly dictated to
+him the conditions upon which only he should desist from using his power
+to hang him over his own gate. The baron was instantly to issue orders
+to all his own retainers and tenantry to lend their aid to those of Sir
+Adelbert in putting the castle of the latter into a state of defense and
+mending the breach which existed. A sum of money, equal to the revenues
+of which he had possessed himself, was to be paid at once, and the
+knight was to retain possession of Rotherheim and of the baron's person
+until these conditions were all faithfully carried out. The baron had no
+resource but to assent to these terms, and upon the following day
+Cuthbert and Blondel departed upon their way, overwhelmed with thanks by
+Sir Adelbert, and confident that he would now be able to regain and hold
+the possession of his estate.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO ENGLAND.
+
+
+Journeying onward, Blondel and his companion stopped at many castles,
+and were everywhere hospitably entertained. Arriving at Vienna they
+lingered for some time, hoping there to be able to obtain some
+information of the whereabouts of King Richard. Blondel in his songs
+artfully introduced allusions to the captive monarch and to the mourning
+of all Christendom at the imprisonment of its champion. These allusions
+were always well received, and he found that the great bulk of the
+nobles of the empire were indignant and ashamed at the conduct of the
+emperor in imprisoning his illustrious rival. The secret of his prison
+place, however, appeared to have been so well kept that no information
+whatever was obtainable.
+
+"We must carry out our original plan," he said at length, "and journey
+into the Tyrol. In one of the fortresses there he is most likely to be
+confined."
+
+Leaving the capital they wandered up into the mountains for weeks,
+visiting one castle after another. It was no easy matter in all cases to
+get so near to these prisons as to give a hope that their voice might be
+heard within, or an answer received without. More than once crossbow
+bolts were shot at them from the walls when they did not obey the
+sentinel's challenge and move further away. Generally, however, it was
+in the daytime that they sang. Wandering carelessly up, they would sit
+down within earshot of the castle, open their wallets, and take out
+provisions from their store, and then, having eaten and drunk, Blondel
+would produce his lute and sing, as if for his own pleasure. It needed,
+however, four visits to each castle before they could be sure that the
+captive was not there; for the song had to be sung on each side.
+Sometimes they would cheat themselves with the thought that they heard
+an answering voice; but it was not until the end of the fourth week,
+when singing outside the castle of Diernstein, that a full rich voice,
+when Blondel ceased, sang out the second stanza of the poem. With
+difficulty Blondel and Cuthbert restrained themselves from an
+extravagant exhibition of joy. They knew, however, that men on the
+prison wall were watching them as they sat singing, and Blondel, with a
+final strain taken from a ballad of a knight who, having discovered the
+hiding-place of his lady love, prepared to free her from her oppressors,
+shouldered his lute, and they started on their homeward journey.
+
+There was no delay now. At times they sang indeed at castles; but only
+when their store was exhausted, for upon these occasions Blondel would
+be presented with a handsome goblet or other solid token of the owner's
+approval, and the sale of this at the next city would take them far on
+their way. They thought it better not to pass through France, as Philip,
+they knew, was on the watch to prevent any news of King Richard reaching
+England. They therefore again passed through Brabant, and so by ship to
+England.
+
+Hearing that Longchamp, Bishop of Ely, one of Richard's vicegerents, was
+over in Normandy, and rightly deeming him the most earnest of his
+adherents, they at once recrossed the sea, and found the warlike prelate
+at Rouen. Greatly delighted was he at hearing that Richard's
+hiding-place had been discovered. He at once sent across the news to
+England, and ordered it to be published far and wide, and himself
+announced it to the barons of Normandy. Then with a gorgeous retinue,
+including Cuthbert and Blondel, he started for Vienna, and arriving
+there demanded an interview with the emperor.
+
+The news that it was now certain that Richard was imprisoned in a castle
+of the emperor had already spread through Europe, and the bishop had
+been received everywhere with tokens of sympathy; and so great was the
+feeling shown by the counts and barons of the empire that the Emperor
+Henry felt that he could no longer refuse to treat for the surrender of
+his captive. Therefore he granted the interview which Longchamp
+demanded. The English envoy was received by the emperor surrounded by
+his nobles. The prelate advanced with great dignity.
+
+"I come," he said, "in the name of the people of England to demand the
+restoration of King Richard, most unjustly and unknightly detained a
+prisoner in his passage through your dominions."
+
+"King Richard was my foe," the emperor said, "open and secret, and I was
+justified in detaining one who is alike my enemy and a scourge to Europe
+as a prisoner, when fortune threw him in my hands. I am, however,
+willing to put him to a ransom, and will upon the payment of one hundred
+and fifty thousand marks allow him to go free."
+
+"I deny your right to detain him or to put him to ransom," the bishop
+said. "But as you have the power, so my denial is useless. England is
+poor, impoverished with war and by the efforts which she made in the
+service of our holy religion. Nevertheless, poor as she is, she will
+raise the sum you demand. There is not an Englishman who will not
+furnish all he can afford for the rescue of our king. But once again, in
+the presence of your nobles, I denounce your conduct as base and
+unkingly."
+
+The emperor could with difficulty restrain his passion; but the sight of
+the somber visages of his nobles showed that they shared in no slight
+degree the feelings which the English envoy had so boldly announced.
+
+"Before, however," the emperor said, "I surrender King Richard, he must
+be tried by my peers of many and various crimes of which he is accused.
+Should he be found guilty of these, no gold can purchase his release.
+Should he, however, be acquitted, then as my word is given so shall it
+be."
+
+"Although," the prelate said, "I deny your right to try our king, and
+believe that he himself will refuse to accept your jurisdiction, yet I
+fear not the result if our lord be left in the hands of the nobles of
+the empire and not in yours. I can trust their honor and courtesy."
+
+And turning upon his heel, without another word he quitted the
+apartment.
+
+An hour later the bishop and his following took horse and rode with all
+speed to the north coast, and thence sailed for England. The news of the
+amount of ransom filled the people with consternation; but preparations
+were at once made for collecting the sum demanded. Queen Eleanor was
+unceasing in her efforts to raise the money for the release of her
+favorite son. The nobles contributed their jewels and silver; the people
+gave contributions of goods, for money was so scarce in England that few
+had the wherewithal to pay in coin. Prince John placed every obstacle in
+the way of the collection; but the barons had since their successful
+stand obtained the upper hand, and it was by intrigue only that he could
+hinder the collection.
+
+In the meantime, popular opinion throughout Europe was strong upon the
+side of King Richard. The pope himself wrote to the emperor on his
+behalf. The barons of the empire were indignant at the shame placed upon
+their country; and the emperor, although he would fain have thrown
+further delays in the way, was obliged at last to order the first step
+to be taken.
+
+A solemn diet was ordered to assemble at Worms. Here were collected all
+the nobles of the empire, and before them King Richard was brought. It
+was a grand assembly. Upon a raised throne on the daïs sat the emperor
+himself, and beside him and near him were the great feudatories of the
+empire, and along the sides of the walls were ranged in long rows the
+lesser barons. When the doors were opened and King Richard entered, the
+whole assembly, save the emperor, rose in respect to the captive
+monarch. Although pale from his long confinement, the proud air of
+Richard was in no way abated, and the eyes that had flashed so
+fearlessly upon the Saracens looked as sternly down the long lines of
+the barons of Germany. Of splendid stature and physique, King Richard
+was unquestionably the finest man of his time. He was handsome, with a
+frank face, but with a fierce and passionate eye. He wore his mustache
+with a short beard and closely-cut whisker. His short curly hair was
+cropped closely to his head, upon which he wore a velvet cap with gold
+coronet, while a scarlet robe lined with fur fell over his coat of mail,
+for the emperor had deemed it imprudent to excite the feeling of the
+assembly in favor of the prisoner by depriving him of the symbols of his
+rank.
+
+King Richard strode to the place prepared for him, and then turning to
+the assembly he said, in a voice which rang through the hall:
+
+"Counts and lords of the Empire of Germany, I, Richard, King of
+England, do deny your right to try me. I am a king, and can only be
+tried by my peers and by the pope, who is the head of Christendom. I
+might refuse to plead, refuse to take any part in this assembly, and
+appeal to the pope, who alone has power to punish kings. But I will
+waive my rights. I rely upon the honor and probity of the barons of
+Germany. I have done no man wrong, and would appear as fearlessly before
+an assembly of peasants as before a gathering of barons. Such faults as
+I may have, and none are without them, are not such as those with which
+I am charged. I have slain many men in anger, but none by treachery.
+When Richard of England strikes he strikes in the light of day. He
+leaves poison and treachery to his enemies, and I hurl back with
+indignation and scorn in the teeth of him who makes them the charges
+brought against me."
+
+So saying King Richard took his seat amid a murmur of applause from the
+crowded hall.
+
+The trial then commenced. The accusations against Richard were of many
+kinds. Chief among them was the murder of Conrad of Montferat; but there
+were charges of having brought the Crusade to naught by thwarting the
+general plans, by his arrogance in refusing to be bound by the decision
+of the other leaders, and by having made a peace contrary to the
+interests of the Crusaders. The list was a long one; but the evidence
+produced was pitiably weak. Beyond the breath of suspicion, no word of
+real evidence connecting him with the murder of Conrad of Montferat was
+adduced, and the other charges were supported by no better evidence.
+Many of the German barons who had been at the Crusades themselves came
+forward to testify to the falsity of these charges, and the fact that
+Richard had himself placed Conrad of Montferat upon the throne, and had
+no possible interest in his death, was alone more than sufficient to
+nullify the vague rumors brought against him. Richard himself in a few a
+scornful words disposed of this accusation. The accusation that he,
+Richard of England, would stoop to poison a man whom he could have
+crushed in an instant was too absurd to be seriously treated.
+
+"I am sure," the king said, "that not one person here believes this idle
+tale. That I did not always agree with the other leaders is true; but I
+call upon every one here to say whether, had they listened to me and
+followed my advice, the Crusade would not have had another ending. Even
+after Philip of France had withdrawn; even after I had been deserted by
+John of Austria, I led the troops of the Crusaders from every danger and
+every difficulty to within sight of the walls of Jerusalem. Had I been
+supported with zeal, the holy city would have been ours; but the apathy,
+the folly, and the weakness of the leaders brought ruin upon the army.
+They thought not of conquering Jerusalem, but of thwarting me; and I
+retort upon them the charge of having sacrificed the success of the
+Crusade. As to the terms of peace, how were they made? I, with some
+fifty knights and one thousand followers, alone remained in the Holy
+Land. Who else, I ask, so circumstanced, could have obtained any terms
+whatever from Saladin? It was the weight of my arm alone which saved
+Jaffa and Acre, and the line of seacoast, to the Cross. And had I
+followed the example set me by him of Austria and the Frenchman, not one
+foot of the Holy Land would now remain in Christian hands."
+
+The trial was soon over, and without a single dissentient the King of
+England was acquitted of all the charges brought against him. But the
+money was not yet raised, and King Richard was taken back into the
+heart of Germany. At length, by prodigious exertions, half the amount
+claimed was collected, and upon the solicitations of the pope and of the
+counts of his own empire, the emperor consented to release Richard upon
+receipt of this sum, and his royal promise that the remainder should be
+made up.
+
+Not as yet, however, were the intrigues at an end. Prince John and King
+Philip alike implored the emperor to retain his captive, and offered to
+him a larger sum than the ransom if he would still hold him in his
+hands. Popular opinion, was, however, too strong. When the news of these
+negotiations became bruited abroad the counts of the empire, filled with
+indignation, protested against this shame and dishonor being brought
+upon the country. The pope threatened him with excommunication; and at
+last the emperor, feeling that he would risk his throne did he further
+insist, was forced to open the prison gates and let the king free.
+Cuthbert, Blondel, and a few other trusty friends were at hand, and
+their joy at receiving their long-lost sovereign was indeed intense.
+Horses had been provided in readiness, and without a moment's delay the
+king started, for even at the last moment it was feared that the emperor
+might change his mind. This indeed was the case. The king had not
+started many hours, when the arrival of fresh messengers from Philip and
+John induced the emperor once more to change his intentions, and a body
+of men were sent in pursuit of the king. The latter fortunately made no
+stay on the way, but changing horses frequently--for everywhere he was
+received with honor and attention--he pushed forward for the coast of
+the North Sea, and arrived there two or three hours only before his
+oppressors. Fortunately it was night, and taking a boat he embarked
+without a moment's delay; and when the emissaries of the emperor arrived
+the boat was already out of sight, and in the darkness pursuit was
+hopeless.
+
+On landing at Dover, the first to present himself before him was Prince
+John, who, in the most abject terms besought pardon for the injuries he
+had inflicted. King Richard waved him contemptuously aside.
+
+"Go," he said, "and may I forget your injuries as speedily as you will
+forget my pardon."
+
+Then taking horse, he rode on to London, where he was received with the
+most lively acclamation by his subjects.
+
+The first step of King Richard was to dispossess all the minions of John
+from the castles and lands which had been taken from his faithful
+adherents. Some of these resisted; but their fortresses were speedily
+stormed. Sir Rudolph was not one of these. Immediately the news of King
+Richard's arrival in England reached him, feeling that all was now lost,
+he rode to the seacoast, took ship, and passed into France, and
+Cuthbert, on his arrival at Evesham, found himself undisputed lord of
+the place. He found that the hiding-place of his mother had not been
+discovered, and, after a short delay to put matters in train, he,
+attended by a gallant retinue, rode into Wiltshire to the castle of Sir
+Baldwin of Béthune. Here he found the Lady Margaret safe and sound, and
+mightily pleased to see him. She was now seventeen, and offered no
+objections whatever to the commands of King Richard that she should at
+once bestow her hand upon the Earl of Evesham. By the king's order, the
+wedding took place at London, the king himself bestowing the bride upon
+his faithful follower, whom we may now leave to the enjoyment of the
+fortune and wife he had so valiantly won.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
+
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+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
+  <head>
+    <meta content="pg2html (binary v0.17)" name="linkgenerator" />
+    <title>
+      The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
+    </title>
+    <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve">
+    body { margin:5%; background:#faebd0; text-align:justify}
+    P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .75em; margin-bottom: .75em; }
+    H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; }
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+    .foot { margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 5%; text-align: justify; font-size: 80%; font-style: italic;}
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+    .mynote    {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;}
+    .toc       { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;}
+    .toc2      { margin-left: 20%;}
+    .xx-small {font-size: 60%;}
+    .x-small {font-size: 75%;}
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+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Boy Knight
+
+Author: G.A. Henty
+
+Release Date: September 2, 2004 [EBook #13354]
+Last updated: April 12, 2019
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOY KNIGHT ***
+
+
+
+
+Etext produced by Ted Garvin, Annika Feilbach and PG Distributed Proofreaders
+
+HTML file produced by David Widger
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+    <div style="height: 8em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h1>
+      THE BOY KNIGHT.
+    </h1>
+    <h2>
+      A Tale Of The Crusades <br />
+    </h2>
+    <h2>
+      BY G.A. HENTY
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br />
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <b>CONTENTS</b>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> <b>THE BOY KNIGHT.</b> </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0001"> CHAPTER I. &mdash; THE OUTLAWS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0002"> CHAPTER II. &mdash; A RESCUE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0003"> CHAPTER III. &mdash; THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+      </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0004"> CHAPTER IV. &mdash; THE CRUSADES. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0005"> CHAPTER V. &mdash; PREPARATIONS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0006"> CHAPTER VI. &mdash; THE LISTS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0007"> CHAPTER VII. &mdash; REVENGE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0008"> CHAPTER VIII. &mdash; THE ATTACK. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0009"> CHAPTER IX. &mdash; THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0010"> CHAPTER X. &mdash; PIRATES. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0011"> CHAPTER XI. &mdash; IN THE HOLY LAND. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0012"> CHAPTER XII. &mdash; THE ACCOLADE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0013"> CHAPTER XIII. &mdash; IN THE HANDS OF THE
+      SARACENS. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0014"> CHAPTER XIV. &mdash; AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0015"> CHAPTER XV. &mdash; A HERMIT'S TALE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0016"> CHAPTER XVI. &mdash; A FIGHT OF HEROES. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0017"> CHAPTER XVII. &mdash; AN ALPINE STORM. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0018"> CHAPTER XVIII. &mdash; SENTENCED TO DEATH. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0019"> CHAPTER XIX. &mdash; DRESDEN. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0020"> CHAPTER XX. &mdash; UNDER THE GREENWOOD. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0021"> CHAPTER XXI. &mdash; THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+      </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0022"> CHAPTER XXII. &mdash; A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0023"> CHAPTER XXIII. &mdash; THE FALSE AND PERJURED
+      KNIGHT. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0024"> CHAPTER XXIV. &mdash; THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM
+      CASTLE. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0025"> CHAPTER XXV. &mdash; IN SEARCH OF THE KING. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="toc">
+      <a href="#link2HCH0026"> CHAPTER XXVI. &mdash; KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO
+      ENGLAND. </a>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h1>
+      THE BOY KNIGHT.
+    </h1>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0001" id="link2HCH0001"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER I. &mdash; THE OUTLAWS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was a bright morning in the month of August, when a lad of some fifteen
+      years of age, sitting on a low wall, watched party after party of armed
+      men riding up to the castle of the Earl of Evesham. A casual observer
+      glancing at his curling hair and bright open face, as also at the fashion
+      of his dress, would at once have assigned to him a purely Saxon origin;
+      but a keener eye would have detected signs that Norman blood ran also in
+      his veins, for his figure was lither and lighter, his features more
+      straightly and shapely cut, than was common among Saxons. His dress
+      consisted of a tight-fitting jerkin, descending nearly to his knees. The
+      material was a light-blue cloth, while over his shoulder hung a short
+      cloak of a darker hue. His cap was of Saxon fashion, and he wore on one
+      side a little plume of a heron. In a somewhat costly belt hung a light
+      short sword, while across his knees lay a crossbow, in itself almost a
+      sure sign of its bearer being of other than Saxon blood. The boy looked
+      anxiously as party after party rode past toward the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would give something," he said, "to know what wind blows these knaves
+      here. From every petty castle in the Earl's feu the retainers seem
+      hurrying here. Is he bent, I wonder, on settling once and for all his
+      quarrels with the Baron of Wortham? or can he be intending to make a clear
+      sweep of the woods? Ah! here comes my gossip Hubert; he may tell me the
+      meaning of this gathering."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaping to his feet, the speaker started at a brisk walk to meet a
+      jovial-looking personage coming down from the direction of the castle. The
+      newcomer was dressed in the attire of a falconer, and two dogs followed at
+      his heels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah, Master Cuthbert," he said, "what brings you so near to the castle? It
+      is not often that you favor us with your presence."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am happier in the woods, as you well know, and was on my way thither
+      but now, when I paused at the sight of all these troopers flocking in to
+      Evesham. What enterprise has Sir Walter on hand now, think you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The earl keeps his own counsel," said the falconer, "but methinks a
+      shrewd guess might be made at the purport of the gathering. It was but
+      three days since that his foresters were beaten back by the landless men,
+      whom they caught in the very act of cutting up a fat buck. As thou
+      knowest, my lord though easy and well-disposed to all, and not fond of
+      harassing and driving the people as are many of his neighbors, is yet to
+      the full as fanatical anent his forest privileges as the worst of them.
+      They tell me that when the news came in of the poor figure that his
+      foresters cut with broken bows and draggled plumes&mdash;for the varlets
+      had soused them in a pond of not over savory water&mdash;he swore a great
+      oath that he would clear the forest of the bands. It may be, indeed, that
+      this gathering is for the purpose of falling in force upon that
+      evil-disposed and most treacherous baron, Sir John of Wortham, who has
+      already begun to harry some of the outlying lands, and has driven off, I
+      hear, many heads of cattle. It is a quarrel which will have to be fought
+      out sooner or later, and the sooner the better, say I. Although I am no
+      man of war, and love looking after my falcons or giving food to my dogs
+      far more than exchanging hard blows, yet would I gladly don the buff and
+      steel coat to aid in leveling the keep of that robber and tyrant, Sir John
+      of Wortham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, good Hubert," said the lad. "I must not stand gossiping here. The
+      news you have told me, as you know, touches me closely, for I would not
+      that harm should come to the forest men."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Let it not out, I beseech thee, Cuthbert, that the news came from me, for
+      temperate as Sir Walter is at most times, he would, methinks, give me
+      short shift did he know that the wagging of my tongue might have given
+      warning through which the outlaws of the Chase should slip through his
+      fingers."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Fear not, Hubert; I can be mum when the occasion needs. Can you tell me
+      further, when the bands now gathering are likely to set forth?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In brief breathing space," the falconer replied. "Those who first arrived
+      I left swilling beer, and devouring pies and other provisions cooked for
+      them last night, and from what I hear, they will set forth as soon as the
+      last comer has arrived. Whichever be their quarry, they will try to fall
+      upon it before the news of their arrival is bruited abroad."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a wave of his hand to the falconer the boy started. Leaving the road,
+      and striking across the slightly undulated country dotted here and there
+      by groups of trees, the lad ran at a brisk trot, without stopping to halt
+      or breathe, until after half an hour's run he arrived at the entrance of a
+      building, whose aspect proclaimed it to be the abode of a Saxon franklin
+      of some importance. It would not be called a castle, but was rather a
+      fortified house, with a few windows looking without, and surrounded by a
+      moat crossed by a drawbridge, and capable of sustaining anything short of
+      a real attack. Erstwood had but lately passed into Norman hands, and was
+      indeed at present owned by a Saxon. Sir William de Lance, the father of
+      the lad who is now entering its portals, was a friend and follower of the
+      Earl of Evesham; and soon after his lord had married Gweneth, the heiress
+      of all these fair lands&mdash;given to him by the will of the king, to
+      whom by the death of her father she became a ward&mdash;Sir William had
+      married Editha, the daughter and heiress of the franklin of Erstwood, a
+      cousin and dear friend of the new Countess of Evesham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In neither couple could the marriage at first have been called one of
+      inclination on the part of the ladies, but love came after marriage.
+      Although the knights and barons of the Norman invasion would, no doubt, be
+      considered rude and rough in these days of broadcloth and civilization,
+      yet their manners were gentle and polished by the side of those of the
+      rough though kindly Saxon franklins; and although the Saxon maids were
+      doubtless as patriotic as their fathers and mothers, yet the female mind
+      is greatly led by gentle manners and courteous address. Thus, then, when
+      bidden or forced to give their hands to the Norman knights, they speedily
+      accepted their lot, and for the most part grew contented and happy enough.
+      In their changed circumstances it was pleasanter to ride by the side of
+      their Norman husbands, surrounded by a gay cavalcade, to hawk and to hunt,
+      than to discharge the quiet duties of mistress of a Saxon farmhouse. In
+      many cases, of course, their lot was rendered wretched by the violence and
+      brutality of their lords; but in the majority they were well satisfied
+      with their lot, and these mixed marriages did more to bring the peoples
+      together and weld them in one than all the laws and decrees of the Norman
+      sovereigns.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This had certainly been the case with Editha, whose marriage with Sir
+      William had been one of the greatest happiness. She had lost him three
+      years before the story begins, fighting in Normandy, in one of the
+      innumerable wars in which our first Norman kings were constantly involved.
+      On entering the gates of Erstwood Cuthbert had rushed hastily to the room
+      where his mother was sitting, with three or four of her maidens, engaged
+      in work.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I want to speak to you at once, mother," he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is it now, my son?" said his mother, who was still young and very
+      comely. Waving her hand to the girls they left her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Mother," he said, when they were alone, "I fear me that Sir Walter is
+      about to make a great raid upon the outlaws. Armed men have been coming in
+      all the morning from the castles round, and if it be not against the Baron
+      de Wortham that these preparations are intended, and methinks it is not,
+      it must needs be against the landless men."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What would you do, Cuthbert?" his mother asked anxiously. "It will not do
+      for you to be found meddling in these matters. At present you stand well
+      in the favor of the earl, who loves you for the sake of his wife, to whom
+      you are kin, and of your father, who did him good liegeman's service."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But, mother, I have many friends in the wood. There is Cnut, their chief,
+      your own first cousin, and many others of our friends, all good men and
+      true, though forced by the cruel Norman laws to refuge in the woods."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What would you do?" again his mother asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would take Ronald my pony and ride to warn them of the danger that
+      threatens."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You had best go on foot, my son. Doubtless men have been set to see that
+      none from the Saxon homesteads carry the warning to the woods. The
+      distance is not beyond your reach, for you have often wandered there, and
+      on foot you can evade the eye of the watchers; but one thing, my son, you
+      must promise, and that is, that in no case, should the earl and his bands
+      meet with the outlaws, will you take part in any fray or struggle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That will I willingly, mother," he said. "I have no cause for offense
+      against the castle or the forest, and my blood and my kin are with both. I
+      would fain save shedding of blood in a quarrel like this. I hope that the
+      time may come when Saxon and Norman may fight side by side, and I may be
+      there to see."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few minutes later, having changed his blue doublet for one of more sober
+      and less noticeable color, Cuthbert started for the great forest, which
+      then stretched to within a mile of Erstwood. In those days a large part of
+      the country was covered with forest, and the policy of the Normans in
+      preserving these woods for the chase tended to prevent the increase of
+      cultivation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The farms and cultivated lands were all held by Saxons, who although
+      nominally handed over to the nobles to whom William and his successors had
+      given the fiefs, saw but little of their Norman masters. These stood,
+      indeed, much in the position in which landlords stand to their tenants,
+      payment being made, for the most part, in produce. At the edge of the wood
+      the trees grew comparatively far apart, but as Cuthbert proceeded further
+      into its recesses, the trees in the virgin forest stood thick and close
+      together. Here and there open glades ran across each other, and in these
+      his sharp eye, accustomed to the forest, could often see the stags
+      starting away at the sound of his footsteps.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a full hour's journey before Cuthbert reached the point for which
+      he was bound. Here, in an open space, probably cleared by a storm ages
+      before, and overshadowed by giant trees, was a group of men of all ages
+      and appearances. Some were occupied in stripping the skin off a buck which
+      hung from the bough of one of the trees. Others were roasting portions of
+      the carcass of another deer. A few sat apart, some talking, others busy in
+      making arrows, while a few lay asleep on the greensward. As Cuthbert
+      entered the clearing several of the party rose to their feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah, Cuthbert," shouted a man of almost gigantic stature, who appeared to
+      be one of the leaders of the party, "what brings you here, lad, so early?
+      You are not wont to visit us till even, when you can lay your crossbow at
+      a stag by moonlight."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No, no, Cousin Cnut," Cuthbert said, "thou canst not say that I have ever
+      broken the forest laws, though I have looked on often and often, while you
+      have done so."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The abettor is as bad as the thief," laughed Cnut, "and if the foresters
+      caught us in the act, I wot they would make but little difference whether
+      it was the shaft of my longbow or the quarrel from thy crossbow which
+      brought down the quarry. But again, lad, why comest thou here? for I see
+      by the sweat on your face and by the heaving of your sides that you have
+      run fast and far."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have, Cnut; I have not once stopped for breathing since I left
+      Erstwood. I have come to warn you of danger. The earl is preparing for a
+      raid."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut laughed somewhat disdainfully.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He has raided here before, and I trow has carried off no game. The
+      landless men of the forest can hold their own against a handful of Norman
+      knights and retainers in their own home."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ay," said Cuthbert, "but this will be no common raid. This morning bands
+      from all the holds within miles round are riding in, and at least five
+      hundred men-at-arms are likely to do chase to-day."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is it so?" said Cnut, while exclamations of surprise, but not of
+      apprehension, broke from those standing round. "If that be so, lad, you
+      have done us good service indeed. With fair warning we can slip through
+      the fingers of ten times five hundred men, but if they came upon us
+      unawares, and hemmed us in, it would fare but badly with us, though we
+      should, I doubt not, give a good account of them before their battle-axes
+      and maces ended the strife. Have you any idea by which road they will
+      enter the forest, or what are their intentions?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not," Cuthbert said; "all that I gathered was that the earl
+      intended to sweep the forest, and to put an end to the breaches of the
+      laws, not to say of the rough treatment that his foresters have met with
+      at your hands. You had best, methinks, be off before Sir Walter and his
+      heavily-armed men are here. The forest, large as it is, will scarce hold
+      you both, and methinks you had best shift your quarters to Langholm Chase
+      until the storm has passed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "To Langholm be it, then," said Cnut, "though I love not the place. Sir
+      John of Wortham is a worse neighbor by far than the earl. Against the
+      latter we bear no malice, he is a good knight and a fair lord; and could
+      he free himself of the Norman notions that the birds of the air, and the
+      beasts of the field, and the fishes of the water, all belong to Normans,
+      and that we Saxons have no share in them, I should have no quarrel with
+      him. He grinds not his neighbors, he is content with a fair tithe of the
+      produce, and as between man and man is a fair judge without favor. The
+      baron is a fiend incarnate; did he not fear that he would lose by so
+      doing, he would gladly cut the throats, or burn, or drown, or hang every
+      Saxon within twenty miles of his hold. He is a disgrace to his order, and
+      some day, when our band gathers a little stronger, we will burn his nest
+      about his ears."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It will be a hard nut to crack," Cuthbert said, laughing. "With such arms
+      as you have in the forest the enterprise would be something akin to
+      scaling the skies."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ladders and axes will go far, lad, and the Norman men-at-arms have
+      learned to dread our shafts. But enough of the baron; if we must be his
+      neighbors for a time, so be it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have heard, my mates," he said, turning to his comrades gathered
+      around him, "what Cuthbert tells us. Are you of my opinion, that it is
+      better to move away till the storm is past than to fight against heavy
+      odds, without much chance of either booty or victory?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A general chorus proclaimed that the outlaws approved of the proposal for
+      a move to Langholm Chase. The preparations were simple. Bows were taken
+      down from the boughs on which they were hanging, quivers slung across the
+      backs, short cloaks thrown over the shoulders. The deer was hurriedly
+      dismembered, and the joints fastened to a pole slung on the shoulders of
+      two of the men. The drinking-cups, some of which were of silver, looking
+      strangely out of place among the rough horn implements and platters, were
+      bundled together, carried a short distance and dropped among some thick
+      bushes for safety; and then the band started for Wortham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a cordial farewell and many thanks to Cuthbert, who declined their
+      invitations to accompany them, the retreat to Langholm commenced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, not knowing in which direction the bands were likely to
+      approach, remained for awhile motionless, intently listening.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a quarter of an hour he heard the distant note of a bugle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was answered in three different directions, and Cuthbert, who knew
+      every path and glade of the forest, was able pretty accurately to surmise
+      those by which the various bands were commencing to enter the wood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Knowing that they were still a long way off, he advanced as rapidly as he
+      could in the direction in which they were coming. When by the sound of
+      distant voices and the breaking of branches he knew that one, at least, of
+      the parties was near at hand, he rapidly climbed a thick tree and
+      ensconced himself in the branches, and there watched, secure and hidden
+      from the sharpest eye, the passage of a body of men-at-arms fully a
+      hundred strong, led by Sir Walter himself, accompanied by some half dozen
+      of his knights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When they had passed Cuthbert again slipped down the tree and made at all
+      speed for home. He reached it, so far as he knew, without having been
+      observed by a single passer-by.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a brief talk with his mother he started for the castle, as his
+      appearance there would divert any suspicion that might arise; and it would
+      also appear natural that seeing the movements of so large a body of men,
+      he should go up to gossip with his acquaintances there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When distant a mile from Evesham he came upon a small party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On a white palfrey rode Margaret, the little daughter of the earl. She was
+      accompanied by her nurse and two retainers on foot.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert&mdash;who was a great favorite with the earl's daughter, for whom
+      he frequently brought pets, such as nests of young owlets, falcons, and
+      other creatures&mdash;was about to join the party when from a clump of
+      trees near burst a body of ten mounted men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a word they rode straight at the astonished group. The retainers
+      were cut to the ground before they had thought of drawing a sword in
+      defense.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The nurse was slain by a blow with a battle-ax, and Margaret, snatched
+      from her palfrey, was thrown across the saddlebow of one of the mounted
+      men, who then with his comrades dashed off at full speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0002" id="link2HCH0002"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER II. &mdash; A RESCUE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The whole of the startling scene of the abduction of the Earl of Evesham's
+      daughter occupied but a few seconds. Cuthbert was so astounded at the
+      sudden calamity that he remained rooted to the ground at the spot where,
+      fortunately for himself, unnoticed by the assailants, he had stood when
+      they first burst from their concealment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a short time he hesitated as to the course he should take.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men-at-arms who remained in the castle were scarce strong enough to
+      rescue the child, whose captors would no doubt be reinforced by a far
+      stronger party lurking near.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The main body of Sir Walter's followers were deep in the recesses of the
+      forest, and this lay altogether out of the line for Wortham, and there
+      would be no chance whatever of bringing them up in time to cut off the
+      marauders on their way back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There remained only the outlaws, who by this time would be in Langholm
+      Forest, perhaps within a mile or two of the castle itself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The road by which the horsemen would travel would be far longer than the
+      direct line across country, and he resolved at once to strain every nerve
+      to reach his friends in time to get them to interpose between the captors
+      of the Lady Margaret and their stronghold.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For an instant he hesitated whether to run back to Erstwood to get a
+      horse; but he decided that it would be as quick to go on foot, and far
+      easier so to find the outlaws.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These thoughts occupied but a few moments, and he at once started at the
+      top of his speed for his long run across the country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Had Cuthbert been running in a race of hare and hound, he would assuredly
+      have borne away the prize from most boys of his age. At headlong pace he
+      made across the country, every foot of which, as far as the edge of
+      Langholm Chase, he knew by heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The distance to the woods was some twelve miles, and in an hour and a half
+      from the moment of his starting Cuthbert was deep within its shades. Where
+      he would be likely to find the outlaws he knew not; and, putting a whistle
+      to his lips, he shrilly blew the signal, which would, he knew, be
+      recognized by any of the band within hearing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He thought that he heard an answer, but was not certain, and again dashed
+      forward, almost as speedily as if he had but just started.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Five minutes later a man stood in the glade up which he was running. He
+      recognized him at once as one of Cnut's party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Where are the band?" he gasped.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Half a mile or so to the right," replied the man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Guided by the man, Cuthbert ran at full speed, till, panting and scarce
+      able to speak, he arrived at the spot where Cnut's band were gathered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a few words he told them what had happened, and although they had just
+      been chased by the father of the captured child, there was not a moment of
+      hesitation in promising their aid to rescue her from a man whom they
+      regarded as a far more bitter enemy, both of themselves and their race.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear we shall be too late to cut them off," Cnut said, "they have so
+      long a start; but at least we will waste no time in gossiping."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Winding a horn to call together some of the members of the band who had
+      scattered, and leaving one at the meeting-place to give instructions to
+      the rest, Cnut, followed by those assembled there, went off at a swinging
+      trot through the glades toward Wortham Castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a rapid calculation of distances, and allowing for the fact that the
+      baron's men&mdash;knowing that Sir Walter's retainers and friends were all
+      deep in the forest, and even if they heard of the outrage could not be on
+      their traces for hours&mdash;would take matters quietly, Cnut concluded
+      that they had arrived in time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Turning off, they made their way along the edge of the wood, to the point
+      where the road from Evesham ran through the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scarcely had the party reached this point when they heard a faint clatter
+      of steel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here they come!" exclaimed Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut gave rapid directions, and the band took up their posts behind the
+      trees, on either side of the path.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Remember," Cnut said, "above all things be careful not to hit the child,
+      but pierce the horse on which she is riding. The instant he falls, rush
+      forward. We must trust to surprise to give us the victory."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three minutes later the head of a band of horsemen was seen through the
+      trees. They were some thirty in number, and, closely grouped as they were
+      together, the watchers behind the trees could not see the form of the
+      child carried in their midst.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When they came abreast of the concealed outlaws Cnut gave a sharp whistle,
+      and fifty arrows flew from tree and bush into the closely gathered party
+      of horsemen. More than half their number fell at once; some, drawing their
+      swords, endeavored to rush at their concealed foes, while others dashed
+      forward in the hope of riding through the snare into which they had
+      fallen. Cuthbert had leveled his crossbow, but had not fired; he was
+      watching with intense anxiety for a glimpse of the bright-colored dress of
+      the child. Soon he saw a horseman separate himself from the rest and dash
+      forward at full speed. Several arrows flew by him, and one or two struck
+      the horse on which he rode.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The animal, however, kept on its way.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert leveled his crossbow on the low arm of a tree, and as the rider
+      came abreast of him touched the trigger, and the steel-pointed quarrel
+      flew true and strong against the temple of the passing horseman. He fell
+      from his horse like a stone, and the well-trained animal at once stood
+      still by the side of his rider.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert leaped forward, and to his delight the child at once opened her
+      arms and cried in a joyous tone:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Cuthbert!"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fight was still raging fiercely, and Cuthbert, raising her from the
+      ground, ran with her into the wood, where they remained hidden until the
+      combat ceased, and the last survivors of the baron's band had ridden past
+      toward the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then Cuthbert went forward with his charge and joined the band of outlaws,
+      who, absorbed in the fight, had not witnessed the incident of her rescue,
+      and now received them with loud shouts of joy and triumph.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is a good day's work indeed for all," Cuthbert said; "it will make
+      of the earl a firm friend instead of a bitter enemy; and I doubt not that
+      better days are dawning for Evesham Forest."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A litter was speedily made with boughs; on this Margaret was placed, and
+      on the shoulders of two stout foresters started for home, Cnut and
+      Cuthbert walking beside, and a few of the band keeping at a short distance
+      behind, as a sort of rearguard, should the baron attempt to regain his
+      prey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was now no cause for speed, and Cuthbert in truth could scarce drag
+      one foot before another, for he had already traversed over twenty miles,
+      the greater portion of the distance at his highest rate of speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut offered to have a litter made for him also, but this Cuthbert
+      indignantly refused; however, in the forest they came upon the hut of a
+      small cultivator, who had a rough forest pony, which was borrowed for
+      Cuthbert's use.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was late in the afternoon before they came in sight of Evesham Castle.
+      From the distance could be seen bodies of armed men galloping toward it,
+      and it was clear that only now the party were returning from the wood, and
+      had learned the news of the disappearance of the earl's daughter, and of
+      the finding of the bodies of her attendants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently they met one of the mounted retainers riding at headlong speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have you heard or seen anything," he shouted, as he approached, "of the
+      Lady Margaret? She is missing, and foul play has taken place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here I am, Rudolph," cried the child, sitting up on the rude litter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The horseman gave a cry of astonishment and pleasure, and without a word
+      wheeled his horse and galloped past back at headlong speed toward the
+      castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert and the party approached the gate the earl himself, surrounded
+      by his knights and followers, rode out hastily from the gate and halted in
+      front of the little party. The litter was lowered, and as he dismounted
+      from his horse his daughter sprang out and leaped into his arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a few minutes the confusion and babble of tongues were too great for
+      anything to be heard, but Cuthbert, as soon as order was somewhat
+      restored, stated what had happened, and the earl was moved to fury at the
+      news of the outrage which had been perpetrated by the Baron of Wortham
+      upon his daughter and at the very gates of his castle, and also at the
+      thought that she should have been saved by the bravery and devotion of the
+      very men against whom he had so lately been vowing vengeance in the depths
+      of the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is not a time," he said to Cnut, "for talk or making promises, but
+      be assured that henceforth the deer of Evesham Chase are as free to you
+      and your men as to me. Forest laws or no forest laws, I will no more lift
+      a hand against men to whom I owe so much. Come when you will to the
+      castle, my friends, and let us talk over what can be done to raise your
+      outlawry and restore you to an honest career again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert returned home tired, but delighted with his day's work, and Dame
+      Editha was surprised indeed with the tale of adventure he had to tell. The
+      next morning he went over to the castle, and heard that a grand council
+      had been held the evening before, and that it had been determined to
+      attack Wortham Castle and to raze it to the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Immediately on hearing of his arrival, the earl, after again expressing
+      his gratitude for the rescue of his daughter, asked him if he would go
+      into the forest and invite the outlaws to join their forces with those of
+      the castle to attack the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert willingly undertook the mission, as he felt that this alliance
+      would further strengthen the position of the forest men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he arrived there was some considerable consultation and discussion
+      between the outlaws as to the expediency of mixing themselves in the
+      quarrels between the Norman barons. However, Cnut persuaded them that as
+      the Baron of Wortham was an enemy and oppressor of all Saxons, it was in
+      fact their own quarrel that they were fighting rather than that of the
+      earl, and they therefore agreed to give their aid, and promised to be at
+      the rendezvous outside the castle to be attacked soon after dawn next
+      morning. Cuthbert returned with the news which gave great satisfaction to
+      the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The castle was now a scene of bustle and business; armorers were at work
+      repairing headpieces and breastplates, sharpening swords and battle-axes,
+      while the fletchers prepared sheaves of arrows. In the courtyard a number
+      of men were engaged oiling the catapults, ballistas, and other machines
+      for hurling stones. All were discussing the chances of the assault, for it
+      was no easy matter which they had set themselves to do. Wortham Hold was
+      an extremely strong one, and it needed all and more than all the machines
+      at their disposal to undertake so formidable an operation as a siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The garrison, too, were strong and desperate; and the baron, knowing what
+      must follow his outrage of the day before, would have been sure to send
+      off messengers round the country begging his friends to come to his
+      assistance. Cuthbert had begged permission of his mother to ask the earl
+      to allow him to join as a volunteer, but she would not hear of it. Neither
+      would she suffer him to mingle with the foresters. The utmost that he
+      could obtain was that he might go as a spectator, with strict injunctions
+      to keep himself out of the fray, and as far as possible beyond bow-shot of
+      the castle wall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a force of some four hundred strong that issued from the wood early
+      next morning to attack the stronghold at Wortham. The force consisted of
+      some ten or twelve knights and barons, some one hundred and fifty or one
+      hundred and sixty Norman men-at-arms, a miscellaneous gathering of other
+      retainers, two hundred strong, and some eighty of the forest men. These
+      last were not to fight under the earl's banner, but were to act on their
+      own account. There were among them outlaws, escaped serfs, and some men
+      guilty of bloodshed. The earl then could not have suffered these men to
+      fight under his flag until purged in some way of their offenses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This arrangement suited the foresters well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Their strong point was shooting; and by taking up their own position, and
+      following their own tactics, under the leadership of Cnut, they would be
+      able to do far more execution, and that with less risk to themselves, than
+      if compelled to fight according to the fashion of the Normans.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As they approached the castle a trumpet was blown, and the herald
+      advancing, demanded its surrender, stigmatized the Baron of Wortham as a
+      false knight and a disgrace to his class and warned all those within the
+      castle to abstain from giving him aid or countenance, but to submit
+      themselves to the earl, Sir Walter of Evesham, the representative of King
+      Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The reply to the summons was a burst of taunting laughter from the walls;
+      and scarcely had the herald withdrawn than a flight of arrows showed that
+      the besieged were perfectly ready for the fray.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Indeed the baron had not been idle. Already the dispute between himself
+      and the earl had come to such a point that it was certain that sooner or
+      later open hostilities would break out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had therefore been for some time quietly accumulating a large store of
+      provisions and munitions of war, and strengthening the castle in every
+      way.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moat had been cleaned out, and filled to the brim with water. Great
+      quantities of heavy stones had been accumulated on the most exposed points
+      of the walls, in readiness to hurl upon any who might try to climb. Huge
+      sheaves of arrows and piles of crossbow bolts were in readiness, and in
+      all, save the number of men, Wortham had for weeks been prepared for the
+      siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the day when the attempt to carry off the earl's daughter had failed,
+      the baron, seeing that his bold stroke to obtain a hostage which would
+      have enabled him to make his own terms with the earl had been thwarted,
+      knew that the struggle was inevitable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fleet messengers had been sent in all directions. To Gloucester and
+      Hereford, Stafford, and even Oxford, men had ridden, with letters to the
+      baron's friends, beseeching them to march to his assistance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I can," he said, "defend my hold for weeks. But it is only by aid from
+      without that I can finally hope to break the power of this baggart
+      [Transcriber's note: sic] earl."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Many of those to whom he addressed his call had speedily complied with his
+      demand, while those at a distance might be expected to reply later to the
+      appeal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were many among the barons who considered the mildness of the Earl
+      of Evesham toward the Saxons in his district to be a mistake, and who,
+      although not actually approving of the tyranny and brutality of the Baron
+      of Wortham, yet looked upon his cause to some extent as their own.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Castle of Wortham stood upon ground but very slightly elevated above
+      the surrounding country. A deep and wide moat ran round it, and this
+      could, by diverting a rivulet, be filled at will.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From the edge of the moat the walls rose high, and with strong flanking
+      towers and battlements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were strong works also beyond the moat opposite to the drawbridge;
+      while in the center of the castle rose the keep, from whose summit the
+      archers, and the machines for casting stones and darts, could command the
+      whole circuit of defense.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert, accompanied by one of the hinds of the farm, took his post
+      high up in a lofty tree, where at his ease he could command a view of the
+      proceedings, he marveled much in what manner an attack upon so fair a
+      fortress would be commenced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It will be straightforward work to attack the outwork," he said, "but
+      that once won, I see not how we are to proceed against the castle itself.
+      The machines that the earl has will scarcely hurl stones strong enough
+      even to knock the mortar from the walls. Ladders are useless where they
+      cannot be planted; and if the garrison are as brave as the castle is
+      strong, methinks that the earl has embarked upon a business that will keep
+      him here till next spring."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was little time lost in commencing the conflict.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The foresters, skirmishing up near to the castle, and taking advantage of
+      every inequality in the ground, of every bush and tuft of high grass,
+      worked up close to the moat, and then opened a heavy fire with their bows
+      against the men-at-arms on the battlements, and prevented their using the
+      machines against the main force now advancing to the attack upon the
+      outwork.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was stoutly defended. But the impetuosity of the earl, backed as it
+      was by the gallantry of the knights serving under him, carried all
+      obstacles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The narrow moat which encircled this work was speedily filled with great
+      bundles of brushwood, which had been prepared the previous night. Across
+      these the assailants rushed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Some thundered at the gate with their battle-axes, while others placed
+      ladders by which, although several times hurled backward by the defenders,
+      they finally succeeded in getting a footing on the wall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Once there, the combat was virtually over.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The defenders were either cut down or taken prisoners, and in two hours
+      after the assault began the outwork of Wortham Castle was taken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This, however, was but the commencement of the undertaking, and it had
+      cost more than twenty lives to the assailants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They were now, indeed, little nearer to capturing the castle than they had
+      been before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moat was wide and deep. The drawbridge had been lifted at the instant
+      that the first of the assailants gained a footing upon the wall. And now
+      that the outwork was captured, a storm of arrows, stones, and other
+      missiles was poured into it from the castle walls, and rendered it
+      impossible for any of its new masters to show themselves above it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Seeing that any sudden attack was impossible, the earl now directed a
+      strong body to cut down trees, and prepare a moveable bridge to throw
+      across the moat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This would be a work of fully two days; and in the meantime Cuthbert
+      returned to the farm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0003" id="link2HCH0003"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER III. &mdash; THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Upon his return home, after relating to his mother the events of the
+      morning's conflict, Cuthbert took his way to the cottage inhabited by an
+      old man who had in his youth been a mason.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have I not heard, Gurth," he said, "that you helped to build the Castle
+      of Wortham?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No, no, young sir," he said; "old as I am, I was a child when the castle
+      was built. My father worked at it, and it cost him, and many others, his
+      life."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And how was that, prithee?" asked Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He was, with several others, killed by the baron, the grandfather of the
+      present man, when the work was finished."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But why was that, Gurth?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We were but Saxon swine," said Gurth bitterly, "and a few of us more or
+      less mattered not. We were then serfs of the baron. But my mother fled
+      with me on the news of my father's death. For years we remained far away
+      with some friends in a forest near Oxford. Then she pined for her native
+      air, and came back and entered the service of the franklin."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But why should your mother have taken you away?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "She always believed, Master Cuthbert, that my father was killed by the
+      baron to prevent him giving any news of the secrets of the castle. He and
+      some others had been kept in the walls for many months, and were engaged
+      in the making of secret passages."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is just what I came to ask you, Gurth. I have heard something of
+      this story before, and now that we are attacking Wortham Castle, and the
+      earl has sworn to level it to the ground, it is of importance if possible
+      to find out whether any of the secret passages lead beyond the castle, and
+      if so, where. Almost all the castles have, I have been told, an exit by
+      which the garrison can at will make sorties or escape; and I thought that
+      maybe you might have heard enough to give us some clue as to the existence
+      of such a passage at Wortham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old man thought for some time in silence and then said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I may be mistaken, but methinks a diligent search in the copse near the
+      stream might find the mouth of the outlet."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What makes you think that this is so, Gurth?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I had been with my mother to carry some clothes to my father on the last
+      occasion on which I saw him. As we neared the castle I saw my father and
+      three other of the workmen, together with the baron, coming down from the
+      castle toward the spot. As my mother did not wish to approach while the
+      baron was at hand, we stood within the trees at the edge of the wood and
+      watched what was being done. The baron came with them down to the bushes,
+      and then they again came out, crossed the river, and one of them cut some
+      willows, peeled them, and erected the white staves in a line toward the
+      castle. They walked for a bit on each side, and seemed to be making
+      calculations. Then they went back into the castle, and I never saw my
+      father again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Why did you not go in at once according to your intention?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Because my mother said that she thought some important work was on hand,
+      and that maybe the baron would not like that women should know aught of
+      it, for he was of suspicious and evil mind. More than this I know not. The
+      castle had already been finished and most of the masons discharged. There
+      were, however, a party of serfs kept at work, and also some masons, and
+      rumor had it that they were engaged in making the secret passages. Whether
+      it was so or not I cannot say, but I know that none of that party ever
+      left the castle alive. It was given out that a bad fever had raged there,
+      but none believed it; and the report went about, and was I doubt not true,
+      that all had been killed, to preserve the secret of the passage."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert lost no time in making use of the information that he had gained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Early next morning, at daybreak, he started on his pony to Wortham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he did not wish the earl or his followers to know the facts that he had
+      learned until they were proved, he made his way round the camp of the
+      besiegers, and by means of his whistle called one of the foresters to him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Where is Cnut?" he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He is with a party occupied in making ladders."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Go to him," Cuthbert said, "and tell him to withdraw quietly and make his
+      way here. I have an important matter on which I wish to speak to him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut arrived in a few minutes, somewhat wondering at the message. He
+      brightened greatly when Cuthbert told him what he had learned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is indeed important," he said. "We will lose no time in searching
+      the copse you speak of. You and I, together with two of my most trusty
+      men, with axes to clear away the brush, will do. At present a thing of
+      this sort had best be kept between as few as may be."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They started at once and soon came down upon the stream.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It ran at this point in a little valley, some twenty or thirty feet deep.
+      On the bank not far from the castle grew a small wood, and it was in this
+      that Cuthbert hoped to find the passage spoken of by Gurth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trees and brushwood were so thick that it was apparent at once that if
+      the passage had ever existed it had been unused for some years.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The woodmen were obliged to chop down dozens of young saplings to make
+      their way up from the water toward the steeper part of the bank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The wood was some fifty yards in length, and as it was uncertain at which
+      point the passage had come out, a very minute search had to be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What do you think it would be like, Cnut?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Like enough to a rabbit-hole, or more likely still there would be no hole
+      whatever. We must look for moss and greenery, for it is likely that such
+      would have been planted, so as to conceal the door from any passer-by,
+      while yet allowing a party from inside to cut their way through it without
+      difficulty."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a search of two hours, Cnut decided that the only place in the copse
+      in which it was likely that the entrance to a passage could be hidden was
+      a spot where the ground was covered thickly with ivy and trailing plants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It looks level enough with the rest," Cuthbert said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ay, lad, but we know not what lies behind this thick screen of ivy.
+      Thrust in that staff."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the woodmen began to probe with the end of a staff among the ivy.
+      For some time he was met by the solid ground, but presently the butt of
+      the staff went through suddenly, pitching him on his head, amid a
+      suppressed laugh from his comrades.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here it is, if anywhere," said Cnut, and with their billhooks they at
+      once began to clear away the thickly grown creepers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Five minutes' work was sufficient to show a narrow cut, some two feet
+      wide, in the hillside, at the end of which stood a low door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here it is," said Cnut, with triumph, "and the castle is ours. Thanks,
+      Cuthbert, for your thought and intelligence. It has not been used lately,
+      that is clear," he went on. "These creepers have not been moved for years.
+      Shall we go and tell the earl of our discovery? What think you, Cuthbert?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think we had better not," Cuthbert said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We might not succeed in getting in, as the passage may have fallen
+      further along; but I will speak to him and tell him that we have something
+      on hand which may alter his dispositions for fighting to-morrow."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert made his way to the earl, who had taken possession of a small
+      cottage a short distance from the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What can I do for you?" Sir Walter said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I want to ask you, sir, not to attack the castle to-morrow until you see
+      a white flag waved from the keep."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But how on earth is a white flag to be raised from the keep?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It may be," Cuthbert said, "that I have some friends inside who will be
+      able to make a diversion in our favor. However, sir, it can do no harm if
+      you will wait till then, and may save many lives. At what hour do you mean
+      to attack ?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The bridges and all other preparations to assist us across the moat will
+      be ready to-night. We will advance then under cover of darkness, and as
+      soon after dawn as may be attack in earnest."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Very well, sir," Cuthbert said. "I trust that within five minutes after
+      your bugle has sounded the white flag will make its appearance on the
+      keep, but it cannot do so until after you have commenced an attack, or at
+      least a pretense of an attack."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two or three hours before daylight Cuthbert accompanied Cnut and
+      twenty-five picked men of the foresters to the copse. They were provided
+      with crowbars, and all carried heavy axes. The door was soon pried open.
+      It opened silently and without a creak.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It may be," Cnut said, "that the door has not been opened as you say for
+      years, but it is certain," and he placed his torch to the hinges, "that it
+      has been well oiled within the last two or three days. No doubt the baron
+      intended to make his escape this way, should the worst arrive. Now that we
+      have the door open we had better wait quiet until the dawn commences. The
+      earl will blow his bugle as a signal for the advance; it will be another
+      ten minutes before they are fairly engaged, and that will be enough for us
+      to break open any doors that there may be between this and the castle, and
+      to force our way inside."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed a long time waiting before the dawn fairly broke&mdash;still
+      longer before the earl's bugle was heard to sound the attack. Then the
+      band, headed by Cnut and two or three of the strongest of the party
+      entered the passage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had had some misgivings as to his mother's injunctions to take no
+      part in the fray, and it cannot be said that in accompanying the foresters
+      he obeyed the letter of her instructions. At the same time as he felt sure
+      that the effect of a surprise would be complete and crushing, and that the
+      party would gain the top of the keep without any serious resistance, he
+      considered the risk was so small as to justify him in accompanying the
+      foresters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The passage was some five feet high, and little more than two feet wide.
+      It was dry and dusty, and save the marks on the ground of a human foot
+      going and returning, doubtless that of the man who had oiled the lock the
+      day before, the passage appeared to have been unused from the time that it
+      left the hands of its builders.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Passing along for some distance they came to another strong oaken door.
+      This, like the last, yielded to the efforts of the crowbars of the
+      foresters, and they again advanced. Presently they came to a flight of
+      steps.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We must now be near the castle," Cnut said. "In fact, methinks I can hear
+      confused noises ahead."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mounting the steps, they came to a third door; this was thickly studded
+      with iron, and appeared of very great strength. Fortunately the lock was
+      upon their side, and they were enabled to shoot the bolt; but upon the
+      other side the door was firmly secured by large bolts, and it was fully
+      five minutes before the foresters could succeed in opening it. It was not
+      without a good deal of noise that they at last did so; and several times
+      they paused, fearing that the alarm must have been given in the castle.
+      As, however, the door remained closed, they supposed that the occupants
+      were fully engaged in defending themselves from the attacks of the earl's
+      party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the door gave way they found hanging across in front of them a very
+      thick arras, and pressing this aside they entered a small room in the
+      thickness of the wall of the keep. It contained the merest slit for light,
+      and was clearly unused. Another door, this time unfastened, led into a
+      larger apartment, which was also at present unoccupied. They could hear
+      now the shouts of the combatants without, the loud orders given by the
+      leaders on the walls, the crack, as the stones hurled by the mangonels
+      struck the walls, and the ring of steel as the arrows struck against steel
+      cap and cuirass.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is fortunate that all were so well engaged, or they would certainly
+      have heard the noise of our forcing the door, which would have brought all
+      of them upon us. As it is, we are in the heart of the keep. We have now
+      but to make a rush up these winding steps, and methinks we shall find
+      ourselves on the battlements. They will be so surprised that no real
+      resistance can be offered to us. Now let us advance."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying Cnut led the way upstairs, followed by the foresters, Cuthbert,
+      as before, allowing five or six of them to intervene between him and the
+      leader. He carried his short sword and a quarterstaff, a weapon by no
+      means to be despised in the hands of an active and experienced player.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently, after mounting some fifty or sixty steps, they issued on the
+      platform of the keep. Here were gathered some thirty or forty men, who
+      were so busied in shooting with crossbows, and in working machines casting
+      javelins, stones, and other missiles upon the besiegers, that they were
+      unaware of the addition to their numbers until the whole of the foresters
+      had gathered on the summit, and at the order of Cnut suddenly fell upon
+      them with a loud shout.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Taken wholly by surprise by the foe, who seemed to have risen from the
+      bowels of the earth by magic, the soldiers of the Baron of Wortham offered
+      but a feeble resistance. Some were cast over the battlement of the keep,
+      some driven down staircases, others cut down, and then, Cuthbert fastening
+      a small white flag he had prepared to his quarterstaff, waved it above the
+      battlements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Even now the combatants on the outer wall were in ignorance of what had
+      happened in the keep; so great was the din that the struggle which had
+      there taken place had passed unnoticed; and it was not until the
+      fugitives, rushing out into the courtyard, shouted that the keep had been
+      captured, that the besieged became aware of the imminence of the danger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      [Image: CUTHBERT FASTENED A SMALL WHITE FLAG TO HIS QUARTER-STAFF AND
+      WAVED IT ABOVE THE BATTLEMENTS.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hitherto the battle had been going well for the defenders of the castle.
+      The Baron of Wortham was indeed surprised at the feebleness of the
+      assault. The arrows which had fallen in clouds upon the first day's attack
+      upon the castle among his soldiers were now comparatively few and
+      ineffective. The besiegers scarcely appeared to push forward their bridges
+      with any vigor, and it seemed to him that a coldness had fallen upon them,
+      and that some disagreement must have arisen between the foresters and the
+      earl, completely crippling the energy of the attack.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he heard the words shouted from the courtyard below he could not
+      believe his ears. That the keep behind should have been carried by the
+      enemy appeared to him impossible. With a roar he called upon the bravest
+      of his men to follow, and rushing across the courtyard, rapidly ascended
+      the staircase. The movement was observed from the keep, and Cnut and a few
+      of his men stationed themselves with their battle-axes at the top of
+      various stairs leading below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The signal shown by Cuthbert had not passed unobserved. The earl, who had
+      given instructions to his followers to make a mere feint of attacking, now
+      blew the signal for the real onslaught. The bridges were rapidly run
+      across the moat, ladders were planted, and the garrison being paralyzed
+      and confused by the attack in their rear, as well as hindered by the
+      arrows which now flew down upon them from the keep above, offered but a
+      feeble resistance, and the assailants, led by Sir Walter himself, poured
+      over the walls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now there was a scene of confusion and desperate strife. The baron had
+      just gained the top of the stairs, and was engaged in a fierce conflict
+      with Cnut and his men, when the news reached him that the wall was carried
+      from without. With an execration he again turned and rushed down the
+      stairs, hoping by a vigorous effort to cast back the foe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was, however, all too late; his followers, disheartened and alarmed,
+      fought without method or order in scattered groups of threes and fours.
+      They made their last stand in corners and passages. They knew there was
+      but little hope of mercy from the Saxon foresters, and against these they
+      fought to the last. To the Norman retainers, however, of the earl they
+      offered a less determined resistance, throwing down their arms and
+      surrendering at discretion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron, when fiercely fighting, was slain by an arrow from the keep
+      above, and with his fall the last resistance ceased. A short time was
+      spent in searching the castle, binding the prisoners, and carrying off the
+      valuables that the baron had collected in his raids. Then a light was set
+      to the timbers, the granaries were fired, and in a few minutes the smoke
+      wreathing out of the various loopholes and openings told the country round
+      that the stronghold had fallen, and that they were free from the oppressor
+      at last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0004" id="link2HCH0004"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER IV. &mdash; THE CRUSADES.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Warm thanks and much praise were bestowed upon Cuthbert for his share in
+      the capture of the castle, and the earl, calling the foresters round him,
+      then and there bestowed freedom upon any of them who might have been serfs
+      of his, and called upon all his knights and neighbors to do the same, in
+      return for the good service which they had rendered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was willingly done, and a number of Cnut's party, who had before
+      borne the stigma of escaped serfs, were now free men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      We are too apt to forget, in our sympathy with the Saxons, that, fond as
+      they were of freedom for themselves, they were yet severe masters, and
+      kept the mass of the people in a state of serfage. Although their laws
+      provided ample justice as between Saxon man and man, there was no justice
+      for the unhappy serfs, who were either the original inhabitants or
+      captives taken in war, and who were distinguished by a collar of brass or
+      iron round their neck.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut's party had indeed long got rid of these badges, the first act of a
+      serf when he took to the woods being always to file off his collar; but
+      they were liable when caught to be punished, even by death, and were
+      delighted at having achieved their freedom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And what can I do for you, Cuthbert?" Sir Walter said, as they rode
+      homeward. "It is to you that I am indebted: in the first place for the
+      rescue of my daughter, in the second for the capture of that castle, which
+      I doubt me much whether we should ever have taken in fair fight had it not
+      been for your aid."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, Sir Walter," the lad replied. "At present I need nothing, but
+      should the time come when you may go to the wars I would fain ride with
+      you as your page, in the hope of some day winning my spurs also in the
+      field."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So shall it be," the earl said, "and right willingly. But who have we
+      here?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he spoke a horseman rode up and presented a paper to the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is a notice," the earl said, after perusing it, "that King Richard
+      has determined to take up the cross, and that he calls upon his nobles and
+      barons to join him in the effort to free the holy sepulcher from the
+      infidels. I doubt whether the minds of the people are quite prepared, but
+      I hear that there has been much preaching by friars and monks in some
+      parts, and that many are eager to join in the war."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Think you that you will go to the war, Sir Walter?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not as yet; it must much depend upon the king's mood. For myself I
+      care not so greatly as some do about this question of the Holy Land. There
+      has been blood enough shed already to drown it, and we are no nearer than
+      when the first swarms of pilgrims made their way thither."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On Cuthbert's returning home and telling his mother all that had passed,
+      she shook her head, but said that she could not oppose his wishes to go
+      with the earl when the time should come, and that it was only right he
+      should follow in the footsteps of the good knight his father.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have heard much of these Crusades," he said; "canst tell me about
+      them?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In truth I know not much, my son; but Father Francis, I doubt not, can
+      tell you all the particulars anent the affair."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next time that Father Francis, who was the special adviser of Dame
+      Editha, rode over from the convent on his ambling nag, Cuthbert eagerly
+      asked him if he would tell him what he knew of the Crusades.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Hitherto, my son," he said, "the Crusades have, it must be owned, brought
+      many woes upon Europe. From the early times great swarms of pilgrims were
+      accustomed to go from all parts of Europe to the holy shrines.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "When the followers of the evil prophet took possession of the land, they
+      laid grievous burdens upon the pilgrims, heavily they fined them,
+      persecuted them in every way, and treated them as if indeed they were but
+      the scum of the earth under their feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So terrible were the tales that reached Europe that men came to think
+      that it would be a good deed truly to wrest the sepulcher of the Lord from
+      the hands of these heathens. Pope Urban was the first to give authority
+      and strength to the movement, and at a vast meeting at Claremont of thirty
+      thousand clergy and four thousand barons, it was decided that war must be
+      made against the infidel. From all parts of France men flocked to hear
+      Pope Urban preach there; and when he had finished his oration the vast
+      multitude, carried away by enthusiasm, swore to win the holy sepulcher or
+      to die.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Mighty was the throng that gathered for the First Crusade. Monks threw
+      aside their gowns and took to the sword and cuirass; even women and
+      children joined in the throng. What, my son, could be expected from a
+      great army so formed? Without leaders, without discipline, without
+      tactics, without means of getting food, they soon became a scourge of the
+      country through which they passed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Passing through Hungary, where they greatly ravaged the fields, they came
+      to Bulgaria. Here the people, struck with astonishment and dismay at this
+      great horde of hungry people who arrived among them like locusts, fell
+      upon them with the sword, and great numbers fell. The first band that
+      passed into that country perished miserably, and of all that huge
+      assembly, it may be said that, numbering at the start not less than two
+      hundred and fifty thousand persons, only about one hundred thousand
+      crossed into Asia Minor. The fate of these was no better than that of
+      those who had perished in Hungary and Bulgaria. After grievous suffering
+      and loss they at last reached Nicaea. There they fell into an ambuscade;
+      and out of the whole of the undisciplined masses who had followed Peter
+      the Hermit, it is doubtful whether ten thousand ever returned home.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This first attempt to rescue the holy sepulcher was followed by others
+      equally wild, misguided, and unfortunate. Some of them indeed began their
+      evil deeds as soon as they had left their home. The last of these bodies
+      fell upon the Jews, who are indeed enemies of the Christian faith, but who
+      have now, at least, nothing to do with the question of the holy sepulcher.
+      As soon as they entered into Germany the Crusaders put them to death with
+      horrible torture. Plunder and rapine indeed appeared to be the object of
+      the Crusaders. On this as well as on most other preceding bands, their
+      misdeeds drew down the vengeance of the people. At an early period of
+      their march, and as soon as they reached Hungary, the people fell upon
+      them, and put the greater portion to the sword.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thus, in these irregular expeditions no less than five hundred thousand
+      people are supposed to have perished. Godfrey de Bouillon was the first
+      who undertook to lead a Crusade according to the military knowledge of the
+      day. With him were his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, the Counts of Anault
+      and St. Paul, and many other nobles and gentlemen, with their retainers,
+      well armed and under good order; and so firm was the discipline of Duke
+      Godfrey that they were allowed to pass freely by the people of the
+      countries who had opposed the previous bands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Through Hungary, Bulgaria, and Thrace he made his way; and though he met
+      with many difficulties from Alexius, the crafty and treacherous Emperor of
+      the Greeks, he at last succeeded in crossing into Asia. There he was
+      joined by many from England, as well as from France and other countries.
+      Duke Robert, the son of our first William, led a strong band of Normans to
+      the war, as did the other great princes of France and Spain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The army which crossed the narrow passage of the Hellespont is estimated
+      at no less than seven hundred thousand fighting men. Of these one hundred
+      thousand were knights clad in complete armor, the remainder were
+      men-at-arms and bowmen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nicaea, the place which had been the scene of the massacre of Peter the
+      Hermit's hosts, was taken after a desperate conflict, lasting for many
+      weeks, and the Crusaders afterward defeated the Turks in a great battle
+      near the town of Doryleum. After these successes disputes arose among the
+      leaders, and Count Baldwin, brother of Duke Godfrey, left the main body
+      with about fifteen hundred men, and founded a kingdom for himself in
+      Mesopotamia.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The main body, slowly and painfully, and suffering from disease, famine,
+      and the heat, made its way south. Antioch, a city of great strength and
+      importance, was besieged, but it proved so strong that it resisted for
+      many months, and was at last only taken by treachery.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "After the capture of this place the sufferings of the Crusaders so far
+      from being diminished were redoubled. They themselves during the siege had
+      bought up all the food that could be brought from the surrounding country,
+      while the magazines of the town were found, when an entry was effected, to
+      be entirely deserted. The enemy, aided by a great Persian host, came down,
+      and those who had been the besiegers were now besieged. However, when in
+      the last strait the Christian army sallied out, and inspired with
+      supernatural strength, defeated the Turks and Persians, with a slaughter
+      of one hundred thousand men. Another slow movement to the south brought
+      them into the Holy Land, and pressing forward, they came at last within
+      sight of Jerusalem itself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So fearful had been the losses of the Crusaders that of seven hundred
+      thousand who crossed the Hellespont, not more than forty thousand reached
+      the end of the pilgrimage. This fragment of an army, which had appeared
+      before a very strongly fortified town, possessed no means of capturing the
+      place&mdash;none of the machines of war necessary for the purpose, no
+      provisions or munitions of any kind. Water was scarce also; and it
+      appeared as if the remnant of the great army of Godfrey de Bouillon had
+      arrived before Jerusalem only to perish there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Happily just at this time a further band of Crusaders from Genoa, who had
+      reached Jaffa, made their appearance. They were provided with stores, and
+      had skilled workmen capable of making the machines for the siege. On July
+      14, 1099, the attack was made, and after resistance gallant and desperate
+      as the assault, the Crusaders burst into the city, massacred the whole of
+      the defenders and inhabitants, calculated at seventy thousand in number,
+      and so became masters of the holy sepulcher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Sultan of Egypt was meanwhile advancing to the assistance of the
+      Mohammedans of Syria; but Godfrey, with twenty thousand of his best men,
+      advanced to meet the vast host, and scattered them as if they had been
+      sheep. Godfrey was now chosen King of Jerusalem, and the rest of his army&mdash;save
+      three hundred knights and two hundred soldiers, who agreed to remain with
+      him&mdash;returned to their home. The news of the victory led other armies
+      of Crusaders to follow the example of that of Godfrey; but as these were
+      almost as completely without organization or leadership as those of Peter
+      the Hermit, they suffered miserably on their way, and few indeed ever
+      reached the Holy Land. Godfrey died in 1100, and his brother Baldwin
+      succeeded him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The history of the last hundred years has been full of fresh efforts to
+      crush the Moslem power, but hitherto it cannot be said that fortune has
+      attended the efforts of the Christians. Had it not been indeed for the
+      devotion of the Knights of St. John and of the Templars, two great
+      companies formed of men who devoted their lives to the holding of the
+      sepulcher against the infidel, our hold of the Holy Land would have been
+      lost.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Gradually the Saracens have wrested post after post from our hands.
+      Edessa was taken in 1144, and the news of this event created an intense
+      excitement. The holy St. Bernard stirred up all France, and Louis VII.
+      himself took the vow and headed a noble army. The ways of God are not our
+      ways, and although the army of Germany joined that of France, but little
+      results came of this great effort.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Emperor Conrad, with the Germans, was attacked by the Turk Saladin of
+      Iconium, and was defeated with a loss of sixty thousand men. The King of
+      France, with his army, was also attacked with fury, and a large portion of
+      his force were slaughtered. Nothing more came of this great effort, and
+      while the first Crusade seemed to show that the men-at-arms of Europe were
+      irresistible, the second on the contrary gave proof that the Turks were
+      equal to the Christian knights. Gradually the Christian hold of the Holy
+      Land was shaken. In 1187, although fighting with extraordinary bravery,
+      the small army of Christian Knights of the Temple and of St. John were
+      annihilated, the King of Jerusalem was made prisoner, and the Christian
+      power was crushed. Then Saladin, who commanded the Turks, advanced against
+      Jerusalem, and forced it to capitulate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Such, my boy, is the last sad news which has reached us; and no wonder
+      that it has stirred the hearts of the monarchs of Europe, and that every
+      effort will be again made to recapture the holy sepulcher, and to avenge
+      our brethren who have been murdered by the infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But, Father Francis, from your story it would seem that Europe has
+      already sacrificed an enormous number of lives to take the holy sepulcher,
+      and that after all the fighting, when she has taken it, it is only to lose
+      it again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is so, my son; but we will trust that in future things will be
+      better managed. The Templars and Hospitalers now number so vast a number
+      of the best lances in Europe, and are grown to be such great powers, that
+      we may believe that when we have again wrested the holy sepulcher from the
+      hands of the infidels they will be able to maintain it against all
+      assaults. Doubtless the great misfortunes which have fallen upon the
+      Christian armies have been a punishment from heaven, because they have not
+      gone to work in the right spirit. It is not enough to take up lance and
+      shield, and to place a red cross upon the shoulder. Those who desire to
+      fight the battle of the Lord must cleanse their hearts, and go forth in
+      the spirit of pilgrims rather than knights. I mean not that they should
+      trust wholly to spiritual weapons&mdash;for in truth the infidel is a foe
+      not to be despised&mdash;but I mean that they should lay aside all
+      thoughts of worldly glory and rivalry one against another."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And think you, Father, that such is the spirit with which King Richard
+      and the other kings and nobles now preparing to go to the Holy Land are
+      animated?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis hesitated.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is not for me, my son, to judge motives, or to speak well or ill of
+      the instruments who have been chosen for this great work. It is of all
+      works the most praiseworthy, most holy. It is horrible to think that the
+      holy shrines of Jerusalem should be in the hands of men who believe not in
+      our Redeemer; and I hold it to be the duty of every man who can bear arms,
+      no matter what his rank or his station, to don his armor and to go forth
+      to battle in the cause. Whether success will crown the effort, or whether
+      God wills it otherwise, it is not for man to discuss; it is enough that
+      the work is there, and it is our duty to do it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And think you, Father, that it will do good to England?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That do I, my son, whether we gain the Holy Land or no. Methinks that it
+      will do good service to the nation that Saxon and Norman should fight
+      together under the holy cross. Hitherto the races have stood far too much
+      apart. They have seen each other's bad qualities rather than good; but
+      methinks that when the Saxon and the Norman stand side by side on the soil
+      of the Holy Land, and shout together for England, it must needs bind them
+      together, and lead them to feel that they are no longer Normans and
+      Saxons, but Englishmen. I intend to preach on the village green at Evesham
+      next Sunday morning on this subject, and as I know you are in
+      communication with the forest men, I would, Cuthbert, that you would
+      persuade them to come in to hear me. You were wondering what could be
+      found for these vagrants. They have many of them long since lost the
+      habits of honest labor. Many of them are still serfs, although most have
+      been freed by the good earl and the knights his followers. Some of those
+      who would fain leave the life in the woods still cling to it because they
+      think that it would be mean to desert their comrades, who being serfs are
+      still bound to lurk there; but methinks that this is a great opportunity
+      for them. They are valiant men, and the fact that they are fond of drawing
+      an arrow at a buck does not make them one whit the worse Christians. I
+      will do my best to move their hearts, and if they will but agree together
+      to take the cross, they would make a goodly band of footmen to accompany
+      the earl."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is the earl going?" Cuthbert asked eagerly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not for certain," said Father Francis; "but I think from what I
+      hear from his chaplain, Father Eustace, that his mind turns in that
+      direction."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then, Father, if he goes, I will go too," Cuthbert exclaimed. "He
+      promised to take me as his page the first time he went to war."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis shook his head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear me, Cuthbert, this is far from the spirit in which we awhile ago
+      agreed that men should go to the holy war."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert hung his head a little.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ay, Father Francis, men; but I am a boy," he said, "and after all, boys
+      are fond of adventure for adventure's sake. However, Father," he said,
+      with a smile, "no doubt your eloquence on the green will turn me mightily
+      to the project, for you must allow that the story you have told me this
+      morning is not such as to create any very strong yearning in one's mind to
+      follow the millions of men who have perished in the Holy Land."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Go to," said Father Francis, smiling, "thou art a pert varlet. I will do
+      my best on Sunday to turn you to a better frame of mind."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0005" id="link2HCH0005"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER V. &mdash; PREPARATIONS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Next Sunday a large number of people from some miles round were gathered
+      on the green at Evesham, to hear Father Francis preach on the holy
+      sepulcher. The forest men in their green jerkins mingled with the crowd,
+      and a look of attention and seriousness was on the faces of all, for the
+      news of the loss of the holy sepulcher had really exercised a great effect
+      upon the minds of the people in England as elsewhere.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Those were the days of pilgrimage to holy places, when the belief in the
+      sanctity of places and things was overwhelming, and when men believed that
+      a journey to the holy shrines was sufficient to procure for them a pardon
+      for all their misdeeds. The very word "infidel" in those days was full of
+      horror, and the thought that the holy places of the Christians were in the
+      hands of Moslems affected all Christians throughout Europe with a feeling
+      of shame as well as of grief.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the crowd were many of the Norman retainers from the castle and from
+      many of the holds around, and several knights with the ladies of their
+      family stood a little apart from the edge of the gathering; for it was
+      known that Father Francis would not be alone, but that he would be
+      accompanied by a holy friar who had returned from the East, and who could
+      tell of the cruelties which the Christians had suffered at the hands of
+      the Saracens.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis, at ordinary times a tranquil preacher, was moved beyond
+      himself by the theme on which he was holding forth. He did not attempt to
+      hide from those who stood around that the task to be undertaken was one of
+      grievous peril and trial; that disease and heat, hunger and thirst, must
+      be dared, as well as the sword of the infidel. But he spoke of the grand
+      nature of the work, of the humiliation to Christians, of the desecration
+      of the shrines, and of the glory which awaited those who joined the
+      Crusade, whether they lived or whether they died in the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His words had a strong effect upon the simple people who listened to him,
+      but the feelings so aroused were as naught to the enthusiasm which greeted
+      the address of the friar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Meager and pale, with a worn, anxious face as one who had suffered much,
+      the friar, holding aloft two pieces of wood from the Mount of Olives tied
+      together in the form of a cross, harangued the crowd. His words poured
+      forth in a fiery stream, kindling the hearts, and stirring at once the
+      devotion and the anger of his listeners.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He told of the holy places, he spoke of the scenes of Holy Writ, which had
+      there been enacted; and then he depicted the men who had died for them. He
+      told of the knights and men-at-arms, each of whom proved himself again and
+      again a match for a score of infidels. He spoke of the holy women, who,
+      fearlessly and bravely, as the knights themselves, had borne their share
+      in the horrors of the siege and in the terrible times which had preceded
+      it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He told them that this misfortune had befallen Christianity because of the
+      lukewarmness which had come upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What profited it," he asked, "if a few knights who remained to defend the
+      holy sepulcher were heroes? A few heroes cannot withstand an army. If
+      Christendom after making a mighty effort to capture the holy sepulcher had
+      not fallen away, the conquest which had been made with so vast an
+      expenditure of blood would not have been lost. This is a work in which no
+      mere passing fervor will avail; bravery at first, endurance afterward, are
+      needed. Many men must determine not only to assist to wrest the holy
+      sepulcher from the hands of the infidels, but to give their lives, so long
+      as they might last, to retaining it. It is scarce to be expected that men
+      with wives and families will take a view like this, indeed it is not to be
+      desired. But there are single men, men of no ties, who can devote their
+      whole lives, as did the Knights of the Orders of the Cross, to this great
+      object. When their life has come to an end doubtless others will take up
+      the banner that their hands can no longer hold. But for life it is,
+      indeed, that many of humble as well as of princely class must bind
+      themselves to take and defend to death the holy sepulcher."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, gradually raising the tone of his speech, the friar proceeded; until
+      at length by his intense earnestness, his wild gesticulations, his
+      impassioned words, he drew the whole of his listeners along with him; and
+      when he ceased, a mighty shout of "To the Holy Land!" burst from his
+      hearers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Falling upon their knees the crowd begged of him to give them the sign of
+      the cross, and to bestow his blessing upon their swords, and upon their
+      efforts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Father Francis had prepared, in contemplation of such a movement, a large
+      number of small white crosses of cloth. These he and the friar now
+      fastened to the shoulders of the men as they crowded up to receive it,
+      holding their hands aloft, kissing the cross that the friar extended to
+      them, and swearing to give their lives, if need be, to rescue the holy
+      shrines from the infidel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When all had received the holy symbol, Father Francis again ascended the
+      bank from which they had addressed the crowd:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Now go to your homes, my sons," he said. "Think of the oath that you have
+      taken, and of the course that lies open to you when the time comes. When
+      King Richard is prepared to start, then will you be called upon to fulfill
+      your vows. It may be that all who have sworn may not be called upon to go.
+      It needs that the land here should be tilled, it needs that there should
+      be protectors for the women and children, it needs that this England of
+      ours should flourish, and we cannot give all her sons, however willing
+      they might be to take the cross. But the willingness which you will, I am
+      sure, show to go if needs be, and to redeem your vows, will be sufficient.
+      Some must go and some must stay; these are matters to be decided
+      hereafter; for the time let us separate; you will hear when the hour for
+      action arrives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A fortnight later the Earl of Evesham, who had been on a long journey to
+      London, returned with full authority to raise and organize a force as his
+      contingent to the holy wars.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All was now bustle and activity in the castle. Father Francis informed him
+      of the willingness of such of the forest men as he deemed fit to enlist
+      under his banner; and the earl was much gratified at finding that the
+      ranks of heavily-armed retainers whom he would take with him were to be
+      swollen by the addition of so useful a contingent as that of one hundred
+      skillful archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was not long in asking for an interview with the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had indeed great difficulty in persuading Dame Editha that he was old
+      enough to share in the fatigues of so great an expedition, but he had
+      Father Francis on his side; and between the influence of her confessor,
+      and the importunities of her son, the opposition of the good lady fell to
+      the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was already, for his age, well trained to arms. Many of the old
+      soldiers at the castle who had known and loved his father had been ever
+      ready to give lessons in the use of arms to Cuthbert, who was enthusiastic
+      in his desire to prove as good a knight as his father had been. His
+      friends, the outlaws, had taught him the use of the bow and of the
+      quarterstaff; and Cuthbert, strong and well-built for his age, and having
+      little to do save to wield the sword and the bow, had attained a very
+      considerable amount of skill with each.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had too, which was unusual, a certain amount of book learning, although
+      this, true to say, had not been acquired so cheerfully or willingly as the
+      skill at arms. Father Francis had, however, taught him to read and to
+      write&mdash;accomplishments which were at that time rare, except in the
+      cloister. In those days if a knight had a firm seat in his saddle, a
+      strong arm, a keen eye, and high courage, it was thought to be of little
+      matter whether he could or could not do more than make his mark on the
+      parchment. The whole life of the young was given to acquiring skill in
+      arms; and unless intended for the convent, any idea of education would in
+      the great majority of cases have been considered as preposterous.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To do Cuthbert justice, he had protested with all his might against the
+      proposition of Father Francis to his mother to teach him some clerkly
+      knowledge. He had yielded most unwillingly at last to her entreaties,
+      backed as they were by the sound arguments and good sense of Father
+      Francis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham received Cuthbert's application very graciously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Certainly, Cuthbert," he said, "you shall accompany me; first, on account
+      of my promise to you; secondly, because from the readiness you displayed
+      both in the matter of my daughter and of the attack on Wortham, you will
+      be a notable aid and addition to my party; thirdly, from my friendship for
+      your father and Dame Editha."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This point being settled, Cuthbert at once assumed his new duties. There
+      was plenty for him to do&mdash;to see that the orders of the earl were
+      properly carried out; to bear messages to the knights who followed the
+      earl's fortunes, at their various holds; to stand by and watch the
+      armorers at work, and the preparation of the stores of arms and missiles
+      which would be necessary for the expedition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sometimes he would go round to summon the tenants of the various farms and
+      lands, who held from the earl, to come to the castle; and here Sir Walter
+      would, as far as might be without oppression, beg of them to contribute
+      largely to the expedition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In these appeals he was in no slight way assisted by Father Francis, who
+      pointed out loudly to the people that those who stayed behind were bound
+      to make as much sacrifice of their worldly goods as those who went to the
+      war might make of their lives. Life and land are alike at the service of
+      God. Could the land be sold, it would be a good deed to sell it; but as
+      this could not be, they should at least sell all that they could, and
+      pledge their property if they could find lenders, in order to contribute
+      to the needs of their lord, and the fitting out of this great enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The preparations were at last complete, and a gallant band gathered at the
+      castle ready for starting. It consisted of some two hundred men-at-arms
+      led by six knights, and of one hundred bowmen dressed in Lincoln green,
+      with quilted jerkins to keep out the arrows of the enemy. All the country
+      from around gathered to see the start. Dame Editha was there, and by her
+      side stood the earl's little daughter. The earl himself was in armor, and
+      beside him rode Cuthbert in the gay attire of a page.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Just at that moment, however, his face did not agree with his costume, for
+      although he strove his best to look bright and smiling, it was a hard task
+      to prevent the tears from filling his eyes at his departure from his
+      mother. The good lady cried unrestrainedly, and Margaret joined in her
+      tears. The people who had gathered round cheered lustily; the trumpets
+      blew a gay fanfaronade, and the squire threw to the wind the earl's
+      colors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was no mere pleasure trip on which they were starting, for all knew
+      that, of the preceding Crusades, not one in ten of those who had gone so
+      gladly forth had ever returned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must not be supposed that the whole of those present were animated by
+      any strong religious feeling. No doubt there existed a desire, which was
+      carefully fanned by the preaching of the priests and monks, to rescue the
+      holy sepulcher from the hands of the Saracens; but a far stronger feeling
+      was to be found in the warlike nature of the people in those days.
+      Knights, men-at-arms, and indeed men of all ranks were full of a combative
+      spirit. Life in the castle and hut was alike dull and monotonous, and the
+      excitement of war and adventure was greatly looked for, both as a means of
+      obtaining glory and booty, and for the change they afforded to the dreary
+      monotony of life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There is little to tell of the journey of the Earl of Evesham's band
+      through England to Southampton, at which place they took ship and crossed
+      to France&mdash;or rather to Normandy, for in those days Normandy was
+      regarded, as indeed it formed, a part of England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, as was natural to his age, was full of delight at all the
+      varying scenes through which they passed. The towns were to him an
+      especial source of wonder, for he had never visited any other than that of
+      Worcester, to which he had once or twice been taken on occasions of high
+      festival. Havre was in those days an important place, and being the
+      landing-place of a great portion of the English bands, it was full of
+      bustle and excitement. Every day ships brought in nobles and their
+      followings.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The King of England was already in Normandy hastening the preparations,
+      and each band, as it landed, marched down to the meeting-place on the
+      plains of Vezelay. Already they began to experience a taste of the
+      hardships which they were to endure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In those days there was no regular supply train for an army, but each
+      division or band supported itself by purchase or pillage, as the case
+      might be, from the surrounding country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the English troops were marching through a friendly country, pillage
+      was of course strictly forbidden; but while many of the leaders paid for
+      all they had, it must be owned that among the smaller leaders were many
+      who took anything that they required with or without payment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The country was eaten up.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The population in those days was sparse, and the movement of so large a
+      number of men along a certain route completely exhausted all the resources
+      of the inhabitants; and although willing to pay for all that his men
+      required, the Earl of Evesham had frequently to lie down on the turf
+      supperless himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If this is the case now," he said to Cuthbert, "what will it be after we
+      have joined the French army? Methinks whatever we may do if we reach the
+      Holy Land, that we have a fair chance of being starved before we sail."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a long succession of marches they arrived in sight of the great camp
+      at Vezelay. It was indeed rather a canvas town than a camp. Here were
+      gathered nearly one hundred thousand men, a vast host at any time, but in
+      those days far greater in proportion to the strength of the countries than
+      at present. The tents of the leaders, nobles, and other knights and
+      gentlemen rose in regular lines, forming streets and squares.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The great mass of troops, however, were contented to sleep in the open
+      air; indeed the difficulties of carriage were so great that it was only
+      the leaders who could carry with them their canvas abodes. Before each
+      tent stood the lance and colors of its owner, and side by side in the
+      center of the camp stood the royal pavilions of Philip of France and
+      Richard of England, round which could be seen the gonfalons of all the
+      nobles of Western Europe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nothing could be gayer than the aspect of this camp as the party rode into
+      it. They were rather late, and the great body of the host were already
+      assembled.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert gazed with delight at the varied colors, the gay dresses, the
+      martial knights, and the air of discipline and order which reigned
+      everywhere.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was indeed war in its most picturesque form, a form which, as far as
+      beauty is concerned, has been altogether altered, and indeed destroyed, by
+      modern arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In those days individual prowess and bravery went for everything. A
+      handful of armored knights were a match for thousands of footmen, and
+      battles were decided as much by the prowess and bravery of the leader and
+      his immediate following as by that of the great mass of the army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl had the day before sent on a messenger to state that he was
+      coming, and as the party entered the camp they were met by a squire of the
+      camp-marshal, who conducted them to the position allotted to them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl's tent was soon erected, with four or five grouped around it for
+      his knights, one being set aside for his squires and pages.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When this was done Cuthbert strolled away to look at the varied sights of
+      the camp. A military officer in these days would be scandalized at the
+      scenes which were going on, but the strict, hard military discipline of
+      modern times was then absolutely unknown.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A camp was a moving town, and to it flocked the country people with their
+      goods; smiths and armorers erected their forges; minstrels and troubadours
+      flocked in to sing of former battles, and to raise the spirits of the
+      soldiers by merry lays of love and war; simple countrymen and women came
+      in to bring their presents of fowls or cakes to their friends in camp;
+      knights rode to and fro on their gayly caparisoned horses through the
+      crowd; the newly-raised levies, in many cases composed of woodmen and
+      peasants who had not in the course of their lives wandered a league from
+      their birthplaces, gaped in unaffected wonder at the sights around them;
+      while last, but by no means least, the maidens and good wives of the
+      neighborhood, fond then as now of brave men and gay dresses, thronged the
+      streets of the camp, and joined in, and were the cause of, merry laughter
+      and jest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here and there, a little apart from the main stream of traffic, the
+      minstrels would take up their position, and playing a gay air, the soldier
+      lads and lasses would fall to and foot it merrily to the strains.
+      Sometimes there would be a break in the gayety, and loud shouts, and
+      perhaps fierce oaths, would rise. Then the maidens would fly like startled
+      fawns, and men hasten to the spot; though the quarrel might be purely a
+      private one, yet should it happen between the retainers of two nobles, the
+      friends of each would be sure to strike in, and serious frays would arise
+      before the marshal of the camp with his posse could arrive to interfere.
+      Sometimes, indeed, these quarrels became so serious and desperate that
+      alliances were broken up and great intentions frustrated by the quarrels
+      of the soldiery.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here and there, on elevated platforms, or even on the top of a pile of
+      tubs, were friars occupied in haranguing the soldiers, and in inspiring
+      them with enthusiasm for the cause upon which they were embarked. The
+      conduct of their listeners showed easily enough the motives which had
+      brought them to war. Some stood with clasped hands and eager eyes,
+      listening to the exhortations of the priests, and ready, as might be seen
+      from their earnest gaze, to suffer martyrdom in the cause. More, however,
+      stood indifferently round, or, after listening to a few words, walked on
+      with a laugh or a scoff; indeed, preaching had already done all that lay
+      in its power. All those who could be moved by exhortations of this kind
+      were there, and upon the rest the discourses and sermons were thrown away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Several times in the course of his stroll round the camp Cuthbert observed
+      the beginnings of quarrels, which were in each case only checked by the
+      intervention of some knight or other person in authority coming past, and
+      he observed that these in every instance occurred between men of the
+      English and those of the French army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Between the Saxon contingent of King Richard's army and the French
+      soldiers there could indeed be no quarrel, for the Saxons understood no
+      word of their language; but with the Normans the case was different, for
+      the Norman-French, which was spoken by all the nobles and their retainers
+      in Britain, was as nearly as possible the same as that in use in France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed, however, to Cuthbert, watching narrowly what was going on, that
+      there existed by no means a good feeling between the men of the different
+      armies; and he thought that this divergence so early in the campaign boded
+      but little good for the final success of the expedition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he returned to the tent the earl questioned him as to what he had
+      seen, and Cuthbert frankly acknowledged that it appeared to him that the
+      feeling between the men of the two armies was not good.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have been," the earl said, "to the royal camp, and from what I hear,
+      Cuthbert, methinks that there is reason for what you say. King Richard is
+      the most loyal and gallant of kings, but he is haughty and hasty in
+      speech. The Normans, too, have been somewhat accustomed to conquer our
+      neighbors, and it may well be that the chivalry of France love us not.
+      However, it must be hoped that this feeling will die away, and that we
+      shall emulate each other only in our deeds on the battlefield."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0006" id="link2HCH0006"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER VI. &mdash; THE LISTS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The third day after the arrival of the Earl of Evesham there was a great
+      banquet given by the King of France to King Richard and his principal
+      nobles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among those present was the Earl of Evesham, and Cuthbert as his page
+      followed him to the great tent where the banquet was prepared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here, at the top of the tent, on a raised daïs, sat the King of France,
+      surrounded by his courtiers. The Earl of Evesham, having been conducted by
+      the herald to the daïs, paid his compliments to the king, and was saluted
+      by him with many flattering words.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sound of a trumpet was heard, and Richard of England, accompanied by
+      his principal nobles, entered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was the first time that Cuthbert had seen the king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Richard was a man of splendid stature and of enormous strength. His
+      appearance was in some respects rather Saxon than Norman, for his hair was
+      light and his complexion clear and bright. He wore the mustache and
+      pointed beard at that time in fashion; and although his expression was
+      generally that of frankness and good humor, there might be observed in his
+      quick motions and piercing glances signs of the hasty temper and unbridled
+      passion which went far to wreck the success of the enterprise upon which
+      he was embarked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Richard possessed most of the qualities which make a man a great king and
+      render him the idol of his subjects, especially in a time of
+      semi-civilization, when personal prowess is placed at the summit of all
+      human virtues. In all his dominions there was not one man who in personal
+      conflict was a match for his king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Except during his fits of passion, King Richard was generous, forgiving,
+      and royal in his moods. He was incapable of bearing malice. Although
+      haughty of his dignity, he was entirely free from any personal pride, and
+      while he would maintain to the death every right and privilege against
+      another monarch, he could laugh and joke with the humblest of his subjects
+      on terms of hearty good fellowship. He was impatient of contradiction,
+      eager to carry out whatever he had determined upon; and nothing enraged
+      him so much as hesitation or procrastination. The delays which were
+      experienced in the course of the Crusade angered him more than all the
+      opposition offered by the Saracens, or than the hardships through which
+      the Christian host had to pass.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At a flourish of trumpets all took their seats at dinner, their places
+      being marked for them by a herald, whose duty it was to regulate nicely
+      the various ranks and dignities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham was placed next to a noble of Brabant. Cuthbert took
+      his place behind his lord and served him with wines and meats, the Brabant
+      being attended by a tall youth, who was indeed on the verge of manhood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the dinner went on the buzz of conversation became fast and furious. In
+      those days men drank deep, and quarrels often arose over the cups. From
+      the time that the dinner began Cuthbert noticed that the manner of Sir de
+      Jacquelin Barras, Count of Brabant, was rude and offensive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It might be that he was accustomed to live alone with his retainers, and
+      that his manners were rude and coarse to all. It might be that he had a
+      special hostility to the English. At any rate, his remarks were calculated
+      to fire the anger of the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He began the conversation by wondering how a Norman baron could live in a
+      country like England, inhabited by a race but little above pigs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl at once fired up at this, for the Normans were now beginning to
+      feel themselves English, and to resent attacks upon a people for whom
+      their grandfathers had entertained contempt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He angrily repelled the attack upon them by the Brabant knight, and
+      asserted at once that the Saxons were every bit as civilized, and in some
+      respects superior to the Normans or French.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The ill-feeling thus began at starting clearly waxed stronger as dinner
+      went on. The Brabant knight drank deeply, and although his talk was not
+      clearly directed against the English, yet he continued to throw out
+      innuendos and side attacks, and to talk with a vague boastfulness, which
+      greatly irritated Sir Walter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently, as Cuthbert was about to serve his master with a cup of wine,
+      the tall page pushed suddenly against him, spilling a portion of the wine
+      over his dress.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What a clumsy child!" he said scoffingly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are a rough and ill-mannered loon," Cuthbert said angrily. "Were you
+      in any other presence I would chastise you as you deserve."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The tall page burst into a mocking laugh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Chastise me!" he said. "Why, I could put you in my pocket for a little
+      hop-of-my-thumb as you are."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think," said Sir Jacquelin&mdash;for the boys' voices both rose loud&mdash;to
+      the earl, "you had better send that brat home and order him to be
+      whipped."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir count," said the earl, "your manners are insolent, and were we not
+      engaged upon a Crusade, it would please me much to give you a lesson on
+      that score."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Higher and higher the dispute rose, until some angry word caught the ear
+      of the king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Amid the general buzz of voices King Philip rose, and speaking a word to
+      King Richard, moved from the table, thus giving the sign for the breaking
+      up of the feast.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Immediately afterward a page touched the earl and Sir Jacquelin upon the
+      shoulder, and told them that the kings desired to speak with them in the
+      tent of the King of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The two nobles strode through the crowd, regarding each other with eyes
+      much like those of two dogs eager to fly at each other's throat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lords, my lords," said King Philip when they entered, "this is against
+      all law and reason. For shame, to be brawling at my table. I would not say
+      aught openly, but methinks it is early indeed for the knights and nobles
+      engaged in a common work to fall to words."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your majesty," said the Earl of Evesham, "I regret deeply what has
+      happened. But it seemed from the time we sat down to the meal that this
+      lord sought to pass a quarrel upon me, and I now beseech your majesty that
+      you will permit us to settle our differences in the lists."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard gave a sound of assent, but the King of France shook his head
+      gravely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Do you forget," he said, "the mission upon which you are assembled here?
+      Has not every knight and noble in these armies taken a solemn oath to put
+      aside private quarrels and feuds until the holy sepulcher is taken? Shall
+      we at this very going off show that the oath is a mere form of words?
+      Shall we show before the face of Christendom that the knights of the cross
+      are unable to avoid flying at each other's throats, even while on their
+      way to wrest the holy sepulcher from the infidel? No, sirs, you must lay
+      aside your feuds, and must promise me and my good brother here that you
+      will keep the peace between you until this war is over. Whose fault it was
+      that the quarrel began I know not. It may be that my Lord of Brabant was
+      discourteous. It may be that the earl here was too hot. But whichever it
+      be, it matters not."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The quarrel, sire," said Sir Jacquelin, "arose from a dispute between our
+      pages, who were nigh coming to blows in your majesty's presence. I desired
+      the earl to chide the insolence of his varlet, and instead of so doing he
+      met my remarks with scorn."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Pooh, pooh," said King Richard, "there are plenty of grounds for quarrel
+      without two nobles interfering in the squabbles of boys. Let them fight;
+      it will harm no one. By the bye, your Majesty," he said, turning to the
+      King of France with a laugh, "if the masters may not fight, there is no
+      reason in the world why the varlets should not. We are sorely dull for
+      want of amusement. Let us have a list to-morrow, and let the pages fight
+      it out for the honor of their masters and their nations."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It were scarce worth while to have the lists set for two boys to fight,"
+      said the King of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Oh, we need not have regular lists," said King Richard. "Leave that
+      matter in my hands. I warrant you that if the cockerels are well plucked,
+      they will make us sport. What say you, gentlemen?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Brabant noble at once assented, answering that he was sure that his
+      page would be glad to enter the lists; and the earl gave a similar assent,
+      for he had not noticed how great was the discrepancy between the size of
+      the future combatants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is agreed, then," said King Richard joyously. "I will have a piece
+      of ground marked out on the edge of the camp to-morrow morning. It shall
+      be kept by my men-at-arms, and there shall be a raised place for King
+      Philip and myself, who will be the judges of the conflict. Will they fight
+      on foot or on horse?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "On foot, on foot," said the King of France. "It would be a pity that
+      knightly exercises should be brought to scorn by any failure on their part
+      on horseback. On foot at least it will be a fair struggle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What arms shall they use?" the Brabant knight asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Oh, swords and battle-axes, of course," said King Richard with a laugh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Before you go," King Philip said, "you must shake hands, and swear to let
+      the quarrel between you drop, at least until after our return. If you
+      still wish to shed each other's blood, I shall offer no hindrance
+      thereto."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl and Count Jacquelin touched each other's hands in obedience to
+      the order, went out of the tent together, and strode off without a word in
+      different directions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear lad," the Earl of Evesham said on entering his tent where his
+      page was waiting him, "this is a serious business. The kings have ordered
+      this little count and myself to put aside our differences till after the
+      Crusade, in accordance with our oath. But as you have in no wise pledged
+      yourself in the same fashion, and as their majesties feel somewhat dull
+      while waiting here, it is determined that the quarrel between the count
+      and me, and between you and the count's page, shall be settled by a fight
+      between you two in the presence of the kings."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Well, sir," Cuthbert said, "I am glad that it should be, seeing the
+      varlet insulted me without any cause, and purposely upset the cup over
+      me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is he like?" the earl asked. "Dost think that you are a fair match?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I doubt not that we are fair match enough," Cuthbert said. "As you know,
+      sir, I have been well trained to arms of all kinds, both by my father and
+      by the men-at-arms at the castle, and could hold my own against any of
+      your men with light weapons, and have then no fear that this gawky loon,
+      twenty years old though he seems to be, will bring disgrace upon me or
+      discredit upon my nation."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If thou thinkest so," the earl said, "the matter can go on. But had it
+      been otherwise I would have gone to the king and protested that the
+      advantage of age was so great that it would be murder to place you in the
+      lists together."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is," Cuthbert said, "at most no greater difference between us than
+      between a strong man and a weak one, and these, in the ordeal of battle,
+      have to meet in the lists. Indeed I doubt if the difference is so great,
+      for if he be a foot taller than I, methinks that round the shoulders I
+      should have the advantage of him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Send hither my armorer," the earl said; "we must choose a proper suit for
+      you. I fear that mine would be of little use; but doubtless there are some
+      smaller suits among my friends."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The simpler and lighter the better," Cuthbert said. "I'd rather have a
+      light coat of mail and a steel cap than heavy armor and a helmet which
+      would press me down, and a visor through which I could scarce see. The
+      lighter the better, for after all if my sword cannot keep my head, sooner
+      or later the armor would fail to do so too."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The armorer speedily arrived, and the knights and followers of the earl
+      being called in and the case stated, there was soon found a coat of fine
+      linked mail, which fitted Cuthbert well. As to the steel cap there was no
+      difficulty whatever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must have a plume at least," the earl said, and took some feathers
+      from his own casque and fastened them in. "Will you want a light sword and
+      battle-ax?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No," Cuthbert said, "my arms are pretty well used to those of the
+      men-at-arms. I could wield my father's sword, and that was a heavy one."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The lightest of the earl's weapons were chosen, and it was agreed that all
+      was now ready for the conflict to-morrow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning there was a slight bustle in the camp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The news that a fight was to take place between an English and a Brabant
+      page, by the permission of the kings of England and France, that their
+      majesties were to be present, and that all was to be conducted on regular
+      rules, caused a stir of excitement and novelty in the camp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nowhere is life duller than among a large body of men kept together for
+      any time under canvas, and the thought of a combat of this novel kind
+      excited general interest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a meadow at a short distance from the camp a body of King Richard's
+      men-at-arms marked off an oval space of about an acre. Upon one side of
+      this a tent was pitched for the kings, and a small tent was placed at each
+      end for the combatants. Round the inclosure the men-at-arms formed the
+      ring, and behind them a dense body of spectators gathered, a place being
+      set aside for nobles, and others of gentle blood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the hour fixed the kings of England and France arrived together. King
+      Richard was evidently in a state of high good humor, for he preferred the
+      clash of arms and the sight of combat to any other pleasure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The King of France, on the other hand, looked grave. He was a far wiser
+      and more politic king than Richard; and although he had consented to the
+      sudden proposal, yet he felt in his heart that the contest was a foolish
+      one, and that it might create bad feeling among the men of the two
+      nationalities whichever way it went. He had reserved to himself the right
+      of throwing down the baton when the combat was to cease, and he determined
+      to avail himself of this right to put a stop to the conflict before either
+      party was likely to sustain any deadly injury.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the monarchs had taken their places the trumpeters sounded their
+      trumpets, and the two combatants advanced on foot from their ends of the
+      lists. A murmur of surprise and dissatisfaction broke from the crowd. "My
+      Lord of Evesham," the king said angrily to the earl, who with Count
+      Jacquelin was standing by the royal party, "thou shouldst have said that
+      the difference between the two was too great to allow the combat to be
+      possible. The Frenchman appears to be big enough to take your page under
+      his arm and walk off with him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The difference was indeed very striking. The French champion was arrayed
+      in a full suit of knightly armor&mdash;of course without the gold spurs
+      which were the distinguishing mark of that rank&mdash;and with his helmet
+      and lofty plume of feathers he appeared to tower above Cuthbert, who, in
+      his close-fitting steel cap and link armor seemed a very dwarf by the side
+      of a giant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is not size, sire, but muscle and pluck will win in a combat like
+      this. Your majesty need not be afraid that my page will disgrace me. He is
+      of my blood, though the kinship is not close. He is of mixed Saxon and
+      Norman strain, and will, believe me, do no discredit to either."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king's brow cleared, for in truth he was very proud of his English
+      nationality, and would have been sorely vexed to see the discomfiture of
+      an English champion, even though that champion were a boy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Brother Philip," he said, turning to the king, "I will wager my gold
+      chain against yours on yonder stripling."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks that it were robbery to take your wager," the King of France
+      said. "The difference between their bulk is disproportionate. However, I
+      will not balk your wish. My chain against yours."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The rule of the fight was that they were to commence with swords, but that
+      either could, if he chose, use his battle-aX. &mdash; The fight need
+      scarcely be described at length, for the advantage was all one way.
+      Cuthbert was fully a match in strength for his antagonist, although
+      standing nigh a foot shorter. Constant exercise, however, had hardened his
+      muscles into something like steel, while the teaching that he had received
+      had embraced all what was then known of the use of arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Science in those days there was but little of; it was a case rather of
+      hard, heavy hitting, than of what we now call swordsmanship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the sword Cuthbert gained but slight advantage over his adversary,
+      whose superior height enabled him to rain blows down upon the lad, which
+      he was with difficulty enabled to guard; but when the first paroxysm of
+      his adversary's attack had passed he took to the offensive, and drove his
+      opponent back step by step. With his sword, however, he was unable to cut
+      through the armor of the Frenchman, but in the course of the encounter,
+      guarding a severe blow aimed at him, his sword was struck from his hand,
+      and he then, seizing his ax, made such play with it that his foe dropped
+      his own sword and took to the same weapon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In this the superior height and weight of his opponent gave him even a
+      greater advantage than with the sword, and Cuthbert knowing this, used his
+      utmost dexterity and speed to avoid the sweeping blows showered upon him.
+      He himself had been enabled to strike one or two sweeping strokes, always
+      aiming at the same place, the juncture of the visor with the helmet. At
+      last the Frenchman struck him so heavy a blow that it beat down his guard
+      and struck his steel cap from his head, bringing him to the knee. In an
+      instant he was up, and before his foe could be again on guard, he whirled
+      his ax round with all its force, and bringing it just at the point of the
+      visor which he had already weakened with repeated blows, the edge of the
+      ax stove clean through the armor, and the page was struck senseless to the
+      ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A great shout broke from the English portion of the soldiery as Cuthbert
+      leaned over his prostrate foe, and receiving no answer to the question "Do
+      you yield?" rose to his feet, and signified to the squire who had kept
+      near that his opponent was insensible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard ordered the pursuivant to lead Cuthbert to the royal
+      inclosure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thou art a brave lad and a lusty," the king said, "and hast borne thee in
+      the fight as well as many a knight would have done. Wert thou older, I
+      would myself dub thee knight; and I doubt not that the occasion will yet
+      come when thou wilt do as good deeds upon the bodies of the Saracens as
+      thou hast upon that long-shanked opponent of thine. Here is a gold chain;
+      take it as a proof that the King of England holds that you have sustained
+      well the honor of his country; and mark me, if at any time you require a
+      boon, bring or send me that chain, and thou shalt have it freely. Sir
+      Walter," he said, turning to the earl, "in this lad thou hast a worthy
+      champion, and I trust me that thou wilt give him every chance of
+      distinguishing himself. So soon as thou thinkest him fit for the knightly
+      rank I myself will administer the accolade."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0007" id="link2HCH0007"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER VII. &mdash; REVENGE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      After his interview with the king Cuthbert was led to his tent amid the
+      hearty plaudits of the English troops.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His own comrades flocked round him; the men of the greenwood, headed by
+      Cnut, were especially jubilant over his victory.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Who would have thought," said the tall forester, "that the lad who but a
+      short time ago was a child should now have sustained the honor of the
+      country? We feel proud of you, Cuthbert; and trust us some day or other to
+      follow wherever you may lead, and to do some deed which will attain for
+      you honor and glory, and show that the men of Evesham are as doughty as
+      any under King Richard's rule."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must be wary, Cuthbert," the earl said to him that evening. "Believe
+      me that you and I have made a foe, who, although he may not have the
+      power, has certainly the will to injure us to the death. I marked the eye
+      of Count Jacquelin during the fight, and again when you were led up to the
+      king. There was hatred and fury in his eye. The page too, I hear, is his
+      own nephew, and he will be the laughing-stock of the French camp at having
+      been conquered by one so much younger than himself. It will be well to
+      keep upon your guard, and not to go out at night unattended. Keep Cnut
+      near you; he is faithful as a watch-dog, and would give his life, I am
+      sure, for you. I will myself be also upon my guard, for it was after all
+      my quarrel, and the fury of this fierce knight will vent itself upon both
+      of us if the opportunity should come. I hear but a poor account of him
+      among his confréres. They say he is one of those disgraces to the name of
+      knight who are but a mixture of robber and soldier; that he harries all
+      the lands in his neighborhood; and that he has now only joined the Crusade
+      to avoid the vengeance which the cries of the oppressed people had invoked
+      from his liege lord. I am told indeed that the choice was given him to be
+      outlawed, or to join the Crusades with all the strength he could raise.
+      Naturally he adopted the latter alternative; but he has the instincts of
+      the robber still, and will do us an evil turn, if he have the chance."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days later the great army broke up its camp and marched south. After a
+      week's journeying they encamped near a town, and halted there two or three
+      days in order to collect provisions for the next advance; for the supplies
+      which they could obtain in the country districts were wholly insufficient
+      for so great a host of men. Here the armies were to separate, the French
+      marching to Genoa, the English to Marseilles, the town at which they were
+      to take ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One evening the earl sent Cuthbert with a message to another English lord,
+      staying in the town at the palace of the bishop, who was a friend of his.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut accompanied Cuthbert, for he now made a point of seldom letting him
+      out of his sight. It was light when they reached the bishop's palace, but
+      here they were delayed for some time, and night had fallen when they
+      sallied out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The town was already quiet, for the inhabitants cared not to show
+      themselves in the streets now that such a large army of fierce men were in
+      the neighborhood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The orders indeed of the monarchs were stringent, but discipline there was
+      but little of, and the soldiery in those days regarded peaceful citizens
+      as fair game; hence, when they came from the palace the streets of the
+      city were already hushed and quiet, for the orders of the king had been
+      peremptory that no men-at-arms, or others except those on duty, were to be
+      away from their camp after nightfall. This order had been absolutely
+      necessary, so many were the complaints brought in by country peasants and
+      farmers of the doings of bands of soldiers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut and Cuthbert proceeded along the streets unmolested for some
+      distance. Occasionally a solitary passer-by, with hooded cape, hurried
+      past. The moon was half full, and her light was welcome indeed, for in
+      those days the streets were unlighted, and the pavement so bad that
+      passage through the streets after dark was a matter of difficulty, and
+      even of danger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here and there before some roadside shrine a lamp dimly burned; before
+      these they paused, and, as good Catholics, Cnut and Cuthbert crossed
+      themselves. Just as they had passed one of these wayside shrines, a sudden
+      shout was heard, and a party of eight or ten men sprang out from a side
+      street and fell upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut and Cuthbert drew their swords and laid about them heartily, but
+      their assailants were too strong. Cnut was stricken to the ground, and
+      Cuthbert, seeing that defense was hopeless, took to his heels and ran for
+      his life. He was already wounded, but happily not so severely as in any
+      way to disable him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Seeing that it was speed, and speed alone, which now could save him, he
+      flung aside his belt and scabbard as he ran, and with rapid steps flew
+      along the streets, not knowing whither he went, and striving only to keep
+      ahead of his pursuers. They, more incumbered by arms and armor, were
+      unable to keep up with the flying footsteps of a lad clothed in the light
+      attire of a page; but Cuthbert felt that the blood running from his wound
+      was weakening him fast, and that unless he could gain some refuge his
+      course must speedily come to an end. Happily he saw at some little
+      distance ahead of him a man standing by a door. Just as he arrived the
+      door opened, and a glow of light from within fell on the road, showing
+      that the person entering was a monk.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a moment's hesitation Cuthbert rushed through the door, shouting
+      "Sanctuary!" and sank almost fainting on the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The monks, accustomed to wild pursuits and scenes of outrage in those
+      warlike days, hastily closed the door, barring it securely. In a moment
+      there was a rush of men against it from without.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the monks opened a lattice above the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What mean you," he said, "by this outrage? Know ye not that this is the
+      Monastery of St. John, and that it is sacrilege to lay a hand of violence
+      even against its postern? Begone," he said, "or we'll lodge a complaint
+      before the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The assailants, nothing daunted, continued to batter at the door; but at
+      this moment the monks, aroused from their beds, hastened to the spot, and
+      seizing bill and sword&mdash;for in those days even monks were obliged at
+      times to depend upon carnal weapons&mdash;they opened the door, and flung
+      themselves upon the assailants with such force that the latter, surprised
+      and discomfited, were forced to make a hasty retreat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The doors were then again barred, and Cuthbert was carried up to a cell in
+      the building, where the leech of the monastery speedily examined his
+      wound, and pronounced that although his life was not in danger by it, he
+      was greatly weakened by the loss of blood, that the wound was a serious
+      one and that it would be some time before the patient would recover.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      [Image: THE DOORS WERE AGAIN BARRED, AND CUTHBERT WAS CARRIED TO A CELL.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was two days before Cuthbert was sufficiently restored to be able to
+      speak. His first question to the monk was as to his whereabouts, and how
+      long he had been there. Upon being answered, he entreated that a messenger
+      might be dispatched to the camp of the Earl of Evesham, to beg that a
+      litter might be sent for him, and to inquire what had become of Cnut, whom
+      he had last seen stricken down.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The monk replied, "My son, I grieve to tell you that your request cannot
+      be complied with. The army moved away yesternoon, and is now some
+      twenty-five miles distant. There is nothing for you but patience, and when
+      restored you can follow the army, and rejoin your master before he embarks
+      at Marseilles. But how is it that a lad so young as you can have incurred
+      the enmity of those who sought your life? For it is clear from the
+      pertinacity with which they urged their attack that their object was not
+      plunder, of which indeed they would get but little from you, but to take
+      your life."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert recounted the circumstances which had led to the feud of the
+      Count of Brabant against him, for he doubted not that this truculent
+      knight was at the bottom of the attack.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "After what has happened," the monk said, "you will need have caution when
+      you leave here. The place where you have taken refuge is known to them,
+      and should this wild noble persist in his desire for vengeance against
+      you, he will doubtless leave some of his ruffians to watch the monastery.
+      We will keep a lookout, and note if any strangers are to be seen near the
+      gates; if we find that it is so, we shall consider what is best to be
+      done. We could of course appeal to the mayor for protection against them,
+      and could even have the strangers ejected from the town or cast into
+      prison; but it is not likely that we should succeed in capturing more than
+      the fellow who may be placed on the lookout, and the danger would be in no
+      wise lessened to yourself. But there is time to talk over this matter
+      before you leave. It will be another fortnight at least before you will be
+      able to pursue your journey."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert gained strength more rapidly than the monk had expected. He was
+      generously fed, and this and his good constitution soon enabled him to
+      recover from the loss of blood; and at the end of five days he expressed
+      his hope that he could on the following day pursue his journey. The monk
+      who attended him shook his head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thou mightst, under ordinary circumstances, quit us to-morrow, for thou
+      art well enough to take part in the ordinary pursuits of a page; but to
+      journey is a different thing. You may have all sorts of hardships to
+      endure; you may have even to trust for your life to your speed and
+      endurance; and it would be madness for you to go until your strength is
+      fully established. I regret to tell you that we have ascertained beyond a
+      doubt that the monastery is closely watched. We have sent some of the
+      acolytes out, dressed in the garbs of monks, and attended by one of our
+      elder brethren; and in, each case, a monk who followed at a distance of
+      fifty yards was able to perceive that they were watched. The town is full
+      of rough men, the hangers-on of the army; some, indeed, are followers of
+      laggard knights, but the greater portion are men who merely pursue the
+      army with a view to gain by its necessities, to buy plunder from the
+      soldiers, and to rob, and, if necessary, to murder should there be a hope
+      of obtaining gold. Among these men your enemies would have little
+      difficulty in recruiting any number, and no appeal that we could make to
+      the mayor would protect you from them when you have left the walls. We
+      must trust to our ingenuity in smuggling you out. After that, it is upon
+      your own strength and shrewdness that you must rely for an escape from any
+      snares that may be laid for you. You will see, then, that at least another
+      three or four days are needed before you can set forth. Your countrymen
+      are so far away that a matter of a few days will make but little
+      difference. They will in any case be delayed for a long time at Marseilles
+      before they embark; and whether you leave now or a month hence, you would
+      be equally in time to join them before their embarkation&mdash;that is,
+      supposing that you make your way through the snares which beset you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert saw the justice of the reasoning, and it was another week before
+      he announced himself as feeling absolutely restored to strength again, and
+      capable of bearing as much exertion as he could have done before his
+      attack.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A long consultation was held with the prior and a monk who had acted as
+      his leech, as to the best plan of getting Cuthbert beyond the walls of the
+      city. Many schemes were proposed and rejected. Every monk who ventured
+      beyond the walls had been closely scrutinized, and one or two of short
+      stature had even been jostled in the streets, so as to throw back their
+      hoods and expose a sight of their faces. It was clear, then, that it would
+      be dangerous to trust to a disguise. Cuthbert proposed that he should
+      leave at night, trusting solely to their directions as to the turnings he
+      should take to bring him to the city walls, and that, taking a rope, he
+      should there let himself down, and make the best of his way forward. This,
+      however, the monks would not consent to, assuring him that the watch was
+      so strictly kept round the monastery that he would inevitably be seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No," the prior said, "the method, whatever it is, must be as open as
+      possible; and though I cannot at this moment hit upon a plan, I will think
+      it over to-night, and putting my ideas with those of Father Jerome here,
+      and the sacristan, who has a shrewd head, it will be hard if we cannot
+      between us contrive some plan to evade the watch of those robber villains
+      who beset the convent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning, when the prior came in to see Cuthbert, the latter said:
+      "Good father, I have determined not to endeavor to make off in disguise. I
+      doubt not that your wit could contrive some means by which I should get
+      clear of the walls without observation from the scouts of this villain
+      noble. But once in the country, I should have neither horse nor armor, and
+      should have hard work indeed to make my way down through France, even
+      though none of my enemies were on my track. I will therefore, if it please
+      you, go down boldly to the mayor and claim a protection and escort. If he
+      will but grant me a few men-at-arms for one day's ride from the town, I
+      can choose my own route, and riding out in mail, can then take my chance
+      of finding my way down to Marseilles."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will go down with you, my son," the prior said, "to the mayor. Two of
+      my monks shall accompany us; and assuredly no insult will be offered to
+      you in the street thus accompanied." Shortly afterward Cuthbert started as
+      arranged, and soon arrived at the house of the mayor, Sir John de Cahors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the prior making known to this knight whom he had brought with him
+      the mayor exclaimed:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "<i>Peste!</i> young gentleman; you have caused us no small trouble and
+      concern. We have had ridings to and fro concerning you, and furious
+      messages from your fiery king. When in the morning a tall, stalwart knave
+      dressed in green was found, slashed about in various places, lying on the
+      pavement, the townsmen, not knowing who he was, but finding that he still
+      breathed, carried him to the English camp, and he was claimed as a
+      follower of the Earl of Evesham. There was great wrath and anger over
+      this; and an hour later the earl himself came down and stated that his
+      page was missing, and that there was reason to believe that he had been
+      foully murdered, as he had accompanied the man found wounded. Fortunately
+      the bulk of the armies had marched away at early dawn, and the earl had
+      only remained behind in consequence of the absence of his followers. I
+      assured the angry Englishman that I would have a thorough search made in
+      the town; and although in no way satisfied, he rode off after his king
+      with all his force, carrying with him the long-limbed man whom we had
+      picked up. Two days after a message came back from King Richard himself,
+      saying that unless this missing page were discovered, or if, he being
+      killed, his murderers were not brought to justice and punished, he would
+      assuredly on his return from the Holy Land burn the town over our ears.
+      Your king is not a man who minces matters. However, threatened men live
+      long, especially when the person who threatens is starting for a journey,
+      from which, as like as not, he may never return. However, I have had
+      diligent search made for you. All the houses of bad repute have been
+      examined and their inhabitants questioned. But there are so many
+      camp-followers and other rabble at present in the town that a hundred men
+      might disappear without our being able to obtain a clew. I doubted not
+      indeed that your body had been thrown in the river, and that we should
+      never hear more of you. I am right glad that you have been restored; not
+      indeed from any fear of the threats of the king your master, but because,
+      from what the Earl of Evesham said, you were a lad likely to come to great
+      fame and honor. The earl left in my charge your horse, and the armor which
+      he said you wore at a tournament lately, in case we should hear aught of
+      you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert gave an exclamation of pleasure. His purse contained but a few
+      pieces of silver, and being without arms except for his short dagger, or
+      means of locomotion, the difficulties of the journey down to Marseilles
+      had sorely puzzled him. But with his good horse between his knees, and his
+      suit of Milan armor on his back, he thought that he might make his way
+      through any dangers which threatened him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The prior now told the knight that circumstances had occurred which showed
+      that it was known to the assailants of Cuthbert that he had taken refuge
+      in the convent, over which a strict watch had been kept by Cuthbert's
+      enemies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If I could find the varlets I would hang them over the gates of the
+      town," the knight said wrathfully. "But as at the present moment there are
+      nearly as many rogues as honest men in the place it would be a wholesale
+      hanging indeed to insure getting hold of the right people. Moreover, it is
+      not probable that another attempt upon his life will be made inside our
+      walls; and doubtless the main body of this gang are somewhere without,
+      intending to assault him when he continues his journey, and they have left
+      but a spy or two here to inform them as to his movements. I will give you
+      any aid in my power, young sir. The army is by this time nigh Marseilles,
+      and, sooth to say, I have no body of men-at-arms whom I could send as your
+      escort for so long a distance. I have but a small body here, and they are
+      needed, and sorely, too, to keep order within the walls."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I thought, sir," Cuthbert said, "that if you could lend me a party of say
+      four men-at-arms to ride with me for the first day I could then trust to
+      myself, especially if you could procure me one honest man to act as guide
+      and companion. Doubtless they suppose that I should travel by the main
+      road south; but by going the first day's journey either east or west, and
+      then striking some southward road, I should get a fair start of them,
+      throw all their plans out, and perchance reach Marseilles without
+      interruption."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight willingly agreed to furnish four men-at-arms, and a trustworthy
+      guide who would at least take him as far south as Avignon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will," he said, "tell the men-at-arms off to-night. They shall be at
+      the western gate at daybreak, with the pass permitting them to ride
+      through. The guide shall be at the convent door half an hour earlier. I
+      will send up to-night your armor and horse. Here is a purse which the Earl
+      of Evesham also left for your use. Is there aught else I can do for you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nothing, sir," Cuthbert said; "and if I regain the army in safety I shall
+      have pleasure in reporting to King Richard how kindly and courteously you
+      have treated me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The arrangements were carried out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An hour before daybreak Cuthbert was aroused, donned his armor and steel
+      casque, drank a flask of wine, and ate a manchet of bread which the prior
+      himself brought him, and then, with a cordial adieu to the kind monks,
+      issued forth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The guide had just reached the gate, and together they trotted down the
+      narrow streets to the west gate of the city, where four men-at-arms were
+      awaiting them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gates were at once opened, and Cuthbert and his little troop sallied
+      forth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0008" id="link2HCH0008"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER VIII. &mdash; THE ATTACK.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      All day they rode with their faces west, and before nightfall had made a
+      journey of over forty miles. Then bestowing a largess upon the
+      men-at-arms, Cuthbert dismissed them, and took up his abode at a hostelry,
+      his guide looking to the two horses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was pleased with the appearance of the man who had been placed at
+      his disposal. He was a young fellow of twenty-two or twenty-three, with an
+      honest face. He was, he told Cuthbert, the son of a small farmer near
+      Avignon; but having a fancy for trade, he had been apprenticed to a master
+      smith. Having served his apprenticeship, he found that he had mistaken his
+      vocation, and intended to return to the paternal vineyards.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert calculated that he would make at least four days' journey to the
+      south before he could meet with any dangers. Doubtless his exit from the
+      convent had been discovered, and the moment the gates of the city were
+      opened the spy would have proceeded south to warn his comrades, and these
+      would doubtless have taken a road which at a distance would again take
+      them on to that by which Cuthbert would be now traveling. As, however, he
+      rode fast, and made long marches each day, he hoped that he might succeed
+      in distancing them. Unfortunately, upon the third day his horse cast his
+      shoe, and no smith could be met with until the end of the day's journey.
+      Consequently, but a short distance could be done and this at a slow pace.
+      Upon the fifth day after their first start they arrived at a small town.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning Cuthbert on rising found that his guide did not present
+      himself as usual. Making inquiries he found that the young man had gone
+      out the evening before, and had not returned. Extremely uneasy at the
+      circumstance, Cuthbert went to the city guard, thinking that perhaps his
+      guide might have got drunk, and been shut up in the cells. No news,
+      however, was to be obtained there, and after waiting some hours, feeling
+      sure that some harm had befallen him, he gave notice to the authorities of
+      his loss, and then mounting his horse, and leaving some money with the
+      landlord of the hostelry to give to his guide in case the latter should
+      return, he started at midday by the southern road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He felt sure now that he was overtaken, and determined to keep his eyes
+      and faculties thoroughly on watch.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The roads in those days were mere tracks. Here and there a little village
+      was to be met with; but the country was sparsely cultivated, and traveling
+      lonely work. Cuthbert rode fast, carefully avoiding all copses and small
+      woods through which the road ran, by making a circuit round them and
+      coming on to it again on the other side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His horse was an excellent one, the gift of the earl, and he had little
+      fear, with his light weight, of being overtaken if he could once leave his
+      enemies behind him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At length he approached an extensive forest, which stretched for miles on
+      either side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Half a mile before he reached it the track divided.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had for some little time eased his horse down to a walk, as he felt
+      that the wood would be the spot where he would in all probability be
+      attacked, and he needed that his steed should be possessed of its utmost
+      vigor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the spot where the track branched a man in the guise of a mendicant was
+      sitting. He begged for alms, and Cuthbert threw him a small coin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A sudden thought struck him as he heard a rustling in the bushes near.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Which is the nearest and best road to Avignon?" he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The right-hand road is the best and shortest," the beggar said. "The
+      other makes a long circuit and leads through several marshes, which your
+      honor will find it hard to pass."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert thanked him and moved forward, still at a walk, along the
+      right-hand road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he had gone about two hundred yards, and was hidden from the sight of
+      the man he had left&mdash;the country being rough, and scattered with
+      clumps of bushes&mdash;he halted, and, as he expected, heard the sound of
+      horses' hoofs coming on at full gallop along the other road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your master must have thought me young indeed," he said, "to try and
+      catch me with such a transparent trick as that. I do not suppose that
+      accursed page has more than ten men with him, and doubtless has placed
+      five on each road. This fellow was placed here to see which track I would
+      follow, and has now gone to give the party on the left hand the news that
+      I have taken this way. Had it not been for him I should have had to run
+      the gantlet with four or five of my enemies. As it is, the path will
+      doubtless be clear."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying, he turned his horse, galloped back to the spot where the tracks
+      separated, and then followed the left-hand route.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he had hoped, he passed through the wood without incident or
+      interruption, and arrived safely that night at a small town, having seen
+      no signs of his enemies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day he started again early, and rode on until midday, when he
+      halted at a large village, at which was the only inn between the place
+      from which he started and his destination. He declined the offer of the
+      servant of the inn to take his horse round to the stable, telling the man
+      to hold him outside the door and give him from a sieve a few handfuls of
+      grain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then he entered the inn and ate a hearty meal. As he appeared at the door
+      he saw several men gathered near. With a single spring he threw himself
+      into the saddle, just as a rush forward was made by those standing round.
+      The man next to him sprang upon him, and endeavored to drag him from the
+      saddle. Cuthbert drew the little dagger called a <i>miséricorde</i> from
+      his belt, and plunged it into his throat. Then seizing the short mace
+      which hung at the saddlebow, he hurled it with all his force full in the
+      face of his enemy, the page of Sir Philip, who was rushing upon him sword
+      in hand. The heavy weapon struck him fairly between the eyes, and with a
+      cry he fell back, his face completely smashed in by the blow, the sword
+      which he held uplifted to strike flying far through the air.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert struck his spurs into his horse, and the animal dashed forward
+      with a bound, Cuthbert striking with his long sword at one or two men who
+      made a snatch at the reins. In another minute he was cantering out of the
+      village, convinced that he had killed the leader of his foes, and that he
+      was safe now to pursue the rest of his journey on to Marseilles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So it turned out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without further incident he traveled through the south of France, and
+      arrived at the great seaport. He speedily discovered the quarters in which
+      the Earl of Evesham's contingent were encamped, and made toward this
+      without delay. As he entered a wild shout of joy was heard, and Cnut ran
+      forward with many gestures of delight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear Cuthbert, my dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "Can it be true that
+      you have escaped? We all gave you up; and although I did my best, yet had
+      you not survived it I should never have forgiven myself, believing that I
+      might have somehow done better, and have saved you from the cutthroats who
+      attacked us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, thanks, my good Cnut," Cuthbert cried. "I have been through a
+      time of peril, no doubt; but as you see, I am hale and well&mdash;better,
+      methinks, than you are, for you look pale and ill; and I doubt not that
+      the wound which I received was a mere scratch to that which bore you down.
+      It sounded indeed like the blow of a smith's hammer upon an anvil."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Fortunately, my steel cap saved my head somewhat," Cnut said, "and the
+      head itself is none of the thinnest; but it tried it sorely, I confess.
+      However, now that you are back I shall, doubt not, soon be as strong as
+      ever I was. I think that fretting for your absence has kept me back more
+      than the inflammation from the wound itself&mdash;but there is the earl at
+      the door of his tent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Through the foresters and retainers who had at Cnut's shout of joy crowded
+      up, Cuthbert made his way, shaking hands right and left with the men,
+      among whom he was greatly loved, for they regarded him as being in a great
+      degree the cause of their having been freed from outlawry, and restored to
+      civil life again. The earl was really affected. As Cuthbert rode up he
+      held out both arms, and as his page alighted he embraced him as a father.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "What anxiety have we not suffered. Had
+      you been my own son, I could not have felt more your loss. We did not
+      doubt for an instant that you had fallen into the hands of some of the
+      retainers of that villain count; and from all we could learn, and from the
+      absence of any dead body by the side of that of Cnut, I imagined that you
+      must have been carried off. It was clear that your chance of life, if you
+      fell into the hands of that evil page, or his equally vile master, was
+      small indeed. The very day that Cnut was brought in I visited the French
+      camp, and accused him of having been the cause of your disappearance and
+      Cnut's wounds. He affected the greatest astonishment at the charge. He had
+      not, as he said, been out of the camp for two days. My accusation was
+      unfounded and malicious, and I should answer this as well as the previous
+      outrage, when the vow of the Crusaders to keep peace among themselves was
+      at an end. Of course I had no means of proving what I said, or I would
+      have gone direct to the king and charged him with the outrage. As it was I
+      gained nothing by my pains. He has accompanied the French division to
+      Genoa; but when we meet at Sicily, where the two armies are to rendezvous,
+      I will bring the matter before the king, as the fact that his page was
+      certainly concerned in it must be taken as showing that he was the
+      instigator."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It would, my lord earl, be perhaps better," Cuthbert said, "if I might
+      venture to advise, to leave the matter alone. No doubt the count would say
+      that he had discharged his page after the tournament, and that the latter
+      was only carrying out his private feud with me. We should not be able to
+      disprove the story, and should gain no satisfaction by the matter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl admitted the justice of Cuthbert's reasoning, but reserved to
+      himself the task of punishing the author of the outrage upon the first
+      fitting opportunity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was a weary delay at Marseilles before the expedition set sail. This
+      was caused by the fact of the English fleet, which had been ordered to be
+      there upon their arrival, failing to keep the agreement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The words English fleet badly describe the vessels which were to carry the
+      English contingent to their destination. They were ships belonging to the
+      maritime nations of Italy&mdash;the Venetians, Genoese, Pisans, etc.; for
+      England at that time had but few of her own, and these scarcely fitted for
+      the stormy navigation of the Bay of Biscay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard, impatient as ever of delay, at last lost his temper, and
+      embarked on board a ship with a few of his chosen knights, and set sail by
+      himself for Sicily, the point at which the two armies of the expedition
+      were to reunite. A few days after his departure the long-looked-for fleet
+      arrived, and a portion of the English host embarked at once, and set sail
+      for Sicily, where they were to be landed, and the ships were to return to
+      fetch the remaining contingent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A sea voyage of this kind in those days was a serious matter. Long voyages
+      were rare, and troops were carried very much upon the principle of
+      herrings; that is, were packed as close as they could be, without any
+      reference to their comfort. As the voyages seldom lasted more than
+      twenty-four hours, this did not much matter, but during long voyages the
+      discomforts, or as may be said sufferings, of the troops were
+      considerable. So tightly packed were the galleys in which the English set
+      sail from Marseilles that there was no walking about. Every man slept
+      where he sat, and considered himself lucky indeed if he could obtain room
+      sufficient to stretch himself at full length. Most slept sitting against
+      bulwarks or other supports. In the cabins, where the knights, their pages
+      and squires were placed, the crowding was of course less excessive, but
+      even here the amount of space, which a subaltern traveling to India for
+      the first time nowadays would grumble at, was considered amply sufficient
+      for half a dozen knights of distinction. It was a week after sailing, when
+      Cnut touched Cuthbert's arm as he came on deck one morning, and said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Look, look, Cuthbert! that mountain standing up in the water has caught
+      fire on the top. Did you ever see such a thing?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The soldiers crowded to the side of the vessel in intense astonishment and
+      no little awe. From the top of a lofty and rugged hill, rising almost
+      straight from the sea, flames were roaring up, smoke hung over the island,
+      and stones were thrown into the air and rattled down the side of the hill,
+      or fell into the sea with a splash.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is a fearsome sight," Cnut said, crossing himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It looks as if it was the mouth of purgatory," exclaimed another,
+      standing by.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert himself was amazed, for the instruction he had received from
+      Father Francis was of too slight a nature to include the story of
+      volcanoes. A priest, however, who accompanied the ship in the character of
+      leech and confessor, explained the nature of the phenomenon to his
+      astonished listeners, and told them that over on the mainland was a
+      mountain which at times vomited forth such masses of stones and of liquid
+      rock that it had swallowed up and covered many great cities. There was
+      also, he told them, another mountain of the same sort, even more vast, on
+      the island of Sicily itself; but that this had seldom, as far back as man
+      could remember, done any great harm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sailing on, in another day they arrived off the coast of Sicily itself,
+      and sailing up the straits between it and the mainland they landed at
+      Messina. Here a considerable portion of the French army had already
+      arrived, having been brought down from Genoa.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no news of the King of England; and, as often happens, the
+      saying "The more haste the less speed," had been verified here.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was some days later before King Richard arrived, having been driven
+      from his course by tempests, well-nigh cast ashore, and having besides
+      gone through many adventures. Three weeks later the whole of the army of
+      the Crusaders were gathered around Messina, where it was intended to
+      remain some little time before starting. It was a gay time; and the kings
+      vied with each other in entertainments, joustings, and tournaments. The
+      Italian knights also made a brave show, and it might have been thought
+      that this huge army of men were gathered there simply for amusement and
+      feasting. In the tournaments every effort was made to prevent any feeling
+      of national rivalry, and although parties of knights held their own
+      against all comers, these were most carefully selected to represent
+      several nationalities, and therefore victory, on whichsoever side it fell,
+      excited no feelings of bitterness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Alone, King Richard was undoubtedly the strongest cavalier of the two
+      armies. Against his ponderous strength no knight could keep his seat; and
+      this was so palpable that after many victories King Richard was forced to
+      retire from the lists from want of competitors, and to take his place on
+      the daïs with the more peace-loving King of France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The gayety of the camp was heightened by the arrival of many nobles and
+      dames from Italy. Here, too, came the Queen of Navarre, bringing with her
+      the beautiful Princess Berengaria.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," the Earl of Evesham said to Cuthbert a fortnight after the
+      arrival of the queen "that unless my eyes deceive me the princess is
+      likely to be a cause of trouble."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In what way?" asked Cuthbert with surprise, for he had been struck with
+      her marvelous beauty, and wondered greatly what mischief so fair a being
+      could do.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "By the way in which our good lord, the king, gazes upon her, methinks
+      that it were like enough that he broke off his engagement with the Prince
+      of France for the sake of the fair eyes of this damsel."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That were indeed a misfortune," Cuthbert said gravely, for he saw at once
+      the anger which such a course would excite in the minds of the French king
+      and his knights, who would naturally be indignant in the extreme at the
+      slight put upon their princess. As day after day passed it became evident
+      to all that the King of England was infatuated by the princess. Again he
+      entered the lists himself, and as some fresh Italian knights and others
+      had arrived, he found fresh opponents, and conspicuously laid the spoils
+      of victory at the feet of the princess, whom he selected as the Queen of
+      Beauty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All sorts of rumors now became current in camp; violent quarrels between
+      the kings, and bad feelings between the French and English knights broke
+      out again in consequence, and this more violently than before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0009" id="link2HCH0009"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER IX. &mdash; THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      One night it chanced that Cuthbert was late in his return to camp, and his
+      road took him through a portion of the French encampment; the night was
+      dark, and Cuthbert presently completely lost all idea as to his bearings.
+      Presently he nearly ran against a tent; he made his way to the entrance in
+      order to crave directions as to his way&mdash;for it was a wet night; the
+      rain was pouring in torrents, and few were about of whom he could demand
+      the way&mdash;and, as he was about to draw aside the hangings, he heard
+      words said in a passionate voice which caused him to withdraw his hand
+      suddenly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I tell you," said a voice, "I would rather drive a dagger myself into her
+      heart than allow our own princess to be insulted by this hot-headed island
+      dog."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is sad indeed," said another, but in a calmer smoother tone, "that the
+      success of a great expedition like this, which has for its object the
+      recovery of the holy sepulcher from the infidels, should be wrecked by the
+      headstrong fancies of one man. It is even, as is told by the old Grecian
+      poet, as when Helen caused a great war between people of that nation."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know nothing," another voice said, "either of Helen or the Greeks, or
+      of their poets. They are a shifty race, and I can believe aught that is
+      bad of them. But touching this princess of Navarre, I agree with our
+      friend, it would be a righteous deed to poniard her, and so to remove the
+      cause of dispute between the two kings, and, indeed, the two nations. This
+      insult laid upon our princess is more than we, as French knights and
+      gentlemen, can brook; and if the king says the word there is not a
+      gentleman in the army but will be ready to turn his sword against the
+      islanders."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then the smooth voice spoke again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It would, my brethren, be wrong and useless to shed blood; but methinks
+      that if this apple of discord could be removed a good work would be done
+      not, as our friend the count has suggested, by a stab of the dagger; that
+      indeed would be worse than useless. But surely there are scores of
+      religious houses, where this bird might be placed in a cage without a soul
+      knowing where she was, and where she might pass her life in prayer that
+      she may be pardoned for having caused grave hazards of the failure of an
+      enterprise in which all the Christian world is concerned."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The voices of the speakers now fell, and Cuthbert was straining his ear to
+      listen, when he heard footsteps approaching the tent, and he glided away
+      into the darkness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With great difficulty be recovered the road to the camp, and when he
+      reached his tent he confided to the Earl of Evesham what he had heard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is serious indeed," the earl said, "and bodes no little trouble and
+      danger. It is true that the passion which King Richard has conceived for
+      Berengaria bids fair to wreck the Crusade, by the anger which it has
+      excited in the French king and his nobles; but the disappearance of the
+      princess would no less fatally interfere with it, for the king would be
+      like a raging lion deprived of his whelps, and would certainly move no
+      foot eastward until he had exhausted all the means in his power of tracing
+      his lost lady love. You could not, I suppose, Cuthbert, point out the tent
+      where this conversation took place?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I could not," Cuthbert answered; "in the darkness one tent is like
+      another. I think I should recognize the voices of the speakers did I hear
+      them again; indeed, one voice I did recognize; it was that of the Count of
+      Brabant, with whom we had trouble before."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is good," the earl said, "because we have at least an object to
+      watch. It would never do to tell the king what you have heard. In the
+      first place, his anger would be so great that it would burst all bounds,
+      and would cause, likely enough, a battle at once between the two armies;
+      nor would it have any good effect, for he of Brabant would of course deny
+      the truth of your assertions, and would declare it was merely a got-up
+      story to discredit him with the king, and so to wipe out the old score now
+      standing between us. No, if we are to succeed, alike in preventing harm
+      happening to the princess, and an open break between the two monarchs, it
+      must be done by keeping a guard over the princess, unsuspected by all, and
+      ourselves frustrating any attempt which may be made."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert expressed his willingness to carry out the instructions which the
+      earl might give him; and, much disturbed by the events of the day, both
+      earl and page retired to rest, to think over what plan had best be
+      adopted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The princess was staying at the palace of the bishop of the town; this he,
+      having another residence a short distance outside the walls, had placed at
+      the disposal of the Queen of Navarre and her suite; and the first step of
+      Cuthbert in the morning was to go into the town, to reconnoiter the
+      position and appearance of the building. It was a large and irregular
+      pile, and communicated with the two monasteries lying alongside of it. It
+      would therefore clearly be a most difficult thing to keep up a complete
+      watch on the exterior of so large a building. There were so many ways in
+      which the princess might be captured and carried off by unscrupulous men
+      that Cuthbert in vain thought over every plan by which it could be
+      possible to safeguard her. She might be seized upon returning from a
+      tournament or entertainment; but this was improbable, as the queen would
+      always have an escort of knights with her, and no attempt could be
+      successful except at the cost of a public fracas and much loss of blood.
+      Cuthbert regarded as out of the question that an outrage of this kind
+      would be attempted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fact that one of the speakers in the tent had used the words "my
+      sons," showed that one priest or monk, at least, was connected with the
+      plot. It was possible that this man might have power in one of the
+      monasteries, or he might be an agent of the bishop himself; and Cuthbert
+      saw that it would be easy enough in the night for a party from one or
+      other of the monasteries to enter by the door of communication with the
+      palace, and carry off the princess without the slightest alarm being
+      given. Once within the walls of the convent she could be either hidden in
+      the dungeons or secret places, which buildings of that kind were sure to
+      possess, or could be at once carried out by some quiet entrance, and taken
+      into the country, or transferred to some other building in the town.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Cuthbert joined the earl he told him the observations that he had
+      made, and Sir Walter praised the judgment which he had shown in his
+      conclusions. The earl was of opinion that it would be absolutely necessary
+      to get some clew as to the course which the abductors purposed to take;
+      indeed it was possible that on after-consideration they might drop their
+      plan altogether, for the words which Cuthbert had overheard scarcely
+      betokened a plan completely formed and finally decided upon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The great point he considered, therefore, was that the tent of his old
+      enemy should be carefully watched, and that an endeavor should be made to
+      hear something of what passed within, which might give a clew to the plan
+      fixed upon. They did not, of course, know whether the tent in which the
+      conversation had been heard by Cuthbert was that of Sir de Jacquelin
+      Barras, or of one of the other persons who had spoken; and Cuthbert
+      suggested that the first thing would be to find out whether the count,
+      after nightfall, was in the habit of going to some other tent, or whether,
+      on the other hand, he remained within and was visited by others.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was easy, of course, to discover which was his tent; and Cuthbert soon
+      got its position, and then took Cnut into his counsels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The matter is difficult," Cnut said, "and I see no way by which a watch
+      can be kept up by day; but after dark&mdash;I have several men in my band
+      who can track a deer, and surely could manage to follow the steps of this
+      baron without being observed. There is little Jack, who is no bigger than
+      a boy of twelve, although he can shoot, and run, and play with the
+      quarterstaff, or, if need be, with the bill, against the best man in the
+      troop. I warrant me that if you show him the tent he will keep such sharp
+      watch that no one shall enter or depart without his knowing where they go
+      to. On a dark night he will be able to slip among the tents, and to move
+      here and there without being seen. He can creep on his stomach without
+      moving a leaf, and trust me the eyes of these French men-at-arms will look
+      in vain for a glimpse of him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You understand, Cnut, all that I want to know is whether the other
+      conspirators in this matter visit his tent, or whether he goes to theirs."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I understand," Cnut said. "That is the first point to be arrived at."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three days later Cnut brought news that each night after dark a party of
+      five men met in the tent that was watched; that one of the five always
+      came out when all had assembled, and took his station before the entrance
+      of the tent, so as to be sure that no eavesdropper was near.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert smiled.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is a case of locking the door after the horse has gone."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is to be done now?" Cnut asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will talk with the earl before I tell you, Cnut. This matter is too
+      serious for me to take a step without consulting Sir Walter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That night there was a long talk between the earl and his page as to the
+      best course to be pursued. It was clear that their old enemy was the
+      leading person in the plot, and that the only plan to baffle it with any
+      fair chances of success was to keep a constant eye upon his movements, and
+      also to have three or four of the sturdiest men of the band told off to
+      watch, without being perceived, each time that the princess was in her
+      palace.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham left the arrangements entirely in the hands of his
+      page, of whose good sense and sagacity he had a very high opinion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His own first impulse had been to go before the king and denounce the
+      Count of Brabant. But the ill-will between them was already well known;
+      for not only was there the original dispute at the banquet, but when the
+      two armies had joined at Sicily, King Richard, who had heard from the earl
+      of the attempt at the assassination of Cuthbert, had laid a complaint
+      before King Philip of the conduct of his subject.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir de Jacquelin Barras, however, had denied that he had any finger in the
+      matter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He had," he said, "discharged his page after the encounter with Cuthbert,
+      and knew nothing further whatever of his movements."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although it was morally certain that the page could not have purchased the
+      services of the men who assisted him, from his own purse, or gain them by
+      any means of persuasion, but that they were either the followers of the
+      Count of Brabant, or ruffians hired with his money, as no proof could be
+      obtained the matter was allowed to drop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl felt, however, that an accusation against the count by him of an
+      intention to commit a high crime, and this merely on the evidence of his
+      page, would appear like an attempt to injure the fame of his rival.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Feeling, therefore, that nothing could be done save to watch, he left the
+      matter entirely in the hands of his page, telling him that he could take
+      as many men-at-arms or archers as he might choose and use them in his
+      name.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut entered warmly into Cuthbert's plans; and finally it was arranged
+      between them that six of the archers should nightly keep watch opposite
+      the various entrances of the bishop's palace and of the two monasteries
+      joining. Of course, they could not patrol up and down without attracting
+      attention, but they were to take up posts where they could closely observe
+      the entrances, and were either to lie down and feign drunken sleep, or to
+      conceal themselves within the shadow of an arch or other hiding-place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Down on the seashore Cuthbert made an arrangement with one of the owners
+      of small craft lying there that ten of his men should sleep on board every
+      night, together with some fishermen accustomed to the use of the oar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert himself determined to be always with this party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Night after night passed, and so long a time went by that Cuthbert began
+      to think the design must have been given up.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, he resolved to relax none of his watchfulness during the
+      remaining time that the expedition might stop in Sicily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was in January, three weeks after the first watch had been set, when
+      one of the men who had been placed to watch the entrance to one of the
+      monasteries leaped on board the craft and shook Cuthbert by the shoulder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "A party of some five men," he said, "have just issued out from the
+      monastery. They are bearing a burden&mdash;what, I cannot see. They were
+      making in the direction of the water. I whistled to Dion who was next to
+      me in the lane. He is following them, and I came on to tell you to
+      prepare."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The night was pitch-dark, and it was difficult in the extreme to see any
+      one moving at a short distance off.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were two or three streets that led from the monastery, which stood
+      at the top of the town, toward the sea; and a party coming down might take
+      any of these, according to the position in which the boat they were
+      seeking was placed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert now instantly sent five or six of his men with instructions to
+      avoid all noise, along the line of the port, with orders to bring in word
+      should anyone come down and take boat, or should they hear any noise in
+      the town. He himself with the sailors loosed the ropes which fastened the
+      boat to shore, got out the oars, and prepared to put off at a moment's
+      notice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was of course ignorant whether the abductor would try to carry the
+      princess off by water, or would hide her in one of the convents of the
+      town; but he was inclined to think that the former would be the course
+      adopted; for the king in his wrath would be ready to lay the town in
+      flames, and to search every convent from top to bottom for the princess.
+      Besides, there would be too many aware of the secret.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was not wrong in his supposition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Soon the man he had sent to the extreme right came running up with the
+      news that a boat had embarked at the further end with a party of some ten
+      men on board. As he came along he had warned the others, and in five
+      minutes the whole party were collected in the craft, numbering in all
+      twelve of Cuthbert's men and six sailors. They instantly put out, and
+      rowed in the direction in which the boat would have gone, the boatmen
+      expressing their opinion that probably the party would make for a vessel
+      which was lying anchored at some little distance from shore. The bearings
+      of the position of this ship was known to the boatmen, but the night was
+      so dark that they were quite unable to find it. Orders had been given that
+      no sound or whisper was to be heard on board the boat; and after rowing as
+      far as they could the boatmen said they were in the direction of the ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The boatmen all lay on their oars, and all listened intently. Presently
+      the creaking of a pulley was heard in the still night, at a distance of a
+      few hundred yards. This was enough. It was clear that the vessel was
+      getting up sail. The boat's head was turned in that direction; the crew
+      rowed steadily but noiselessly, and in a few minutes the tall mast of a
+      vessel could be seen faintly against the sky. Just as they perceived the
+      situation, a hail from on board showed that their approach was now
+      observed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Stretch to your oars," Cuthbert said, "we must make a dash for it now."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The rowers bent to their work and in a minute the boat ran alongside the
+      craft.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert and his followers scrambled upon the deck they were attacked
+      by those of the crew and passengers who were standing near; but it was
+      evident at once that the chiefs of the expedition had not heard the hail,
+      and that there was no general plan of defense against them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not until the last of them had gained a footing and were beginning
+      to fight their way along the vessel that from below three or four
+      men-at-arms ran up, and one in a tone of authority demanded what was the
+      matter. When he heard the clash of swords and the shouts of the combatants
+      he put himself at once at the head of the party and a fierce and obstinate
+      fight now took place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The assailants had, however, the advantage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert and his men were all lightly clad, and this on the deck of a ship
+      lumbered with ropes and gear, and in the dark, was a great advantage, for
+      the mailed men-at-arms frequently stumbled and fell. The fight lasted for
+      several minutes. Cnut, who was armed with a heavy mace, did great service,
+      for with each of his sweeping blows he broke down the guard of an
+      opponent, and generally leveled him to the deck.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The numbers at the beginning of the fight were not unequal, but the men to
+      whom the vessel belonged made but a faint resistance when they perceived
+      that the day was going against them. The men-at-arms, however, consisting
+      of three, who appeared to be the leaders, and of eight pikemen fought
+      stubbornly and well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was not long in detecting in the tones of the man who was clearly
+      at the head of affairs the voice of Sir de Jacquelin Barras. To do him
+      justice he fought with extreme bravery, and when almost all his followers
+      were cut down or beaten overboard, he resisted stanchly and well. With a
+      heavy two-handed sword he cleaved a space at the end of the boat, and kept
+      the whole of Cuthbert's party at bay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last Cnut, who had been engaged elsewhere, came to the front, and a
+      tough fight ensued between them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It might have ended badly for the brave forester, for his lack of armor
+      gave an enormous advantage to his opponent. Soon, however, the count's
+      foot slipped on the boards of the deck, and before he could recover
+      himself the mace of Cnut descended with tremendous force upon his head,
+      which was unprotected, as he had taken off his casque on arriving at the
+      ship. Without a word or a cry the count fell forward on the deck, killed
+      as a bullock by a blow of a poleaX. &mdash; While this conflict had been
+      going on, occasionally the loud screams of a woman had been heard below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, attended by Cnut and two of his followers, now descended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the bottom of the steps they found a man-at-arms placed at the door of
+      a cabin. He challenged as they approached, but being speedily convinced
+      that the vessel was in their hands, and that his employer and party were
+      all conquered, he made a virtue of necessity, and laid down his arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You had better go in alone," Cnut said, "Master Cuthbert. The lady is
+      less likely to be frightened by your appearance than by us, for she must
+      wonder indeed what is going on."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On entering the cabin, which had evidently been fitted up for the use of a
+      lady, Cuthbert saw standing at the other end the princess, whom of course
+      he knew well by sight. A lamp was burning in the cabin, and by its light
+      he could see that her face was deadly pale. Her robes were torn and
+      disarranged, and she wore a look at once of grave alarm and surprise upon
+      seeing a handsomely dressed page enter with a deep reverence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What means this outrage, young sir? Whoever you be, I warn you that the
+      King of England will revenge this indignity."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your highness," Cuthbert said, "you have no further reason for alarm; the
+      knaves who carried you off from the bishop's palace and conveyed you to
+      this ship are all either killed or in our power. I am the page of the Earl
+      of Evesham, a devoted follower of King Richard. Some of the designs of the
+      bold men came to the ears of my lord, and he ordered me and a band of his
+      followers to keep good guard over the palace and buildings adjoining. We
+      were unable to gather our strength in time to prevent your being taken on
+      board, but we lost no time in putting forth when we found that your
+      abductors had taken boat, and by good fortune arrived here in time; a few
+      minutes later, and the knaves would have succeeded in their object, for
+      the sails were already being hoisted, and the vessel making way, when we
+      arrived. Your abductors are all either killed or thrown overboard, and the
+      vessel's head is now turned toward the shore, and I hope in a few minutes
+      to have the honor of escorting you to the palace."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The princess, with a sigh of much satisfaction and relief, sank on to a
+      couch.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am indeed indebted to you, young sir," she said. "Believe me, the
+      Princess Berengaria is not ungrateful, and should it be ever in her power
+      to do aught for your lord, or for yourself, or for those who have
+      accompanied you to rescue her, believe me that she will do it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "May I be so bold as to ask a boon?" Cuthbert said, dropping on one knee
+      before her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is granted at once, whatever it be, if in my power."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My boon is, lady," he said, "that you will do your best to assuage the
+      natural anger which the King of England will feel at this bold and most
+      violent attempt. That he should be told, is of course necessary; but,
+      lady, much depends upon the telling, and I am sure that at your request
+      the king would restrain his anger. Were it not for that, I fear that such
+      quarrels and disputes might arise as would bring the two armies to blows,
+      and destroy forever all hope of the successful termination of our joint
+      enterprise."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are a wise and good youth," the princess said, holding out her hand
+      to Cuthbert, which, as duty bound, he placed to his lips. "Your request is
+      wise and most thoughtful. I will use any poor influence which I may
+      possess"&mdash;and Cuthbert could see that the blood came back now to the
+      white face&mdash;"to induce King Richard to allow the matter to pass over.
+      There is no reason why he should take up the case. I am no more under his
+      protection than under that of the King of France, and it is to the latter
+      I should appeal, for as I believe the men who abducted me were his
+      subjects."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The leader of them, madam, was a certain Sir de Jacquelin Barras, a Count
+      of Brabant, with whom my master has had an old feud, and who has been just
+      killed by the leader of our men-at-arms. The others, who have had the most
+      active hand in the matter, have also perished; and it would, I think be
+      doubtful whether any clew could be obtained of those who were in league
+      with them. The only man in the party who is alive was placed as a sentry
+      at your door, and as he is but a man-at-arms we may be sure that he knows
+      naught of the enterprise, but has merely carried out the orders of his
+      master."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The vessel had by this time brought up close to the port. The princess
+      determined to wait on board until the first dawn was seen in the skies,
+      and then under the escort of her deliverers to go back to the palace,
+      before the town was moving. This plan was carried out, and soon after dawn
+      the princess was safe in the palace from which she had been carried a few
+      hours previously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0010" id="link2HCH0010"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER X. &mdash; PIRATES.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was not possible that a matter of this sort could be entirely hushed
+      up. Not many hours passed before rumors were current of events which had
+      taken place, though none knew what those events were.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were reports that the tire-woman of the Princess Berengaria had in
+      the night discovered that her mistress' couch was unoccupied, that she had
+      found signs of a struggle, and had picked up a dagger on the floor, where
+      it had evidently fallen from the sheath; also it was said that the
+      princess had returned at daylight escorted by an armed party, and that she
+      was unable to obtain entrance to the palace until one of the ladies of the
+      queen had been fetched down to order the sentries at the gate to allow her
+      to enter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the news which rumor carried through the camp. Few, however,
+      believed it, and none who could have enlightened them opened their lips
+      upon the subject.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was known, however, that a messenger had come to King Richard early,
+      and that he had at once mounted and ridden off to the bishop's palace.
+      What had happened there none could say, but there were rumors that his
+      voice had been heard in furious outbursts of passion. He remained there
+      until the afternoon, when he sent for a number of his principal nobles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When these arrived they found him standing on a daïs in the principal hall
+      of the palace, and he there formally introduced to them the Princess
+      Berengaria as his affianced wife. The ceremony of the marriage, he told
+      them, would shortly take place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This announcement caused a tremendous stir in both armies. The English,
+      who had never been favorable to the alliance with the French princess,
+      were glad to hear that this was broken off, and were well content that the
+      Princess Berengaria should be their future queen, for her beauty, high
+      spirit, and kindness had won all hearts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the part of the French, on the other hand, there was great indignation,
+      and for some time it was feared that the armies would come to open blows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Philip, however, although much angered, was politic enough to
+      deprecate any open outbreak. He knew that a dispute now began would not
+      only at once put a stop to the Crusade, but that it might lead to more
+      serious consequences at home. The fiery bravery of the English king,
+      backed as it would be by the whole strength of his subjects, might render
+      him a very formidable opponent; and the king felt that private grievances
+      must be laid aside where the good of France was concerned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Still the coldness between the armies increased, their camps were moved
+      further apart, and during the time that they remained in Sicily there was
+      but little commerce between the two forces.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the winter had broken the French monarch broke up his camp, and
+      in March sailed for the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The English had expected that the marriage ceremony of the king and
+      Princess Berengaria would be celebrated before they left Sicily, but this
+      was not the case. There were high joustings and <i>fêtes</i> in honor of
+      the princess, but the marriage was delayed. A fortnight after the French
+      had sailed the English embarked in the two hundred ships which had been
+      prepared, and sailed also on their way to Acre.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must not be supposed that the attempted abduction of the Princess
+      Berengaria was unimportant in its results to Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After returning from the palace the king, who had heard from her the
+      details of what had taken place, and the names of her rescuers, sent for
+      the Earl of Evesham. The latter had of course learned from Cuthbert all
+      that had happened, and had expressed his high approval of his conduct, and
+      his gratification at the result.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I learn, Sir Earl," said King Richard, "that it is to you that I am
+      indebted for the rescue of the princess. She tells me that suspecting some
+      plot you placed a guard around the bishop's palace, with a strong body on
+      the shore ready to rescue her from the hands of any who might attempt to
+      take her to sea."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is as you say, sire," replied the earl; "but the whole merit of the
+      affair rests upon my page, the lad whom you may remember as having fought
+      with and conquered the French page, and of whose conduct you then approved
+      highly. You may also remember that he escaped by some display of bravery
+      and shrewdness the further attempts to assassinate him, and your majesty
+      was good enough to make a complaint to King Philip of the conduct of one
+      of his nobles on that head. It seems that some two months since the lad in
+      coming through the French camp at night missed his way, and accidentally
+      overheard a few words spoken in a voice which he recognized as that of his
+      enemy. The name of your majesty being mentioned, he deemed it his duty to
+      listen, and thus discovered that a plot was on foot for carrying off the
+      princess. After consultation with me, we agreed upon the course to be
+      adopted, namely, to place sentries round the bishop's place and the
+      buildings adjoining, who should follow and bring word should she be taken
+      to another place in town, while a band was placed on the shore in
+      readiness to interfere at once to prevent her being carried away by sea.
+      He undertook the management of all details, having with him a trusty
+      squire who commands my Saxon bowmen."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For your own part I thank you, my lord," the king said, "and, believe me,
+      you shall not find Richard ungrateful. As to your page, he appears brave
+      and wise beyond his years. Were it not that I think that it would not be
+      good for him, and might attract some envy upon the part of others, I would
+      at once make him a knight. He already has my promise that I will do so on
+      the first occasion when he can show his prowess upon the infidels. Bring
+      him to me to-morrow, when the princess will be here with the Queen of
+      Navarre at a banquet. I would fain thank him before her; and, although I
+      have agreed&mdash;at the princess' earnest solicitation&mdash;to take no
+      further notice of the matter, and to allow it to pass as if it had not
+      been, yet I cannot forgive the treachery which has been used, and without
+      letting all know exactly what has occurred would fain by my reception of
+      your page let men see that something of great import has happened, of the
+      nature of which I doubt not that rumor will give some notion."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the following day, therefore, Cuthbert to his confusion found himself
+      the center of the royal circle. The king expressed himself to him in the
+      most gracious manner, patting him on the shoulder, and said that he would
+      be one day one of the best and bravest of his knights. The princess and
+      the Queen of Navarre gave him their hands to kiss, and somewhat
+      overwhelmed, he withdrew from the royal presence, the center of attention,
+      and, in some minds, of envy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut too did not pass unrewarded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His majesty, finding that Cnut was of gentle Saxon blood, gave him a gold
+      chain in token of his favor, and distributed a heavy purse among the men
+      who had followed him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the British fleet, numbering two hundred ships, set sail from Sicily,
+      it was a grand and martial sight. From the masts were the colors of
+      England and those of the nobles who commanded; while the pennons of the
+      knights, the bright plumes and mantles, the flash of armor and arms made
+      the decks alive with light and color.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king's ship advanced in the van, and round him were the vessels
+      containing his principal followers. The Queen of Navarre and the Princess
+      Berengaria were with the fleet. Strains of music rose from the waters, and
+      never were the circumstances of war exhibited in a more picturesque form.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For two days the expedition sailed on, and then a change of a sudden and
+      disastrous kind took place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is all this bustle about?" Cuthbert said to Cnut. "The sailors are
+      running up the ladders, all seems confusion."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," said Cnut, "that we are about to have a storm. A few minutes
+      ago scarce a cloud was to be seen; now that bank over there has risen
+      halfway up the sky. The sailors are accustomed to these treacherous seas,
+      and the warnings which we have not noticed have no doubt been clear enough
+      to them."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With great rapidity the sails of the fleet came down, and in five minutes
+      its whole aspect was changed; but quickly as the sailors had done their
+      work, the storm was even more rapid in its progress. Some of the ships
+      whose crews were slower or less skillful than the others were caught by
+      the gale before they could get their sails snug, and the great sheets of
+      white canvas were blown from the bolt-ropes as if made of paper, and a
+      blackness which could almost be felt covered the sea, the only light being
+      that given by the frothing waters. There was no longer any thought of
+      order. Each ship had to shift for herself; and each captain to do his best
+      to save those under his charge, without thought of what might befall the
+      others.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the ship which carried the Earl of Evesham's contingent, order and
+      discipline prevailed. The earl's voice had been heard at the first puff of
+      wind, shouting to the men to go below, save a few who might be of use to
+      haul at ropes. His standard was lowered, the bright flags removed from the
+      sides of the ship, the shields which were hanging over the bulwarks were
+      hurriedly taken below, and when the gale smote them the ship was trim, and
+      in readiness to receive it. A few square yards of sail alone were all that
+      the captain had thought it prudent to keep spread, and in a minute from
+      the time she was struck the lofty hulk was tearing along through the
+      waters at a tremendous speed. Four of the best hands were placed at the
+      helm; and here the captain took his post.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The danger was now that in the darkness they might run against one of
+      their consorts. Even in the war of the elements they could hear from time
+      to time crashes as of vessels striking against each other, with shouts and
+      cries. Once or twice from the darkness ships emerged, close on one hand or
+      the other; but the steadiness of the captain in each case saved the ship
+      from collision.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the storm continued these glimpses of other vessels became more and
+      more rare, and the ship being a very fast sailer, the captain indulged the
+      hope that he was now clear of the rest of the fleet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He now attempted to lie-to to the storm, but the wind was too strong. The
+      ships in those days, too, were so high out of the water, and offered in
+      themselves such a target to the wind, that it was useless to adopt any
+      other maneuver than to run before it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For two days and nights the tempest raged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What think you," the earl said to the captain, "of our position? Where
+      are we, and where will the course upon which we are running take us?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I cannot say with certainty," the captain said, "for the wind has shifted
+      several times. I had hoped to gain the shelter of Rhodes, but a shift of
+      wind bore us away from there, and I much fear that from the direction in
+      which we have been running we must be very nigh on the coast of Africa."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "<i>Peste!</i>" the earl said. "That would indeed be a speedy end to our
+      Crusade. These Moors are pirates and cutthroats to a man; and even should
+      we avoid the risk of being dashed to pieces, we should end our lives as
+      slaves to one of these black infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three hours later the captain's prophecies turned out right. Breakers were
+      seen in various points in front, and with the greatest difficulty the
+      vessel was steered through an opening between them; but in another few
+      minutes she struck heavily, one of her masts went over the side, and she
+      lay fast and immovable. Fortunately, the outside bank of sand acted as a
+      sort of breakwater; had she struck upon this the good ship would have gone
+      to pieces instantly; but although the waves still struck her with
+      considerable force, the captain had good hope that she would not break up.
+      Darkness came on; the tempest seemed to lull. As there was no immediate
+      danger, and all were exhausted by the tossing which they had received
+      during the last forty-eight hours, the crew of the Rose slept soundly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning the sun rose brilliantly, and there was no sign of the
+      great storm which had scattered the fleet of England. The shore was to be
+      seen at a distance of some four miles. It was low and sandy, with lofty
+      mountains in the distance. Far inland a white town with minaret and dome
+      could be seen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Know you where we are?" the earl asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "As far as I can tell," the captain said, "we have been driven up the bay
+      called the Little Syrtis&mdash;a place full of shoals and shallows, and
+      abounding with pirates of the worst kind."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Think you that the ship has suffered injury?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whether she has done so or not," the captain said, "I fear greatly that
+      she is fast in the sand, and even the lightening of all her cargo will
+      scarce get her off; but we must try at least."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is little time that we shall have to try, Master Captain," Cuthbert,
+      who was standing close, said. "Me thinks those two long ships which are
+      putting out from that town will have something to say to that."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is too true," the captain said. "Those are the galleys of the Moorish
+      corsairs. They are thirty or forty oars, draw but little water, and will
+      be here like the wind."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What do you advise?" asked the earl. "The falconets which you have upon
+      the poop can make but a poor resistance to boats that can row around us,
+      and are no doubt furnished with heavy metal. They will quickly perceive
+      that we are aground and defenseless, and will be able to plump their shot
+      into us until they have knocked the good ship to pieces. However, we will
+      fight to the last. It shall not be said that the Earl of Evesham was taken
+      by infidel dogs and sold as a slave, without striking a blow in his
+      defense."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert stood watching the corsairs, which were now rowing toward them at
+      all speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks, my lord," he said presently, "if I might venture to give an
+      opinion, that we might yet trick the infidel."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "As how, Cuthbert?" the earl said. "Speak out; you know that I have great
+      faith in your sagacity."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think, sir," the page said, "that did we send all your men below,
+      leaving only the crew of the vessel on deck, they would take us for a
+      merchant ship which has been wrecked here, and exercise but little care
+      how they approach us. The men on deck might make a show of firing once or
+      twice with the falconets. The pirates, disdaining such a foe, would row
+      alongside. Once there, we might fasten one or both to our side with
+      grapnels, and then, methinks, that English bill and bow will render us
+      more than a match for Moorish pirates, and one of these craft can scarcely
+      carry more men than we have. I should propose to take one of them by
+      force, and drive the pirates overboard; take possession of, if possible,
+      or beat off her consort; and then take the most valuable stores from the
+      ship and make our way as best we can to the north."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Well thought of!" exclaimed the earl cordially. "You have indeed imagined
+      a plan which promises well. What think you, captain?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think, my lord," the Genoese said, "that the plan is an excellent one,
+      and promises every success. If your men will all go below, holding their
+      arms in readiness for the signal, mine shall prepare grapnels and ropes,
+      and the first of these craft which comes alongside they will lash so
+      securely to the Rose that I warrant me she gets not away."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These preparations were soon made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The soldiers, who at first had been filled with apprehension at the
+      thought of slavery among the infidels, were now delighted at the prospect
+      of a struggle ending in escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The archers prepared their bows and arrows, and stood behind the portholes
+      in readiness to pour a volley into the enemy; the men-at-arms grasped
+      their pikes and swords; while above, the sailors moved hither and thither
+      as if making preparations for defense, but in reality preparing the
+      grapnels and ropes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One of the pirates was faster than the other, and soon coming within
+      reach, opened fire upon the Rose with a heavy cannon, which she carried in
+      her bow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The crew of the Rose replied with their falconets and sakers from the
+      poop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The corsair at first did not keep her course direct for the ship, but
+      rowed once or twice round her, firing as she did so. Then, apparently
+      satisfied that no great precaution need be observed with a feebly-manned
+      ship in so great a strait as the Rose, they set up a wild cry of "Allah!"
+      and rowed toward her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In two minutes the corsair was alongside of the Rose, and the fierce crew
+      were climbing up her sides. As she came alongside the sailors cast
+      grapnels into her rigging, and fastened her to the Rose; and then a loud
+      shout of "Hurrah for England!" was heard; the ports opened, and a volley
+      of arrows was poured upon the astonished corsair; and from the deck above
+      the assailants were thrown back into the galley, and a swarm of heavily
+      armed men leaped down from the ship upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Taken by surprise, and indeed outnumbered, the resistance of the corsairs
+      was but slight. In a close fierce <i>mêlée</i> like this the light-armed
+      Moors had but little chance with the mail-clad English, whose heavy swords
+      and axes clove their defenses at a blow. The fight lasted but three
+      minutes, and then the last of the corsairs was overboard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men who rowed the galley had uttered the most piercing cries while
+      this conflict had been raging. They were unable to take any part in it,
+      had they been disposed to do so, for they were all slaves chained to the
+      oars.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Scarcely had the conflict ended when the other galley arrived upon the
+      scene; but seeing what had happened, and that her consort had fallen into
+      the hands of the English, she at once turned her head, and rowed back
+      rapidly to the town from which she had come.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the slaves who rowed the galley were many white men, and their cries
+      of joy at their liberation greatly affected those who had thus
+      unexpectedly rescued them. Hammers were soon brought into requisition, the
+      shackles struck off them, and a scene of affecting joy took place. The
+      slaves were of all nationalities, but Italians and Spaniards, French and
+      Greeks formed the principal part. There was no time, however, to be lost;
+      the arms and munitions of war were hastily removed from the Rose, together
+      with the most valuable of the stores.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The galley-slaves again took their places, and this time willingly, at the
+      oars, the places of the weakest being supplied by the English, whose want
+      of skill was made up by the alacrity with which they threw their strength
+      into the work; and in an hour from the time that the galley had arrived
+      alongside of the Rose, her head was turned north, and with sixty oars she
+      was rowing at all speed for the mouth of the bay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0011" id="link2HCH0011"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XI. &mdash; IN THE HOLY LAND.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the galley which had escaped reached the town from which it had
+      started, it with three others at once set out in pursuit; while from a
+      narrow creek two other galleys made their appearance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were a few words of question among the English whether to stop and
+      give battle to these opponents, or to make their way with all speed. The
+      latter counsel prevailed; the earl pointing out that their lives were now
+      scarcely their own, and that they had no right on their way to the holy
+      sepulcher to risk them unnecessarily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately they had it in their hands to fight or escape, as they chose;
+      for doubly banked as the oars now were there was little chance of the
+      enemy's galleys overtaking them. Gradually as they rowed to sea the
+      pursuing vessels became smaller and smaller to view, until at last they
+      were seen to turn about and make again for land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After some consultation between the earl and the captain of the lost ship
+      it was determined to make for Rhodes. This had been settled as a halting
+      point for the fleet, and the earl thought it probable that the greater
+      portion of those scattered by the storm would rendezvous there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So it proved; after a voyage, which although not very long was tedious,
+      owing to the number of men cramped up in so small a craft, they came
+      within sight of the port of Rhodes, and were greatly pleased at seeing a
+      perfect forest of masts there, showing that at least the greater portion
+      of the fleet had survived the storm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was indeed the fact, and a number of other single ships dropped in
+      during the next day or two.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was great astonishment on the part of the fleet when the long, swift
+      galley was seen approaching, and numerous conjectures were offered as to
+      what message the pirates could be bringing&mdash;for there was no
+      mistaking the appearance of the long, dangerous-looking craft.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When, upon her approach, the standard of the Earl of Evesham was seen
+      flying on the bow, a great shout of welcome arose from the fleet; and King
+      Richard himself, who happened to be on the deck of the royal ship, shouted
+      to the earl to come on board and tell him what masquerading he was doing
+      there. The earl of course obeyed the order, anchoring near the royal
+      vessel, and going on board in a small boat, taking with him his page and
+      squire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king heard with great interest the tale of the adventures of the Rose;
+      and when the Earl of Evesham said that it was to Cuthbert that was due the
+      thought of the stratagem by which the galley was captured, and its crew
+      saved from being carried away into hopeless slavery, the king patted the
+      boy on the shoulder with such hearty force as nearly to throw Cuthbert off
+      his feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "By St. George!" said the monarch, "you are fated to be a very pink of
+      knights. You seem as thoughtful as you are brave; and whatever your age
+      may be, I declare that the next time your name is brought before me I will
+      call a chapter of knights, and they shall agree that exception shall be
+      made in your favor, and that you shall at once be admitted to the
+      honorable post. You will miss your page, Sir Walter; but I am sure you
+      will not grudge him that."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No, no, sire," said the earl. "The lad, as I have told your majesty, is a
+      connection of mine&mdash;distant it is true, but one of the nearest I have&mdash;and
+      it will give me the greatest pleasure to see him rising so rapidly, and on
+      a fair way to distinguish himself so highly. I feel already as proud of
+      him as if he were my own son."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fleet remained some two or three weeks at Rhodes, for many of the
+      vessels were sorely buffeted and injured, masts were carried away as well
+      as bulwarks battered in, and the efforts of the crews and of those of the
+      whole of the artificers of Rhodes were called into requisition. Light
+      sailing craft were sent off in all directions, for the king was in a fever
+      of anxiety. Among the vessels still missing was that which bore the Queen
+      of Navarre and the fair Berengaria.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One day a solitary vessel was seen approaching. "Another of our lost
+      sheep," the earl said, looking out over the poop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She proved, however, to be a merchant ship of Greece, and newly come from
+      Cyprus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Her captain went on board the royal ship, and delivered a message to the
+      king, to the effect that two of the vessels had been cast upon the coast
+      of Cyprus, that they had been plundered by the people, the crews
+      ill-treated and made prisoners by the king, and that the Queen of Navarre
+      and the princess were in their hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This roused King Richard into one of his furies. "Before I move a step
+      toward the Holy Land," he said, "I will avenge these injuries upon this
+      faithless and insolent king. I swear that I will make him pay dearly for
+      having laid a hand upon these ladies."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At once the signal was hoisted for all the vessels in a condition to sail
+      to take on board water and provisions, and to prepare to sail for Cyprus;
+      and the next morning at daybreak the fleet sailed out, and made their way
+      toward that island, casting anchor off the harbor of Famagosta.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard sent a messenger on shore to the king, ordering him at once
+      to release the prisoners; to make the most ample compensation to them; to
+      place ships at their service equal to those which had been destroyed; and
+      to pay a handsome sum of money as indemnity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The King of Cyprus, however, an insolent and haughty despot, sent back a
+      message of defiance. King Richard at once ordered the anchors to be
+      raised, and all to follow the royal ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fleet entered the harbor of Famagosta; the English archers began the
+      fight by sending a flight of arrows into the town. This was answered from
+      the walls by a shower of stones and darts from the machines.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no time wasted. The vessels were headed toward the shore, and as
+      the water was deep, many of them were able to run close alongside the
+      rocky wharves. In an instant, regardless of the storm of weapons poured
+      down by the defenders, the English leaped ashore.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The archers kept up so terrible a rain of missiles against the battlements
+      that the defenders could scarcely show themselves for an instant there,
+      and the men-at-arms, placing ladders against them, speedily mounted, and
+      putting aside all opposition, poured into the town. The effeminate Greek
+      soldiers of the monarch could offer no effectual resistance whatever, and
+      he himself fled from the palace and gained the open country, followed by a
+      few adherents. The English gained a considerable booty, for in those days
+      a town taken by assault was always looked upon as the property of the
+      captors. The Queen of Navarre and the princess were rescued.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard, however, was not satisfied with the success he had gained,
+      and was determined to punish this insolent little king. Accordingly the
+      English were set in motion into the interior, and town after town speedily
+      fell, or opened their gate to him. The king, deserted by his troops, and
+      detested by his people for having brought so terrible a scourge upon them
+      by his reckless conduct, now sued for peace; but King Richard would give
+      him no terms except dethronement, and this he was forced to accept. He was
+      deprived of his crown, and banished from the island.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king now, to the surprise of his barons, announced his intention of at
+      once marrying the Princess Berengaria.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Popular as he was, there was yet some quiet grumbling among his troops; as
+      they said, with justice, they had been waiting nearly six months in the
+      island of Sicily, and the king might well have married there, instead of a
+      fresh delay being caused when so near their place of destination.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the king as usual had his own way, and the marriage was
+      solemnized amid great rejoicing and solemnity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a brilliant scene indeed in the cathedral of Limasol. There were
+      assembled all the principal barons of England, together with a great
+      number of the nobles of Cyprus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Certainly no better matched pair ever stood at the altar together, for as
+      King Richard was one of the strongest and bravest men of his own or any
+      other time, so Berengaria is admitted to have been one of the loveliest
+      maidens.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The air was rent with the acclamations of the assembled English host and
+      of the numerous inhabitants of Limasol as they emerged from the cathedral.
+      For a fortnight the town was given up to festivity; tournaments,
+      joustings, banquets succeeded each other day after day, and the islanders,
+      who were fond of pleasure, and indeed very wealthy, vied with the English
+      in the entertainments which they gave in honor of the occasion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The festivities over, the king gave the welcome order to proceed on their
+      voyage. They had now been joined by all the vessels left behind at Rhodes,
+      and it was found that only a few were missing, and that the great storm,
+      terrible as it had been, had inflicted less damage upon the fleet than was
+      at first feared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days' sail brought them within sight of the white walls of Acre, and
+      it was on June 8, 1191, that the fleet sailed into the port of that town.
+      Tremendous acclamations greeted the arrival of the English army by the
+      host assembled on the shores.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Acre had been besieged for two years, but in vain; and even the arrival of
+      the French army under Philip Augustus had failed to turn the scale. The
+      inhabitants defended themselves with desperate bravery; every assault upon
+      the walls had been repulsed with immense slaughter; and at no great
+      distance off the Sultan Saladin, with a large army, was watching the
+      progress of the siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fame of King Richard and the English was so great, however, that the
+      besiegers had little doubt that his arrival would change the position of
+      things; and even the French, in spite of the bad feeling which had existed
+      in Sicily, joined with the knights and army of the King of Jerusalem in
+      acclaiming the arrival of the English.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Philip Augustus, the French king, was of a somewhat weak and wavering
+      disposition. It would have been thought that after his dispute with King
+      Richard he would have gladly done all in his power to carry Acre before
+      the arrival of his great rival. To the great disappointment of the French,
+      however, he declared that he would take no step in the general assault
+      until the arrival of Richard; and although the French had given some
+      assistance to the besiegers, the army had really remained passive for many
+      weeks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, however, that the English had arrived, little time was lost; for the
+      moment the dissensions and jealousies between the monarchs were patched
+      up, the two hosts naturally imitated the example of their sovereigns, and
+      French and English worked side by side in throwing up trenches against the
+      walls, in building movable towers for the attack, and in preparing for the
+      great onslaught.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The French were the first to finish their preparations, and they delivered
+      a tremendous assault upon the walls. The besieged, however, did not lose
+      heart, and with the greatest bravery repulsed every attempt. The scaling
+      ladders were hurled backward, the towers were destroyed by Greek fire;
+      boiling oil was hurled down upon the men who advanced under the shelter of
+      machines to undermine the walls; and after desperate fighting the French
+      fell back, baffled and beaten.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was some quiet exultation in the English lines at the defeat of the
+      French, for they believed that a better fortune would crown their own
+      efforts. Such, however, to their surprise and mortification, was not the
+      case. When their preparations were completed they attacked with splendid
+      bravery. They were fighting under the eyes of their king and in sight of
+      the French army, who had a few days before been baffled; and if bravery
+      and devotion could have carried the walls of Acre, assuredly King
+      Richard's army would have accomplished the task.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was, however, too great for them, and with vast loss the army fell back
+      to its camp, King Richard raging like a wounded lion. Many of his barons
+      had been killed in the assault, and the pikemen and men-at-arms had
+      suffered heavily. The Earl of Evesham had been wounded; Cuthbert had taken
+      no part in the assault, for the earl, knowing his bravery, had forbidden
+      his doing so, as he foresaw the struggle would be of the most desperate
+      character; and as it was not usual for pages to accompany their lords on
+      the battlefield, Cuthbert could not complain of his being forbidden to
+      take part in the fight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl, however, permitted him to accompany Cnut and the bowmen, who did
+      great service by the accuracy of their aim, preventing by their storm of
+      arrows the men on the battlements from taking steady aim and working their
+      machines, and so saved the Earl of Evesham's troop and those fighting near
+      him from suffering nearly as heavy loss as some of those engaged in other
+      quarters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But while successful in beating off all assaults, the defenders of Acre
+      were now nearly at the end of their resources. The Emperor Saladin,
+      although he had collected an army of two hundred thousand men, yet feared
+      to advance and give battle to the Crusaders in their own lines&mdash;for
+      they had thrown up round their camp strong intrenchments to prevent the
+      progress of the siege being disturbed by forces from without.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The people of Acre seeing the time pass and no sign of a rescuing force,
+      their provisions being utterly exhausted, and pestilence and fever making
+      frightful ravages in the city, at last determined to surrender.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For over two years they had made a resistance of the most valiant
+      description, and now, despairing of success or rescue, and seeing the
+      hosts of their besiegers increasing day by day, they hoisted a flag upon
+      the walls and sent a deputation to the kings, asking for terms if they
+      submitted. They would have done well had they submitted upon the arrival
+      of the French and English reinforcements. For the monarchs, annoyed by the
+      defeat of their forces and by the heavy losses they had sustained, and
+      knowing that the besieged were now at their last crust, were not disposed
+      to be merciful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the horrors which then attended the capture of cities in a war in
+      which so little quarter was given on either side were avoided. The city
+      was to be surrendered; the much-prized relic contained within its walls&mdash;said
+      to be a piece of the true cross which had been captured by the Saracens at
+      the battle of Tiberias, in which they had almost annihilated the Christian
+      armies a few years before&mdash;was to be surrendered; the Christian
+      prisoners in their hands were to be given up unharmed; and the inhabitants
+      undertook to pay two hundred thousand pieces of gold to the kings within
+      forty days, under the condition that the fighting men now taken prisoners
+      were to be put to death should this ransom not be paid.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The conquest of Acre was hailed throughout Christendom as a triumph of the
+      highest importance. It opened again the gates of the Holy Land; and so
+      tremendous was the strength of the fortress that it was deemed that if
+      this stronghold were unable to resist effectually the arms of the
+      Crusaders, and that if Saladin with so great an army did not dare to
+      advance to its rescue, then the rest of the Holy Land would speedily fall
+      under the hands of the invading army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the fall of Acre, however, the dissensions between the two kings,
+      which had for awhile been allowed to rest while the common work was to be
+      done, broke out again with renewed intensity. The jealousy of Philip
+      Augustus was raised to the highest point by the general enthusiasm of the
+      combined armies for the valiant King of England, and by the authority
+      which that monarch exercised in the councils. He therefore suddenly
+      announced his intention of returning to France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This decision at first occasioned the greatest consternation in the ranks
+      of the Crusaders; but this feeling was lessened when the king announced
+      that he should leave a large portion of the French army behind, under the
+      command of the Duke of Burgundy. The wiser councilors were satisfied with
+      the change. Although there was a reduction of the total fighting force,
+      yet the fact that it was now centered under one head, and that King
+      Richard would now be in supreme command, was deemed to more than
+      counterbalance the loss of a portion of the French army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before starting on the march for Jerusalem King Richard sullied his
+      reputation by causing all the defenders of Acre to be put to death, their
+      ransom not having arrived at the stipulated time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then the allied army set out upon their journey. The fleet cruised along
+      near them, and from it they obtained all that was requisite for their
+      wants, and yet, notwithstanding these advantages, the toil and fatigue
+      were terrible. Roads scarcely existed, and the army marched across the
+      rough and broken country. There was no straggling, but each kept his
+      place; and if unable to do so, fell and died. The blazing sun poured down
+      upon them with an appalling force; the dust which rose when they left the
+      rocks and came upon flat, sandy ground almost smothered them. Water was
+      only obtainable at the halts, and then was frequently altogether
+      insufficient for the wants of the army; while in front, on flank, and in
+      rear hovered clouds of the cavalry of Saladin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At times King Richard would allow parties of his knights to detach
+      themselves from the force to drive off these enemies. But it was the chase
+      of a lion after a hare. The knights in their heavy armor and powerful
+      steeds were left behind as if standing still, by the fleet Bedouins on
+      their desert coursers; and the pursuers, exhausted and worn out, were
+      always glad to regain the ranks of the army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These clouds of cavalry belonging to the enemy did not content themselves
+      with merely menacing and cutting off stragglers. At times, when they
+      thought they saw an opening, they would dash in and attack the column
+      desperately, sometimes gaining temporary advantages, killing and wounding
+      many, then fleeing away again into the desert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding that it was impossible to catch these wary horsemen, King Richard
+      ordered his bowmen to march outside his cavalry, so that when the enemy's
+      horse approached within bowshot they should open upon them with arrows;
+      then, should the horsemen persist in charging, the archers were at once to
+      take refuge behind the lines of the knights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Day after day passed in harassing conflicts. The distance passed over each
+      day was very small, and the sufferings of the men from thirst, heat, and
+      fatigue enormous. Cuthbert could well understand now what he had heard of
+      great armies melting away, for already men began to succumb in large
+      numbers to the terrible heat, and the path traversed by the army was
+      scattered with corpses of those who had fallen victims to sunstroke. Not
+      even at night did the attacks of the enemy cease, and a portion of the
+      harassed force was obliged to keep under arms to repel assaults.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So passed the time until the army arrived at Azotus, and there, to the
+      delight of the Crusaders, who only longed to get at their foes, they
+      beheld the whole force of Saladin, two hundred thousand strong, barring
+      their way. Had it not been for the stern discipline enforced by King
+      Richard the knights of England and France would have repeated the mistake
+      which had caused the extermination of the Christian force at Tiberias, and
+      would have leveled their lances and charged recklessly into the mass of
+      their enemies. But the king, riding round the flanks and front of the
+      force, gave his orders in the sternest way, with the threat that any man
+      who moved from the ranks should die by his hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The army was halted, the leaders gathered round the king, and a hasty
+      consultation was held. Richard insisted upon the fight being conducted
+      upon the same principles as the march&mdash;that the line of archers
+      should stand outside the knights, and should gall the advancing force with
+      arrows till the last moment, and then retire among the cavalry, only to
+      sally out again as the Bedouins fell back from the steel wall of horsemen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had now for the first time donned full armor, and rode behind the
+      Earl of Evesham as his esquire, for the former esquire had been left
+      behind, ill with fever at Acre.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0012" id="link2HCH0012"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XII. &mdash; THE ACCOLADE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was now a year since they had left England, and Cuthbert had much grown
+      and widened out in the interval, and had never neglected an opportunity of
+      practicing with arms; and the earl was well aware that he should obtain as
+      efficient assistance from him in time of need as he could desire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the first time that Cuthbert, and indeed the great proportion of
+      those present in the Christian host, had seen the enemy in force, and they
+      eagerly watched the vast array. It was picturesque in the extreme, with a
+      variety and brightness of color rivaling that of the Christian host. In
+      banners and pennons the latter made a braver show; but the floating robes
+      of the infidel showed a far brighter mass of color than the steel armor of
+      the Christians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here were people drawn from widely separated parts of Saladin's dominions.
+      Here were Nubians from the Nile, tall and powerful men, jet black in skin,
+      with lines of red and white paint on their faces, giving a ghastly and
+      wild appearance to them. On their shoulders were skins of lions and other
+      wild animals. They carried short bows, and heavy clubs studded with iron.
+      By them were the Bedouin cavalry, light, sinewy men, brown as berries,
+      with white turbans and garments. Near these were the cavalry from Syria
+      and the plains of Assyria&mdash;wild horsemen with semi-barbarous armor
+      and scarlet trappings. Here were the solid lines of the Egyptian infantry,
+      steady troops, upon whom Saladin much relied. Here were other tribes,
+      gathered from afar, each distinguished by its own particular marks. In
+      silence did this vast array view awhile the solid mass of the Christians.
+      Suddenly a strange din of discordant music from thousands of musical
+      instruments&mdash;conches and horns, cymbals and drums, arose in wild
+      confusion. Shouts of defiance in a dozen tongues and from two hundred
+      thousand throats rose wild and shrill upon the air, while clear above all
+      the din were heard the strange vibratory cries of the warriors from the
+      Egyptian highlands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "One would think," said Cnut grimly to Cuthbert, "that the infidels
+      imagine we are a flock of antelopes to be frightened by an outcry. They
+      would do far better to save their wind for future use. They will want it,
+      methinks, when we get fairly among them. Who would have thought that a
+      number of men, heathen and infidel though they be, could have made so foul
+      an outcry?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert laughed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Every one fights according to his own method, Cnut; and I am not sure
+      that there is not some thing to be said for this outcry, for it is really
+      so wild and fearful that it makes my blood almost curdle in my veins; and
+      were it not that I know the proved valor of our knights and footmen, I
+      should feel shaken by this terrible introduction to the fight."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I heed it no more," said Cnut, "than the outcry of wild fowl, when one
+      comes upon them suddenly on a lake in winter. It means no more than that;
+      and I reckon that they are trying to encourage themselves fully as much as
+      to frighten us. However, we shall soon see. If they can fight as well as
+      they can scream, they certainly will get no answering shouts from us. The
+      English bulldog fights silently, and bite as hard as he will, you will
+      hear little beyond a low growl. Now, my men," he said, turning to his
+      archers, "methinks the heathen are about to begin in earnest. Keep steady;
+      do not fire until you are sure that they are within range. Draw your bows
+      well to your ears, and straightly and steadily let fly. Never heed the
+      outcry or the rush, keep steady to the last moment. There is shelter
+      behind you, and fierce as the attack may be, you can find a sure refuge
+      behind the line of the knights."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut with his archers formed part of the line outside the array of English
+      knights, and the arrows of the English bowmen fell fast as bands of the
+      Bedouin horse circled round them in the endeavor to draw the Christians on
+      to the attack. For some time Saladin persisted in these tactics. With his
+      immense superiority of force he reckoned that if the Christian chivalry
+      would but charge him, the victory of Tiberias would be repeated. Hemmed in
+      by numbers, borne down by the weight of armor and the effects of the
+      blazing sun, the knights would succumb as much to fatigue as to the force
+      of their foes. King Richard's orders, however, were well obeyed, and at
+      last the Moslem chief, urged by the entreaties of his leading emirs, who
+      felt ashamed that so large a force should hesitate to attack one so vastly
+      inferior in numbers, determined upon taking the initiative, and forming
+      his troops in a semicircle round the Christian army, launched his horsemen
+      to the attack. The instant they came within range a cloud of arrows from
+      the English archers fell among them, but the speed at which the desert
+      horses covered the ground rendered it impossible for the archers to
+      discharge more than one or two shafts before the enemy were upon them.
+      Quickly as they now slipped back and sought refuge under the lances of the
+      knights, many of them were unable to get back in time, and were cut down
+      by the Saracens. The rest crept between the horses or under their bellies
+      into the rear, and there prepared to sally out again as soon as the enemy
+      retired. The Christian knights sat like a wall of steel upon their horses,
+      their lances were leveled, and brave as the Bedouin horsemen were, they
+      felt to break this massive line was impossible. The front line, however,
+      charged well up to the points of the lances, against which they hewed with
+      their sharp scimiters, frequently severing the steel top from the ashpole,
+      and then breaking through and engaging in hand-to-hand conflict with the
+      knights. Behind the latter sat their squires, with extra spears and arms
+      ready to hand to their masters; and in close combat, the heavy maces with
+      their spike ends were weapons before which the light-clad horsemen went
+      down like reeds before a storm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hour after hour the Arab horsemen persisted in their attack, suffering
+      heavily, but determined to conquer if possible. Then Saladin suddenly
+      ordered a retreat, and at seeing their enemy fly, the impetuosity of the
+      Crusaders at last broke out. With a shout they dashed after the foe. King
+      Richard, knowing that his followers had already shown a patience far
+      beyond what he could have expected, now headed the onslaught, performing
+      prodigies of valor with his single arm, and riding from point to point to
+      see that all was well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The early resistance of the infidel host was comparatively slight. The
+      heavy mass of the Christian cavalry, with their leveled lances, swept
+      through the ranks of the light horsemen, and trampled them down like grass
+      beneath their feet; but every moment the resistance became more stubborn.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Saladin, knowing the Christians would sooner or later assume the
+      offensive, had gathered his troops line in line behind the front ranks,
+      and as the force of the Crusaders' charge abated, so did the number of
+      foes in their front multiply. Not only this, but upon either side chosen
+      bands swept down, and ere long the Christians were brought to a stand, and
+      all were fighting hand to hand with their enemies. The lances were thrown
+      away now, and with ax and mace each fought for himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Earl of Evesham was one of a group of knights whom King Richard had
+      that day ordered to keep close to his person, and around this group the
+      fight raged most furiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Saladin, aware of the extreme personal valor and warlike qualities of King
+      Richard, set the greatest value upon his death or capture, and had ordered
+      a large number of his best troops to devote their whole attention to
+      attacking the King of England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The royal standard carried behind the king was a guide to their onslaught,
+      and great as was the strength and valor of King Richard, he with
+      difficulty was able to keep at bay the hosts that swept around him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now that the lance had been abandoned for battle-ax, Cuthbert was able to
+      take an active part in the struggle, his duties consisting mainly in
+      guarding the rear of his master, and preventing his being overthrown by
+      any sudden attack on the flank or from behind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard was bent not only on defending himself from the attacks of
+      his foes, but on directing the general course of the battle; and from time
+      to time he burst, with his own trusty knights, through the ring of foes,
+      and rode from point to point of the field, calling the knights together,
+      exhorting them to steadiness, and restoring the fight where its fortunes
+      seemed doubtful. At one time the impetuosity of the king led him into
+      extreme danger. He had burst through the enemy surrounding him, and these,
+      by order of their captain, allowed him to pass through their ranks, and
+      then threw themselves together in his rear, to cut him off from the
+      knights who rode behind. The maneuver was successful. The rush of horsemen
+      fairly carried away the Christian knights, and one or two alone were able
+      to make their way through.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Amid the wild confusion that raged, where each man was fighting for his
+      own life, and but little view of what was passing could be obtained
+      through the barred visor, the fact that the king was separated from them
+      was known to but few. Sir Walter himself was engaged fiercely in a
+      hand-to-hand fight with four Bedouins who surrounded him, when Cuthbert
+      shouted:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The king, Sir Walter! the king! He is cut off and surrounded! For
+      heaven's sake ride to him. See! the royal standard is down."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a shout the earl turned, brained one of his foes with a sweep of his
+      heavy ax, and, followed by Cuthbert, dashed to the assistance of the king.
+      The weight of his horse and armor cleft through the crowd, and in a brief
+      space he penetrated to the side of King Richard, who was borne upon by a
+      host of foes. Just as they reached them a Bedouin who had been struck from
+      his horse crawled beneath the noble charger of King Richard, and drove his
+      scimiter deep into its bowels. The animal reared high in its sudden pain,
+      and then fell on the ground, carrying the king, who was unable to
+      disengage himself quickly enough.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      [Image: WITH A SHOUT THE EARL TURNED, FOLLOWED BY CUTHBERT, AND DASHED TO
+      THE ASSISTANCE OF THE KING.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In an instant the Earl of Evesham had leaped from his horse and with his
+      broad triangular shield extended, sought to cover him from the press of
+      enemies. Cuthbert imitated his lord, and strove to defend the latter from
+      attacks from the rear. For a moment or two the sweep of the earl's heavy
+      ax and Cuthbert's circling sword kept back the foe, but this could not
+      last. King Richard in vain strove to extricate his leg from beneath his
+      fallen steed. Cuthbert saw at a glance that the horse still lived, and
+      with a sudden slash of his sword he struck it on the hind quarter. Goaded
+      by the pain the noble animal made a last effort to rise, but only to fall
+      back dead. The momentary action was, however, sufficient for King Richard,
+      who drew his leg from under it, and with his heavy battle-ax in hand, rose
+      with a shout, and stood by the side of the earl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In vain did the Bedouins strive to cut down and overpower the two
+      champions; in vain did they urge their horses to ride over them. With each
+      sweep of his ax the king either dismounted a foe or clove in the head of
+      his steed, and a wall of slain around them testified to the tremendous
+      power of their arms. Still, even such warriors as these could not long
+      sustain the conflict. The earl had already received several desperate
+      wounds, and the king himself was bleeding from some severe gashes with the
+      keen-edged scimiters. Cuthbert was already down, when a shout of "St.
+      George!" was heard, and a body of English knights clove through the throng
+      of Saracens and reached the side of King Richard. Close behind these in a
+      mass pressed the British footmen with bill and pike, the enemy giving way
+      foot by foot before their steady discipline.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king was soon on horseback again, and rallying his troops on, led them
+      for one more great and final charge upon the enemy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The effect was irresistible. Appalled by the slaughter which they had
+      suffered, and by the tremendous strength and energy of the Christian
+      knights, the Saracens broke and fled; and the last reserves of Saladin
+      gave way as the king, shouting his war-cry of "God help the holy
+      sepulcher!" fell upon them. Once, indeed, the battle still seemed
+      doubtful, for a fresh band of the enemy at that moment arrived and joined
+      in the fray. The Crusaders were now, however, inspired with such courage
+      and confidence that they readily obeyed the king's war-cry, gathered in a
+      firm body, and hurled themselves upon this new foe. Then the Saracens
+      finally turned and fled, and the Christian victory was complete.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was one of the features of this war that however thorough the victories
+      of the Christians, the Saracens very speedily recovered from their
+      effects. A Christian defeat was crushing and entire; the knights died as
+      they stood, and defeat meant annihilation. Upon the other hand, the
+      Saracens and Bedouins, when they felt that their efforts to win the battle
+      were unsuccessful, felt no shame or humiliation in scattering like sheep.
+      On their fleet horses and in their light attire they could easily distance
+      the Christians, who never, indeed, dreamed of pursuing them. The day after
+      the fight the enemy would collect again under their chiefs, and be as
+      ready as before to renew their harassing warfare.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On his return from the field the king assembled many of his principal
+      knights and leaders, and summoned the Earl of Evesham, with the message
+      that he was to bring his esquire with him. When they reached the tent the
+      king said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lords, as some of you may be aware, I have this day had a narrow
+      escape from death. Separated from you in the battle, and attended only by
+      my standard-bearer, I was surrounded by the Saracens. I should doubtless
+      have cleft my way through the infidel dogs, but a foul peasant stabbed my
+      charger from below, and the poor brute fell with me. My standard-bearer
+      was killed, and in another moment my nephew Arthur would have been your
+      king, had it not been that my good lord here, attended by this brave lad,
+      appeared. I have seen a good deal of fighting, but never did I see a
+      braver stand than they made above my body. The Earl of Evesham, as you all
+      know, is one of my bravest knights, and to him I can simply say, 'Thanks;
+      King Richard does not forget a benefit like this.' But such aid as I might
+      well look for from so stout a knight as the Earl of Evesham I could hardly
+      have expected on the part of a mere boy like this. It is not the first
+      time that I have been under a debt of gratitude to him; for it was his
+      watchfulness and bravery which saved Queen Berengaria from being carried
+      off by the French in Sicily. I deemed him too young then for the order of
+      knighthood&mdash;although, indeed, bravery has no age; still for a private
+      benefit, and that performed against allies, in name at least, I did not
+      wish so far to fly in the face of usage as to make him a knight. I
+      promised him then, however, that the first time he distinguished himself
+      against the infidel he should win his spurs. I think that you will agree
+      with me, my lords, that he has done so. Not only did he stand over me, and
+      with great bravery defend Sir Walter from attacks from behind, but his
+      ready wit saved me when even his sword and that of Sir Walter would have
+      failed to do so. Penned down under poor Robin I was powerless to move
+      until our young esquire, in an interval of slashing at his assailants,
+      found time to give a sharp blow together with a shout to Robin. The poor
+      beast tried to rise, and the movement, short as it was, enabled me to draw
+      my leg from under him, and then with my mace I was enabled to make a stand
+      until you arrived at my side. I think, my lords, that you will agree with
+      me that Cuthbert, the son of Sir William de Lance, is fit for the honor of
+      knighthood."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A general chorus of approval arose from the assembly, and the king,
+      bidding Cuthbert kneel before him, drew his sword and laid it across his
+      shoulders, dubbing him Sir Cuthbert de Lance. When he had risen the great
+      barons of England pressed round to shake his hand, and Cuthbert, who was a
+      modest young fellow, felt almost ashamed at the honors which were bestowed
+      upon him. The usual ceremonies and penances which young knights had to
+      undergo before admission into the body&mdash;and which in those days were
+      extremely punctilious, and indeed severe, consisting, among other things,
+      in fasting, in watching the armor at night, in seclusion and religious
+      services&mdash;were omitted when the accolade was bestowed for bravery in
+      the field.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king ordered his armorer at once to make for Cuthbert a suit of the
+      finest armor, and authorized him to carry on his shield a sword raising a
+      royal crown from the ground, in token of the deed for which the honor of
+      knighthood had been bestowed upon him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon his return to the earl's camp the news of his new dignity spread at
+      once among the followers of Sir Walter, and many and hearty were the
+      cheers that went up from the throats of the Saxon foresters, led by Cnut.
+      These humble friends were indeed delighted at his success, for they felt
+      that to him they owed very much; and his kindness of manner and the gayety
+      of heart which he had shown during the hardships they had undergone since
+      their start had greatly endeared him to them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was now to take rank among the knights who followed the banner of
+      the earl. A tent was erected for him, an esquire assigned to him, and the
+      lad as he entered his new abode felt almost bewildered at the change which
+      had taken place in one short day&mdash;that he, at the age of sixteen,
+      should have earned the honor of knighthood, and the approval of the King
+      of England, expressed before all the great barons of the realm, was indeed
+      an honor such as he could never have hoped for; and the thought of what
+      his mother would say should the news reach her in her quiet Saxon home
+      brought the tears into his eyes. He had not gone through the usual
+      religious ceremonies, but he knelt in his tent alone, and prayed that he
+      might be made worthy of the honors bestowed upon him; that he might
+      fulfill the duties of a Christian knight fearlessly and honorably; that
+      his sword might never be raised but for the right; that he might devote
+      himself to the protection of the oppressed, and the honor of God; that his
+      heart might be kept from evil; and that he might carry through life
+      unstained his new escutcheon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If the English had thought that their victory would have gained them
+      immunity from the Saracen attacks they were speedily undeceived. The host,
+      indeed, which had barred their way had broken up; but its fragments were
+      around them, and the harassing attacks began again with a violence and
+      persistency even greater than before. The Crusaders, indeed, occupied only
+      the ground upon which they stood. It was death to venture one hundred
+      yards from the camp unless in a strong body; and the smallest efforts to
+      bring in food from the country round were instantly met and repelled. Only
+      in very strong bodies could the knights venture from camp even to forage
+      for their horses, and the fatigues and sufferings of all were in no way
+      relieved by the great victory of Azotus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0013" id="link2HCH0013"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XIII. &mdash; IN THE HANDS OF THE SARACENS.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The English had hoped that after one pitched battle they should be able to
+      advance upon Jerusalem, but they had reckoned without the climate and
+      illness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although unconquered in the fray, the Christian army was weakened by its
+      sufferings to such an extent that it was virtually brought to a
+      standstill. Even King Richard, with all his impetuosity, dared not venture
+      to cut adrift from the seashore and to march direct upon Jerusalem; that
+      city was certainly not to be taken without a long siege, and this could
+      only be undertaken by an army strong enough, not only to carry out so
+      great a task, but to meet and defeat the armies which Saladin would bring
+      up to the rescue, and to keep open the line down to Joppa, by which alone
+      provisions and the engines necessary for the siege could be brought up.
+      Hence the war resolved itself into a series of expeditions and detached
+      fights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The British camp was thoroughly fortified, and thence parties of the
+      knights sallied out and engaged in conflicts with the Saracens, with
+      varying success. On several of these expeditions Cuthbert attended the
+      earl, and behaved with a bravery which showed him well worthy of the
+      honors which he had received.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon one occasion the news reached camp that a party of knights, who had
+      gone out to guard a number of footmen cutting forage and bringing it into
+      camp, had been surrounded and had taken refuge in a small town, whose
+      gates they had battered in when they saw the approach of an overwhelming
+      host of the enemy. King Richard himself headed a strong force and advanced
+      to their assistance. Their approach was not seen until within a short
+      distance of the enemy, upon whom the Crusaders fell with the force of a
+      thunderbolt, and cleft their way through their lines. After a short pause
+      in the little town they prepared to again cut their way through, joined by
+      the party who had there been besieged. The task was now, however, far more
+      difficult; for the footmen would be unable to keep up with the rapid
+      charge of the knights, and it was necessary not only to clear the way, but
+      to keep it open for their exit. King Richard himself and the greater
+      portion of his knights were to lead the charge; another party were to
+      follow behind the footmen, who were ordered to advance at the greatest
+      speed of which they were capable, while their rearguard by charges upon
+      the enemy kept them at bay. To this latter party Cuthbert was attached.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Saracens followed their usual tactics, and this time with great
+      success. Dividing as the king with his knights charged them, they suffered
+      these to pass through with but slight resistance, and then closed in upon
+      their track, while another and still more numerous body fell upon the
+      footmen and their guard. Again and again did the knights charge through
+      the ranks of the Moslems, while the billmen stoutly kept together and
+      resisted the onslaughts of the enemy's cavalry. In spite of their bravery,
+      however, the storm of arrows shot by the desert horsemen thinned their
+      ranks with terrible rapidity. Charging up to the very point of the spears,
+      these wild horsemen fired their arrows into the faces of their foe, and
+      although numbers of them fell beneath the more formidable missiles sent by
+      the English archers, their numbers were so overwhelming that the little
+      band melted away. The small party of knights, too, were rapidly thinned,
+      although performing prodigious deeds of valor. The Saracens when
+      dismounted or wounded still fought on foot, their object being always to
+      stab or hough the horses, and so dismount the riders. King Richard and his
+      force, though making the most desperate efforts to return to the
+      assistance of the rearguard, were baffled by the sturdy resistance of the
+      Saracens, and the position of those in the rear was fast becoming
+      hopeless.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One by one the gallant little band of knights fell, and a sea of turbans
+      closed over the fluttering plumes. Cuthbert, after defending himself with
+      extreme bravery for a long time, was at last separated from the small
+      remainder of his comrades by a rush of the enemy's horse, and when
+      fighting desperately he received a heavy blow at the back of the head from
+      the mace of a huge Nubian soldier, and fell senseless to the ground.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he recovered his consciousness the first impression upon his mind was
+      the stillness which had succeeded to the din of battle; the shouts and
+      war-cries of the Crusaders, the wild yells of the Moslems were hushed, and
+      in their place was a quiet chatter in many unknown tongues, and the sound
+      of laughter and feasting. Raising his head and looking round, Cuthbert saw
+      that he and some ten of his comrades were lying together in the midst of a
+      Saracen camp, and that he was a prisoner to the infidels. The sun streamed
+      down with tremendous force upon them; there was no shelter; and though all
+      were wounded and parched with thirst, the Saracens of whom they besought
+      water, pointing to their mouths and making signs of their extreme thirst,
+      laughed in their faces, and signified by a gesture that it was scarcely
+      worth the trouble to drink when they were likely so soon to be put to
+      death.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was late in the afternoon before any change was manifest. Then Cuthbert
+      observed a stir in the camp; the men ran to their horses, leaped on their
+      backs, and with wild cries of "Welcome!" started off at full speed.
+      Evidently some personage was about to arrive, and the fate of the
+      prisoners would be solved. A few words were from time to time exchanged
+      between these, each urging the other to keep up his heart and defy the
+      infidel. One or two had succumbed to their wounds during the afternoon,
+      and only six were able to stand erect when summoned to do so by some of
+      their guard, who made signs to them that a great personage was coming.
+      Soon the shouts of the horsemen and other sounds announced that the great
+      chief was near at hand, and the captives gathered from the swelling shouts
+      of the Arabs that the new arrival was Sultan Suleiman&mdash;or Saladin,
+      for he was called by both names&mdash;surrounded by a bodyguard of
+      splendidly-dressed attendants. The emir, who was himself plainly attired,
+      reined up his horse in front of the captives.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are English," he said, in the <i>lingua-franca</i>, which was the
+      medium of communication between the Eastern and Western peoples in those
+      days. "You are brave warriors, and I hear that before you were taken you
+      slaughtered numbers of my people. They did wrong to capture you and bring
+      you here to be killed. Your cruel king gives no mercy to those who fall
+      into his hands. You must not expect it here, you who without a pretense of
+      right invade my country, slaughter my people, and defeat my armies. The
+      murder of the prisoners of Acre has closed my heart to all mercy. There,
+      your king put ten thousand prisoners to death in cold blood, a month after
+      the capture of the place, because the money at which he had placed their
+      ransom had not arrived. We Arabs do not carry huge masses of gold about
+      with us; and although I could have had it brought from Egypt, I did not
+      think that so brave a monarch as Richard of England could have committed
+      so cruel an action in cold blood. When we are fresh from battle, and our
+      wounds are warm, and our hearts are full of rage and fury, we kill our
+      prisoners; but to do so weeks after a battle is contrary to the laws alike
+      of your religion and of ours. However, it is King Richard who has sealed
+      your doom, not I. You are knights, and I do not insult you with the offer
+      of turning from your religion and joining me. Should one of you wish to
+      save his life on these conditions, I will, however, promise him a place of
+      position and authority among us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      None of the knights moved to accept the offer, but each, as the eye of the
+      emir ran along the line, answered with an imprecation of contempt and
+      hatred. Saladin waved his hand, and one by one the captives were led
+      aside, walking as proudly to their doom as if they had been going to a
+      feast. Each wrung the hand of the one next to him as he turned, and then
+      without a word followed his captors. There was a dull sound heard, and one
+      by one the heads of the knights rolled in the sand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert happened to be last in the line, and as the executioners laid
+      hands upon him and removed his helmet, the eye of the sultan fell upon
+      him, and he almost started at perceiving the extreme youth of his captive.
+      He held his hand aloft to arrest the movements of the executioners, and
+      signaled for Cuthbert to be brought before him again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are but a boy," he said. "All the knights who have hitherto fallen
+      into my hands have been men of strength and power; how is it that I see a
+      mere youth among their ranks, and wearing the golden spurs of knighthood?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "King Richard himself made me a knight," Cuthbert said proudly, "after
+      having stood across him when his steed had been foully stabbed at the
+      battle of Azotus, and the whole Moslem host were around him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah!" said the emir, "were you one of the two who, as I have heard,
+      defended the king for some time against all assaults? It were hard indeed
+      to kill so brave a youth. I doubt me not that at present you are as firmly
+      determined to die a Christian knight as those who have gone before you?
+      But time may change you. At any rate for the present your doom is
+      postponed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He turned to a gorgeously dressed noble next to him, and said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your brother, Ben Abin, is Governor of Jerusalem, and the gardens of the
+      palace are fair. Take this youth to him as a present, and set him to work
+      in his gardens. His life I have spared, in all else Ben Abin will be his
+      master."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert heard without emotion the words which changed his fate from death
+      to slavery. Many, he knew, who were captured in these wars were carried
+      away as slaves to different parts of Asia, and it did not seem to him that
+      the change was in any way a boon. However, life is dear, and it was but
+      natural that a thought should leap into his heart that soon either the
+      Crusaders might force a way into Jerusalem and there rescue him, or that
+      he himself might in some way escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sultan having thus concluded the subject, turned away, and galloped
+      off surrounded by his bodyguard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Those who had captured the Christians now stripped off the armor of
+      Cuthbert; then he was mounted on a barebacked steed, and with four
+      Bedouins, with their long lances, riding beside him, started for
+      Jerusalem. After a day of long and rapid riding the Arabs stopped suddenly
+      on the crest of a hill, with a shout of joy, and throwing themselves from
+      their horses bent with their foreheads to the earth at the sight of their
+      holy city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, as he gazed at the stately walls of Jerusalem, and the noble
+      buildings within, felt bitterly that it was not thus that he had hoped to
+      see the holy city. He had dreamed of arriving before it with his comrades,
+      proud and delighted at their success so far, and confident in their power
+      soon to wrest the town before them from the hands of the Moslems. Instead
+      of this he was a slave&mdash;a slave to the infidel, perhaps never more to
+      see a white face, save that of some other unfortunate like himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Even now in its fallen state no city is so impressive at first sight as
+      Jerusalem; the walls, magnificent in height and strength, and picturesque
+      in their deep embattlements, rising on the edge of a deep valley. Every
+      building has its name and history. Here is the church built by the first
+      Crusaders; there the mighty mosque of Suleiman on the site of the Temple;
+      far away on a projecting ridge the great building known as the Tomb of
+      Moses; on the right beyond the houses rise the towers on the Roman walls;
+      the Pool of Bethsaida lies in the hollow; in the center are the cupolas of
+      the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Among all the fairest cities of the
+      world, there are none which can compare in stately beauty with Jerusalem.
+      Doubtless it was a fairer city in those days, for long centuries of
+      Turkish possession have reduced many of the former stately palaces to
+      ruins. Then, as now, the banner of the Prophet floated over the high
+      places; but whereas at present the population is poor and squalid, the
+      city in those days contained a far larger number of inhabitants,
+      irrespective of the great garrison collected for its defense.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The place from which Cuthbert had his first sight of Jerusalem is that
+      from which the best view is to be obtained&mdash;the crest of the Mount of
+      Olives. After a minute or two spent in looking at the city the Arabs with
+      a shout continued their way down into the valley. Crossing this they
+      ascended the steep road to the walls, brandishing their lances and giving
+      yells of triumph; then riding two upon each side of their prisoner, to
+      protect him from any fanatic who might lay a hand upon him, they passed
+      under the gate known as the Gate of Suleiman into the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The populace thronged the streets; and the news brought by the horsemen
+      that a considerable portion of the Christian host had been defeated and
+      slain passed from mouth to mouth, and was received with yells of
+      exultation. Execrations were heaped upon Cuthbert, who rode along with an
+      air as quiet and composed as if he were the center of an ovation instead
+      of that of an outburst of hatred.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He would, indeed, speedily have been torn from his guards, had not these
+      shouted that he was placed in their hands by Saladin himself for conduct
+      to the governor. As the emir was as sharp and as ruthless with his own
+      people as with the prisoners who fell into his hands, the name acted as a
+      talisman, and Cuthbert and his escort rode forward without molestation
+      until they reached the entrance to the palace.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Dismounting, Cuthbert was now led before the governor himself, a stern and
+      grave-looking man, sitting cross-legged on a divan surrounded by officers
+      and attendants. He heard in silence the account given him by the escort,
+      bowed his head at the commands of Suleiman, and, without addressing a word
+      to Cuthbert, indicated to two attendants that he was to be removed into
+      the interior of the house. Here the young knight was led to a small
+      dungeon-like room; bread and dates with a cruse of water, were placed
+      before him; the door was then closed and locked without, and he found
+      himself alone with his thoughts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No one came near him that night, and he slept as soundly as he would have
+      done in his tent in the midst of the Christian host. He was resolved to
+      give no cause for ill-treatment or complaint to his captors, to work as
+      willingly, as cheerfully, as was in his power, and to seize the first
+      opportunity to make his escape, regardless of any risk of his life which
+      he might incur in doing so.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning the door opened, and a black slave led him into the garden,
+      which was surrounded by a very high and lofty wall. It was large, and full
+      of trees and flowers, and far more beautiful than any garden that Cuthbert
+      had seen in his native land. There were various other slaves at work; and
+      an Arab, who appeared to be the head of the gardeners, at once appointed
+      to Cuthbert the work assigned to him. A guard of Arabs with bow and spear
+      watched the doings of the slaves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With one glance round, Cuthbert was assured that escape from this garden,
+      at least, was not to be thought of, and that for the present patience
+      alone was possible. Dismissing all ideas of that kind from his mind, he
+      set to work with a steady attention to his task. He was very fond of
+      flowers, and soon he became so absorbed in his work as almost to forget
+      that he was a slave. It was not laborious&mdash;digging, planting, pruning
+      and training the flowers, and giving them copious draughts of water from a
+      large fountain in the center of the garden.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The slaves were not permitted to exchange a word with each other. At the
+      end of the day's work they were marched off to separate chambers, or, as
+      they might be called, dungeons. Their food consisted of water, dried
+      dates, and bread, and they had little to complain of in this respect;
+      indeed, the slaves in the gardens of the governor's house at Jerusalem
+      enjoyed an exceptionally favored existence. The governor himself was
+      absorbed in the cares of the city. The head gardener happened to be a man
+      of unusual humanity, and it was really in his hands that the comfort of
+      the prisoners was placed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sometimes in the course of the day veiled ladies would issue in groups
+      from the palace, attended by black slaves with drawn scimiters. They
+      passed without unveiling across the point where the slaves were at work,
+      and all were forbidden on pain of death to look up, or even to approach
+      the konak or pavilion, where the ladies threw aside their veils, and
+      enjoyed the scent and sight of the flowers, the splash of murmuring
+      waters, and the strains of music touched by skillful hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although Cuthbert wondered in his heart what these strange wrapped-up
+      figures might look like when the veils were thrown back, he certainly did
+      not care enough about the matter to run any risk of drawing the anger of
+      his guards upon himself by raising his eyes toward them; nor did he ever
+      glance up at the palace, which was also interdicted to the slaves. From
+      the lattice casements during the day the strains of music and merry
+      laughter often came down to the captives; but this, if anything, only
+      added to the bitterness of their position, by reminding them that they
+      were shut off for life from ever hearing the laughter of the loved ones
+      they had left behind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For upward of a month Cuthbert remained steadily at work, and during that
+      time no possible plan of escape had occurred to him, and he had indeed
+      resigned himself to wait, either until, as he hoped, the city would be
+      taken by the Christians, or until he himself might be removed from his
+      present post and sent into the country, where, although his lot would
+      doubtless be far harder, some chance of escape might open before him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One night, long after slumber had fallen upon the city, Cuthbert was
+      startled by hearing his door open. Rising to his feet, he saw a black
+      slave, and an old woman beside him. The latter spoke first in the <i>lingua-franca</i>:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My mistress, the wife of the governor, has sent me to ask your story. How
+      is it that, although but a youth, you are already a knight? How is it that
+      you come to be a slave to our people? The sultan himself sent you to her
+      lord. She would fain hear through me how it has happened. She is the
+      kindest of ladies, and the sight of your youth has touched her heart."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With thanks to the unknown lady who had felt an interest in him, Cuthbert
+      briefly related the events which had led to his captivity. The old woman
+      placed on the ground a basket containing some choice fruit and white
+      bread, and then departed with the negro as quietly as she had come,
+      leaving Cuthbert greatly pleased at what had taken place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Doubtless," he said to himself, "I shall hear again; and it may be that
+      through the pity of this lady some means of escape may open to me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although for some little time no such prospect appeared, yet the visits of
+      the old woman, which were frequently repeated, were of interest to him,
+      and seemed to form a link between him and the world.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After coming regularly every night for a week she bade the young knight
+      follow her, holding her finger to her lips in sign that caution must be
+      observed. Passing through several passages, he was at length led into a
+      room where a lady of some forty years of age, surrounded by several slaves
+      and younger women, was sitting. Cuthbert felt no scruple in making a deep
+      obeisance to her; the respect shown to women in the days of chivalry was
+      very great, and Cuthbert, in bowing almost to the ground before the lady
+      who was really his mistress, did not feel that he was humiliating himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Young slave," she said, "your story has interested us. We have frequently
+      watched from the windows, and have seen how willingly and patiently you
+      have worked; and it seems strange indeed that one so young should have
+      performed such feats of bravery as to win the honor of knighthood from the
+      hand of that greatest of warriors, Richard of England. What is it, we
+      would fain learn from your lips, that stirs up the heart of the Christian
+      world that they should launch their armies against us, who wish but to be
+      left alone, and who have no grudge against them? This city is as holy to
+      us as it is to you; and as we live around it, and all the country for
+      thousands of miles is ours, is it likely that we should allow it to be
+      wrested from us by strangers from a distance?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was spoken in some Eastern language of which Cuthbert understood no
+      word, but its purport was translated to him by the old woman who had
+      hitherto acted as his mistress' messenger.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert reported the circumstances of the fight at Azotus, and endeavored
+      to explain the feelings which had given rise to the Crusade. He then, at
+      the orders of the lady, related the incidents of his voyage out, and
+      something of his life at home, which was more interesting even than the
+      tale of his adventures to his hearers, as to them the home-life of these
+      fierce Christian warriors was entirely unknown.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After an audience of two hours Cuthbert was conducted back to his cell,
+      his mistress assuring him of her good-will, and promising to do all in her
+      power to make his captivity as light as possible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0014" id="link2HCH0014"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XIV. &mdash; AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Two or three nights afterward the old woman again came to Cuthbert, and
+      asked him, in her mistress' name, if in any way he could suggest a method
+      of lightening his captivity, as his extreme youth and bravery of demeanor
+      had greatly pleased her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert replied that nothing but freedom could satisfy his longings; that
+      he was comfortable and not over-worked, but that he pined to be back again
+      with his friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old woman brought him on the following night a message to the effect
+      that his mistress would willingly grant him his liberty, but as he was
+      sent to her husband by the sultan, it would be impossible to free him
+      openly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From what she said," the old woman continued, "if you could see some plan
+      of making your escape, she would in no way throw difficulties in your
+      path; but it must not be known that the harem in any way connived at your
+      escape, for my lord's wrath would be terrible, and he is not a man to be
+      trifled with."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Looking round at the high walls that surrounded the garden, Cuthbert said
+      that he could think of no plan whatever for escaping from such a place;
+      that he had often thought it over, but that it appeared to him to be
+      hopeless. Even should he manage to scale these walls, he would only find
+      himself in the town beyond, and his escape from that would be altogether
+      hopeless. "Only," he said, "if I were transported to some country palace
+      of the governor could I ever hope to make my escape." The next night the
+      messenger brought him the news that his mistress was disposed to favor his
+      escape in the way he had pointed out, and that she would in two or three
+      days ask the governor for permission to pay a visit to their palace beyond
+      the walls, and that with her she would take a number of gardeners&mdash;among
+      them Cuthbert&mdash;to beautify the place. Cuthbert returned the most
+      lively and hearty thanks to his patroness for her kind intentions, and
+      hope began to rise rapidly in his heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is probable, however, that the black guards of the harem heard
+      something of the intentions of their mistress, and that they feared the
+      anger of the governor should Cuthbert make his escape, and should it be
+      discovered that this was the result of her connivance. Either through this
+      or through some other source the governor obtained an inkling that the
+      white slave sent by the sultan was receiving unusual kindness from the
+      ladies of the harem.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two nights after Cuthbert had begun to entertain bright hopes of his
+      liberty, the door of the cell was softly opened. He was seized by four
+      slaves, gagged, tied hand and foot, covered with a thick burnous, and
+      carried out from his cell. By the sound of their feet he heard that they
+      were passing into the open air, and guessed that he was being carried
+      through the garden; then a door opened and was closed after them; he was
+      flung across a horse like a bale of goods, a rope or two were placed
+      around him to keep him in that position, and then he felt the animal put
+      in motion, and heard by the trampling of feet that a considerable number
+      of horsemen were around him. For some time they passed over the rough,
+      uneven streets of the city; then there was a pause and exchange of
+      watchword and countersign, a creaking of doors, and a lowering of a
+      drawbridge, and the party issued out into the open country. Not for very
+      long did they continue their way; a halt was called, and Cuthbert was
+      taken off his horse.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On looking round, he found that he was in the middle of a considerable
+      group of men. Those who had brought him were a party of the governor's
+      guards; but he was now delivered over to a large band of Arabs, all of
+      whom were mounted on camels. One of these creatures he was ordered to
+      mount, the bonds being loosed from his arms and feet. An Arab driver, with
+      lance, bows, and arrows, and other weapons, took his seat on the neck of
+      the animal, and then with scarcely a word the caravan marched off with
+      noiseless step, and with their faces turned southward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed to Cuthbert almost as a dream. A few hours before he had been
+      exalted with the hope of freedom; now he was being taken away to a slavery
+      which would probably end but with his life. Although he could not
+      understand any of his captors, the repetition of a name led him to believe
+      that he was being sent to Egypt as a present to some man in high authority
+      there; and he doubted not that the Governor of Jerusalem, fearing that he
+      might escape, and dreading the wrath of the sultan should he do so, had
+      determined to transfer the troublesome captive to a more secure position
+      and to safer hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For three days the journey continued; they had now left the fertile
+      lowlands of Palestine, and their faces were turned west. They were
+      entering upon that sandy waste which stretches between the southern corner
+      of Palestine and the land of Egypt, a distance which can be traveled by
+      camels in three days, but which occupied the children of Israel forty
+      years.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At first the watch had been very sharply kept over the captive; but now
+      that they had entered the desert the Arabs appeared to consider that there
+      was no chance of an attempt to escape. Cuthbert had in every way
+      endeavored to ingratiate himself with his guard. He had most willingly
+      obeyed their smallest orders, had shown himself pleased and grateful for
+      the dates which formed the staple of their repasts. He had assumed so
+      innocent and quiet an appearance that the Arabs had marveled much among
+      themselves, and had concluded that there must have been some mistake in
+      the assertion of the governor's guard who had handed the prisoner over to
+      them, that he was one of the terrible knights of King Richard's army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert's heart had not fallen for a moment. He knew well that if he once
+      reached Cairo all hope of escape was at an end; and it was before reaching
+      that point that he determined if possible to make an effort for freedom.
+      He had noticed particularly the camel which appeared to be the fleetest of
+      the band; it was of lighter build than the rest, and it was with
+      difficulty that its rider had compelled it to accommodate itself to the
+      pace of the others. It was clear from the pains he took with it, by the
+      constant patting and the care bestowed upon its watering and feeding, that
+      its rider was extremely proud of it; and Cuthbert concluded that if an
+      escape was to be made, this was the animal on which he must accomplish it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon arriving at the end of each day's journey the camels were allowed to
+      browse at will, a short cord being tied between one of their hind and one
+      of their fore-feet. The Arabs then set to work to collect sticks and to
+      make a fire&mdash;not for cooking, for their only food was dried dates and
+      some black bread, which they brought with them&mdash;but for warmth, as
+      the nights were damp and somewhat chilly, as they sat round the fire,
+      talked, and told stories. Before finally going off to rest each went out
+      into the bushes and brought in his camel; these were then arranged in a
+      circle around the Arabs, one of the latter being mounted as sentry to
+      prevent any sudden surprise&mdash;not indeed that they had the smallest
+      fear of the Christians, who were far distant; but then, as now, the Arabs
+      of the desert were a plundering race, and were ever ready to drive off
+      each other's camels or horses. Cuthbert determined that if flight was
+      possible, it must be undertaken during the interval after the arrival at
+      the halting-place and before the bringing in of the camels. Therefore,
+      each day upon the halt he had pretended great fatigue from the rough
+      motion of the camel, and had, after hastily eating the dates handed to
+      him, thrown himself down, covered himself with his Arab robe, and feigned
+      instant sleep. Thus they had in the three days from starting come to look
+      upon his presence sleeping close to them as a matter of course.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The second day after entering the desert, however, Cuthbert threw himself
+      down by the side of an uprooted shrub of small size and about his own
+      length. He covered himself as usual with his long, dark-blue robe, and
+      pretended to go to sleep. He kept his eyes, however, on the alert through
+      an aperture beneath his cloth, and observed particularly the direction in
+      which the camel upon which he had set his mind wandered into the bushes.
+      The darkness came on a very few minutes after they had halted, and when
+      the Arabs had once settled round their fire Cuthbert very quietly shifted
+      the robe from himself to the long low bush near him, and then crawled
+      stealthily off into the darkness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had no fear of his footfall being heard upon the soft sand, and was
+      soon on his feet, looking for the camels. He was not long in finding them,
+      or in picking out the one which he had selected. The bushes were
+      succulent, and close to the camping-ground; indeed, it was for this that
+      the halting-places were always chosen. It was not so easy, however, to
+      climb into the high wooden saddle, and Cuthbert tried several times in
+      vain. Then he repeated in a sharp tone the words which he had heard the
+      Arabs use to order their camels to kneel, striking the animal at the same
+      moment behind the fore-legs with a small switch. The camel immediately
+      obeyed the order to which he was accustomed, and knelt down, making,
+      however, as he did so, the angry grumble which those creatures appear to
+      consider it indispensable to raise when ordered to do anything.
+      Fortunately this noise is so frequently made, and the camels are so given
+      to quarrel among themselves that although in the still air it might have
+      been heard by the Arabs sitting a short hundred yards away, it attracted
+      no notice, and Cuthbert, climbing into the seat, shook the cord that
+      served as a rein, and the animal, rising, set off at a smooth, steady
+      swing in the direction in which his head was turned&mdash;that from which
+      they had that day arrived.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Once fairly away from the camping-ground, Cuthbert, with blows of his
+      stick, increased the speed of the camel to a long shuffling trot, and the
+      fire in the distance soon faded out into the darkness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert trusted to the stars as guides. He was not unarmed, for as he
+      crawled away from his resting-place he had picked up one of the Arabs'
+      spears and bow and arrows, and a large bag of dates from the spot where
+      they had been placed when their owner dismounted. He was already clad in
+      Eastern garb, and was so sunburnt and tanned that he had no fear whatever
+      of any one at a distance detecting that he was a white man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Steering his course by the stars, he rode all night without stopping. He
+      doubted not that he would have at least three hours' start, for the Arabs
+      were sure to have sat that time round the fires before going out to bring
+      in their camels. Even then they would suppose for some time that the
+      animal upon which he was seated had strayed, and no pursuit would be
+      attempted until it was discovered that he himself had made his escape,
+      which might not be for a long time, as the Arabs would not think of
+      looking under the cloth to see if he were there. He hoped, therefore, that
+      he would reach the cultivated land long before he was overtaken. He had
+      little fear but that he should then be able to journey onward without
+      attracting attention.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A solitary Arab when traveling rides straight, and his communications to
+      those whom he meets are confined to the set form of two or three words,
+      "May Allah protect you!" the regular greeting of Moslems when they meet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When morning broke Cuthbert, even when ascending to the top of a somewhat
+      lofty mound, could see no signs of pursuers in the vast stretch of desert
+      behind him. In front the ground was already becoming dotted here and there
+      with vegetation, and he doubted not that after a few hours' ride he should
+      be fairly in the confines of cultivated country. He gave his camel a meal
+      of dates, and having eaten some himself, again set the creature in motion.
+      These camels, especially those of good breed, will go on for three or four
+      days with scarcely a halt; and there was no fear of that on which he rode
+      breaking down from fatigue, for the journeys hitherto had been
+      comparatively short.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By midday Cuthbert had reached the cultivated lands of Palestine. Here and
+      there over the plain villages were dotted, and parties of men and camels
+      were to be seen. Cuthbert now arranged his robes carefully in Arab
+      fashion, slung the long spear across his shoulders, and went boldly
+      forward at a slinging trot, having little fear that a passer-by would have
+      any suspicion whatever as to his being other than an Arab bent upon some
+      rapid journey. He soon found that his hopes were justified. Several times
+      he came upon parties of men whom he passed with the salute, and who
+      scarcely raised their eyes as he trotted by them. The plain was an open
+      one, and though cultivated here and there, there were large tracts lying
+      unworked. There was no occasion therefore to keep to the road; so riding
+      across country, and avoiding the villages as far as possible, stopping
+      only at a stream to give his camel water, Cuthbert rode without ceasing
+      until nightfall. Then he halted his camel near a wood, turned it in to
+      feed on the young foliage, and wrapping himself in his burnous was soon
+      asleep, for he ached from head to foot with the jolting motion which had
+      now been continued for so many hours without an interval. He had little
+      fear of being overtaken by the party he had left behind; they would, he
+      was convinced, be many hours behind, and it was extremely improbable that
+      they would hit upon the exact line which he had followed, so that even if
+      they succeeded in coming up to him, they would probably pass him a few
+      miles either to the right or left.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So fatigued was he with his long journey that the next day he slept until
+      after the sun had risen. He was awakened suddenly by being seized by a
+      party of Arabs, who, roughly shaking him, questioned him as to where he
+      came from, and what he was doing there. He saw at a glance that they were
+      not with the party from which he had escaped, and he pointed to his lips
+      to make signs that he was dumb. The Arabs evidently suspected that
+      something was wrong. They examined the camel, and then the person of their
+      captive. The whiteness of his skin at once showed them that he was a Frank
+      in disguise, and without more ado or questioning, they tied him hand and
+      foot, flung him across the camel, and, mounting their own animals, rode
+      rapidly away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From the position of the sun Cuthbert saw that they were making their
+      course nearly due east, and therefore that it could not be their intention
+      to take him to Jerusalem, which was to the north of the line they were
+      following. A long day's journey, which to Cuthbert seemed interminable,
+      found them on the low spit of sand which runs along by the side of the
+      Dead Sea. Behind, lofty rocks rose almost precipitously, but through a
+      cleft in these the Arabs had made their way. Cuthbert saw at once that
+      they belonged to some desert tribe over whom the authority of Suleiman was
+      but nominal. When summoned for any great effort, these children of the
+      desert would rally to his armies and fight for a short time; but at the
+      first disaster, or whenever they became tired of the discipline and
+      regularity of the army, they would mount their camels and return to the
+      desert, generally managing on the way to abstract from the farms of those
+      on their route either a horse, cattle, or some other objects which would
+      pay them for the labors they had undergone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They were now near the confines of their own country, and apparently had
+      no fear whatever of pursuit. They soon gathered some of the dead wood cast
+      on the shores of the sea, and with these a fire was speedily lighted, and
+      an earthenware pot was taken down from among their baggage: it was filled
+      with water from a skin, and then grain having been placed in it, it was
+      put among the wood ashes. Cuthbert, who was weary and aching in every limb
+      from the position in which he had been placed on the camel, asked them by
+      signs for permission to bathe in the lake. This was given principally
+      apparently from curiosity, for but very few Arabs were able to swim;
+      indeed, as a people they object so utterly to water that the idea of any
+      one bathing for his amusement was to them a matter of ridicule.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, who had never heard of the properties of the Dead Sea, was
+      perfectly astonished upon entering the water to find that instead of
+      wading in it up to the neck before starting to swim, as he was accustomed
+      to do at home, the water soon after he got waist-deep took him off his
+      feet, and a cry of astonishment burst from him as he found himself on
+      rather than in the fluid. The position was so strange and unnatural that
+      with a cry of alarm he scrambled over on to his feet, and made the best of
+      his way to shore, the Arabs indulging in shouts of laughter at his
+      astonishment and alarm. Cuthbert was utterly unable to account for the
+      strange sensations he had experienced; he perceived that the water was
+      horribly salt, and that which had got into his mouth almost choked him. He
+      was, however, unaware that saltness adds to the weight of water, and so to
+      the buoyancy of objects cast into it. The saltness of the fluid he was
+      moreover painfully conscious of by the smarting of the places on his
+      wrists and ankles where the cords had been bound that fastened him to the
+      camel. Goaded, however, by the laughter of the Arabs, he determined once
+      more to try the experiment of entering this strange sheet of water, which
+      from some unaccountable cause appeared to him to refuse to allow anybody
+      to sink in it. This time he swam about for some time, and felt a little
+      refreshed. When he returned to the shore he soon re-attired himself in his
+      Bedouin dress, and seated himself a little distance from his captors, who
+      were now engaged in discussing the materials prepared by themselves. They
+      made signs to Cuthbert that he might partake of their leavings, for which
+      he was not a little grateful, for he felt utterly exhausted and worn out
+      with his cruel ride and prolonged fasting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Arabs soon wrapped themselves in their burnouses, and feeling
+      confident that their captive would not attempt to escape from them in a
+      place where subsistence would be impossible, paid no further attention to
+      him beyond motioning to him to lie down at their side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, however, determined to make another effort to escape; for
+      although he was utterly ignorant of the place in which he found himself,
+      or of the way back, he thought that anything would be better than to be
+      carried into helpless slavery into the savage country beyond the Jordan.
+      An hour, therefore, after his captors were asleep he stole to his feet,
+      and fearing to arouse them by exciting the wrath of one of the camels by
+      attempting to mount him, he struck up into the hills on foot. All night he
+      wandered, and in the morning found himself at the edge of a strange
+      precipice falling abruptly down to a river, which, some fifty feet wide,
+      ran at its foot. Upon the opposite side the bank rose with equal rapidity,
+      and to Cuthbert's astonishment he saw that the cliffs were honeycombed by
+      caves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Keeping along the edge for a considerable distance, he came to a spot
+      where it was passable, and made his way down to the river bank. Here he
+      indulged in a long drink of fresh water, and then began to examine the
+      caves which perforated the rocks. These caves Cuthbert knew had formerly
+      been the abode of hermits. It was supposed to be an essentially sacred
+      locality, and between the third and fourth centuries of Christianity some
+      twenty thousand monks had lived solitary lives on the banks of that river.
+      Far away he saw the ruins of a great monastery, called Mar Saba, which had
+      for a long time been the abode of a religious community, and which at the
+      present day is still tenanted by a body of monks. Cuthbert made up his
+      mind at once to take refuge in these caves. He speedily picked out one
+      some fifty feet up the face of the rock, and approachable only with the
+      greatest difficulty and by a sure foot. First he made the ascent to
+      discover the size of the grotto, and found that although the entrance was
+      but four feet high and two feet wide, it opened into an area of
+      considerable dimensions. Far in the corner, when his eyes became
+      accustomed to the light, he discovered a circle of ashes, and his
+      conjectures that these caves had been the abode of men were therefore
+      verified. He again descended, and collected a large bundle of grass and
+      rushes for his bed. He discovered growing among the rocks many edible
+      plants, whose seeds were probably sown there centuries before, and
+      gathering some of these he made his way back to the cavern. The grass
+      furnished him with an excellent bed, and he was soon asleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0015" id="link2HCH0015"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XV. &mdash; A HERMIT'S TALE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The next day he discovered on his excursions plenty of eatable berries on
+      the bushes; and now that he had no longer fear of hunger he resolved to
+      stay for some little time, until his wounds, which had festered badly, had
+      recovered, before making an attempt to rejoin the Christian army.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One day when employed in gathering berries he was surprised by meeting a
+      wild-looking figure, who appeared suddenly from one of the caves. It was
+      that of a very old man, with an extremely long white beard flowing to his
+      waist; his hair, which was utterly unkempt, fell to the same point. He was
+      thin to an extraordinary extent, and Cuthbert wondered how a man could
+      have been reduced to such a state of starvation, with so plentiful a
+      supply of fruit and berries at hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old man looked at Cuthbert attentively, and then made the sign of the
+      cross. Cuthbert gave a cry of joy, and repeated the sign. The old man at
+      once came down from his cavern, and looked at him with surprise and
+      astonishment, and then addressed him in the French language.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Are you a Christian truly; and if so, whence do you come?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert at once explained that he had been taken prisoner when with King
+      Richard's army, and had effected his escape. He also told the old man that
+      he had been remaining for the last four days in a cave higher up the
+      stream. The hermit&mdash;for he was one&mdash;beckoned him to follow him,
+      and Cuthbert found himself in a cave precisely similar to that which he
+      himself inhabited. There were no signs of comfort of any kind; a bed-place
+      made of great stones stood in one corner, and Cuthbert, remembering the
+      comforts of his own grassy couch, shuddered at the thought of the intense
+      discomfort of such a sleeping-place. In another corner was an altar, upon
+      which stood a rough crucifix, before which the hermit knelt at once in
+      prayer, Cuthbert following his example. Rising again, the hermit motioned
+      to him to sit down, and then began a conversation with him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was so long since the hermit had spoken to any living being that he had
+      almost lost the use of his tongue, and his sentences were slow and
+      ill-formed. However, Cuthbert was able to understand him, and he to gather
+      the drift of what Cuthbert told him. The old man then showed him that by
+      touching a stone in the corner of his cave the apparently solid rock
+      opened, and revealed an entrance into an inner cave, which was lit by a
+      ray of light which penetrated from above.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This," he said, "was made centuries ago, and was intended as a refuge
+      from the persecutors of that day. The caves were then almost all inhabited
+      by hermits, and although many recked not of their lives, and were quite
+      ready to meet death through the knife of the infidel, others clung to
+      existence, and preferred to pass many years of penance on earth for the
+      sake of atoning for their sins before called upon to appear before their
+      Maker. If you are pursued it will be safer for you to take up your abode
+      here. I am known to all the inhabitants of this country, who look upon me
+      as mad, and respect me accordingly. None ever interfere with me, or with
+      the two or three other hermits, the remains of what was once almost an
+      army, who now alone survive. I can offer you no hospitality beyond that of
+      a refuge; but there is water in the river below, fruits and berries in
+      abundance on the shrubs. What would you have more?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert accepted the invitation with thanks; for he thought that even at
+      the worst the presence of this holy man would be a protection to him from
+      any Arabs who might discover him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For three or four days he resided with the hermit, who, although he
+      stretched his long lean body upon the hard stones of his bed, and passed
+      many hours of the night kneeling on the stone floor in front of his altar,
+      yet had no objection to Cuthbert making himself as comfortable as he could
+      under the circumstances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At the end of the fourth day Cuthbert asked him how long he had been
+      there, and how he came to take up his abode in so desolate and fearsome a
+      place. The hermit was silent for a time, and then said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is long indeed since my thoughts have gone back to the day when I was
+      of the world. I know not whether it would not be a sin to recall them; but
+      I will think the matter over to-night, and if it appears to me that you
+      may derive good from my narrative, I will relate it to you to-morrow."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day Cuthbert did not renew the request, leaving it to the hermit
+      to speak should he think fit. It was not until the evening that he alluded
+      to the subject; and then taking his seat on a bank near the edge of the
+      river, he motioned to Cuthbert to sit beside him, and began:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My father was a peer of France, and I was brought up at the court.
+      Although it may seem strange to you, looking upon this withered frame,
+      sixty-five years back I was as bold and comely a knight as rode in the
+      train of the king, for I am now past ninety, and for sixty years I have
+      resided here. I was a favorite of the king's, and he loaded me with wealth
+      and honor. He, too, was young, and I joined with him in the mad carousals
+      and feastings of the court. My father resided for the most part at one of
+      his castles in the country, and I, an only son, was left much to myself. I
+      need not tell you that I was as wild and as wicked as all those around me;
+      that I thought little of God, and feared neither Him nor man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It chanced that one of the nobles&mdash;I need not mention his name&mdash;whose
+      castle lay in the same province as that of my father, had a lovely
+      daughter, who, being an only child, would be his heiress. She was
+      considered one of the best matches in France, and reports of her exceeding
+      beauty had reached the court. Although my allowance from my father, and
+      from the estates which the king had given me personally, should have been
+      more than enough for my utmost wants, gambling and riotous living
+      swallowed up my revenue faster than it came in, and I was constantly
+      harassed by debt.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Talking one night at supper with a number of bold companions as to the
+      means we should take for restoring our wasted fortunes, some said in jest
+      that the best plan would be for one of us to marry the beauty of Dauphiny.
+      I at once said that I would be the man to do it; the idea was a wild one,
+      and a roar of laughter greeted my words. Her father was known to be a
+      stern and rigid man, and it was certain that he would not consent to give
+      his daughter to a spendthrift young noble like myself. When the laughter
+      had subsided I repeated my intention gravely, and offered to wager large
+      sums with all around the table that I would succeed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "On the morrow I packed up a few of my belongings, put in my valise the
+      dress of a wandering troubadour, and taking with me only a trusty servant,
+      started for Dauphiny. It would be tedious to tell you the means I resorted
+      to to obtain the affections of the heiress. I had been well instructed in
+      music and could play on the lute, and knew by heart large numbers of
+      ballads, and could myself, in case of necessity, string verses together
+      with tolerable ease. As a troubadour I arrived at the castle gate, and
+      craved permission to enter to amuse its occupants. Troubadours then, as
+      now, were in high esteem in the south, and I was at once made a welcome
+      guest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Days passed, and weeks; still I lingered at the castle, my heart being
+      now as much interested as my pride in the wager which I had undertaken.
+      Suffice it to say that my songs, and perhaps my appearance&mdash;for I
+      cannot be accused of vanity now in saying nature had been bountiful to me&mdash;won
+      my way to her heart. Troubadours were licensed folk, and even in her
+      father's presence there was naught unseemly in my singing songs of love.
+      While he took them as the mere compliments of a troubadour, the lady, I
+      saw, read them as serious effusions of my heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It was only occasionally that we met alone; but ere long she confessed
+      that she loved me. Without telling her my real name, I disclosed to her
+      that I was of her own rank and that I had entered upon the disguise I wore
+      in order to win her love. She was romantic, and was flattered by my
+      devotion. I owned to her that hitherto I had been wild and reckless; and
+      she told me at once that her father destined her for the son of an old
+      friend of his, to whom it appeared she had been affianced while still a
+      baby. She was positive that nothing would move her father. For the man she
+      was to marry she entertained no kind of affection, and indeed had never
+      seen him, as she had been brought up in a convent to the age of fifteen;
+      and just before she had returned thence he had gone to finish his
+      education at Padua.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "She trembled when I proposed flight; but I assured her that I was certain
+      of the protection of the king, and that he would, I was sure, when the
+      marriage was once celebrated, use his influence with her father to obtain
+      his forgiveness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The preparations for her flight were not long in making. I purchased a
+      fleet horse in addition to my own, and ordered my servant to bring it to a
+      point a short distance from the castle gate. I had procured a long rope
+      with which to lower her down from her lattice to the moat below, which was
+      at present dry, intending myself to slide after her. The night chosen was
+      one when I knew that the count was to have guests, and I thought that they
+      would probably, as is the custom, drink heavily, and that there would be
+      less fear of any watch being kept.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The guests arrived just at nightfall. I had feigned illness, and kept my
+      room. From time to time I heard through the windows of the banqueting hall
+      bursts of laughter. These gradually ceased; and at last when all was still
+      I, after waiting some time, stole from my room with a rope in my hand to
+      the apartment occupied by her. A slight tap at the door, as arranged, was
+      at once answered, and I found her ready cloaked and prepared for the
+      enterprise. She trembled from head to foot, but I cheered her to the best
+      of my power, and at last she was in readiness to be lowered. The window
+      was at a considerable height from the ground; but the rope was a long one,
+      and I had no fear of its reaching the bottom. Fastening it round her
+      waist, I began to lower her from the window.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The night was a windy one, and she swung backward and forward as she went
+      down. By what chance it was I know not&mdash;for I had examined the rope
+      and found it secure&mdash;but methinks in swaying backward and forward it
+      may have caught a sharp stone, maybe it was a punishment from Heaven upon
+      me for robbing a father of his child&mdash;but suddenly I felt there was
+      no longer a weight on my arms. A fearful shriek rang through the air, and,
+      looking out, I saw far below a white figure stretched senseless in the
+      mud!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For a minute I stood paralyzed. But the cry had aroused others, and,
+      turning round, I saw a man at the door with a drawn sword. Wild with grief
+      and despair, and thinking, not of making my escape, or of concealing my
+      part in what had happened, but rushing without an instant's delay to the
+      body of her I loved so well, I drew my sword, and like a madman rushed
+      upon him who barred the door. The combat was brief but furious, and nerved
+      by the madness of despair I broke down his guard and ran him through the
+      body. As he fell back, his face came in the full light of the moon, which
+      streamed through the open door of the passage, and to my utter horror and
+      bewilderment I saw that I had slain my father.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What happened after that night I know not. I believe that I made my
+      escape from the castle and rushed round to the body of her whose life I
+      had destroyed, and that there finding her dead, I ran wildly across the
+      country. When I came to my senses months had passed, and I was the inmate
+      of an asylum for men bereaved of their senses, kept by noble monks. Here
+      for two years I remained, the world believing that I was dead. None knew
+      that the troubadour whose love had cost the lady her life, who had slain
+      the guest of her father, and had then disappeared, was the unhappy son of
+      that guest. My friends in Paris when they heard of the tragedy of course
+      associated it with me, but they all kept silent. The monks, to whom I
+      confessed the whole story, were shocked indeed, but consoled me in my
+      grief and despair by the assurance that however greatly I had sinned, the
+      death of the lady had been accidental, and that if I were a parricide it
+      was at least unintentionally.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My repentance was deep and sincere; and after awhile, under another name,
+      I joined the army of the Crusaders, to expiate my sin by warring for the
+      holy sepulcher. I fought as men fight who have no wish to live; but while
+      all around me fell by sword and disease, death kept aloof from me. When
+      the Crusade had failed I determined to turn forever from the world, and to
+      devote my life to prayer and penance; and so casting aside my armor I made
+      my way here, and took up my abode in a cave in this valley, where at that
+      time were many thousands of other hermits&mdash;for the Saracens, while
+      they gained much money from fines and exactions from pilgrims who came to
+      Jerusalem, and fought stoutly against those who sought to capture that
+      city, were in the main tolerant, and offered no hindrance to the community
+      of men whom they looked upon as mad.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Here, my son, for more than sixty years have I prayed, with much fasting
+      and penance. I trust now that the end is nearly at hand, and that my long
+      life of mortification may be deemed to have obliterated the evil deeds
+      which I did in my youth. Let my fate be a warning to you. Walk steadily in
+      the right way; indulge not in feasting and evil companionship; and above
+      all, do not enter upon evil deeds, the end of which no man can see."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The hermit was silent, and Cuthbert, seeing that his thoughts had again
+      referred to the past, wandered away, and left him sitting by the river
+      side. Some hours later he returned and found the hermit kneeling before
+      the altar; and the next morning the latter said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I presume, my son, you do not wish to remain here as a hermit, as I have
+      done? Methinks it were well that we made our arrangements for your return
+      to the Christian host, who will, I hope, ere long be at the gates of
+      Jerusalem."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I should like nothing better," Cuthbert said. "But ignorant as I am of
+      the nature of the country, it seems to be nigh impossible to penetrate
+      through the hosts of the Saracens to reach the camp of King Richard."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The matter is difficult and not without danger," the hermit said. "As to
+      the nature of the country, I myself know but little, for my dealings with
+      the natives have been few and simple. There are, however, several
+      Christian communities dwelling among the heathen. They are poor, and are
+      forced to live in little-frequented localities. Their Christianity may be
+      suspected by their neighbors, but as they do no man harm, and carry on
+      their worship in secret, they are little interfered with. There is one
+      community among the hills between this and Jerusalem, and I can give you
+      instructions for reaching this, together with a token which will secure
+      you hospitality there, and they will no doubt do their best to forward you
+      to another station. When you approach the flat country where the armies
+      are maneuvering you must doubtless trust to yourself; but as far as the
+      slopes extend, methinks that our friends will be able to pass you without
+      great difficulty."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert's heart rose greatly at the prospect of once again entering upon
+      an active life, and the next evening, with many thanks for his kindness,
+      he knelt before the aged hermit to receive his blessing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the instructions given him he had no difficulty in making his way
+      through the mountains, until after some five hours' walk he found himself
+      at a little village situated in a narrow valley.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Going to the door of the principal hut he knocked, and upon entering
+      showed the owner&mdash;who opened the door&mdash;a rosette of peculiar
+      beads and repeated the name of Father Anselm. The peasant at once
+      recognized it and bade Cuthbert welcome. He knew but a few words of
+      French, although doubtless his ancestors had been of European extraction.
+      In the morning he furnished Cuthbert with the sheepskin and short tunic
+      which formed the dress of a shepherd, and dyeing his limbs and face a deep
+      brown he himself started with Cuthbert on his journey to the next
+      Christian community.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was a small one consisting of two huts only, built almost on the
+      summit of a mountain, the inhabitants living partly on the milk and cheese
+      of their goats and partly upon the scanty vegetables which grew around the
+      huts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His welcome was as cordial as that of the night before; and the next
+      morning, his former guide taking leave of him, the peasant in whose house
+      he had slept again conducted him forward to another community. This was
+      the last station and stood in a narrow gorge on the face of the hills
+      looking down over the plain, beyond which in the far distance a faint line
+      of blue sea was visible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This community was far more prosperous and well-to-do than those at which
+      the previous nights had been passed. The head of the village appeared to
+      be a personage of some importance; and although clinging in secret to his
+      Christian faith, he and his belongings had so far adopted the usages of
+      the Mussulmen that apparently no thought of their Christianity entered
+      into the minds of the authorities. He was the owner of two or three horses
+      and of some extensive vineyards and olive grounds. He was also able to
+      speak French with some degree of fluency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At considerable length he explained to Cuthbert the exact position of the
+      Christian army, which had moved some distance along the coast since
+      Cuthbert had left it. It was, he said, exposed to constant attacks by the
+      Saracens, who harassed it in every way, and permitted it no repose. He
+      said that the high hopes which had been raised by the defeat of the
+      Saracens at Azotus had now fallen, and that it was feared the Christians
+      would not be able to force their way forward to Jerusalem. The great
+      portion of their animals had died, and the country was so eaten up by the
+      Saracen hosts that an advance upon Jerusalem without a large baggage train
+      was next to impossible; and indeed if the Christians were to arrive before
+      that city, they could effect nothing without the aid of the heavy machines
+      necessary for battering the walls or effecting an escalade.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was vastly grieved when he heard of the probable failure of the
+      expedition, and he burned with eagerness to take his part again in the
+      dangers and difficulties which beset the Christian army. His host pointed
+      out to him the extreme difficulty and danger of his crossing the enemy's
+      lines, but at the same time offered to do all in his power to assist him.
+      After two days' stay at the village, and discussing the pros and cons of
+      all possible plans, it was decided that the best chance lay in a bold
+      effort. The host placed at his disposal one of his horses, together with
+      such clothes as would enable him to ride as an Arab chief of rank and
+      station; a long lance was furnished him, a short and heavy mace, and
+      scimitar; a bag of dates was hung at the saddlebow; and with the sincerest
+      thanks to his protector, and with a promise that should the Christian host
+      win their way to Jerusalem the steed should be returned with ample
+      payment, Cuthbert started on his journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0016" id="link2HCH0016"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XVI. &mdash; A FIGHT OF HEROES.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The horse was a good and spirited one, and when he had once descended to
+      the plains, Cuthbert rode gayly along, exulting in his freedom, and in
+      once again possessing arms to defend himself should it be needed. His
+      appearance was so exactly that of the horsemen who were continually
+      passing and repassing that no observation whatever was attracted by it.
+      Through villages, and even through camps, Cuthbert rode fearlessly, and
+      arrived, without having once been accosted, near the main camp of the
+      Saracens, which extended for miles parallel to the sea. But at a distance
+      of some three leagues beyond could be seen the white tents of the
+      Christian host, and Cuthbert felt that the time of trial was now at hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He dismounted for an hour to allow his steed to rest itself, fed it with
+      dates from his wallet, and gave it a drink of water at the stream. Then,
+      when he felt that it had thoroughly recovered its strength and freshness,
+      he remounted, and rode briskly on as before. He passed unchallenged,
+      attracting no more notice than a person nowadays would do in walking along
+      a crowded street. Without hesitation he passed through the tents and
+      started across the open country. Bands of horsemen were seen here and
+      there, some going, and some coming from the direction of the Christian
+      camp. As it was doubtless supposed that he was on his way to join some
+      band that had gone on in advance, the passage of the solitary horseman
+      excited no comment until he approached within about two miles of the
+      Christian camp. There were now, so far as he could see, no enemies between
+      him and the point he so longed to gain. But at this minute a group of Arab
+      horsemen, gathered, apparently on the lookout against any movement of the
+      Christians, shouted to him "Halt!" demanding whither he was going.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Up to this point Cuthbert had ridden at a gentle canter; but at the
+      challenge he put spurs into his steed and made across the plain at full
+      speed. With a wild yell the Arabs started in pursuit. They lay at first
+      some two hundred yards on his right, and he had therefore a considerable
+      start of them. His horse was fairly fresh, for the journey that he had
+      made had only been about fifteen miles&mdash;an inconsiderable distance to
+      an Arab steed. For half a mile he did not think that his pursuers gained
+      much upon him, riding as they had done sideways. They had now gathered in
+      his rear, and the nearest was some one hundred and fifty yards behind him.
+      A quarter of a mile further he again looked around, and found that two of
+      the Arabs, far better mounted than the others, had come within half the
+      distance which separated them from him when he last glanced back. His
+      horse was straining to the utmost, and he felt that it could do no more;
+      he therefore prepared himself for a desperate fight should his pursuers
+      overtake him. In another quarter of a mile they were but a short distance
+      behind, and an arrow whizzing by Cuthbert's ear told him they had betaken
+      themselves to their bows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Half a mile ahead he saw riding toward him a group of Christian knights;
+      but he felt that it was too late for him to hope to reach them, and that
+      his only chance now was to boldly encounter his pursuers. The main body of
+      the Arabs was fully two hundred yards behind&mdash;a short distance when
+      going at a gallop&mdash;which left him but little time to shake off the
+      pursuit of the two immediately behind him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A sharp stinging pain in his leg told him that it was time to make his
+      effort; and checking his horse, he wheeled suddenly round. The two Arabs
+      with a yell rode at him with pointed lance. With his right hand Cuthbert
+      grasped the short heavy mace which hung at his saddlebow, and being well
+      practiced in the hurling of this weapon&mdash;which formed part of the
+      education of a good knight&mdash;he cast it with all his force at the
+      chest of the Arab approaching on that side. The point of the spear was
+      within a few yards of his breast as he flung the mace; but his aim was
+      true, for it smote the Saracen full on the chest, and hurled him from his
+      horse as if struck with a thunderbolt. At the same instant Cuthbert threw
+      himself flat on the neck of his steed and the lance of the Arab who came
+      up on the other side passed harmlessly between his shoulders, tearing his
+      clothes as it went. In an instant Cuthbert had wheeled his horse, and
+      before the Arab could turn his steed Cuthbert, coming up from behind, had
+      run him through the body.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Short as the delay had been, the main body of the pursuers were scarcely
+      fifty yards away; but Cuthbert now continued his flight toward the
+      knights, who were galloping forward at full speed; and a moment afterward
+      glancing back, he saw that his pursuers had turned and were in full
+      flight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a shout of joy he rode forward to the party who had viewed with
+      astonishment this conflict between what appeared to be three of the
+      infidels. Even louder than his first shout of exultation was the cry of
+      joy which he raised at seeing among the party to whom he rode up the Earl
+      of Evesham, who reined in his horse in astonishment, and drew his sword as
+      the supposed enemy galloped toward him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lord, my lord!" Cuthbert said. "Thank Heaven I am safe with you
+      again."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The earl lowered his sword in astonishment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Am I mad," he said, "or dreaming, or is this really Sir Cuthbert?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is I, sure enough," Cuthbert exclaimed, "although truly I look more
+      like a Bedouin soldier than a Christian knight."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My dear boy!" exclaimed the earl, galloping forward and throwing his arms
+      around Cuthbert's neck, "we thought you were dead. But by what wonderful
+      fortune have you succeeded in escaping?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In a few words Cuthbert related the principal incidents of his adventures,
+      and he was heartily congratulated by the assembled knights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was, however, no time for long explanations. Large bodies of the
+      Saracen horse were already sweeping down to capture, if possible, this
+      small band of knights who had ventured so far from the camp; and as King
+      Richard's orders were that none should venture upon conflicts except by
+      his orders, the party reluctantly turned their horses and galloped back to
+      the camp.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Great as had been the earl's joy, it was, if possible, exceeded by that of
+      Cnut on discovering in the Arab chief who rode up alongside the earl the
+      lad he loved so well. Loud and hearty were the cheers which rang out from
+      the earl's camp as the news spread, and Cuthbert was compelled to shake
+      hands with the whole party before entering the earl's tent, to refresh
+      himself and give the narrative of what had happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, retiring to his tent with the Earl of Evesham, inquired of him
+      what had taken place during his absence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For," he said, "although but a short three days' march from here, I have
+      been as one of the dead, and have heard nothing whatever of what has taken
+      place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nothing could have gone worse," the earl said. "We have had nothing but
+      dissensions and quarrels. First, the king fell out with the Archduke of
+      Austria."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "On what ground did this happen?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "For once," the earl said, "the king our master was wholly in the wrong,
+      which is not generally the case. We had just taken Ascalon, and were hard
+      at work fortifying the place. King Richard with his usual zeal, in order
+      to encourage the army, seized heavy stones and himself bore them into
+      their place. The archduke stood near with some of his knights: and it may
+      be that the haughty Austrian looked somewhat superciliously at our king
+      thus laboring.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "'Why do you not make a show of helping?' King Richard said, going up to
+      him. 'It would encourage the men, and show that the labor upon which we
+      are engaged can be undertaken by all without derogation.'
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "To this the archduke replied:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "'I am not the son of a mason!'
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whereupon Richard, whose blood no doubt had been excited by the air of
+      the Austrian, struck him with his hand a fierce blow across the face. We
+      nearly betook ourselves to our swords on both sides; but King Richard
+      himself could have scattered half the Austrians, and these, knowing that
+      against his impetuous valor they could do nothing, simply withdrew from
+      our camp, and sailed the next day for home. Then the king, in order to
+      conciliate some at least of his allies, conferred the crown of Jerusalem
+      upon Conrad of Montferat. No sooner had he done this than Conrad was
+      mysteriously wounded. By whom it was done none knew. Some say that it was
+      by emissaries of the Old Man of the Mountain. Others affirm that it was
+      the jealousy of some of the knights of the holy orders. But be that as it
+      may, he died. Some of the French, ever jealous of the valor of our king,
+      ascribed it to his orders. This monstrous accusation coming to the ears of
+      King Richard, he had hot words with the Duke of Burgundy. In this I blame
+      him not, for it is beyond all reason that a man like the king, whose
+      faults, such as they are, arise from too much openness, and from the want
+      of concealment of such dislikes as he may have, should resort to poison to
+      free himself of a man whom he himself had but a day or two before
+      appointed King of Jerusalem. However it be, the consequences were most
+      unfortunate, for the result of the quarrel was that the Duke of Burgundy
+      and his Frenchmen followed the example of the Austrians, and we were left
+      alone. Before this we had marched upon Jerusalem. But the weather had been
+      so bad, and our train was so insufficient to carry the engines of war,
+      that we had been forced to fall back again. King Richard again advanced,
+      and with much toil we went as far as the village of Bethany."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Why," Cuthbert exclaimed, "I passed through that village, and it is but
+      three miles from the holy city."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is so," the earl said; "and many of us, ascending the hill in front,
+      saw Jerusalem. But even then it was certain that we must again retrace our
+      steps; and when we asked King Richard to come to the crest of the hill to
+      see the holy city, he refused to do so, saying, 'No; those who are not
+      worthy of conquering Jerusalem should not look at it!' This was but a
+      short time since, and we are now retracing our steps to Acre, and are
+      treating with Saladin for a peace."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then," Cuthbert said sadly, "all our hopes and efforts are thrown away;
+      all this blood has been shed for nothing; and after the three great powers
+      of Europe have engaged themselves solemnly in the war, we are baffled, and
+      have to fall back before the hordes of the infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Partly before them," the earl said, "partly as the result of our own
+      jealousies and passions. Had King Richard been a lesser man than he is, we
+      might have conquered Jerusalem. But he is so extraordinary a warrior that
+      his glory throws all others into the shade. He is a good general, perhaps
+      the best in Europe; and had he done nothing but lead, assuredly we should
+      have carried out our purpose. See how ably he maneuvered the army at the
+      fight of Azotus. Never was a more complete defeat than that which he
+      inflicted there upon the Saracens; and although the fact that his
+      generalship achieved this, might have caused some jealousy to the other
+      commanders, this might have died away could he between the battles have
+      been a general, and nothing more. But, alas! he is in addition a
+      knight-errant&mdash;and such a knight-errant as Europe has never seen
+      before. Wherever there is danger, Richard will plunge into the midst.
+      There are brave men in all the three armies; but the strongest and bravest
+      are as children to King Richard. Alone he can dart into ranks of the
+      infidels, and cut a lane for himself by the strength of his right arm.
+      More than this, when danger has threatened he has snatched up his
+      battle-ax and dashed into the fray without helm or cuirass, performing
+      such prodigies of valor and strength that it has been to his prowess alone
+      that victory was to be ascribed. Hence he is the idol of all the soldiers,
+      whatever their nationality; for he is as ready to rush to the rescue of a
+      French or Austrian knight when pressed as to that of his own men. But the
+      devotion which the whole army felt for him was as gall and wormwood to the
+      haughty Austrian and the indolent Frenchman; and the retirement of the
+      King of France, which left Richard in supreme command, was in every way
+      unfortunate."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the following day the army again marched, and Cuthbert could not but
+      notice the difference, not only in number but in demeanor, from the
+      splendid array which had left Acre a few months before. There was little
+      now of the glory of pennon and banner; the bright helms and cuirasses were
+      rusted and dinted, and none seemed to care aught for bravery of show. The
+      knights and men-at-arms were sunburnt and thin, and seemed but half the
+      weight that they had been when they landed. Fatigue, hardship, and the
+      heat had done their work; disease had swept off vast numbers. But the
+      remains of the army were so formidable in their fighting powers that the
+      Saracens, although following them at a distance in vast numbers, did not
+      venture an attack upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few days after their arrival at Acre, the king gave orders for the
+      embarkation of the troops. Just as they were preparing to enter the ships
+      a small vessel was seen entering the harbor. It drew up to the shore, and
+      a knight leaped from it, and, inquiring where King Richard was to be
+      found, made his way to the king, who was standing superintending the
+      embarkation of some of the horses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Saracens, sire!" he exclaimed. "The Saracens are besieging Jaffa, and
+      the place must be lost unless assistance arrives in a day or two."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king leaped on board the nearest ship, shouted to his leading officers
+      to follow him, and gave orders to others to bring down the troops with all
+      possible speed, to waste not a moment, and to see that all was done, and
+      then, in five minutes after the receipt of the news he started for Jaffa.
+      The Earl of Evesham and Cuthbert had been standing near the king when the
+      order was given, and followed him at once on board the bark which he had
+      chosen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah, my gallant young knight," the king exclaimed, "I am right glad to see
+      you with me. We shall have more fighting before we have done, and I know
+      that that suits your mood as well as my own."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The king's vessel was far in advance of any of the others, when early the
+      following morning it arrived at Jaffa.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your eyes are better than mine," the king said to Cuthbert. "Tell me what
+      is that flag flying on the top of the town."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert looked at it earnestly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear, sire, that it is the crescent. We have arrived too late."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "By the holy cross," said King Richard, "that shall not be so; for if the
+      place be taken, we will retake it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the vessel neared the shore a monk ran out into the water up to his
+      shoulders, and said to the king that the citadel still held out, and that
+      even now the Saracens might be driven back. Without delay the king leaped
+      into the water, followed by the knights and men-at-arms, and entering the
+      gate, threw himself upon the infidels within, who, busy plundering, had
+      not noticed the arrival of the ship.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The war cry of "St. George! St. George!" which the king always shouted in
+      battle, struck panic among the infidels; and although the king was
+      followed but by five knights and a few men-at-arms, the Saracens, to the
+      number of three thousand, fled before him, and all who tarried were
+      smitten down. The king followed them out upon the plain, driving them
+      before him as a lion would drive a flock of sheep, and then returned
+      triumphant into the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day, some more ships having arrived, King Richard found that in
+      all, including the garrison, he could muster two thousand combatants. The
+      enemy renewed the attack in great numbers, and the assaults upon the walls
+      were continuous and desperate. King Richard, who loved fighting in the
+      plain rather than behind walls, was impatient at this, and at one time so
+      fierce was the attack that he resolved to sally out. Only ten horses
+      remained in the town, and King Richard, mounting one, called upon nine of
+      the knights to mount and sally out with him. The little band of ten
+      warriors charged down upon the host of the Saracens and swept them before
+      them. It was a marvelous sight indeed to see so small a group of horsemen
+      dashing through a crowd of Saracen warriors. These, although at first
+      beaten back, yet rallied, and the ten knights had great difficulty in
+      fighting their way back to the town. When near the walls the Christians
+      again made a stand, and a few knights sallied out from the town on foot
+      and joined them. Among these was Cuthbert, the Earl of Evesham having
+      accompanied King Richard in his charge. In all, seventeen knights were now
+      rallied round the king. So fierce was the charge of the Saracens that the
+      king ordered those on horseback to dismount, and with their horses in the
+      center, the little body knelt with their lances opposed to the Saracens.
+      Again and again the wild cavalry swept down upon this little force, but in
+      vain did they attempt to break their ranks. The scene was indeed an
+      extraordinary one. At last the king, seeing that the enemy were losing
+      heart, again ordered the knights to mount, and these dashing among the
+      enemy, completed their defeat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While this had been going on news came to the king that the Saracens from
+      another side had made their way into Jaffa, and were massacring the
+      Christians. Without, an instant's delay he flew to their succor, followed
+      only by two knights and a few archers, the rest being so worn by their
+      exertions as to be unable to move. The Mamelukes, the chosen guard of
+      Saladin, had headed the attack; but even these were driven out from the
+      town, and Richard dashed out from the city in their pursuit. One Saracen
+      emir, distinguished for his stature and strength, ventured to match
+      himself against the king, and rode boldly at him. But with one blow
+      Richard severed his head, and his right shoulder and arm, from his body.
+      Then having, by his single arm, put to rout the Saracens at this point, he
+      dashed through them to the aid of the little band of knights who had
+      remained on the defensive when he left them at the alarm of the city being
+      entered. These were almost sinking with fatigue and wounds; but King
+      Richard opened a way around them by slaying numbers of the enemy, and then
+      charged again alone into the midst of the Mussulman host, and was lost to
+      the sight of his companions. All thought that they would never see him
+      again. But he soon reappeared, his horse covered with blood, but himself
+      unwounded; and the attack of the enemy ceased.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From the hour of daybreak, it is said, Richard had not ceased for a moment
+      to deal out his blows, and the skin of his hand adhered to the handle of
+      his battle-ax. This narration would appear almost fabulous, were it not
+      that it is attested in the chronicles of several eye-witnesses, and for
+      centuries afterward the Saracen women hushed their babes when fractious by
+      threatening them with Malek-Rik, the name which they gave to King Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Glorious as was the success, it was a sad one, for several of the most
+      devoted of the followers of King Richard were wounded badly, some few to
+      death. Among these last, to the terrible grief of Cuthbert, was his friend
+      and patron, the Earl of Evesham. The king, on taking off his armor,
+      hurried to his tent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The glory of this day is marred indeed," he said to the wounded knight,
+      "if I am to lose you, Sir Walter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear that it must even be so, my lord," the dying earl said. "I am glad
+      that I have seen this day, for never did I think to witness such feats as
+      those which your majesty has performed; and though the Crusade has failed,
+      and the holy city remains in the hands of the infidel, yet assuredly no
+      shadow of disgrace has fallen upon the English arms, and, indeed, great
+      glory has accrued to us. Whatever may be said of the Great Crusade, it
+      will at least be allowed by all men, and for all time, that had the
+      princes and soldiers of other nations done as your majesty and your
+      followers have done, the holy city would have fallen into our hands within
+      a month of our putting foot upon the soil. Your majesty, I have a boon to
+      ask."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have but to name it, Sir Walter, and it is yours."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Cuthbert, here," he said, pointing to the young knight, who was
+      sorrowfully kneeling by his bedside, "is as a son to me. The relationship
+      by blood is but slight, but by affection it is as close as though he were
+      mine own. I have, as your majesty knows, no male heirs, and my daughter is
+      but young, and will now be a royal ward. I beseech your majesty to bestow
+      her in marriage, when the time comes, upon Sir Cuthbert. They have known
+      each other as children, and the union will bring happiness, methinks, to
+      both, as well as strength and protection to her; and further, if it might
+      be, I would fain that you should bestow upon him my title and dignity."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It shall be so," the king said. "When your eyes are closed, Sir Walter,
+      Sir Cuthbert shall be Earl of Evesham, and, when the time comes, the
+      husband of your daughter."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was too overwhelmed with grief to feel a shadow of exaltation at
+      the gracious intimation of the king; although, even then, a thought of
+      future happiness in the care of the fair young lady Marguerite passed
+      before his mind. For the last time the king gave his hand to his faithful
+      servant, who pressed it to his lips, and a few minutes afterward breathed
+      his last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0017" id="link2HCH0017"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XVII. &mdash; AN ALPINE STORM.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The tremendous exertions which King Richard had made told upon him, and
+      attacks of fever succeeded each other at short intervals. This, however,
+      mattered the less, since negotiations were now proceeding between him and
+      Saladin. It was impossible, with the slight means at his disposal, for
+      Richard further to carry on the Crusade alone. Moreover, pressing news had
+      arrived from his mother in England, urging him to return, as his brother
+      John was intriguing against him, and had already assumed all but the
+      kingly title. Saladin was equally desirous of peace. His wild troops were,
+      for the most part, eager to return to their homes, and the defeats which
+      they had suffered, and the, to them, miraculous power of King Richard's
+      arm, had lowered their spirit and made them eager to be away. Therefore he
+      consented without difficulty to the terms proposed. By these, the
+      Christians were to surrender Ascalon, but were to keep Jaffa, Tyre, and
+      the fortresses along the coast. All hostilities were to be suspended on
+      both sides for the space of three years, three months, three weeks, three
+      days, and three hours, when Richard hoped to return again and to
+      recommence the struggle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Between the sultan and King Richard a feeling approaching that of
+      friendship had sprung up during the campaign. Saladin was himself brave in
+      the extreme, and exposed his life as fearlessly as did his Christian
+      rival, and the two valiant leaders recognized the great qualities of each
+      other. Several times during the campaign when Richard had been ill, the
+      emir had sent him presents of fruit and other matters, to which Richard
+      had responded in the same spirit. An interview had taken place between
+      them which further cemented their friendship; and when Richard promised to
+      return again at the end of the truce with a far larger army, and to
+      accomplish the rescue of the holy city, the sultan smiled, and said that
+      it appeared that valor alone was not sufficient to conquer in the Holy
+      Land, but that if Jerusalem were to fall into the hands of the Christians,
+      it could fall into no worthier hands than those of Malek-Rik.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, with many mutual courtesies, the great rivals separated, and soon
+      after King Richard and the little remnant of his army embarked on board
+      ship, and set sail for England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was on October 11, 1192, that Richard Coeur de Lion left Palestine.
+      Soon after they started a storm suddenly burst upon them, and dispersed
+      them in various directions. The ship in which Queen Berengaria was carried
+      arrived safely in Sicily; but that in which King Richard was borne was
+      missing, and none of his fellow-voyagers knew what had become of him. Sir
+      Cuthbert was in the same vessel as the king, and the bark was driven upon
+      the Island of Corfu. All reached shore in safety, and King Richard then
+      hired three small vessels, in which he sailed to the port of Zara, whence
+      he hoped to reach the domains of his nephew, Otho of Saxony, the son of
+      his sister Matilda. The king had with him now but two of his knights,
+      Baldwin of Béthune, and Cuthbert of Evesham. Cnut was with his feudal
+      chief&mdash;for such Cuthbert had now, by his accession to the rank of
+      Earl of Evesham, become&mdash;and three or four English archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear, my lords," the king said to his knights as he sat in a little
+      room in an inn at Zara, "that my plight is a bad one. I am surrounded by
+      enemies, and, alas! I can no longer mount my steed and ride out as at
+      Jaffa to do battle with them. My brother, John Lackland, is scheming to
+      take my place upon the throne of England. Philip of France, whose mind is
+      far better at such matters than at setting armies in the field, is in
+      league with him. The Emperor Henry has laid claim to the throne of Sicily.
+      Leopold of Austria has not forgiven me the blow I struck him in the face
+      at Ascalon, and the friends of Conrad of Montferat are spreading far and
+      wide the lie that I was the instigator of his murder. Sure never had a
+      poor king so many enemies, and few have ever had so small a following as I
+      have now. What think you, my lords? What course would you advise that I
+      should adopt? If I can reach Saxony doubtless Otho will aid me. But hence
+      to Dresden is a long journey indeed. I have neither credit nor funds to
+      hire a ship to take us by sea. Nor would such a voyage be a safe one, when
+      so many of my enemies' ships are on the main. I must needs, I think, go in
+      disguise, for my way lies wholly through the country of my enemies."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Surely," Cuthbert said, "no potentate could for very shame venture to
+      detain your majesty on your way from the Holy Land, where you have wrought
+      such great deeds. Were I in your place, I would at once proclaim myself,
+      mount my horse, have my banner carried before me, and ride openly on. You
+      have, too, another claim, namely, that of being shipwrecked, and even in
+      war-time nations respect those whom the force of God has thrown upon their
+      shores."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear me, Sir Cuthbert," Sir Baldwin said, "that you overrate the
+      chivalry of our master's enemies. Had we been thrown on the shores of
+      France, Philip perhaps would hesitate to lay hands upon the king; but
+      these petty German princelings have no idea of the observances of true
+      chivalry. They are coarse and brutal in their ways; and though in outward
+      form following the usage of knighthood, they have never been penetrated
+      with its spirit. If the friends of Conrad of Montferat lay hands upon King
+      Richard I fear that no scruples will prevent them from using their
+      advantage to the utmost. Even their emperor I would not trust. The course
+      which you advise would no doubt be in accordance with the spirit of King
+      Richard; but it would be madness for him to judge other people's spirit by
+      his own, and it would be rushing into the lion's den to proclaim himself
+      here. I should recommend, if I might venture to do so, that his majesty
+      should assume a false name, and that we should travel in small parties so
+      as to attract no attention, each making his way to Saxony as best he may."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was silence for a minute or two, and then the king with a sigh said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear that you are right, Sir Baldwin, and that there is no chivalry
+      among these swinish German lords. You shall accompany me. Not, Sir
+      Cuthbert," he observed kindly, noticing a look of disappointment upon the
+      face of the young knight, "that I estimate your fidelity one whit lower
+      than that of my brave friend; but he is the elder and the more versed in
+      European travel, and may manage to bring matters through better than you
+      would do. You will have dangers enough to encounter yourself, more even
+      than I shall, for your brave follower, Cnut, can speak no language but his
+      own, and your archers will be hard to pass as any other than what they
+      are. You must be my messenger to England, should you arrive there without
+      me. Tell my mother and wife where you left me, and that, if I do not come
+      home I have fallen into the hands of one or other of my bitter foes. Bid
+      them bestir themselves to hold England for me against my brother John,
+      and, if needs be, to move the sovereigns of Europe to free me from the
+      hands of my enemies. Should a ransom be needed, I think that my people of
+      England will not grudge their goods for their king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The following day the king bade farewell to his faithful followers, giving
+      his hand to kiss, not only to Sir Cuthbert, but to Cnut and his archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have done me brave service," he said, "and I trust may yet have
+      occasion to do it again. These are bad times when Richard of England has
+      naught wherewith to reward his friends. But," he said, taking a gold chain
+      from his neck and breaking it with his strong fingers into five fragments,
+      "that is for you, Cnut, and for your four archers, in remembrance of King
+      Richard."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men, albeit hardened by many scenes of warfare, yet shed tears
+      plenteously at parting with the king.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We had better," Cuthbert said to them when they were alone, "delay here
+      for a few days. If we are taken, the news that some Englishmen have been
+      captured making their way north from Zara will spread rapidly, and may
+      cause the enemies of Richard to be on the lookout for him, suspecting that
+      the ship which bore us may also have carried him; for the news that he is
+      missing will spread rapidly through Europe, and will set all his enemies
+      on the alert."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In accordance with this plan they delayed for another ten days at Zara,
+      and then, hiring a small boat, were landed some thirty miles further along
+      the coast. Cuthbert had obtained for Cnut the dress of a palmer, as in
+      this he would pass almost unquestioned, and his silence might be accounted
+      for on the ground that he had taken a vow of silence. He himself had
+      placed on his coat armor a red cross, instead of the white cross borne by
+      the English knights, and would now pass as a French knight. Similar
+      changes were made in the dress of his followers, and he determined to pass
+      as a French noble who had been wrecked on his way home, and who was
+      returning through Germany to France. The difficulties in his own case
+      would not be serious, as his French would pass muster anywhere in Germany.
+      The greatest difficulty would be with his attendants; but he saw no way of
+      avoiding this.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert's object, when with his little party he separated from King
+      Richard, was to make his way to Verona, thence cross by Trent into
+      Bavaria, and so to journey to Saxony. Fortunately he had at the storming
+      of Acre become possessed of a valuable jewel, and this he now sold, and
+      purchased a charger for himself. He had little fear of any trouble in
+      passing through the north of Italy, for this was neutral ground, where
+      knights of all nations met, and where, neither as an English nor a French
+      Crusader, would he attract either comment or attention.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a slow journey across the northern plains, as of course he had to
+      accommodate his pace to that of his men. Cnut and the archers had grumbled
+      much at the change of the color of the cross upon their jerkins; and, as
+      Cnut said, would have been willing to run greater perils under their true
+      colors than to affect to belong to any other nationality. On their way
+      they passed through Padua, and there stopped a few days. Cuthbert could
+      but feel, in looking at the splendor of this Italian city, the courteous
+      manner of its people, and the university, which was even then famous, how
+      far in advance were those stately cities of Italy to Western Europe. His
+      followers were as much surprised as himself at the splendors of the city.
+      Here they experienced no trouble or annoyance whatever, for to the cities
+      of Italy knights of all nations resorted, learned men came to study,
+      philosophers to dispute, and as these brought their attendants with them,
+      you might in the streets of Padua and its sister cities hear every
+      language in Europe spoken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From Padua they journeyed to Verona, marveling greatly at the richness of
+      the country. The footmen, however, grumbled at the flatness of the plain,
+      and said that it was as bad as marching in the Holy Land. On their right,
+      however, the slopes of the Alps, thickly clad with forests, reached down
+      nearly to the road, and Cuthbert assured them that they would have plenty
+      of climbing before they had done. At Verona they tarried again, and
+      wondered much at the great amphitheater, then almost perfect. Cuthbert
+      related to Cnut and the archers how men had there been set to fight while
+      the great stone benches round were thronged with men and women looking on
+      at their death struggles, and said that not unfrequently British captives
+      were brought hither and made to contend in the arena. The honest fellows
+      were full of indignation and horror at the thought of men killing
+      themselves to give sport to others. They were used to hard knocks, and
+      thought but little of their life, and would have betaken themselves to
+      their bows and bills without hesitation in case of a quarrel. But to fight
+      in cold blood for amusement seemed to them very terrible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert would then have traveled on to Milan, at that time next to Rome
+      the richest city in Europe, but he longed to be back in England, and was
+      the more anxious as he knew that King Richard would be passing through
+      great dangers, and he hoped to meet him at the court of Saxony. His money,
+      too, was fast running out, and he found that it would be beyond his
+      slender means to extend his journey so far. At Verona, then, they turned
+      their back on the broad plains of Lombardy, and entered the valley of the
+      Trent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So far no observation whatever had been excited by the passage of the
+      English knight. So many Crusaders were upon their way home, many in
+      grievous plight, that the somewhat shabby retinue passed unnoticed. But
+      they were now leaving Italy, and entering a country where German was
+      spoken. Trent, in those days an important city, was then, and is still,
+      the meeting place of Italy and Germany. Both tongues are here spoken; but
+      while the Italian perhaps preponderates, the customs, manners, and mode of
+      thought of the people belong to those of the mountaineers of the Tyrol
+      rather than of the dwellers on the plains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are choosing a stormy time," the landlord of the hostelry where they
+      put up said to Cuthbert. "The winter is now at hand, and storms sweep
+      across the passes with terrible violence. You had better, at the last
+      village you come to in the valley, obtain the services of a guide, for
+      should a snowstorm come on when you are crossing, the path will be lost,
+      and nothing will remain but a miserable death. By daylight the road is
+      good. It has been cut with much trouble, and loaded mules can pass over
+      without difficulty. Poles have been erected at short distances to mark the
+      way when the snow covers it. But when the snowstorms sweep across the
+      mountains it is impossible to see ten paces before you, and if the
+      traveler leaves the path he is lost."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But I suppose," Cuthbert said, "that even in winter travelers pass over?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They do," the host said. "The road is as open in winter as in summer,
+      although, of course, the dangers are greater. Still, there is nothing to
+      prevent vigorous men from crossing over when the storms come on. Now, too,
+      with the snow already lying in the upper forests, the wolves are abroad,
+      and should you be attacked by one of those herds, you will find it hard
+      work to defend your lives. Much has been done to render the road safe. At
+      the distance of every league stone houses have been erected, where
+      travelers can find shelter either from the storm or from the attacks of
+      wolves or bears, for these, too, abound in the forests, and in summer
+      there is fine hunting among them. You are, as I see, returning from the
+      Holy Land, an are therefore used to heat rather than cold, so I should
+      advise you before you leave this city to buy some rough cloaks to shield
+      you from the cold. You can obtain them for your followers very cheaply,
+      made of the mountain goat or of sheepskins, and even those of bearskin
+      well dressed are by no means dear."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Obtaining the address of a merchant who kept these things, Cuthbert
+      proceeded thither; and purchased five cloaks of goatskin with hoods to
+      pull over their heads for his followers while for himself he obtained one
+      of rather finer material.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Another two days' journey brought them to the foot of the steep ascent,
+      and here they hired the services of a guide. The ascent was long and
+      difficult, and in spite of the praises which the host had bestowed upon
+      the road, it was so steep that Cuthbert was, for the most part, obliged to
+      walk, leading his steed, whose feet slipped on the smooth rock, and as in
+      many places a false step would have thrown them down many hundreds of feet
+      into the valley below, Cuthbert judged it safer to trust himself to his
+      own feet. He disincumbered himself of his helmet and gorget, and placed
+      these upon the horse's back. At nightfall they had attained a very
+      considerable height, and stopped at one of the small refuges of which the
+      landlord had spoken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I like not the look of the weather," the guide said in the morning&mdash;at
+      least that was what Cuthbert judged him to say, for he could speak no word
+      of the man's language. His actions, however, as he looked toward the sky,
+      and shook his head, spoke for themselves, and Cuthbert, feeling his own
+      powerlessness in a situation so novel to him, felt serious misgivings at
+      the prospect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The scenery was now very wild. On all sides crags and mountain tops
+      covered with snow glistened in the sun. The woods near the path were free
+      of snow; but higher up they rose black above the white ground. The wind
+      blew keenly, and all rejoiced in the warm cloaks which they had obtained;
+      for even with the protection of these they had found the cold bitter
+      during the night.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I like not this country," Cnut said. "We grumbled at the heat of
+      Palestine, but I had rather march across the sand there than in this
+      inhospitable frozen region. The woods look as if they might contain
+      specters. There is a silence which seems to be unnatural, and my courage,
+      like the warmth of my body, is methinks oozing out from my fingers."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert laughed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have no doubt that your courage would come again much quicker than the
+      warmth, Cnut, if there were any occasion for it. A brisk walk will set you
+      all right again, and banish these uneasy fancies. To-night we shall be at
+      the highest point, and to-morrow begin to descend toward Germany."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All day the men kept steadily on. The guide from time to time looked
+      apprehensively at the sky; and although in the earlier part of the day
+      Cuthbert's inexperienced eye saw nothing to cause the slightest
+      uneasiness, toward the afternoon the scene changed. Light clouds began to
+      gather on the top of all the hills and to shut the mountain peaks entirely
+      from view. The wind moaned between the gorges and occasionally swept along
+      in such sudden gusts that they could with difficulty retain their feet.
+      The sky became gradually overcast, and frequently light specks of snow, so
+      small as to be scarcely perceptible, were driven along on the blast,
+      making their faces smart by the force with which they struck them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It scarcely needs our guide's face," Cuthbert said, "to tell us that a
+      storm is at hand, and that our position is a dangerous one. As for me, I
+      own that I feel better pleased now that the wind is blowing, and the
+      silence is broken, than at the dead stillness which prevailed this
+      morning. After all, methinks that a snowstorm cannot be more dreaded than
+      a sandstorm, and we have faced those before now."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Faster and faster the snow came down, until at last the whole air seemed
+      full of it, and it was with difficulty that they could stagger forward.
+      Where the path led across open places the wind swept away the snow as fast
+      as it fell, but in the hollows the track was already covered; and feeling
+      the difficulty of facing the blinding gale, Cuthbert now understood the
+      urgency with which his host had insisted upon the danger of losing the
+      track. Not a word was spoken among the party as they plodded along. The
+      guide kept ahead, using the greatest caution wherever the path was
+      obliterated by the snow, sometimes even sounding with his iron-shod staff
+      to be sure that they were upon the level rock. In spite of his warm cloak
+      Cuthbert felt that he was becoming chilled to the bone. His horse could
+      with difficulty keep his feet; and Cnut and the archers lagged behind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must keep together, lads," he shouted. "I have heard that in these
+      mountains when sleepiness overpowers the traveler, death is at hand.
+      Therefore, come what may, we must struggle on."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Many times the gale was so violent that they were obliged to pause and
+      take shelter under the side of a rock or precipice until the fury of the
+      blast had passed; and Cuthbert eagerly looked out for the next refuge. At
+      last they reached it, and the guide at once entered. It was not that in
+      which he had intended to pass the night, for this lay still higher; but it
+      would have been madness to attempt to go further in the face of such a
+      gale. He signed to Cuthbert that it was necessary at once to collect
+      firewood, and he himself proceeded to light some brands which had been
+      left by previous travelers. Cuthbert gave directions to Cnut and the
+      archers; and these, feeling that life depended upon a good fire being kept
+      up, set to with a will, cutting down shrubs and branches growing in the
+      vicinity of the hut. In half an hour a huge fire blazed in the refuge; and
+      as the warmth thawed their limbs, their tongues were unloosened, and a
+      feeling of comfort again prevailed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If this be mountaineering, my lord," Cnut said, "I trust that never again
+      may it be my fortune to venture among the hills. How long, I wonder, do
+      the storms last here? I was grumbling all the way up the hill at the load
+      of provisions which the guide insisted that each of us should bring with
+      him. As it was to be but a three days' journey before we reached a village
+      on the other side, I wondered why he insisted upon our taking food enough
+      to last us at least for a week. But I understand now, and thank him for
+      his foresight; for if this storm goes on we are assuredly prisoners here
+      for so long as it may continue."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The horse had to be brought into the hut, for it would have been death for
+      it to have remained outside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is that?" Cnut said presently, as a distant howl was heard between
+      the lulls of the storm. The guide muttered some word which Cuthbert did
+      not understand. But he said to Cnut, "I doubt not that it is wolves. Thank
+      God that we are safe within this refuge, for here not even the most
+      ravenous beasts could make their way."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Pooh!" Cnut said contemptuously. "Wolves are no bigger than dogs. I have
+      heard my grandfather say that he shot one in the forest, and that it was
+      no bigger than a hound. We should make short work of them."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I know not," Cuthbert said. "I have heard tales of these animals which
+      show that they must be formidable opponents. They hunt in great packs, and
+      are so furious that they will attack parties of travelers; many of these
+      have perished miserably, horses and men, and nothing but their swords and
+      portions of their saddles have remained to tell where the battle was
+      fought."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0018" id="link2HCH0018"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XVIII. &mdash; SENTENCED TO DEATH.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Just before arriving at the refuge they had passed along a very steep and
+      dangerous path. On one side the rock rose precipitously, ten feet above
+      their heads. On the other was a fall into the valley below. The road at
+      this point was far wider than usual.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently the howl of a wolf was heard near, and soon the solitary call
+      was succeeded by the howling of great numbers of animals. These speedily
+      surrounded the hut, and so fierce were their cries that Cnut changed his
+      opinion as to the ease with which they could be defeated, and allowed that
+      he would rather face an army of Saracens than a troop of these
+      ill-conditioned animals. The horse trembled in every limb at the sound of
+      the howling of the wolves; and cold as was the night, in spite of the
+      great fire that blazed on the hearth, his coat became covered with the
+      lather of fear. Even upon the roof above the trampling of the animals
+      could be heard; and through the open slits of the windows which some
+      travelers before them had stuffed with straw, they could hear the fierce
+      breathing and snorting of the savage beasts, who scratched and tore to
+      make an entrance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that we might launch a few arrows through
+      these loopholes. The roof appears not to be over strong; and should some
+      of them force an entrance, the whole pack might follow."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Dark as was the night, the black bodies were visible against the white
+      snow, and the archers shot several arrows forth, each stretching a wolf
+      dead on the ground. Those killed were at once pounced upon by their
+      comrades and torn to pieces; and this mark of savageness added to the
+      horror which those within felt of the ferocious animals. Suddenly there
+      was a pause in the howling around the hut, and then Cnut, looking forth
+      from the loophole, declared that the whole body had gone off at full speed
+      along the path by which they had reached the refuge. Almost immediately
+      afterward a loud shout for help was heard, followed by the renewed howling
+      and yelping of the wolves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Good heavens!" Cuthbert exclaimed. "Some traveler coming after us is
+      attacked by these horrible beasts. Let us sally out, Cnut. We cannot hear
+      a Christian torn to pieces by these beasts, without lending him a hand."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In spite of the angry shouts and entreaties of the guide, the door was
+      thrust open, and the party, armed with their axes and bows, at once rushed
+      out into the night. The storm had for the moment abated and they had no
+      difficulty in making their way along the track. In fifty yards they came
+      to a bend of the path, and saw, a little distance before them, a black
+      mass of animals covering the road, and congregated round a figure who
+      stood with his back to the rock. With a shout of encouragement they sprang
+      forward, and in a few moments were in the midst of the savage animals, who
+      turned their rage against them at once. They had fired two or three arrows
+      apiece, as they approached, into them; and now throwing down their bows,
+      the archers betook themselves to their swords, while Cuthbert with his
+      heavy battle-axe hewed and cut at the wolves as they sprang toward him. In
+      a minute they had cleared their way to the figure, which was that of a
+      knight in complete armor. He leaned against the rock completely exhausted,
+      could only mutter a word of thanks through his closed visor. At a short
+      distance off a number of the wolves were gathered, rending and tearing the
+      horse of the knight; but the rest, soon recovering from their surprise,
+      attacked with fury the little party. The thick cloaks of the archers stood
+      them in good stead against the animal's teeth, and standing in a group
+      with their backs to the rock, they hewed and cut vigorously at their
+      assailants. The numbers of these, however, appeared almost innumerable,
+      and fresh stragglers continued to come along the road, and swell their
+      body. As fast as those in front fell, their heads cleft with the axes of
+      the party, fresh ones sprang forward; and Cuthbert saw that in spite of
+      the valor and strength of his men, the situation was well-nigh desperate.
+      He himself had been saved from injury by his harness, for he still had on
+      his greaves and leg pieces.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Keep together," he shouted to his men, "and each lend aid to the other if
+      he sees him pulled down. Strike lustily for life, and hurry not your
+      blows, but let each toll." This latter order he gave perceiving that some
+      of the archers, terrified by this furious army of assailants with gaping
+      mouths and glistening teeth, were striking wildly, and losing their
+      presence of mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The combat, although it might have been prolonged, could yet have had but
+      one termination, and the whole party would have fallen. At this moment,
+      however, a gust of wind, more furious than any which they had before
+      experienced, swept along the gorge, and the very wolves had to crouch on
+      their stomachs to prevent themselves being hurled by its fury into the
+      ravine below. Then even above the storm a deep roar was heard. It grew
+      louder and louder. The wolves, as if struck with terror, leaped to their
+      feet, and scattered on either way along the path at full speed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What sound can this be?" Cnut exclaimed in an awe-struck voice. "It
+      sounds like thunder; but it is regular and unbroken; and, my lord, surely
+      the earth quakes under our feet!"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Louder and louder grew the roar.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Throw yourselves down against the wall of rock," Cuthbert shouted,
+      himself setting the example.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A moment afterward, from above a mighty mass of rock and snow poured over
+      like a cascade, with a roar and sound which nigh stunned them. For minutes&mdash;it
+      seemed for hours to them&mdash;the deluge of snow and rock continued.
+      Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it ceased, and a silence as of death
+      reigned over the place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Arise," Cuthbert said; "the danger, methinks, is past. It was what men
+      call an avalanche&mdash;a torrent of snow slipping down from the higher
+      peaks. We have had a narrow escape indeed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By this time the knight whom they had rescued was able to speak, and
+      raising his visor, he returned his deepest thanks to those who had come so
+      opportunely to his aid.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I was well-nigh exhausted," he said, "and it was only my armor which
+      saved me from being torn to pieces. A score of them had hold of me; but
+      fortunately my mail was of Milan proof, and even the jaws and teeth of
+      these enormous beasts were unable to pierce it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The refuge is near at hand," Cuthbert said. "It is but a few yards round
+      yonder point. It is well that we heard your voice. I fear that your horse
+      has fallen a victim."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Assisting the knight, who in spite of his armor was sorely bruised and
+      exhausted, they made their way back to the refuge. Cnut and the archers
+      were all bleeding freely from various wounds inflicted upon them in the
+      struggle, breathless and exhausted from their exertions, and thoroughly
+      awe-struck by the tremendous phenomenon of which they had been witnesses,
+      and which they had only escaped from their good fortune in happening to be
+      in a place so formed that the force of the avalanche had swept over their
+      heads. The whole of the road, with the exception of a narrow piece four
+      feet in width, had been carried away. Looking upward, they saw that the
+      forest had been swept clear, not a tree remaining in a wide track as far
+      as they could see up the hill. The great bowlders which had strewn the
+      hillside, and many of which were as large as houses, had been swept away
+      like straws before the rush of snow, and for a moment they feared that the
+      refuge had also been carried away. Turning the corner, however, they saw
+      to their delight that the limits of the avalanche had not extended so far,
+      the refuges, as they afterward learned, being so placed as to be sheltered
+      by overhanging cliffs from any catastrophe of this kind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They found the guide upon his knees, muttering his prayers before a cross,
+      which he had formed of two sticks laid crosswise on the ground before him;
+      and he could scarce believe his eyes when they entered, so certain had he
+      considered it that they were lost. There were no longer any signs of the
+      wolves. The greater portion, indeed, of the pack had been overwhelmed by
+      the avalanche, and the rest, frightened and scared, had fled to their
+      fastnesses in the woods.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight now removed his helmet, and discovered a handsome young man of
+      some twenty-four or twenty-five years old.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am," he said, "Baron Ernest of Kornstein. To whom do I owe my life?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "In spite of my red cross," Cuthbert said, "I am English. My name is Sir
+      Cuthbert, and I am Earl of Evesham. I am on my return from the Holy Land
+      with my followers; and as we are passing through countries where many of
+      the people are hostile to England, we have thought it as well for a time
+      to drop our nationality. But to you I do not hesitate to tell the truth."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You do well," the young knight said, "for, truth to say, the people of
+      these parts bear but little love to your countrymen. You have saved my
+      life when I was in the sorest danger. I had given myself up for lost, for
+      even my armor could not have saved me long from these wretches; and my
+      sword and life are at your disposal. You are young indeed," he said,
+      looking with surprise at Cuthbert, who had now thrown back the hood of his
+      cloak, "to have gained the honor of knighthood. You scarce look eighteen
+      years of age, although, doubtless, you are older."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am scarce seventeen," Cuthbert said; "but I have had the good fortune
+      to attract the notice of King Richard, and to have received the knighthood
+      from his sword."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "None more worthy," said the young knight, "for although King Richard may
+      be fierce and proud, he is the worthiest knight in Christendom, and
+      resembles the heroes of romance rather than a Christian king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "He is my lord and master," Cuthbert said, "and I love him beyond all men,
+      and would give my life for his. He is the kindest and best of masters; and
+      although it be true that he brooks no opposition, yet is it only because
+      his own bravery and eagerness render hateful to him the indolence and
+      cowardice of others."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They now took their seats round the fire. The archers, by the advice of
+      the guide, rubbed their wounds with snow, and then applied bandages to
+      them. The wallets were opened, and a hearty supper eaten; and all,
+      wrapping themselves in their fur cloaks, were soon asleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For four days the gale continued, keeping the party prisoners in the hut.
+      On the fifth the force of the wind abated, and the snow ceased to fall.
+      They were forced to take the door off its hinges to open it, for the snow
+      had piled up so high that the chimney alone of the hut remained above its
+      surface. With great difficulty and labor they cleared a way out, and then
+      the guide again placing himself at their head, they proceeded on their
+      way. The air was still and cold, and the sky of a deep, dark blue, which
+      seemed even darker in contrast with the whiteness of the snow. At times
+      they had great difficulty in struggling through the deep drifts; but for
+      the most part the wind had swept the path clear. Where it was deepest, the
+      tops of the posts still showed above the snow, and enabled the guide to
+      direct their footsteps. They were, however, obliged to travel slowly, and
+      it was three days before they gained the village on the northern slope of
+      the mountains, having slept at refuges by the road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What are your plans?" the knight asked Sir Cuthbert that night, as they
+      sat by the fire of the hostelry. "I would warn you that the town which you
+      will first arrive at is specially hostile to your people, for the baron,
+      its master, is a relation of Conrad of Montferat, who is said to have been
+      killed by order of your king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is false," Cuthbert said. "King Richard had appointed him King of
+      Jerusalem; and, though he liked him not, thought him the fittest of those
+      there to exercise sovereignty. He was the last man who would have had an
+      enemy assassinated; for so open is he of disposition that he would have
+      fought hand to hand with the meanest soldier of his army had he desired to
+      kill him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I doubt not that it is so, since you tell me," the knight said
+      courteously. "But the people here have taken that idea into their minds,
+      and it will be hard to disabuse them. You must therefore keep up your
+      disguise as a French knight while passing through this neighborhood.
+      Another week's journeying, and you will reach the confines of Saxony, and
+      there you will, as you anticipate, be safe. But I would not answer for
+      your life were you discovered here to be of English birth. And now tell me
+      if there is aught that I can do for you. I will myself accompany you into
+      the town, and will introduce you as a French knight, so that no suspicion
+      is likely to lie upon you, and will, further, ride with you to the borders
+      of Saxony. I am well known, and trust that my company will avert all
+      suspicion from you. You have told me that your purse is ill-supplied; you
+      must suffer me to replenish it. One knight need not fear to borrow of
+      another; and I know that when you have returned to your home you will
+      bestow the sum which I now give you upon some holy shrine in my name, and
+      thus settle matters between us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert without hesitation accepted the offer, and was well pleased at
+      finding his purse replenished, for its emptiness had caused him serious
+      trouble. Cuthbert's steed was led by one of the archers, and he himself
+      walked gayly alongside of Sir Ernest, followed by his retainers. Another
+      long day's march brought them down to Innsbruck, where they remained
+      quietly for a week. Then they journeyed on until they emerged from the
+      mountains, crossed the Bavarian frontier, and arrived at Fussen, a strong
+      city, with well-built walls and defenses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They at once proceeded to the principal hostelry, where the young baron
+      was well known, and where great interest was excited by the news of the
+      narrow escape which he had had from the attack of the wolves. A journey
+      across the Alps was in those days regarded as a very perilous enterprise
+      in the winter season, and the fact that he should have been rescued from
+      such a strait appeared almost miraculous. They stayed for two days quietly
+      in the city, Cuthbert declining the invitation of the young noble to
+      accompany him to the houses of his friends, as he did not wish that any
+      suspicion should be excited as to his nationality, and preferred remaining
+      quiet to having forced upon him the necessity of making false statements.
+      As to his followers, there was no fear of the people among whom they mixed
+      detecting that they were English. To the Bavarian inhabitants, all
+      languages, save their native German, were alike unintelligible; and even
+      had French been commonly spoken, the dialects of that tongue, such as
+      would naturally be spoken by archers and men-at-arms, would have been a
+      Greek to those accustomed only to Norman French.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the third day, however, an incident occurred which upset Cuthbert's
+      calculations, and nearly involved the whole party in ruin. The town was,
+      as the young baron had said, governed by a noble who was a near relation
+      of Conrad of Montferat, and who was the bitter enemy of the English. A
+      great <i>fête</i> had been given in honor of the marriage of his daughter,
+      and upon this day the young pair were to ride in triumph through the city.
+      Great preparations had been made; masks and pageants of various kinds
+      manufactured; and the whole townspeople, dressed in their holiday attire,
+      were gathered in the streets. Cuthbert had gone out, followed by his
+      little band of retainers, and taken their station to see the passing show.
+      First came a large body of knights and men-at-arms, with gay banners and
+      trappings. Then rode the bridegroom, with the bride carried in a litter by
+      his side. After this came several allegorical representations. Among these
+      was the figure of a knight bearing the arms of Austria. Underneath his
+      feet, on the car, lay a figure clad in a royal robe, across whom was
+      thrown a banner with the leopards of England. The knight stood with his
+      foot on this figure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This representation of the dishonor of England at the hands of Austria
+      elicited great acclamations from the crowd. Cuthbert clinched his teeth
+      and grasped his sword angrily, but had the sense to see the folly of
+      taking any notice of the insult. Not so with Cnut. Furious it the insult
+      offered to the standard of his royal master, Cnut, with a bound, burst
+      through the ranks of the crowd, leaped on to the car, and with a buffet
+      smote the figure representing Austria into the road, and lifted the flag
+      of England from the ground. A yell of indignation and rage was heard. The
+      infuriated crowd rushed forward. Cnut, with a bound, sprang from the car,
+      and, joining his comrades, burst through those who attempted to impede
+      them, and darted down a by-street.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert, for the moment amazed at the action of his follower, had on the
+      instant drawn his sword and joined the archers. In the crowd, however, he
+      was for a second separated from them; and before he could tear himself
+      from the hands of the citizens who had seized him, the men-at-arms
+      accompanying the procession surrounded him, and he was led away by them to
+      the castle, the guards with difficulty protecting him from the enraged
+      populace. Even at this moment Cuthbert experienced a deep sense of
+      satisfaction at the thought that his followers had escaped. But he feared
+      that alone, and unacquainted with the language of the country, they would
+      find it difficult indeed to escape the search which would be made for
+      them, and to manage to find their way back to their country. For himself,
+      he had little hopes of liberty, and scarcely more of life. The hatred of
+      the baron toward the English would now be heightened by the daring act of
+      insult to the arms of Austria, and this would give a pretext for any deed
+      of violence which might be wrought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was, after a short confinement, brought before the lord baron of
+      the place, in the great hall of the castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Who art thou, sir," the noble exclaimed, "who darest to disturb the
+      marriage procession of my daughter, and to insult the standard of the
+      emperor my master?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, a baron of England," Cuthbert said
+      fearlessly, "and am traveling homeward from the Holy Land. My garb as a
+      Crusader should protect me from all interruption; and the heedless conduct
+      of my retainer was amply justified by the insult offered to the arms of
+      England. There is not one of the knights assembled round you who would not
+      in like manner have avenged an insult offered to those of Austria; and I
+      am ready to do battle in the lists with any who choose to say that the
+      deed was a foul or improper one. In the Holy Land Austrians and English
+      fought side by side; and it is strange indeed to me that on my return,
+      journeying through the country of the emperor, I should find myself
+      treated as an enemy, and see the arms of King Richard exposed to insult
+      and derision by the burghers of this city."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Cuthbert had spoken he threw down his mailed glove, and several of the
+      knights present stepped forward to pick it up. The baron, however, waved
+      them back.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is no question," he said, "of honorable fight. This is a follower of
+      the murderer of my good cousin of Montferat, who died under the hands of
+      assassins set upon him by Richard of England."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is false!" Cuthbert shouted. "I denounce it as a foul lie, and will
+      maintain it with my life."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your life is already forfeited," the baron said, "both by your past
+      connection with Richard of England and as the insulter of the arms of
+      Austria. You die, and to-morrow at noon your head shall be struck off in
+      the great square before my castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without another word Cuthbert was hurried off to his cell, and there
+      remained, thinking moodily over the events of the day, until nightfall. He
+      had no doubt that his sentence would be carried out, and his anxiety was
+      rather for his followers than for himself. He feared that they would make
+      some effort on his behalf, and would sacrifice their own lives in doing
+      so, without the possibility of assisting him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning he was led out to the square before the castle. It was a
+      large flagged courtyard. Upon one side was the entrance to the castle, one
+      of whose wings also formed a second side to the square. The side facing
+      this was formed by the wall of the city, and the fourth opened upon a
+      street of the town. This side of the square was densely filled with
+      citizens, while the men-at-arms of the baron and a large number of knights
+      were gathered behind a scaffold erected in the center. Upon this was a
+      block, and by the side stood a headsman. As Cuthbert was led forward a
+      thrill of pleasure ran through him at perceiving no signs of his
+      followers, who he greatly feared might have been captured in the night,
+      and brought there to share his fate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he was led forward the young noble whose life he had saved advanced to
+      the baron, and dropping on one knee before him, craved the life of
+      Cuthbert, relating the event by which he had saved his life in the passage
+      of the mountains. The baron frowned heavily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Though he had saved the life of every noble in Bavaria," he said, "he
+      should die. I have sworn an oath that every Englishman who fell into my
+      hands should expiate the murder of my kinsman; and this fellow is,
+      moreover, guilty of an outrage to the arms of Austria."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The young Sir Ernest drew himself up haughtily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My lord baron," he said, "henceforth I renounce all allegiance to you,
+      and I will lay the case before the emperor, our common master, and will
+      cry before him at the outrage which has thus been passed upon a noble
+      gentleman. He has thrown down the glove, and challenged any of your
+      knights, and I myself am equally ready to do battle in his cause."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron grew red with passion, and he would have ordered the instant
+      arrest of the young man, but as Sir Ernest was connected by blood with
+      many present, and was indeed one of the most popular among the nobles of
+      the province, the baron simply waved him aside, and ordered Cuthbert to be
+      led to the block. The young Englishman was by the executioner divested of
+      his armor and helmet, and stood in the simple attire worn by men of rank
+      at that time. He looked around, and holding up his hand, conveying alike a
+      farewell and a command to his followers to remain in concealment, he gazed
+      round the crowd, thinking that he might see among them in some disguise or
+      other the features of Cnut, whose tall figure would have rendered him
+      conspicuous in a crowd. He failed, however, to see any signs of him, and
+      turning to the executioner, signified by a gesture that he was ready.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At this instant an arrow from the wall above pierced the brain of the man,
+      and he fell dead in his tracks. A roar of astonishment burst from the
+      crowd. Upon the city wall at this point was a small turret, and on this
+      were five figures. The wall around was deserted, and for the moment these
+      men were masters of the position.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Seize those insolent varlets!" the baron shouted, shaking his sword with
+      a gesture of fury at them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His words, however, were arrested, for at the moment another arrow struck
+      him in the throat, and he fell back into the arms of those around him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Quickly now the arrows of the English archers flew into the courtyard. The
+      confusion which reigned there was indescribable. The citizens with shouts
+      of alarm took to their heels. The men-at-arms were powerless against this
+      rain of missiles, and the knights, hastily closing their visors, shouted
+      contradictory orders, which no one obeyed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the confusion no one noticed the prisoner. Seizing a moment when the
+      attention of all was fixed upon the wall, he leaped from the platform, and
+      making his way unnoticed through the excited crowd of men-at-arms, darted
+      down a narrow lane that divided the castle from the wall. He ran along
+      until, one hundred yards further, he came to a staircase by which access
+      to the battlements was obtained. Running lightly up this, he kept along
+      the wall until he reached the turret.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, my noble Cnut!" he exclaimed, "and you, my brave fellows. But I
+      fear you have forfeited your lives. There is no escape. In a minute the
+      whole force of the place will recover from their confusion, and be down
+      upon us from both sides."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We have prepared for that," Cnut said. "Here is a rope hanging down into
+      the moat."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Glancing over, Cuthbert saw that the moat was dry; and after a final
+      discharge of arrows into the crowd, the six men slid one after another
+      down the rope and made their way at full speed across the country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0019" id="link2HCH0019"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XIX. &mdash; DRESDEN.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was some ten minutes before the men-at-arms rallied sufficiently from
+      their surprise to obey orders. Two bodies were then drawn up, and
+      proceeded at a rapid pace toward the staircases leading to the wall, one
+      on each side of the turret in which they believed that the little body of
+      audacious assailants were still lying. Having reached the wall, the
+      soldiers advanced, covering themselves with their shields, for they had
+      learned the force with which an English clothyard shaft drawn by a strong
+      hand flies. Many had been killed by these missiles passing through and
+      through the cuirass and backpiece. No reply being obtained to the summons
+      to surrender, they proceeded to break in with their battle-axes the door
+      of the little turret. Rushing in with ax and pike, they were astonished to
+      find the place empty. A glance over the wall showed the rope still
+      hanging, and the manner of the escape became manifest. The fugitives were
+      already out of sight, and the knights, furious at the escape of the men
+      who had bearded them in the heart of the city with such audacity, and had
+      slain the lord baron and several of his knights, gave orders that an
+      instant pursuit should be organized. It was, however, a full half hour
+      before the city gates were thrown open, and a strong troop of knights and
+      mounted men issued out.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had been certain that an instant pursuit would be set on foot,
+      and the moment that he was out of sight of the battlements he changed the
+      direction in which he had started, and turning at right angles, swept
+      round the city, still keeping at a distance, until he reached the side
+      next the mountains, and then plunged into the woods on the lower slopes of
+      the hills.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They will," he said, as they halted breathless from their run, "follow
+      the road toward the south, and scour the country for awhile before it
+      occurs to their thick German skulls that we have doubled back on our
+      tracks. Why, what is it, Cnut?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This exclamation was provoked by the forester throwing himself on his
+      knees before Sir Cuthbert, and imploring his pardon for the dire strait
+      into which his imprudence had drawn him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It was a dire strait, certainly, Cnut. But if you got me into it, at
+      least you have extricated me; and never say more about it, for I myself
+      was near committing the imprudence to which you gave way, and I can well
+      understand that your English blood boiled at the sight of the outrage to
+      the flag of England. Now, let us waste no time in talk, but, keeping to
+      the foot of this mountain, make along as far as we can to the west. We
+      must cling to the hills for many days' march before we venture again to
+      try to cross the plains. If possible, we will keep on this way until we
+      reach the confines of the country of the Swiss, who will assuredly give us
+      hospitality, and who will care little for any threats of these German
+      barons, should they hear that we have reached their asylum."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By nightfall they had already traveled many leagues, and making a fire in
+      the wood, Cuthbert asked Cnut for an account of what had taken place on
+      the previous day.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We ran for life, Sir Cuthbert, and had not noticed that you had been
+      drawn into the fray. Had we done so, we would have remained, and sold our
+      lives with yours; but hoping that you had passed unnoticed in the crowd,
+      and that you would find some means to rejoin us we kept upon our way.
+      After running down three streets we passed a place where a courtyard with
+      stables ranged round it was open. There were none about, and we entered,
+      and taking refuge in a loft hid ourselves beneath some provender. There we
+      remained all night, and then borrowing some apparel which some of the
+      stablemen had hung upon the walls, we issued into the town. As we neared
+      the great square we saw some men employed in erecting a platform in the
+      midst, and a suspicion that all might not be right, and that you might
+      have fallen into the hands of these German dogs, beset our minds. After
+      much consultation we determined to see what the affair meant, and making
+      our way on to the walls which, indeed, were entirely deserted, we took
+      refuge in that turret where you saw us. Seeing the crowd gather, and being
+      still more convinced that some misfortune was about to occur, I again went
+      back to the stables, where I had noticed a long rope used by the carters
+      for fastening their loads to the wagons. With this I returned, for it was
+      clear that if we had to mingle in this business it would be necessary to
+      have a mode of escape. Of the rest you are aware. We saw the knights
+      coming out of the castle, with that portly baron, their lord, at their
+      head. We saw the block and the headsman upon the platform, and were
+      scarcely surprised when you were led out, a prisoner, from the gates. We
+      judged that what did happen would ensue. Seeing that the confusion wrought
+      by a sudden attack from men perched up aloft as we were, commanding the
+      courtyard, and being each of us able to hit a silver mark at the distance
+      of one hundred yards, would be great indeed, we judged that you might be
+      able to slip away unobserved, and were sure that your quick wit would
+      seize any opportunity which might offer. Had you not been able to join us,
+      we should have remained in the turret and sold our lives to the last, as,
+      putting aside the question that we could never return to our homes, having
+      let our dear lord die here, we should not, in our ignorance of the
+      language and customs of the country, have ever been able to make our way
+      across it. We knew, however, that before this turret was carried we could
+      show these Germans how five Englishmen, when brought to bay, can sell
+      their lives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They had not much difficulty in obtaining food in the forest, for game
+      abounded, and they could kill as many deer as seemed fit to them. As Cnut
+      said, it was difficult to believe that they were not back again in the
+      forest near Evesham, so similar was their life to that which they had led
+      three years before. To Cnut and the archers, indeed, it was a pleasanter
+      time than any which they had passed since they had left the shores of
+      England, and they blithely marched along, fearing little any pursuit which
+      might be set on foot, and, indeed, hearing nothing of their enemies. After
+      six days' travel they came upon a rude village, and here Cuthbert learned
+      from the people&mdash;with much difficulty, however, and pantomime, for
+      neither could understand a word spoken by the other&mdash;that they were
+      now in one of the Swiss cantons, and therefore secure from all pursuit by
+      the Germans. Without much difficulty Cuthbert engaged one of the young men
+      of the village to act as their guide to Basle, and here, after four days'
+      traveling, they arrived safely. Asking for the residence of the
+      burgomaster, Cuthbert at once proceeded thither, and stated that he was an
+      English knight on the return from the Crusades; that he had been foully
+      entreated by the Lord of Fussen, who had been killed in a fray by his
+      followers; and that he besought hospitality and refuge from the
+      authorities of Basle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We care little," the burgomaster said, "what quarrel you may have had
+      with your neighbors. All who come hither are free to come and go as they
+      list, and you, as a knight on the return from the Holy Land, have a claim
+      beyond that of an ordinary traveler."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The burgomaster was himself able to speak French, and summoning several of
+      the councilors of the town, he requested Cuthbert to give a narrative of
+      his adventures; which he did. The councilors agreed with the burgomaster
+      that Cuthbert must be received hospitably; but the latter saw that there
+      was among many of them considerable doubt as to the expediency of
+      quarreling with a powerful neighbor. He therefore said to the burgomaster:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have no intention, honorable sir, of taking up any prolonged residence
+      here. I only ask to be furnished with a charger and arms, and in payment
+      of these I will leave this gold chain, the gift of King Richard himself,
+      as a gage, and will on my return to my country forward to you the value of
+      the arms and horse, trusting that you will return the chain to me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The burgomaster, however, said that the city of Basle was not so poor that
+      it need take the gage of an honorable knight, but that the arms and
+      charger he required should be given him in a few hours, and that he might
+      pay the value in London to a Jew merchant there who had relations with one
+      at Basle. Full instructions were given to him, and he resolved to travel
+      down upon the left bank of the Rhine, until he reached Lorraine, and
+      thence to cross into Saxony. The same afternoon the promised horse and
+      arms were provided, and Cuthbert, delighted again to be in harness, and
+      thanking courteously the burgomaster and council for their kindness,
+      started with his followers on his journey north. These latter had been
+      provided with doublets and other garments suitable to the retinue of a
+      knight, and made a better show than they had done since they first left
+      England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaving Basle, they traveled along the left side of the Rhine by easy
+      stages. The country was much disturbed, owing to the return and
+      disbandment of so many of the troops employed in the Crusades. These,
+      their occupation being gone, scattered over the country, and France and
+      Germany alike were harassed by bands of military robbers. The wild country
+      between the borders of Switzerland and Lorraine was specially vexed, as
+      the mountains of the Vosges afforded shelter, into which the freebooters
+      could not be followed by the troops of the duke.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the evening of the third day they reached a small inn standing in a
+      lonely position near the foot of the mountains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I like not the look of this place," Cuthbert said; "but as we hear that
+      there is no other within a distance of another ten miles, we must e'en
+      make the best of it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The host received them with extreme and even fawning civility, which by no
+      means raised him in the estimation of Cuthbert or Cnut. A rough meal was
+      taken, and they then ascended to the rude accommodation which had been
+      provided. It was one large room barely furnished. Upon one side straw was
+      thickly littered down&mdash;for in those days beds among the common people
+      were unknown. In a sort of alcove at the end was a couch with a rough
+      mattress and coverlet. This Cuthbert took possession of, while his
+      followers stretched themselves upon the straw.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cnut said, "that it were well that one should keep watch at
+      the door. I like not the look of our host, and we are near the spot where
+      the bands of the robbers are said to be busy."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Toward morning the archer on guard reported that he could hear the sound
+      of many approaching footsteps. All at once sprang to their feet, and
+      betook themselves to their arms. Looking from the window they saw a large
+      party of rough men, whose appearance at once betokened that they were
+      disbanded soldiers&mdash;a title almost synonymous in those days with that
+      of robber. With the united strength of the party the truckle bed was
+      carried from the alcove and placed against the door. Cuthbert then threw
+      open the window, and asked in French what they wanted. One of the party,
+      who appeared to be the leader, said that the party had better surrender
+      immediately. He promised them good treatment, and said that the knight
+      would be put to ransom, should it be found that the valuables upon his
+      person were not sufficient to pay the worshipful company present for the
+      trouble which they had taken in waiting upon him. This sally was received
+      with shouts of laughter. Cuthbert replied quietly that he had no valuables
+      upon his person; that if they took him there were none would pay as much
+      as a silver mark for the ransom of them all; and that the only things that
+      they had to give were sharp arrows and heavy blows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You talk bravely, young sir," the man said. "But you have to do with men
+      versed in fight, and caring but little either for knocks or for arrows. We
+      have gone through the Crusades, and are therefore held to be absolved from
+      all sin, even that so great as would be incurred in the cutting of your
+      knightly throat."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But we have gone through the Crusades also," Cuthbert said, "and our
+      persons are sacred. The sin of slitting our weazands, which you speak of,
+      would therefore be so great that even the absolution on which you rely
+      would barely extend to it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We know most of those who have served in the Holy Land," the man said
+      more respectfully than he had yet spoken, "and would fain know with whom
+      we speak."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am an Englishman, and a follower of King Richard," Cuthbert said, "and
+      am known as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham. As I was the youngest among the
+      knights who fought for the holy sepulcher, it may be that my appearance is
+      known to you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ah," the other said, "you are he whom they called the Boy Knight, and who
+      was often in the thick of the fray, near to Richard himself. How comes it,
+      Sir Cuthbert, that you are here?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The fleet was scattered on its return," Cuthbert replied, "and I landed
+      with my followers, well-nigh penniless, at Zara, and have since made my
+      way across the Tyrol. I have, then, as you may well suppose, neither
+      silver nor gold about my person; and assuredly neither Philip of France
+      nor John of Austria would give a noble for my ransom; and it would be
+      long, methinks, to wait ere John of England would care to ransom one of
+      King Richard's followers."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The brigands spoke for awhile among themselves, and then the leader said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You speak frankly and fairly, Sir Knight, and as you have proved yourself
+      indeed a doughty giver of hard blows, and as I doubt not that the archers
+      with you can shoot as straight and as fast as the rest of the Saxon breed,
+      we will e'en let you go on your way, for your position is but little
+      better than ours, and dog should not rob dog."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, good fellow," Cuthbert said. "We trust that in any case we might
+      have made a strong defense against you; but it would be hard if those who
+      have fought together in the Holy Land should slay each other in this
+      lonely corner of Lorraine."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Are you seeking adventures or employment, Sir Knight? For if so, myself
+      and comrades here would gladly take service with you; and it may be that
+      with a clump of spears you might obtain engagement, either under the Duke
+      of Lorraine or he of Cleves."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks for your offer," Cuthbert replied; "but at present my face is
+      turned toward England. King Richard needs all his friends; and there is so
+      little chance of sack or spoil, even should we have&mdash;which God
+      forfend&mdash;civil war, that I fear I could ill reward the services which
+      you offer me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The leader and his men shouted an adieu to Cuthbert and departed for the
+      mountains, leaving the latter well pleased with his escape from a fight of
+      which the result was doubtful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Journeying on without further adventure, they came to Nancy, and were
+      there kindly received by the duke, who was not at that time upon good
+      terms with Philip of France, and was therefore well disposed toward the
+      English. Cuthbert inquired from him whether any news had been heard of
+      King Richard? but received as a reply that the duke had heard nothing of
+      him since he sailed from Palestine.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is strange," Cuthbert said, "for I myself have journeyed but slowly,
+      and have met with many delays. King Richard should long ere this have
+      reached Saxony; and I fear much that some foul treatment has befallen him.
+      On our way we found how bitter was the feeling among those related to
+      Conrad of Montferat against him; and the Archduke John is still smarting
+      from the blow which King Richard struck him at Ascalon. But surely they
+      would not be so unknightly as to hinder so great a champion of Christendom
+      as King Richard on his homeward way?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The Archduke John is crafty and treacherous," the duke said; "and the
+      emperor himself would, I think, be not sorry to lay hand upon the King of
+      England, were it only to do pleasure to Philip of France. Assuredly,
+      however the anger and indignation of all Christendom will be aroused
+      should the king's passage be interrupted, for it were indeed a gross
+      breach of hospitality to seize upon a man who has the double claim of
+      being a champion of Christendom and a shipwrecked man. However, it is
+      early yet to be uneasy, and it may be that in a few days we may have news
+      of the arrival of the king in Saxony. He may have encountered difficulties
+      similar to those which you yourself have met with. The country is
+      everywhere disturbed, and it is not only in my forests that bands of
+      outlawed men are to be met with. At present there is peace in Europe. It
+      may last indeed but a short time. But so long as it continues, so long
+      must the mountains and woods be full of desperate men. Were war declared
+      between any two princes these would flock to the banners of him who would
+      pay them highest, and a war which could end in the entire destruction of
+      the armies of both combatants would be a blessing to Europe."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After entertaining Cuthbert courteously for three days, the Duke of
+      Lorraine bade him adieu, and gave him an escort of men-at-arms to the
+      borders of the Rhine, where he would find the way open to the domains of
+      the Duke of Saxony. Without adventure Cuthbert and his followers arrived
+      at Dresden, and he immediately presented himself at the castle of the
+      duke. The instant that he sent in his name as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, a
+      knight of King Richard, he was conducted to the presence of the duke and
+      of his wife, the sister of King Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Are you bearer of news of my brother Richard?" the duke said, advancing a
+      step to meet the young knight as he entered the hall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Alas! my lord duke, I am not," Cuthbert said; "but had hoped to gain
+      tidings from you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From me?" the duke said in surprise. "What should lead you to believe
+      that I have any news of King Richard later than that which others have
+      received? The last I heard of him was upon the day of his departure from
+      the Holy Land, before the storm arose which scattered his fleet, and I am
+      ignorant whether he has foundered at sea, or whether, as some suppose, his
+      vessel may have been taken captive by the Moors."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I bear you later tidings," Cuthbert said, "than those you have received.
+      I was on board the ship with King Richard. We were wrecked upon the Island
+      of Corfu and there hiring a small ship, we proceeded to Zara. King Richard
+      determined to make his way across the Tyrol to this place; but he thought
+      that it would attract attention to him were he accompanied by so large a
+      party. Therefore he, with Sir Baldwin of Béthune, and a few followers,
+      started north, while I with my men kept west through the north of Italy,
+      and then crossed by the pass over Trent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "How long is it since you left my brother?" the duchess asked anxiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is now over a month since I bade him adieu," Cuthbert answered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then he should have been heard of long since," the duchess said. "What
+      fate can have befallen him?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Judging from my own experience," Cuthbert said, "I fear that he may have
+      come to harm at the hands of the friends of Conrad of Montferat, who
+      falsely allege that the death of their kinsman was caused by King Richard.
+      The Archduke John, too, owes him no good-will; and even the emperor is
+      evilly disposed toward him. The king traveled under an assumed name; but
+      it might well be that he would be recognized upon the way. His face was
+      known to all who fought in the East; and his lordly manner and majestic
+      stature could ill be concealed beneath a merchant's garb. Still, lady, as
+      I have been so long in making my way across, it may be that King Richard
+      has been similarly delayed without danger befalling him, and it could
+      hardly be that so important a man as the King of England would be
+      detained, or come to any misfortune, without the news being bruited
+      abroad."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In spite of Cuthbert's reassuring words, the duke and duchess were greatly
+      alarmed at the news of King Richard's disappearance, although indeed
+      consoled to find that their previous fears, that he had been drowned in
+      the storm or captured by the Moorish corsairs, were unfounded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They now requested from Cuthbert the story of what had befallen him since
+      he left the king; and this he related at some length. The duke was greatly
+      interested, and begged Cuthbert at least to remain at his court until some
+      news might arrive of King Richard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a month Cuthbert tarried at the castle of the Duke of Saxony, where he
+      was nobly entertained, and treated as a guest of much honor. Cnut and the
+      archers were delighted at the treatment they received, for never in their
+      lives had they been so royally entertained. Their Saxon tongue was nigh
+      enough akin to the language spoken here to be understood; and their tales
+      of adventure in the Holy Land rendered them as popular among the retainers
+      of the duke as their master became with the duke and duchess.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0020" id="link2HCH0020"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XX. &mdash; UNDER THE GREENWOOD.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      At the end of a month, news came from England that Sir Baldwin of Béthune
+      had returned there, bearing the news that the king had been arrested at
+      Gortz, only two days' journey north of the Adriatic&mdash;that he had been
+      recognized, and at once captured. He had offered no resistance, finding
+      indeed that it would be hopeless so to do. Sir Baldwin had been permitted
+      to depart without molestation. He believed that the folk into whose hands
+      he had fallen were retainers of the Archduke John. This news, although sad
+      in itself, was yet in some degree reassuring to the duke and his wife; for
+      they felt that while the followers of Conrad of Montferat would not
+      hesitate to put King Richard to death should he fall into their hands, the
+      Archduke John would not dare to bring upon himself the indignation of
+      Europe by such treatment of his royal captive. Cuthbert at once determined
+      to return to England to see Sir Baldwin, and to ascertain what steps were
+      being taken for the discovery of the prison in which King Richard was
+      confined, and for his release therefrom; and also to establish himself in
+      his new dignity as Earl of Evesham. Therefore, bidding adieu to the duke
+      and duchess, he started north. The duke furnished him with letters of
+      introduction to the princes through whose countries he would travel; and
+      again crossing the Rhine, he journeyed through the territories of the
+      Dukes of Cleves and Brabant, and reached the mouth of Scheldt without
+      interruption. There taking ship, he sailed for London.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a long and stormy passage between the mouth of the Scheldt and
+      London. The vessel in which Cuthbert had shipped was old and somewhat
+      unseaworthy, and several times in the force of the gale all on board gave
+      up hope for their lives. At last, however, they reached the mouth of the
+      Thames, and dropping up with the tide, reached London eight days after
+      their embarkation. The noble charger which the King of Saxony had
+      presented to Cuthbert had suffered greatly, and he feared at one time that
+      the poor animal would succumb to the effects of the tempest. However,
+      after entering into smooth water it recovered itself, and on landing near
+      the Tower he found that it was able to support his weight. Cnut and the
+      archers were, like Cuthbert, delighted to have their feet again upon
+      English soil; and although London did not now strike them with the same
+      wonder which it would have done had they first visited it before starting
+      on their journey&mdash;for in many respects it was greatly behind some of
+      the continental cities&mdash;yet the feeling of home, and the pleasure of
+      being able to understand the conversation of those around them, made the
+      poor fellows almost beside themselves with joy. Beyond the main political
+      incidents Cuthbert had heard little of what had passed in England since
+      his departure; and putting up at a hostelry, he inquired of the host
+      whether Sir Baldwin of Béthune was in London, or whether he was away on
+      his estates. The landlord did not know. There were, he said, but few
+      nobles at court, and London was never so dull as at present. As Cuthbert
+      did not wish his coming home to be known to John until he had learned
+      something of the position of affairs, he dispatched Cnut to the Tower to
+      inquire privately of some of the officials about the place whether Sir
+      Baldwin was there. Cnut soon returned with the news that he had not been
+      at the court since his return from the Holy Land, and that he was living
+      at his castle down in Dorsetshire. After some hesitation Cuthbert resolved
+      to set out to see his friend, and after six days' travel he arrived at the
+      castle of the knight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Baldwin received him with immense joy. He had not heard of him since
+      they parted at Zara, and he feared that a fate similar to that which had
+      befallen King Richard had overtaken Cuthbert, even if he were still alive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have you seen aught of the king, our master?" the good knight inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Nothing," Cuthbert said. "I know no more than yourself. Indeed, I hoped
+      to have learned something from you as to the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I was separated from him at Gortz, and while he was taken a prisoner to
+      the archduke, I was allowed to pursue my way. I had many difficulties and
+      dangers, and was some weeks in finding my way back. Nothing was known of
+      the king when I returned. Indeed, I was the first bearer of any definite
+      news concerning him since the day when he sailed from Acre. Three weeks
+      ago, as you may have learned, the news came that he is now detained in
+      captivity by the emperor, who demanded his delivery by the Archduke John,
+      into whose hands he first fell. But where he is no one exactly knows. The
+      news has created an immense excitement in the kingdom, and all are
+      resolved to sacrifice any of their treasures which may be demanded in
+      order to satisfy the ransom which the recreant emperor has placed upon the
+      king. Shame is it indeed that a Christian sovereign should hold another in
+      captivity. Still more, when that other was returning through his dominions
+      as a Crusader coming from the Holy Land, when his person should be safe,
+      even to his deadliest enemy. It has long been suspected that he was in the
+      hands either of the emperor or of the archduke, and throughout Europe the
+      feeling of indignation has been strong; and I doubt not, now that the
+      truth is known, this feeling will be stronger than ever."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But now that it is known," Cuthbert said, "I suppose there will be no
+      delay in ransoming the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There will be no delay in raising the ransom," Sir Baldwin said. "But the
+      kingdom is very impoverished by war, by the exactions of Prince John, and
+      by those of Langley, who held it for King Richard. He was a loyal servant
+      of the king, but an exacting and rapacious prelate. However, I doubt not
+      that the rents of the English nobles will soon be charged with sums
+      sufficient for the ransom; and if this avail not, not one of them will
+      grudge their silver flagons and vessels to melt down to make the total
+      required. But we must not flatter ourselves that he will obtain his
+      liberty so soon as the money is raised. Prince John has long been yearning
+      for sovereignty. He has long exercised the real, if not the nominal,
+      power, and he has been intriguing with the pope and Philip of France for
+      their support for his seizing the crown. He will throw every obstacle in
+      the way, as, we may be sure, will Philip of France, Richard's deadly
+      enemy. And now about yourself, Sir Cuthbert; tell me what has befallen you
+      since we last met."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert related the adventures which had befallen him, and heard those of
+      Sir Baldwin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You have not, I suppose," the latter remarked, "as yet seen Prince John?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "No," Cuthbert replied, "I thought it better to come down to ask you to
+      advise me on the position of affairs before I attempted to see him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You did well," Sir Baldwin said. "When I arrived, I found that the proper
+      officials had, according to King Richard's instructions, draw up the
+      patent conferring upon you the lands and title of Earl of Evesham, before
+      leaving Acre, and had received the king's signature to it. This was
+      attested by several of the nobles who were with us and who returned safely
+      to England. Prince John, however, declared that he should not give any
+      heed to the document; that King Richard's power over this realm had ceased
+      before he made it; and that he should bestow the earldom upon whomsoever
+      he chose. As a matter of fact, it has been given to Sir Rudolph Fleming, a
+      Norman knight and a creature of the prince. The king has also, I hear,
+      promised to him the hand of the young Lady Margaret, when she shall become
+      of marriageable age. At present she is placed in a convent in Worcester.
+      The abbess is, I believe, a friend of the late earl, and the girl had been
+      with her for some time previously. Indeed she went there, I think, when
+      her father left England. This lady was ordered to give up her charge to
+      the guardianship of Sir Rudolph; but she refused to do so, saying that it
+      would not be convenable for a young lady to be under the guardianship of a
+      bachelor knight having no lady at the head of his establishment, and that
+      therefore she should retain her, in spite of the orders of the prince.
+      Prince John, I hear, flew into a fury at this; but he did not dare to
+      provoke the anger of the whole of the clergy by ordering the convent to be
+      violated. And indeed, not only would the clergy have been indignant, but
+      many of the great nobles would also have taken their part, for there can
+      be no doubt that the contention of the abbess was reasonable; and there is
+      among all the friends of King Richard a very strong feeling of anger at
+      your having been deprived of the earldom. This, however, has so far not
+      found much vent in words, for as it was uncertain whether you would ever
+      return to claim your rights, it was worth no one's while to embroil
+      himself unnecessarily with the prince on such a subject. God knows that
+      there are subjects enough of dispute between John Lackland and the English
+      barons without any fresh ones arising. The kingdom is in a state of
+      disturbance. There have been several risings against Prince John's
+      authority; but those have been, so far, suppressed. Now that we know where
+      King Richard is, and hope for his return ere very long, it is probable
+      that peace will be maintained; but should treachery prevail, and King
+      Richard's return be prevented, you may be sure that John will not be
+      permitted to mount the throne without the determined resistance of a large
+      number of the nobles."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But," Cuthbert said, "John is not the successor to the throne. Prince
+      Arthur of Brittany was named by King Richard from the first as his
+      successor. He is so by blood and by right, and John can have no pretense
+      to the throne so long as he lives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is so," Sir Baldwin said. "But unhappily in England at present might
+      makes right, and you may be sure that at King Richard's death, be it when
+      it may, Prince John will make a bold throw for the throne, and, aided as
+      he will be by the pope and by Philip of France, methinks that his chances
+      are better than those of the young prince. A man's power, in warlike
+      times, is more than a boy's. He can intrigue and promise and threaten,
+      while a boy must be in the hands of partisans. I fear that Prince Arthur
+      will have troubled times indeed before he mounts the throne of England.
+      Should Richard survive until he becomes of age to take the field himself
+      and head armies, he may succeed, for all speak well of him as a boy of
+      singular sweetness of disposition, while Prince John is detested by all
+      save those who flatter and live by him. But enough for the present of
+      politics, Cuthbert; let us now to table. It is long since we two feasted
+      together; and, indeed, such meals as we took in the Holy Land could
+      scarcely have been called feasts. A boar's head and a good roasted capon
+      are worthy all the strange dishes that we had there. I always misdoubted
+      the meat, which seemed to me to smack in flavor of the Saracens, and I
+      never could bring myself to inquire whence that strange food was obtained.
+      A stoup of English ale, too, is worth all the Cyprus wines, especially
+      when the Cyprus wines are half-full of the sand of the desert. Pah! it
+      makes my throat dry to think of those horrible meals. So you have brought
+      Cnut and your four archers safely back with you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Yes," Cuthbert said, smiling. "But they were, I can assure you, a heavy
+      weight on me, in spite of their faithfulness and fidelity. Their ignorance
+      of the language brought most of my troubles upon me, and Cnut had
+      something of the nature of a bull in him. There are certain things which
+      he cannot stomach, and when he seeth them he rageth like a wild beast,
+      regardless altogether of safety or convenience."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the evening the two knights again talked over the course which Cuthbert
+      should adopt. The elder knight's opinion was that his young friend had
+      best formally claim the title by writing to the king-at-arms, and should
+      also announce his return to Prince John, signing himself "Sir Cuthbert,
+      Earl of Evesham;" but that, in the present state of things, it would be
+      unwise for him to attempt to regain his position, should, as was certain
+      to be the case, Prince John refuse to recognize him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You are very young yet," Sir Baldwin said, "not eighteen, I think, and
+      can afford to wait, at any rate, to see whether King Richard returns.
+      Should he come back, he will see all these wrongs are righted; and one of
+      his first cares would assuredly be to cast this usurper out of his stolen
+      dignities. How old is the Lady Margaret?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "She is fifteen," Cuthbert said. "She was three years younger than I."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I wish she had been younger," Sir Baldwin said. "At fifteen she is not by
+      custom fairly marriageable; but men can strain these points when they
+      choose; and I fear that the news of your coming will hasten both the
+      prince and Sir Rudolph in their determination to strengthen the claim of
+      this usurper by marriage with the heiress of Evesham. The Lady Margaret
+      and her friends can of course claim that she is a royal ward, and that as
+      such the king alone can dispose of her person and estates. But
+      unfortunately force overrides argument."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But surely," Cuthbert said, "they will never venture to take her by force
+      from the convent?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They venture a great many strange things in England now," Sir Baldwin
+      said; "and Worcester is perilously near to Evesham. With a clump of twenty
+      spears, Sir Rudolph might break into the convent and carry off the young
+      lady, and marry her by force; and although the Church might cry out,
+      crying would be of little avail when the deed was done; and a handsome
+      present on the part of Sir Rudolph might go far to shut the mouths of many
+      of the complainants, especially as he will be able to say that he has the
+      king's sanction for what he did."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that if such be the case it would be perilous
+      indeed to wait for King Richard's return. Assuredly Sir Rudolph would not
+      tarry until she attained the age of seventeen, and it may well be that two
+      years may yet pass before King Richard comes back. It seems to me the
+      wiser part will be that I should give Prince John no notice that I am in
+      England. As you say, such notice would be of no avail in recovering my
+      lands and title, but it would put the prince upon his guard; and assuredly
+      he and his minions would press forward their measures to obtain possession
+      of the person of the Lady Margaret; while, on the other hand, no harm can
+      come of my maintaining silence."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think that you are right, Sir Cuthbert. It were indeed best that your
+      enemies should suppose you either dead or in some dungeon in the Tyrol.
+      What would you then do?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would return to my old home," Cuthbert said. "My lady mother is, I
+      trust, still alive. But I will not appear at her house, but will take
+      refuge in the forest there. Cnut, and the archers with him, were all at
+      one time outlaws living there, and I doubt not that there are many good
+      men and true still to be found in the woods. Others will assuredly join
+      when they learn that Cnut is there, and that they are wanted to strike a
+      blow for my rights. I shall then bide my time. I will keep a strict watch
+      over the castle and over the convent. As the abbess is a friend and
+      relative of Lady Margaret's, I may obtain an interview with her, and warn
+      her of the dangers that await her, and ask if she be willing to fulfill
+      the promise of her father and King Richard's will, in accepting me as her
+      husband when due time shall arrive, and whether she will be willing that I
+      should take such steps as I may to deliver her from the persecution of Sir
+      Rudolph. If, as I trust, she assents to this, I will keep a watch over the
+      convent as well as the castle, and can then either attack the latter or
+      carry her off from the former, as the occasion may appear to warrant.
+      There are plenty of snug cottages round the forest, where she can remain
+      in concealment in the care of some good farmer's wife for months, and we
+      shall be close at hand to watch over her. With the aid of the forest men,
+      Sir Walter took the castle of Sir John of Wortham; and although Evesham is
+      a far grander pile than that, yet methinks it could be carried by a sudden
+      assault; and we know more of war now than we did then. Prince John may
+      deny me the right of being the Earl of Evesham; but methinks before many
+      months I can, if I choose, become its master."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Be not too hasty in that matter," Sir Baldwin said. "You might capture
+      the castle with the aid of your outlaws; but you could scarcely hold it.
+      The prince has, ere now, with the aid of those faithful to him and his
+      foreign mercenaries, captured stronger holds than that of Evesham; and if
+      you turn his favorite out, you would have a swarm of hornets around you
+      such as the walls of Evesham could not keep out. It would therefore be
+      worse than useless for you to attempt what would be something like an act
+      of rebellion against Prince John's authority, and would give him what now
+      he has no excuse for, a ground for putting a price upon your head&mdash;and
+      cutting it off if he got the opportunity. You might now present yourself
+      boldly at court, and although he might refuse to recognize your title of
+      earl, yet, as a knight and a Crusader who has distinguished himself
+      greatly in the Holy Land, he dare not interfere with your person, for this
+      would be resented by the whole of the chivalry of England. Still, I agree
+      with you that your best course is to keep your return a secret. You will
+      then be unwatched and unnoticed, and your enemies will take their time in
+      carrying their designs into effect."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days later Cuthbert, attended by his faithful retainers, left Sir
+      Baldwin's castle, and traveled by easy stages through Wiltshire and the
+      confines of Gloucestershire up to Worcester. He had been supplied by Sir
+      Baldwin with suitable attire for himself and his followers, and now rode
+      as a simple knight, without arms or cognizance, journeying from one part
+      to another. All the crosses and other crusading signs were laid aside, and
+      there was nothing to attract any attention to him upon his passage.
+      Cuthbert had at first thought of going direct to the convent of Worcester,
+      and asking for an interview with Lady Margaret; but he reflected that it
+      might be possible that some of the myrmidons of Sir Rudolph might be
+      keeping a watch over that building to see that Lady Margaret was not
+      secretly removed to some other place of refuge, and that the appearance of
+      a knight before its doors would excite comment and suspicion. He therefore
+      avoided the town, and journeyed straight to the forest, where he had so
+      often roamed with Cnut and the outlaws.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here he found that matters had but little changed since he was last there.
+      Many of those who had fought with him in the Holy Land, and who had
+      returned by sea, had again taken to the forest, joined by many new men
+      whom the exactions of Sir Rudolph had already goaded into revolt. Cnut was
+      received with enthusiasm, and when he presented Cuthbert to them as the
+      rightful heir of Evesham and the well-known friend of the foresters, their
+      enthusiasm knew no bounds. They at once accepted him as their lord and
+      master, and promised to obey his orders, and to lay down their lives, if
+      necessary, in his cause, as they knew that it was he who had formerly
+      obtained the pardon of the forest band, and who had fought with them in
+      their attack on Wortham Castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To Cuthbert's great delight he heard that his mother was in good health,
+      although she had for some months been grievously fretting over his
+      disappearance and supposed death. Cuthbert hesitated whether he should
+      proceed at once to see her; but he feared that the shock of his appearance
+      might be too much for her, and that her expressions of joy might make the
+      retainers and others aware of his arrival, and the news might in some way
+      reach the ears of those at the castle. He therefore dispatched Cnut to see
+      her, and break the news to her cautiously, and to request her to arrange
+      for a time when she would either see Cuthbert at some place at a distance
+      from the house, or would so arrange that the domestics should be absent
+      and that he would have an interview with her there unobserved.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut was absent some hours, and on his return told Cuthbert that he had
+      seen Dame Editha, and that her joy on hearing of her son's safe arrival
+      had caused her no harm, but rather the reverse. The news that King Richard
+      had bestowed upon him the title and lands of Evesham was new to her, and
+      she was astonished indeed to hear of his elevation. Having heard much of
+      the character of the pretending earl, she had great fears for the safety
+      of Cuthbert, should his residence in the neighborhood get to his ears; and
+      although sure of the fidelity of all her retainers, she feared that in
+      their joy at their young master's return they might let slip some
+      incautious word which would come to the ears of some of those at the
+      castle. She therefore determined to meet him at a distance. She had
+      arranged that upon the following day she would give out that she intended
+      to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Dunstan, which lay at the edge
+      of the forest, to thank him for her recovery from illness, and to pray for
+      the safety of her son. She would be carried thither in a litter, and her
+      journey would excite no comment whatever. She would take with her four of
+      her most trusted retainers, and would on her arrival at the shrine send
+      them to a distance, in order to pay her devotions undisturbed. Cuthbert
+      was to be near, and the moment he saw them depart, to enter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This arrangement was carried out, and the joy of Dame Editha at again
+      meeting her son was deep indeed. He had left her a lad of fifteen. He now
+      returned a youth of nearly eighteen, stout and strong beyond his age, and
+      looking far older than he was, from the effect of the hot sun of Syria and
+      of the hardships through which he had gone. That he should win his spurs
+      upon the first opportunity the earl had promised her, and she doubted not
+      that he would soon attain the rank which his father had held. But that he
+      should return to her a belted earl was beyond her wildest thoughts. This,
+      however, was but little in her mind then. It was her son, and not the Earl
+      of Evesham, whom she clasped in her arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the interview must necessarily be a short one, Cuthbert gave her but a
+      slight outline of what had happened since they parted, and the
+      conversation then turned upon the present position, and upon the steps
+      which had best be taken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Your peril is, I fear, as great here as when you were fighting the
+      infidels in the Holy Land," she said. "Sir Rudolph has not been here long;
+      but he has proved himself a cruel and ruthless master. He has driven forth
+      many of the old tenants and bestowed their lands upon his own servants and
+      retainers. The forest laws he carries out to the fullest severity, and has
+      hung several men who were caught infringing them. He has laid such heavy
+      burdens on all the tenants that remain that they are fairly ruined, and if
+      he stay here long he will rule over a desert. Did he dream of your
+      presence here, he would carry fire and sword through the forest. It is sad
+      indeed to think that so worthless a knave as this should be a favorite of
+      the ruler of England. But all men say that he is so. Thus were you to
+      attack him, even did you conquer and kill him, you would have the enmity
+      of Prince John to contend with; and he spareth none, man or woman, who
+      stand in his way. It will be a bad day indeed for England should our good
+      King Richard not return. I will, as you wish me, write to my good cousin,
+      the Lady Abbess of St. Anne's, and will ask that you may have an interview
+      with the Lady Margaret, to hear her wishes and opinions concerning the
+      future, and will pray her to do all that she can to aid your suit with the
+      fair young lady, and to keep her at all events safe from the clutches of
+      the tyrant of Evesham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three days later a boy employed as a messenger by Dame Editha brought a
+      note to Cuthbert, saying that she had heard from the Abbess of St. Anne's,
+      who would be glad to receive a visit from Cuthbert. The abbess had asked
+      his mother to accompany him; but this she left for him to decide. Cuthbert
+      sent back a message in reply that he thought it would be dangerous for her
+      to accompany him, as any spy watching would report her appearance, and
+      inquiries were sure to be set on foot as to her companion. He said that he
+      himself would call at the convent on the following evening after
+      nightfall, and begged her to send word to the abbess to that effect, in
+      order that he might, when he presented himself, be admitted at once.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0021" id="link2HCH0021"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXI. &mdash; THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Upon the following evening Cuthbert proceeded to Worcester. He left his
+      horse some little distance outside the town, and entered on foot. Having
+      no apprehension of an attack, he had left all his pieces of armor behind,
+      and was in the quiet garb of a citizen. Cnut attended him&mdash;for that
+      worthy follower considered himself as responsible that no harm of any sort
+      should befall his young master. The consequences of his own imprudence in
+      the Tyrol were ever before his mind, and he determined that from
+      henceforth there should be no want of care on his part. He accompanied
+      Cuthbert to within a short distance of the convent, and took up his
+      position in the shade of a house, whence he could watch should any one
+      appear to be observing Cuthbert's entrance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon ringing the bell Cuthbert told the porteress, as had been arranged,
+      that he had called on a message from Dame Editha, and he was immediately
+      ushered into the parlor of the convent, where, a minute or two later, he
+      was joined by the lady abbess. He had when young been frequently to the
+      convent, and had always been kindly received.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am indeed glad to see you, Sir Cuthbert," she said, "though I certainly
+      should not have recognized the lad who used to come here with my cousin in
+      the stalwart young knight I see before me. You are indeed changed and
+      improved. Who would think that my gossip Editha's son would come to be the
+      Earl of Evesham! The Lady Margaret is eager to see you; but I think that
+      you exaggerate the dangers of her residence here. I cannot think that even
+      a minion of Prince John would dare to violate the sanctity of a convent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I fear, good mother," Cuthbert said, "that when ambition and greed are in
+      one scale, reverence for the holy church will not weigh much in the other.
+      Had King Richard been killed upon his way home, or so long as nothing was
+      heard of him, Sir Rudolph might have been content to allow matters to
+      remain as they were, until at least Lady Margaret attained an age which
+      would justify him in demanding that the espousal should be carried out.
+      But the news which has now positively been ascertained, that the king is
+      in the hands of the emperor, and the knowledge that sooner or later his
+      freedom will be obtained, will hasten the friends of the usurper to make
+      the most of their advantage. He knows that the king would at once upon his
+      return annul the nomination of Sir Rudolph to the earldom which had
+      previously been bestowed upon me. But he may well think that if before
+      that time he can secure in marriage the person of the late earl's
+      daughter, no small share of the domains may be allotted to him as her
+      dowry, even if he be obliged to lay by his borrowed honors. You will,
+      unless I am greatly mistaken, hear from him before long."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The abbess looked grave.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is much in what you say, Sir Cuthbert; and indeed a certain
+      confirmation is given to it by the fact that only yesterday I received a
+      letter from Sir Rudolph, urging that now the Lady Margaret is past the age
+      of fifteen, and may therefore be considered marriageable, the will of the
+      prince should be carried into effect, and that she should for the present
+      be committed to the charge of the Lady Clara Boulger, who is the wife of a
+      friend and associate of Sir Rudolph. He says that he should not wish to
+      press the marriage until she attains the age of sixteen, but that it were
+      well that his future wife should become accustomed to the outside world,
+      so as to take her place as Castellan of Evesham with a dignity befitting
+      the position. I wrote at once to him saying that in another year it would,
+      in my poor judgment, be quite time to think about such worldly matters;
+      that at the present the Lady Margaret was receiving an education suitable
+      to her rank; that she was happy here; and that unless constrained by force&mdash;of
+      which, I said, I could not suppose that any possibility existed&mdash;I
+      should not surrender the Lady Margaret into any hands whatsoever, unless,
+      indeed, I received the commands of her lawful guardian, King Richard."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You said well, holy mother," Sir Cuthbert said. "But you see the hawks
+      scent the danger from afar, and are moving uneasily already. Whether they
+      consider it so pressing that they will dare to profane the convent, I know
+      not. But I am sure that should they do so, they will not hesitate a moment
+      at the thought of the anger of the church. Prince John has already shown
+      that he is ready, if need be, to oppose the authority of the holy father,
+      and he may well, therefore, despise any local wrath that might be excited
+      by an action which he can himself disavow, and for which, even at the
+      worst, he need only inflict some nominal punishment upon his vassal.
+      Bethink thee, lady, whether it would not be safer to send the Lady
+      Margaret to the care of some person, where she may be concealed from the
+      search of Sir Rudolph."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I would gladly do so," the abbess said, "did I know of such a person or
+      such a place. But it is difficult indeed, for a young lady of rank to be
+      concealed from such sharp searchers as Sir Rudolph would be certain to
+      place upon her track. Your proposal that she should take refuge in the
+      house of some small franklin near the forest, I cannot agree to. In the
+      first place, it would demean her to be so placed; and in the second, we
+      could never be sure that the report of her residence there might not reach
+      the ears of Sir Rudolph. As a last resource, of course, such a step would
+      be justifiable, but not until at least overt outrages have been attempted.
+      Now I will call Lady Margaret in."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The young girl entered with an air of frank gladness, but was startled at
+      the alteration which had taken place in her former playfellow, and paused
+      and looked at the abbess, as if inquiring whether this could be really the
+      Cuthbert she had known. Lady Margaret was fifteen in years; but she looked
+      much younger. The quiet seclusion in which she had lived in the convent
+      had kept her from approaching that maturity which as an earl's daughter,
+      brought up in the stir and bustle of a castle, she would doubtless have
+      attained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This is indeed Sir Cuthbert," the abbess said, "your old playfellow, and
+      the husband destined for you by your father and by the will of the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Struck with a new timidity, the girl advanced, and, according to the
+      custom of the times, held up her cheek to be kissed. Cuthbert was almost
+      as timid as herself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I feel, Lady Margaret," he said, "a deep sense of my own unworthiness of
+      the kindness and honor which the dear lord your father bestowed upon me;
+      and were it not that many dangers threaten, and that it were difficult
+      under the circumstances to find one more worthy of you, I would gladly
+      resign you into the hands of such a one were it for your happiness. But
+      believe me that the recollection of your face has animated me in many of
+      the scenes of danger in which I have been placed; and although even in
+      fancy my thoughts scarcely ventured to rise so high, yet I felt as a true
+      knight might feel for the lady of his love."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I always liked you, Sir Cuthbert," the girl said frankly, "better than
+      any one else next to my father, and gladly submit myself to his will. My
+      own inclinations indeed, so far as is maidenly, go with his. These are
+      troubled times," she said anxiously, "and our holy mother tells me that
+      you fear some danger is overhanging me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I trust that the danger may not be imminent," Cuthbert answered. "But
+      knowing the unscrupulous nature of the false Earl of Evesham, I fear that
+      the news that King Richard is found will bestir him to early action. But
+      you can rely, dear lady, on a careful watch being kept over you night and
+      day; and should any attempt be made to carry you away, or to put force
+      upon you, be assured that assistance will be at hand. Even should any
+      attempt succeed, do not lose heart, for rescue will certainly be
+      attempted; and I must be dead, and my faithful followers crushed, before
+      you can become the bride of Sir Rudolph."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then turning to other subjects, he talked to her of the life he had led
+      since he last saw her. He told her of the last moments of her father, and
+      of the gallant deeds he had done in the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After waiting for two hours, the abbess judged that the time for
+      separation had arrived; and Cuthbert, taking a respectful adieu of his
+      young mistress, and receiving the benediction of the abbess, departed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He found Cnut on guard at the point where he had left him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Have you seen aught to give rise to suspicion?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Yes," Cnut said, "the place is undoubtedly watched. Just after you had
+      entered a man came from that house yonder and went up to the gate, as if
+      he would fain learn by staring at its iron adornments the nature of him
+      who had passed in. Then he re-entered his house, and if I mistake not is
+      still on the watch at that casement. If we stand here for a minute or two,
+      perchance he may come out to see what delays you in this dark corner, in
+      which case I may well give him a clout with my ax which will settle his
+      prying."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Better not," Cuthbert said. "We can retire round this corner and so avoid
+      his observation; and were his body found slain here, suspicion would be at
+      once excited in the mind of his employer. At present he can have no ground
+      for any report which may make the knight uneasy, for he can but know that
+      a gentleman has entered, and remained for two hours at the convent, and he
+      will in no way connect my visit with the Lady Margaret."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They had just turned the corner which Cuthbert indicated, when a man came
+      up rapidly behind them and almost brushed them as he passed, half-turning
+      round and trying to gaze into their faces. Cnut at once assumed the aspect
+      of an intoxicated person, and stretching forth his foot, with a dexterous
+      shove pushed the stranger into the gutter. The latter rose with a fierce
+      cry of anger; but Cnut with a blow of his heavy fist again stretched him
+      on the ground, this time to remain quiet until they had walked on and
+      passed out of sight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "A meddling fool," Cnut grumbled. "He will not, methinks, have much to
+      report to Sir Rudolph this time. Had I thought that he had seen your face,
+      I would have cleft his skull with no more hesitation than I send an arrow
+      into the brain of a stag in the forest."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As they journeyed along Cuthbert informed Cnut of what the abbess had told
+      him; and the latter agreed that a watch must be placed on the convent, and
+      that a force must be kept as near as possible at hand so as to defeat any
+      attempt which might be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next day one of the forest men who had been a peaceable citizen, but
+      who had been charged with using false weights and had been condemned to
+      lose his ears, repaired to Worcester. His person was unknown there, as he
+      had before lived at Gloucester. He hired a house in the square in which
+      the convent was situated, giving out that he desired to open a house of
+      business for the sale of silks, and for articles from the Low Countries.
+      As he paid down earnest-money for the rent no suspicion whatever was
+      excited. He at once took up his abode there, having with him two stout
+      serving-men, and a 'prentice boy; and from that time two sets of watchers
+      observed without ceasing what passed at the Convent of St. Anne.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At a distance of half a mile from the road leading between Worcester and
+      Evesham stood a grange, which had for some time been disused, the ground
+      belonging to it having been sequestrated and given to the lord of an
+      adjoining estate, who did not care to have the grange occupied. In this
+      ten men, headed by Cnut, took up their residence, blocking up the window
+      of the hall with hangings, so that the light of the fire kindled within
+      would not be observed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two months passed on without any incident of importance. The feeling
+      between the outlaws in the forest and the retainers of the false Earl of
+      Evesham was becoming much imbittered. Several times the foresters of the
+      latter, attempting pursuit of men charged with breaking the game laws,
+      were roughly handled. These on making their report were sent back again,
+      supported by a force of footmen; but these, too, were driven back, and the
+      authority of Sir Rudolph was openly defied.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Gradually it came to his ears that the outlaws were commanded by a man who
+      had been their leader in times gone by, but who had been pardoned, and
+      had, with a large number of his band, taken service in the army of the
+      Crusaders; also, that there was present a stranger, whose manner and the
+      deference paid to him by Cnut proclaimed him to be of gentle blood. This
+      news awakened grave uneasiness on the part of Sir Rudolph. The knight
+      caused inquiries to be made, and ascertained that Cnut had been especially
+      attached to the young Cuthbert, and that he had fought under the Earl of
+      Evesham's banner. It seemed possible then that with him had returned the
+      claimant for the earldom; and in that case Sir Rudolph felt that danger
+      menaced him, for the bravery of the Earl of Evesham's adopted son had been
+      widely spoken of by those who had returned from the Holy Land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph was a man of forty, tall and dark, with Norman features. He
+      held the Saxons in utter contempt, and treated them as beings solely
+      created to till the land for the benefit of their Norman lords. He was
+      brave and fearless, and altogether free from the superstition of the
+      times. Even the threats of the pope, which although Prince John defied
+      them yet terrified him at heart, were derided by his follower, who feared
+      no one thing in the world, save, perhaps, the return of King Richard from
+      captivity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No sooner had the suspicion that his rival was in the neighborhood
+      possessed him than he determined that one of two things must be carried
+      out: either Sir Cuthbert must be killed, or the Lady Margaret must be
+      carried off and forced to accept him as her husband. First he endeavored
+      to force Sir Cuthbert to declare himself and to trust to his own arm to
+      put an end to his rival. To that end he caused a proclamation to be
+      written, and to be affixed to the door of the village church at the fair
+      of Evesham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut and several of his followers were there, all quietly dressed as
+      yeomen. Seeing a crowd round the door of the church, he pressed forward.
+      Being himself unable to read writing, he asked one of the burgesses what
+      was written upon the paper which caused such excitement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is," the burgess said, "in the nature of a cartel or challenge from
+      our present lord, Sir Rudolph. He says that it having come to his ears
+      that a Saxon serf, calling himself Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, is
+      lurking in the woods and consorting with outlaws and robbers, he
+      challenges him to appear, saying that he will himself, grievously although
+      he would demean himself by so doing, yet condescend to meet him in the
+      lists with sword and battle-ax, and to prove upon his body the falseness
+      of his averments. Men marvel much," the burgess continued, "at this
+      condescension on the earl's part. We have heard indeed that King Richard,
+      before he sailed for England, did, at the death of the late good earl,
+      bestow his rank and the domains of Evesham upon Sir Cuthbert, the son of
+      the Dame Editha. Whether it be true or not, we cannot say; but it seems
+      strange that such honor should have been bestowed upon one so young. In
+      birth indeed he might aspire to the rank, since his father, Sir Walter,
+      was a brave knight, and the mother, Dame Editha, was of good Saxon blood,
+      and descended from those who held Evesham before the arrival of the
+      Normans."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut's first impulse was to stride forward and to tear down the
+      proclamation. But the remembrance of his solemn determination not in
+      future to act rashly came across him, and he decided to take no steps
+      until he had reported the facts to his master, and taken his counsel
+      thereon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert received the news with much indignation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is naught that I should like better," he said, "than to try my
+      strength against that of this false traitor. But although I have proved my
+      arm against the Saracens, I think not that it is yet strong enough to cope
+      against a man who, whatsoever be his faults, is said to be a valiant
+      knight. But that would not deter me from attempting the task. It is
+      craftily done on the part of Sir Rudolph. He reckons that if I appear he
+      will kill me; that if I do not appear, I shall be branded as a coward, and
+      my claims brought into disrepute. It may be, too, that it is a mere ruse
+      to discover if I be in the neighborhood. Some rumors thereof may have
+      reached him, and he has taken this course to determine upon their truth.
+      He has gone too far, and honest men will see in the cartel itself a sign
+      that he misdoubts him that my claims are just; for were I, as he says, a
+      Saxon serf, be sure that he would not condescend to meet me in the lists
+      as he proposes. I trust that the time will come when I may do so. But at
+      present I will submit to his insult rather than imperil the success of our
+      plans, and, what is of far greater importance, the safety and happiness of
+      the Lady Margaret, who, did aught befall me, would assuredly fall into his
+      hands."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After some thought, however, Cuthbert drew up an answer to the knight's
+      proclamation. He did not in this speak in his own name, but wrote as if
+      the document were the work of Cnut. It was worded as follows: "I, Cnut, a
+      free Saxon and a leader of bowmen under King Richard in the Holy Land, do
+      hereby pronounce and declare the statements of Sir Rudolph, miscalled the
+      Earl of Evesham, to be false and calumnious. The earldom was, as Rudolph
+      well knows, and as can be proved by many nobles and gentlemen of repute
+      who were present with King Richard, granted to Sir Cuthbert, King
+      Richard's true and faithful follower. When the time shall come Sir
+      Cuthbert will doubtless be ready to prove his rights. But at present right
+      has no force in England, and until the coming of our good King Richard
+      must remain in abeyance. Until then, I support the title of Sir Cuthbert,
+      and do hereby declare Sir Rudolph a false and perjured knight; and warn
+      him that if he falls into my hands it will fare but badly with him, as I
+      know it will fare but badly with me should I come into his."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At nightfall the cartel of Sir Rudolph was torn down from the church and
+      that of Cnut affixed in its place. The reading thereof caused great
+      astonishment in Evesham, and the rage of Sir Rudolph, when the news came
+      to his ears, was very great. Cuthbert was sure that this affair would
+      quicken the intentions of Sir Rudolph with regard to the Lady Margaret,
+      and he received confirmation of this in a letter which the abbess sent
+      him, saying that she had received another missive from Sir Rudolph,
+      authoritatively demanding in the king's name the instant surrender of Lady
+      Margaret to him. That night forty archers stole, one by one, quietly into
+      Worcester, entering the town before the gates were shut, and so mingling
+      with the citizens that they were unobserved. When it was quite dark they
+      quietly took their way, one by one, to the square in which stood the
+      convent, and were admitted into the shop of Master Nicholas, the silk
+      mercer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The house was a large one, with its floors overhanging each the one
+      beneath it, as was the custom of the time, and with large casements
+      running the whole width of the house.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mercer had laid by a goodly store of provisions, and for three days
+      the troop, large as it was, was accommodated there. Cuthbert himself was
+      with them, Cnut remaining at the grange with the ten men originally sent
+      there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the third day Sir Rudolph, with a number of knights and men-at-arms,
+      arrived in the town, giving out that he was passing northward, but he
+      would abide that night at the hostelry. A great many of his men-at-arms
+      did, as those on the watch observed, enter one by one into the town. The
+      people of Worcester were somewhat surprised at this large accompaniment of
+      the earl, but thought no harm. The Abbess of St. Anne's, however, was
+      greatly terrified, as she feared that some evil design might be intended
+      against her. She was, however, reassured in the evening by a message
+      brought by a boy, to the effect that succor would be near, whatsoever
+      happened.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At midnight a sudden uproar was heard in the streets of Worcester.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A party of men fell upon the burgesses guarding the gate of the town,
+      disarmed them, and took possession of it. At the same time those who had
+      put up at the hostelry with Sir Rudolph suddenly mounted their horses, and
+      with a great clatter rode down the streets to the convent of St. Anne.
+      Numbers of men on foot also joined, and some sixty in all suddenly
+      appeared before the great gate of the convent. With a thundering noise
+      they knocked at the door, and upon the grating being opened Sir Rudolph
+      himself told the porteress who looked through it that she was to go at
+      once to the abbess and order her to surrender the body of the Lady
+      Margaret to him, in accordance with the order of Prince John; adding, that
+      if within the space of five minutes the order was not complied with, he
+      would burst in the gates of the convent and take her for himself. In
+      another minute a casement opened above, and the abbess herself appeared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Rash man," she said to Sir Rudolph, "I warn you against committing the
+      sin of sacrilege. Neither the orders of Prince John nor of any other
+      potentate can override the rights of the holy church; and should you
+      venture to lay the hand of force upon this convent you will be placed
+      under the anathema of the church, and its spiritual terrors will be
+      directed against you."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am prepared to risk that, holy mother," Sir Rudolph said, with a laugh.
+      "So long as I am obeying the orders of my prince, I care naught for those
+      of any foreign potentate, be he pope or be he emperor. Three minutes of
+      the time I gave you have elapsed, and unless within two more the Lady
+      Margaret appears at the gate I will batter it down; and you may think
+      yourself lucky if I do not order my men to set light to it and to smoke
+      you out of your hole."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The abbess closed the window, and as she did so the long row of casements
+      in the house of Master Nicholas were opened from top to bottom, and a
+      volley of sixty clothyard arrows was poured into the group closely
+      standing round the gate. Many fell, killed outright, and shouts of rage
+      and pain were heard arising.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Furious at this unexpected attack, Sir Rudolph turned and commanded those
+      with him to attack the house whence this volley of missiles had come. But
+      even while he spoke another flight of arrows, even more deadly than the
+      last, was poured forth. One of the knights standing by the side of Sir
+      Rudolph fell, shot through the brain. Very many of the common men,
+      undefended by harness, fell shot through and through; and an arrow
+      piercing the joint of the armor of Sir Rudolph wounded him in the
+      shoulder. In vain the knight stormed and raged and ordered his men to
+      advance. The suddenness of the attack seemed to his superstitious
+      followers a direct answer from heaven to the words of the abbess. Their
+      number was already seriously lessened, and those who were in case to do so
+      at once took flight and scattered through the city, making for the gate,
+      which had already been seized by Sir Rudolph's men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding himself alone with only a few of his knights and principal
+      men-at-arms remaining, while the storm of arrows continued unabated, Sir
+      Rudolph was forced to order his men to retreat with many fierce threats of
+      the vengeance which he would hereafter take.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0022" id="link2HCH0022"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXII. &mdash; A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The return of Sir Rudolph's party to Evesham was not unmarked by incident,
+      for as they passed along the road, from an ambush in a wood other archers,
+      whose numbers they could not discover, shot hard upon them, and many fell
+      there who had escaped from the square at Worcester. When the list was
+      called upon the arrival at the castle, it was found that no less than
+      thirty of those who had set out were missing, while many others were
+      grievously wounded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The noise of the tumult in the square of the convent aroused the whole
+      town of Worcester. Alarm bells were rung; and the burgesses, hastily
+      arming themselves, poured into the streets. Directed by the sound, they
+      made their way to the square, and were astonished at finding it entirely
+      deserted, save for some twenty men, lying dead or dying in front of the
+      gate of the convent, pierced with long arrows. They speedily found that
+      Sir Rudolph and his troop had departed; and further inquiry revealed the
+      fact that the burgher guard at one of the gates had been overpowered and
+      were prisoners in the watchroom. These could only say that they were
+      suddenly seized, all being asleep save the one absolutely on guard. They
+      knew nothing more than that a few minutes later there was a great clatter
+      of horsemen and men on foot leaving the city. Unable to find any solution
+      to this singular circumstance, but satisfied that Sir Rudolph had
+      departed, and that no more disturbance was likely to arise that night, the
+      burgesses again betook themselves to their beds, having closed the gates
+      and placed a strong guard over them, determining next morning to sift the
+      affair to the bottom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the morning the leading burgesses met in council, and finding none who
+      could give them any information, the mayor and two of the councilors
+      repaired to the convent, where they asked for an interview with the lady
+      abbess. Mightily indignant were they at hearing that Sir Rudolph had
+      attempted to break into the convent, and to carry off a boarder residing
+      there. But the abbess herself could give them no further news. She said
+      that after she retired from the window she heard great shouts and cries,
+      and that almost immediately afterward the whole of the party in front
+      hastily retired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That Sir Rudolph had been attacked by a party of archers was evident; but
+      whence they had shot, or how they had come upon the spot at the time, or
+      whither they had gone, were mysteries that could not be solved. In the
+      search which the authorities made, however, it was discovered that the
+      house of the draper, Master Nicholas, was closed. Finding that summonses
+      to open were unanswered, the door was broken in, and the premises were
+      found in confusion. No goods of any kind were discovered there, but many
+      bales filled with dried leaves, bark of trees, and other worthless
+      matters. Such goods as had been displayed in the window had clearly been
+      carried away. Searching the house, they found signs that a considerable
+      number of men had been concealed there, and although not knowing whence
+      the body of archers could have come, they concluded that those who
+      defeated the attempt of Sir Rudolph must have been hidden in the draper's
+      house. The singularity of this incident gave rise to great excitement; but
+      the indignation against Sir Rudolph was in no way lessened by the fact
+      that his attempt had been defeated, not by the townsmen themselves, but by
+      some unknown force.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After much consultation on the part of the council, it was resolved that a
+      deputation, consisting of the mayor and the five senior councilors, should
+      resort to London, and there demand from the prince redress for the injury
+      put upon their town by Sir Rudolph. These worthy merchants betook
+      themselves to London by easy stages, and upon their arrival there were
+      kept for some days before they could obtain an interview with King John.
+      When they appeared before him and commenced telling their story the prince
+      fell into sudden rage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I have heard of this matter before," he said, "and am mightily angry with
+      the people of Worcester, inasmuch as they have dared to interfere to
+      prevent the carrying out of my commands. The Earl of Evesham has written
+      to me, that thinking to scare the abbess of St. Anne's into a compliance
+      with the commands which I had laid upon her, and to secure the delivery of
+      a contumacious ward of the crown, he had pretended to use force, having,
+      however, no idea of carrying his threats into effect. When, as he doubted
+      not, the abbess was on the point of yielding up the ward, the good knight
+      was suddenly set upon by the rascals of the town, who slew some of his
+      companions and followers, and did grievously ill-treat the remainder.
+      This," said the prince, "you now pretend was done by a party of men of
+      whose presence in the town you had no cognizance. Your good sense must be
+      small, if you think that I should believe such a tale as this. It is your
+      rascaldom at Worcester which interfered to prevent my will being carried
+      out, and I have a goodly mind to order the troop of Sir Charles Everest,
+      which is now marching toward Evesham, to sack the town, as a punishment
+      for its rebellion. As, however, I am willing to believe that you and the
+      better class of burgesses were in ignorance of the doings of the rougher
+      kind, I will extend mercy toward the city, and will merely inflict a fine
+      of three thousand golden marks upon it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The mayor attempted humbly to explain and to entreat; but the prince was
+      seized with a sudden passion, and threatened if he said more he would at
+      once cast him and his fellows into durance. Therefore, sadly crestfallen
+      at the result of their mission, the mayor and councilors returned to
+      Worcester, where their report caused great consternation. This was
+      heightened by the fact that upon the following day Sir Charles Everest,
+      with five hundred mercenaries of the prince, together with Sir Rudolph and
+      his following, and several other barons favorable to the cause of the
+      prince, were heard to be approaching the town.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Worcester was capable of making a stout defense, but seeing that no help
+      was likely to be forthcoming, and fearing the utter ruin of the town
+      should it be taken by storm, the council, after sitting many hours in
+      deliberation, determined to raise the money required to pay the fine
+      inflicted by the prince. The bolder sort were greatly averse to this
+      decision, especially as a letter had been received, signed "Cuthbert, Earl
+      of Evesham," offering, should the townspeople decide to resist the unjust
+      demands of Prince John, to enter the town with one hundred and fifty
+      archers to take part in its defense. With this force, as the more ardent
+      spirits urged, the defeat of any attempt to carry it by storm would be
+      assured. But the graver men argued that even if defeated for the first
+      time further attempts would be made, and as it was likely that King
+      Richard would not return for a long time, and that Prince John might
+      become sovereign of England, sooner or later the town must be taken, and,
+      in any case, its trade would for a long time be destroyed, and great
+      suffering inflicted upon all; therefore, that it was better to pay the
+      fine now than to risk all these evils, and perhaps the infliction of a
+      heavier impost upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The abbess was kept informed by friends in the council of the course of
+      the proceedings. She had in the meantime had another interview with Sir
+      Cuthbert and had determined, seeing that Prince John openly supported the
+      doings of his minion, it would be better to remove the Lady Margaret to
+      some other place, as no one could say how the affair might terminate; and
+      with five hundred mercenaries at his back, Sir Rudolph would be so
+      completely master of the city that he would be able in broad daylight, did
+      he choose, to force the gates of the convent and carry off the king's
+      ward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, two days before the arrival of the force before the walls of
+      Worcester, Lady Margaret left the convent by a postern gate in the rear,
+      late in the evening. She was attended by two of the sisters, both of whom,
+      as well as herself, were dressed as country women. Mules were in readiness
+      outside the city gates, and here Sir Cuthbert, with an escort of archers,
+      was ready to attend them. They traveled all night, and arrived in the
+      morning at a small convent situated five miles from the city of Hereford.
+      The abbess here was a cousin of the Superior of St. Anne's, and had
+      already consented to receive Lady Margaret. Leaving her at the door, and
+      promising that, as far as possible, he would keep watch over her, and that
+      even in the worst she need never despair, Sir Cuthbert left her and
+      returned to the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The band there assembled varied considerably in numbers, for provisions
+      could not be found continually for a large body of men. The forest was
+      indeed very extensive, and the number of deer therein large. Still, for
+      the feeding of one hundred and fifty men many animals are required, and
+      other food. The franklins in the neighborhood were all hostile to Sir
+      Rudolph, whom they regarded as a cruel tyrant, and did their utmost in the
+      way of supplies for those in the forest. Their resources, however, were
+      limited, and it was found necessary to scatter the force, and for a number
+      of them to take up their residence in places a short distance away, forty
+      only remaining permanently on guard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph and his friends entered Worcester, and there received with
+      great hauteur the apologies of the mayor and council, and the assurance
+      that the townspeople were in nowise concerned in the attack made upon him.
+      To this he pretended disbelief. The fine demanded was paid, the principal
+      portion in gold, the rest in bills signed by the leading merchants of the
+      place; for after every effort it had been found impossible to collect such
+      a sum within the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The day after he arrived he again renewed his demand to the abbess for the
+      surrender of the Lady Margaret; this time, however, coming to her attended
+      only by two squires, and by a pursuivant bearing the king's order for the
+      delivery of the damsel. The abbess met him at the gate, and informed him
+      that the Lady Margaret was no longer in her charge.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Finding," she said in a fearless tone, "that the holy walls of this
+      convent were insufficient to restrain lawless men, and fearing that these
+      might be tempted to acts of sacrilege, which might bring down upon them
+      the wrath of the church and the destruction of their souls, I have sent
+      her away."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whither has she gone?" Sir Rudolph demanded, half-mad with passion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That I decline to say," the lady abbess replied. "She is in good hands;
+      and when King Richard returns his ward shall be delivered to him at once."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Will you take oath upon the Bible that she is not within these walls?"
+      Sir Rudolph exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "My word is sufficient," the lady abbess replied calmly. "But should it be
+      necessary, I should be ready to swear upon the relics that she is not
+      here."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A few hours later Sir Rudolph, attended by his own party and by one
+      hundred of Sir Charles Everest's mercenaries, returned to his castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Three days afterward, as Cuthbert was sitting at a rude but hearty meal in
+      the forest, surrounded by Cnut and his followers, a hind entered
+      breathless. Cuthbert at once recognized him as one of the servitors of his
+      mother.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is it?" he exclaimed, leaping to his feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Terrible news, Master Cuthbert, terrible news!" exclaimed the man. "The
+      wicked earl came down this morning, with fifty of his men, set fire to the
+      house, and all its buildings and stacks, and has carried off the lady,
+      your mother, a prisoner to the castle, on a charge, as he said, of
+      harboring traitors."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A cry of fury broke from Cnut and his men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The false traitor shall bitterly regret this outrage," Cuthbert
+      exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had in the first excitement seized his arms, and his followers snatched
+      up their bows, as if for instant warfare. A few moments' reflection,
+      however, showed to Cuthbert the impossibility of his attacking a fortress
+      like Evesham, garrisoned by a strong body of well-armed men, with only the
+      archers of the forest, without implements necessary for such an assault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Send at once, Cnut," he said, "and call in all the band. We cannot take
+      the castle; but we will carry fire and sword round its walls. We will cut
+      off all communication from within or from without. If attacked by large
+      forces, we will retire upon the wood, returning to our posts without the
+      walls as soon as the force is withdrawn. These heavily armed men can move
+      but slowly, while we can run at full speed. There cannot be more than some
+      twenty horsemen in the castle; and methinks with our arrows and pikes we
+      can drive these back if they attempt to fall upon us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut at once sent off swift-footed messengers to carry out Cuthbert's
+      orders, and on the following day the whole of the band were again
+      assembled in the woods. Just as Cuthbert was setting them in motion a
+      distant blast of a horn was heard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is," Cuthbert exclaimed, "the note calling for a parley. Do you, Cnut,
+      go forward, and see what is demanded. It is probably a messenger from Sir
+      Rudolph."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After half an hour's absence Cnut returned, bringing with him a pursuivant
+      or herald. The latter advanced at once toward Cuthbert, who, now in his
+      full knightly armor, was evidently the leader of the party.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I bear to you, Sir Cuthbert, falsely calling yourself Earl of Evesham, a
+      message from Sir Rudolph. He bids me tell you that the traitress, Dame
+      Editha, your mother, is in his hands, and that she has been found guilty
+      of aiding and abetting you in your war against Prince John, the regent of
+      this kingdom. For that offense she has been condemned to die."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here he was interrupted by a cry of rage which broke from the assembled
+      foresters. Continuing unmoved, he said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Rudolph, being unwilling to take the life of a woman, however justly
+      forfeited by the law, commands me to say that if you will deliver yourself
+      up to him by to-morrow at twelve the Dame Editha shall be allowed to go
+      free. But that if by the time the dial points to noon you have not
+      delivered yourself up, he will hang her over the battlements of the
+      castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert was very pale, and he waved his hand to restrain the fury which
+      animated the outlaws.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "This man," he said to them, "is a herald, and, as such, is protected by
+      all the laws of chivalry. Whatsoever his message, it is none of his. He is
+      merely the mouthpiece of him who sent him." Then, turning to the herald,
+      he said, "Tell the false knight, your master, on my part, that he is a
+      foul ruffian, perjured to all the vows of knighthood; that this act of
+      visiting upon a woman the enmity he bears her son will bring upon him the
+      execration of all men; and that the offer which he makes me is as foul and
+      villainous as himself. Nevertheless, knowing his character, and believing
+      that he is capable of keeping his word, tell him that by to-morrow at noon
+      I will be there; that the lady, my mother, is to leave the castle gates as
+      I enter them; and that though by his foul device he may encompass my
+      death, yet that the curse of every good man will light upon him, that he
+      will be shunned as the dog he is, and that assuredly Heaven will not
+      suffer that deeds so foul should bring with them the prize he seeks to
+      gain."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The herald bowed, and, escorted by two archers to the edge of the forest,
+      returned to Evesham Castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After his departure an animated council took place. Cnut and the outlaws,
+      burning with indignation, were ready to attempt anything. They would, had
+      Cuthbert given the word, have attacked the castle that very night. But
+      Cuthbert pointed out the absolute impossibility of their carrying so
+      strong a place by such an assault, unprovided with engines for battering
+      down the gates. He said that surprise would be impossible, as the knight
+      would be sure to take every precaution against it; and that in the event
+      of such an attack being attempted, he would possibly carry his threat into
+      execution, and murder Dame Editha before their eyes. Cnut was like a
+      madman, so transported with fury was he; and the archers were also beside
+      themselves. Cuthbert alone retained his calmness. Retiring apart from the
+      others, he paced slowly backward and forward among the trees, deliberating
+      upon the best course to be pursued. The archers gathered round the fire
+      and passed the night in long and angry talk, each man agreeing that in the
+      event of their beloved leader being sacrificed by Sir Rudolph, they would
+      one and all give their lives to avenge him by slaying the oppressor
+      whensoever he ventured beyond the castle gates.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a time, Cuthbert called Cnut to him, and the two talked long and
+      earnestly. Cnut returned to his comrades with a face less despairing than
+      that he had before worn, and sent off at once a messenger with all speed
+      to a franklin near the forest to borrow a stout rope some fifty feet in
+      length, and without telling his comrades what the plans of Sir Cuthbert
+      were, bade them cheer up, for that desperate as the position was, all hope
+      was not yet lost.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Cuthbert," he said, "has been in grievous straits before now, and has
+      gone through them. Sir Rudolph does not know the nature of the man with
+      whom he has to deal, and we may trick him yet."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At eleven o'clock the next day from the walls of Evesham Castle a body of
+      archers one hundred and fifty strong were seen advancing in solid array.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Think you, Sir Rudolph," one of his friends, Sir Hubert of Gloucester,
+      said to him, "that these varlets think of attacking the castle?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "They might as well think of scaling heaven," Sir Rudolph said. "Evesham
+      could resist a month's siege by a force well equipped for the purpose; and
+      were it not that good men are wanted for the king's service, and that
+      these villains shoot straight and hard, I would open the gates of the
+      castle and launch our force against them. We are two to one as strong as
+      they, and our knights and mounted men-at-arms could alone scatter that
+      rabble."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Conspicuous upon the battlements a gallows had been erected.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The archers stopped at a distance of a few hundred yards from the castle,
+      and Sir Cuthbert advanced alone to the edge of the moat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Rudolph of Eresby, false knight and perjured gentleman," he shouted
+      in a loud voice, "I, Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, do denounce you as foresworn
+      and dishonored, and do challenge you to meet me here before the castle in
+      sight of your men and mine, and decide our quarrel as Heaven may judge
+      with sword and battle-ax."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph leaned over the battlements, and said: "It is too late,
+      varlet. I condescended to challenge you before, and you refused. You
+      cannot now claim what you then feared to accept. The sun on the dial
+      approaches noon, and unless you surrender yourself before it reaches the
+      mark, I will keep my word, and the traitress, your mother, shall swing
+      from that beam."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Making a sign to two men-at-arms, these brought forward Dame Editha and so
+      placed her on the battlements that she could be seen from below. Dame
+      Editha was still a very fair woman, although nigh forty years had rolled
+      over her head. No sign of fear appeared upon her face, and in a firm voice
+      she cried to her son:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Cuthbert, I beg&mdash;nay, I order you to retire. If this unknightly lord
+      venture to carry out his foul threats against me, let him do so. England
+      will ring with the dastardly deed, and he will never dare show his face
+      again where Englishmen congregate. Let him do his worst. I am prepared to
+      die."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A murmur rose from the knights and men-at-arms standing round Sir Rudolph.
+      Several of his companions had from the first, wild and reckless as they
+      were, protested against Sir Rudolph's course, and it was only upon his
+      solemn assurance that he intended but to frighten Sir Cuthbert into
+      surrender, and had no intention of carrying his threats against the lady
+      into effect, that they had consented to take part in the transaction. Even
+      now, at the fearless words of the Saxon lady several of them hesitated,
+      and Sir Hubert of Gloucester stepped forward to Sir Rudolph.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir knight," he said, "you know that I am your true comrade and the
+      faithful servant of Prince John. Yet in faith would I not that my name
+      should be mixed up in so foul a deed. I repent me that I have for a moment
+      consented to it. But the shame shall not hang upon the escutcheon of
+      Hubert of Gloucester that he stood still when such foul means were tried.
+      I pray you, by our long friendship, and for the sake of your own honor as
+      a knight, to desist from this endeavor. If this lady be guilty, as she
+      well may be of aiding her son in his assaults upon the soldiers of Prince
+      John, then let her be tried, and doubtless the court will confiscate her
+      estates. But let her son be told that her life is in no danger, and that
+      he is free to go, being assured that harm will not come to her."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "And if I refuse to consent to allow my enemy, who is now almost within my
+      hand, to escape," Sir Rudolph said, "what then?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then," said the knight, "I and my following will at once leave your
+      walls, and will clear ourselves to the brave young knight yonder of all
+      hand in this foul business."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A murmur of agreement from several of those standing round showed that
+      their sentiments were in accordance with those of Sir Hubert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I refuse," said Rudolph passionately. "Go, if you will. I am master of my
+      actions, and of this castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a word, Sir Hubert and two others of the knights present turned,
+      and briefly ordering their men-at-arms to follow them, descended the
+      staircase to the courtyard below. Their horses were brought out, the men
+      fell into rank, and the gates of the castle were thrown open.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Stand to arms!" Sir Cuthbert shouted to the archers. "They are going to
+      attempt a sortie." And hastily he retired to the main body of his men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0023" id="link2HCH0023"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXIII. &mdash; THE FALSE AND PERJURED KNIGHT.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As the band of knights and their retainers issued from the gate a
+      trumpeter blew a parley, and the three knights advanced alone toward the
+      group of archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Cuthbert de Lance," Sir Hubert said, "in the name of myself and my
+      two friends here we ask your pardon for having so far taken part in this
+      foul action. We did so believing only that Sir Rudolph intended the
+      capture of your lady mother as a threat. Now that we see he was in
+      earnest, we wash our hands of the business; and could we in any way atone
+      for our conduct in having joined him, we would gladly do so consistently
+      only with our allegiance to the prince regent."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert bowed courteously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks for your words, Sir Hubert. I had always heard yourself and the
+      knights here spoken of as brave and gallant gentlemen, whose sole fault
+      was that they chose to take part with a rebel prince rather than with the
+      King of England. I rejoice that you have cleared your name of so foul a
+      blot as this would have placed upon it, and I acknowledge that your
+      conduct now is knightly and courteous. But I can no more parley. The sun
+      is within a few minutes of twelve, and I must surrender, to meet such fate
+      as may befall me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying, with a bow he left them, and again advanced to the castle gate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Sir Rudolph," he shouted, "the hour is at hand. I call upon you to
+      deliver, outside the gate, the lady, my mother. Whether she wills it or
+      not, I call upon you to place her beyond the gate, and I give you my
+      knightly word that as she leaves it I enter it."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Dame Editha would then have attempted resistance; but she saw that it
+      would be useless. With a pale face she descended the steps, accompanied by
+      the men-at-arms. She knew that any entreaty to Sir Rudolph would be vain,
+      and with the courage of her race she mentally vowed to devote the rest of
+      her life to vengeance for her son.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the gate opened and she was thrust forth, for a moment she found
+      herself in the arms of her son.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Courage, mother!" he whispered; "all may yet be well."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut was waiting a few paces behind, and offering his hand to Dame Editha,
+      he led her to the group of archers, while Cuthbert, alone, crossed the
+      drawbridge and entered the portal, the heavy portcullis falling after him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cnut, immediately ordering four of his men to escort Dame Editha to the
+      wood with all speed, advanced with his men toward the walls. All had
+      strung their bows and placed their arrows on the ground in front of them
+      in readiness for instant use. Cnut himself, with two others carrying the
+      rope, advanced to the edge of the moat. None observed their doings, for
+      all within the castle were intent upon the proceedings there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the courtyard Sir Rudolph had taken his post, with the captain of the
+      mercenaries beside him, and the men-at-arms drawn up in order. He smiled
+      sardonically as Cuthbert entered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "So, at last," he said, "this farce is drawing to an end. You are in my
+      power, and for the means which I have taken to capture you, I will account
+      to the prince. You are a traitor to him; you have attacked and slaughtered
+      many of my friends; you are an outlaw defying the law; and for each of
+      these offenses your head is forfeited."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I deny," Cuthbert said, standing before him, "your right to be my judge.
+      By my peers only can I be tried. As a knight of England and as rightful
+      lord of this castle, I demand to be brought before a jury of my equals."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I care nothing for rights or for juries," said Sir Rudolph. "I have the
+      royal order for your execution, and that order I shall put into effect,
+      although all the knights and barons in England objected."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert looked round to observe the exact position in which he was
+      standing. He knew, of course, every foot of the castle, and saw that but a
+      short distance behind a single row of armed men was the staircase leading
+      to the battlements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "False and perjured knight," he said, taking a step forward, "I may die;
+      but I would rather a thousand deaths than such a life as yours will be
+      when this deed is known in England. But I am not yet dead. For myself, I
+      could pardon you; but for the outrage to my mother&mdash;" and with a
+      sudden movement he struck Sir Rudolph in the face with all his strength
+      with his mailed hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the blood gushing from his nostrils, the knight fell backward, and
+      Sir Cuthbert, with a bound, before the assembly could recover from their
+      astonishment at the deed, burst through the line of men-at-arms, and
+      sprang up the narrow staircase. A score of men-at-arms started in pursuit;
+      but Sir Cuthbert gained the battlements first, and without a moment's
+      hesitation sprang upon them and plunged forward, falling into the moat
+      fifty feet below. Here he would have perished miserably, for in his heavy
+      armor he was of course unable to swim a stroke, and his weight took him at
+      once into the mud of the moat. At its margin, however, Cnut stood awaiting
+      him, with one end of the rope in his hand. In an instant he plunged in,
+      and diving to the bottom grasped Cuthbert by the body, and twisted the
+      rope round him. The two archers on the bank at once hauled upon it, and in
+      a minute Sir Cuthbert was dragged to the bank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By this time a crowd of men-at-arms appeared upon the battlements. But as
+      they did so the archers opened a storm of arrows upon them, and quickly
+      compelled them to find shelter. Carried by Cnut and the men with him&mdash;for
+      he was insensible&mdash;Sir Cuthbert was quickly conveyed to the center of
+      the outlaws, and these at once in a compact body began their retreat to
+      the wood. Cuthbert quickly recovered consciousness, and was soon able to
+      walk. As he did so the gates of the castle were thrown open, and a crowd
+      of men-at-arms, consisting of the retainers of the castle and the
+      mercenaries of Prince John, sallied forth. So soon as Cuthbert was able to
+      move the archers started at a brisk run, several of them carrying
+      Cuthbert's casque and sword, and others assisting him to hurry along. The
+      rear ranks turned as they ran and discharged flights of arrows at the
+      enemy, who, more heavily armed and weighted, gained but slowly upon them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Had not Sir Rudolph been stunned by the blow dealt him by Cuthbert he
+      would himself have headed the pursuit, and in that case the foresters
+      would have had to fight hard to make their retreat to their fastness. The
+      officer in command of the mercenaries, however, had no great stomach for
+      the matter. Men were hard to get, and Prince John would not have been
+      pleased to hear that a number of the men whom he had brought with such
+      expense from foreign parts had been killed in a petty fray. Therefore
+      after following for a short time he called them off, and the archers fell
+      back into the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Here they found Dame Editha, and for three days she abode among them,
+      living in a small hut in the center of the forest. Then she left, to take
+      up her abode until the troubles were past with some kin who lived in the
+      south of Gloucestershire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Although the lady abbess had assured Cuthbert that the retreat of Lady
+      Margaret was not likely to be found out, he himself, knowing how great a
+      stake Sir Rudolph had in the matter, was still far from being easy. It
+      would not be difficult for the latter to learn through his agents that the
+      lady superior of the little convent near Hereford was of kin to her of St.
+      Anne's, and, close as a convent is, yet the gossiping of the servants who
+      go to market was certain to let out an affair so important as the arrival
+      of a young lady to reside under the charge of the superior. Cuthbert was
+      not mistaken as to the acuteness of his enemy. The relationship between
+      the two lady superiors was no secret, and after having searched all the
+      farmhouses and granges near the forest, and being convinced that the lady
+      abbess would have sent her charge rather to a religious house than to that
+      of a franklin, Sir Rudolph sought which of those within the circuit of a
+      few miles would be likely to be the one selected. It was not long before
+      he was enabled to fix upon that near Hereford, and spies going to the spot
+      soon found out from the country people that it was a matter of talk that a
+      young lady of rank had been admitted by the superior. Sir Rudolph
+      hesitated whether to go himself at the head of a strong body of men and
+      openly to take her, or to employ some sort of device. It was not that he
+      himself feared the anathema of the church; but he knew Prince John to be
+      weak and vacillating, at one time ready to defy the thunder of the pope,
+      the next cringing before the spiritual authority. He therefore determined
+      to employ some of his men to burst into the convent and carry off the
+      heiress, arranging that he himself, with some of his men-at-arms, should
+      come upon them in the road, and make a feigned rescue of her, so that, if
+      the lady superior laid her complaint before the pope's legate he could
+      deny that he had any hand in the matter, and could even take credit for
+      having rescued her from the men who had profaned the convent. That his
+      story would be believed mattered but little. It would be impossible to
+      prove its falsity, and this was all that he cared for.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This course was followed out. Late one evening the lady superior was
+      alarmed by a violent knocking at the door. In reply to questions asked
+      through the grill, the answer was given, "We are men of the forest, and we
+      are come to carry the Lady Margaret of Evesham off to a secure
+      hiding-place. The Lord of Evesham has discovered her whereabouts, and will
+      be here shortly, and we would fain remove her before he arrives."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From whom have you warrant?" the lady superior said. "I surrender her to
+      no one, save to the lady abbess of St. Anne's. But if you have a written
+      warrant from Sir Cuthbert, the rightful Lord of Evesham, I will lay the
+      matter before the Lady Margaret, and will act as it may seem fit to her."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We have no time for parleying," a rough voice said. "Throw open the gate
+      at once, or we will break it down."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Ye be no outlaws," the lady superior said, "for the outlaws are men who
+      fear God and respect the church. Were ye what ye say, ye would be provided
+      with the warrants that I mention. I warn you, therefore, that if you use
+      force, you will be excommunicated, and placed under the ban of the
+      church."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The only answer was a thundering assault upon the gate, which soon yielded
+      to the blows. The sisters and novices ran shrieking through the corridors
+      at this rude uproar. The lady superior, however, stood calmly awaiting the
+      giving way of the gate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Where is the Lady Margaret?" the leader of the party, who were dressed in
+      rough garb, and had the seeming of a band of outlaws, demanded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will say nothing," she said, "nor do I own that she is here."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We will soon take means to find out," the man exclaimed. "Unless in five
+      minutes she is delivered to us, we will burn your place to the ground."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The lady abbess was insensible to the threat; but the men rushing in,
+      seized some sisters, who, terrified out of their wits by this irruption,
+      at once gave the information demanded, and the men made their way to the
+      cell where the Lady Margaret slept.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The girl had at once risen when the tumult commenced, doubting not in her
+      mind that this was another attempt upon the part of her enemy to carry her
+      off. When, therefore, she heard heavy footsteps approaching along the
+      gallery&mdash;having already hastily attired herself&mdash;she opened the
+      door and presented herself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If you seek the Lady Margaret of Evesham," she said calmly, "I am she. Do
+      not harm any of the sisters here. I am in your power, and will go with you
+      at once. But I beseech you add not to your other sins that of violence
+      against holy women."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The men, abashed by the calm dignity of this young girl, abstained from
+      laying hands upon her, but merely motioned to her to accompany them. Upon
+      their way they met the man who appeared to be their leader, and he, well
+      pleased that the affair was over, led the way to the courtyard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Farewell, my child," the abbess exclaimed. "God will deliver you from the
+      power of these wicked men. Trust in Him, and keep up your courage.
+      Wickedness will not be permitted to triumph upon the earth; and be assured
+      that the matter shall be brought to the ears of the pope's legate, and of
+      Prince John himself."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She could say no more, for the men, closing round the weeping girl,
+      hurried her out from the convent. A litter awaited them without, and in
+      this the young lady was placed, and, borne upon the shoulders of four
+      stout men, she started at a fast pace, surrounded closely by the rest of
+      the band.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a dark night, and the girl could not see the direction in which she
+      was being taken; but she judged from the turn taken upon leaving the
+      convent that it was toward Evesham. They had proceeded some miles, when a
+      trampling of horses was heard, and a body of armed men rode up. For a
+      moment Lady Margaret's heart gave a leap, for she thought that she had
+      been rescued by her friends. There was a loud and angry altercation, a
+      clashing of swords, and a sound of shouting and cries outside the litter.
+      Then it was placed roughly on the ground, and she heard the sound of the
+      footsteps of her first captors hurrying away. Then the horsemen closed
+      round the litter, and the leader dismounted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am happy indeed, Lady Margaret," he said, approaching the litter, "to
+      have been able to save you from the power of these villains. Fortunately,
+      word came to me that the outlaws in the forest were about to carry you
+      off, and that they would not hesitate even to desecrate the walls of the
+      convent. Assembling my men-at-arms, I at once rode to your rescue, and am
+      doubly happy to have saved you, first, as a gentleman, secondly, as being
+      the man to whom our gracious prince has assigned you as a wife. I am Sir
+      Rudolph, Earl of Evesham."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As from the first the girl had been convinced that she had fallen into the
+      power of her lawless suitor, this came upon her as no surprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Whether your story is true, Sir Rudolph," she said, "or not, God knows,
+      and I, a poor weak girl, will not pretend to venture to say. It is between
+      you and your conscience. If, as you say, you have saved me from the power
+      of the outlaws, I demand that, as a knight and a gentleman, you return
+      with me at once to the convent from which I was taken by force."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I cannot do that," Sir Rudolph said. "Fortune has placed you in my hands,
+      and has enabled me to carry out the commands of the prince. Therefore,
+      though I would fain yield to your wishes and so earn your good-will, which
+      above all things I wish to obtain, yet my duty toward the prince commands
+      me to utilize the advantage which fate has thrown in my hands."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "You must do as you will, Sir Rudolph," the girl said with dignity. "I
+      believe not your tale. You sought before, in person, to carry me off, but
+      failed, and you have now employed other means to do so. The tale of your
+      conduct to Dame Editha has reached my ears, and I hold you a foresworn
+      knight and a dishonored man, and as such I would rather die than become
+      your wife, although as yet I am but a child, and have no need to talk of
+      weddings for years to come."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We need not parley here," the knight said coldly. "We shall have plenty
+      of time when at my castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The litter was now lifted, placed between two horses, and proceeded
+      rapidly on its journey. Although the hope was but faint, yet until the
+      gates of the castle closed upon them the Lady Margaret still hoped that
+      rescue might reach her. But the secret had been too well kept, and it was
+      not until the following day that the man who had been placed in a cottage
+      near the convent arrived in all haste in the forest, to say that it was
+      only in the morning that he had learned that the convent had been broken
+      open by men disguised as archers, and the Lady Margaret carried off.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Four days elapsed before Sir Rudolph presented himself before the girl he
+      had captured. So fearfully was his face bruised and disfigured by the blow
+      from the mailed hand of Cuthbert three weeks before, that he did not wish
+      to appear before her under such unfavorable circumstances, and the captive
+      passed the day gazing from her casement in one of the rooms in the upper
+      part of the keep, toward the forest whence she hoped rescue would come.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within the forest hot discussions were going on as to the best course to
+      pursue. An open attack was out of the question, especially as upon the day
+      following the arrival there of Lady Margaret three hundred more
+      mercenaries had marched in from Worcester, so that the garrison was now
+      raised to five hundred men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is there no way," Cnut exclaimed furiously, "by which we might creep into
+      this den, since we cannot burst into it openly?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "There is a way from the castle," Cuthbert said, "for my dear lord told me
+      of it one day when we were riding together in the Holy Land. He said then
+      that it might be that he should never return, and that it were well that I
+      should know of the existence of this passage, which few besides the earl
+      himself knew of. It is approached by a very heavy slab of stone in the
+      great hall. This is bolted down, and as it stands under the great table
+      passes unnoticed, and appears part of the ordinary floor. He told me the
+      method in which, by touching a spring, the bolts were withdrawn and the
+      stone could be raised. Thence a passage a quarter of a mile long leads to
+      the little chapel standing in the hollow, and which, being hidden among
+      the trees, would be unobserved by any party besieging the castle. This of
+      course was contrived in order that the garrison, or any messenger thereof,
+      might make an exit in case of siege."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But if we could escape," Cnut asked, "why not enter by this way?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The stone is of immense weight and strength," Cuthbert replied, "and
+      could not be loosed from below save with great labor and noise. There are,
+      moreover, several massive doors in the passage, all of which are secured
+      by heavy bolts within. It is therefore out of the question that we could
+      enter the castle by that way. But were we once in, we could easily carry
+      off the lady through this passage."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The large force which Sir Rudolph had collected was not intended merely
+      for the defense of the castle, for the knight considered that with his own
+      garrison he could hold it against a force tenfold that which his rival
+      could collect. But he was determined if possible to crush out the outlaws
+      of the forest, for he felt that so long as this formidable body remained
+      under an enterprising leader like Sir Cuthbert, he would never be safe for
+      a moment, and would be a prisoner in his own castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert had foreseen that the attack was likely to be made, and had
+      strengthened his band to the utmost. He felt, however, that against so
+      large a force of regularly armed men, although he might oppose a stout
+      resistance and kill many, yet that in the end he must be conquered. Cnut,
+      however, suggested to him a happy idea, which he eagerly grasped.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It would be a rare sport," Cnut said, "when this armed force comes out to
+      attack us, if we could turn the tables by slipping in, and taking their
+      castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The very thing," Cuthbert exclaimed. "It is likely that he will use the
+      greater portion of his forces, and that he will not keep above fifty or
+      sixty men, at the outside, in the castle. When they sally out we will at
+      first oppose a stout resistance to them in the wood, gradually falling
+      back. Then, at a given signal, all save twenty men shall retire hastily,
+      and sweeping round make for the castle. Their absence will not be noticed,
+      for in this thick wood it is difficult to tell whether twenty men or two
+      hundred are opposing you among the bushes; and the twenty who remain must
+      shoot thick and fast to make believe that their numbers are great,
+      retiring sometimes, and leading the enemy on into the heart of the wood."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But supposing, Sir Cuthbert, that they should have closed the gates and
+      lifted the drawbridge? We could not gain entrance by storming, even if
+      only twenty men held the walls, until long after the main body would have
+      returned."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert thought for some time, and then said, "Cnut, you shall undertake
+      this enterprise. You shall fill a cart high with faggots, and in it shall
+      conceal a dozen of your best men. You, dressed as a serf, shall drive the
+      oxen, and when you reach the castle shall say, in answer to the hail of
+      the sentry, that you are bringing in the tribute of wood of your master
+      the franklin of Hopeburn. They will then lower the drawbridge and open the
+      gates; and when you have crossed the bridge and are under the portcullis,
+      spring out suddenly, cut loose the oxen so that they will not draw the
+      cart further in, cut the chains of the drawbridge so that it cannot be
+      drawn off, and hold the gate for a minute or two until we arrive."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The plan is capital," Cnut exclaimed. "We will do the proud Norman yet.
+      How he will storm when he finds us masters of his castle! What then will
+      you do, Sir Cuthbert?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We can hold the castle for weeks," Cuthbert said, "and every day is in
+      our favor. If we find ourselves forced to yield to superior numbers, we
+      can at last retire through the passage I have spoken of, and must then
+      scatter and each shift for himself until these bad days be past."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0024" id="link2HCH0024"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXIV. &mdash; THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM CASTLE.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Upon the day before starting out to head the expedition against the
+      outlaws, Sir Rudolph sent word to the Lady Margaret that she must prepare
+      to become his wife at the end of the week. He had provided two tiring
+      maids for her by ordering two of the franklins to send in their daughters
+      for that purpose, and these mingled their tears with Margaret's at the
+      situation in which they were placed. She replied firmly to the messenger
+      of the knight that no power on earth could oblige her to marry him. He
+      might drive her to the altar; but though he killed her there, her lips
+      should refuse to say the words which would unite them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The following morning, early, the castle rang with the din of preparation.
+      The great portion of the mercenaries were encamped in tents outside the
+      walls, for, spacious as it was, Evesham could hardly contain four hundred
+      men in addition to its usual garrison. The men-at-arms were provided with
+      heavy axes to cut their way through the bushes. Some carried bundles of
+      straw, to fire the wood should it be found practicable to do so; and as it
+      was now summer and the wind was blowing high, Sir Rudolph hoped that the
+      dry grass and bushes would catch, and would do more even than his
+      men-at-arms in clearing the forest of those whom he designated the
+      villains infesting it. They had, too, with them several fierce dogs
+      trained to hunting the deer, and these, the knight hoped, would do good
+      service in tracking the outlaws. He and the knights and the men-at-arms
+      with him were all dismounted, for he felt that horses would in the forest
+      be an incumbrance, and he was determined himself to lead the way to the
+      men-at-arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When they reached the forest they were saluted by a shower of arrows; but
+      as all were clad in mail, these at a distance effected but little harm. As
+      they came closer, however, the clothyard arrows began to pierce the coarse
+      and ill-made armor of the foot soldiers, although the finer armor of the
+      knights kept out the shafts which struck against it. Sir Rudolph and his
+      knights leading the way, they entered the forest and gradually pressed
+      their invisible foe backward through the trees. The dogs did good service,
+      going on ahead and attacking the archers; but, one by one, they were soon
+      shot, and the assailants left to their own devices. Several attempts were
+      made to fire the wood. But these failed, the fire burning but a short time
+      and then dying out of itself. In addition to the fighting men, Sir Rudolph
+      had impressed into the service all the serfs of his domain, and these,
+      armed with axes, were directed to cut down the trees as the force
+      proceeded, Sir Rudolph declaring that he would not cease until he had
+      leveled the whole forest, though it might take him months to do so.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The assailants gained ground steadily, the resistance being less severe
+      than Sir Rudolph had anticipated. Several small huts and clearings in the
+      forest which had been used by the outlaws, and round which small crops had
+      been planted, were destroyed, and all seemed to promise well for the
+      success of the enterprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was about two hours after they had left the castle, when a heavy cart
+      filled with fagots was seen approaching its gates. The garrison, who had
+      not the least fear of any attack, paid no attention to it until it reached
+      the edge of the moat. Then the warder, seeing that it contained fagots,
+      lowered the drawbridge without question, raised the portcullis, and opened
+      the gates.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From whom do you bring this wood?" he asked as the man driving the oxen
+      began to cross the bridge.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "From the franklin of Hopeburn."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is well," said the warder, "for he is in arrear now, and should have
+      sent in the firewood two months since. Take it to the woodhouse at the
+      other end of the court."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The heavy wagon crossed the drawbridge, but as it was entering the gate it
+      came suddenly to a stop. With a blow of his ox goad Cnut leveled the
+      warder to the ground, and cutting the cords of the bullocks, drove them
+      into the yard ahead. As he did so the pile of fagots fell asunder, and
+      twelve men armed with bow and pike leaped out. The men-at-arms standing
+      near, lounging in the courtyard, gave a shout of alarm, and the garrison,
+      surprised at this sudden cry, ran to their arms. At first they were
+      completely panic-stricken. But seeing after a time how small was the
+      number of their assailants, they took heart and advanced against them. The
+      passage was narrow, and the twelve men formed a wall across it. Six of
+      them with their pikes advanced, the other six with bent bows standing
+      behind them and delivering their arrows between their heads. The garrison
+      fought stoutly, and although losing many, were pressing the little band
+      backward. In vain the assistant-warder tried to lower the portcullis, or
+      to close the gates. The former fell on to the top of the wagon, and was
+      there retained. The gates also were barred by the obstacle. The chains of
+      the drawbridge had at once been cut. Cnut encouraged his followers by his
+      shouts, and armed with a heavy ax, did good service upon the assailants.
+      But four of his party had fallen, and the rest were giving way, when a
+      shout was heard, and over the drawbridge poured Cuthbert and one hundred
+      and fifty of the outlaws of the forest. Struck with terror at this attack,
+      the garrison drew back, and the foresters poured into the yard. For a few
+      minutes there was a fierce fight; but the defenders of the castle,
+      disheartened and taken by surprise, were either cut down or, throwing down
+      their arms, cried for quarter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Ten minutes after the wagon had crossed the drawbridge the castle was
+      safely in possession of Sir Cuthbert. The bridge was raised, the wagon
+      removed, the portcullis lowered, and to the external eye all remained as
+      before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert at once made his way to the chamber where the Lady Margaret was
+      confined, and her joy at her deliverance was great indeed. So unlimited
+      was her faith in Sir Cuthbert that she had never lost confidence; and
+      although it did not seem possible that in the face of such disparity of
+      numbers he could rescue her from the power of Sir Rudolph, yet she had not
+      given up hope. The joy of the farmers' daughters who had been carried off
+      to act as her attendants was little inferior to her own; for once in the
+      power of this reckless baron, the girls had small hopes of ever being
+      allowed to return again to their parents.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The flag of Sir Rudolph was thrown down from the keep, and that of the
+      late earl hoisted in its stead; for Cuthbert himself, although he had
+      assumed the cognizance which King Richard had granted him, had not yet any
+      flag or pennon emblazoned with it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No words can portray the stupefaction and rage of Sir Rudolph when a man
+      who had managed to slip unobserved from the castle at the time of its
+      capture bore the news to him in the forest. All opposition there had
+      ceased, and the whole of the troops were engaged in aiding the peasants in
+      cutting wide roads through the trees across the forest, so as to make it
+      penetrable by horsemen in every direction. It was supposed that the
+      outlaws had gradually stolen away through the thickets and taken to the
+      open country, intending to scatter to their homes, or other distant
+      hiding-places; and the news that they had by a ruse captured the castle
+      came as a thunder-clap.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Rudolph's first impulse was to call his men together and to march
+      toward the castle. The drawbridge was up and the walls bristled with armed
+      men. It was useless to attempt a parley; still more useless to think of
+      attacking the stronghold without the proper machines and appliances.
+      Foaming with rage, Sir Rudolph took possession of a cottage near, camped
+      his men around and prepared for a siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were among the mercenaries many men accustomed to the use of engines
+      of war. Many, too, had aided in making them; and these were at once set to
+      work to construct the various machines in use at that time. Before the
+      invention of gunpowder, castles such as those of the English barons were
+      able to defy any attack by an armed force for a long period. Their walls
+      were so thick that even the balistas, casting huge stones, were unable to
+      breach them except after a very long time. The moats which surrounded them
+      were wide and deep, and any attempt at storming by ladders was therefore
+      extremely difficult; and these buildings were consequently more often
+      captured by famine than by other means. Of provisions, as Sir Rudolph
+      knew, there was a considerable supply at present in the castle, for he had
+      collected a large number of bullocks in order to feed the strong body who
+      had been added to the garrison. The granaries, too, were well stored; and
+      with a groan Sir Rudolph thought of the rich stores of French wines which
+      he had collected in his cellars.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After much deliberation with the knights with him and the captain of the
+      mercenaries, it was agreed in the first instance to attempt to attack the
+      place by filling up a portion of the moat and ascending by scaling
+      ladders. Huge screens of wood were made, and these were placed on wagons;
+      the wagons themselves were filled with bags of earth, and a large number
+      of men getting beneath them shoved the ponderous machines forward to the
+      edge of the moat. The bags of stones and earth were then thrown in, and
+      the wagons pushed backward to obtain a fresh supply. This operation was of
+      course an exceedingly slow one, a whole day being occupied with each trip
+      of the wagons. They were not unmolested in their advance, for, from the
+      walls, mangonels and other machines hurled great stones down upon the
+      wooden screens, succeeding sometimes, in spite of their thickness, in
+      crashing through them, killing many of the men beneath. The experiment was
+      also tried of throwing balls of Greek fire down upon the wood; but as this
+      was green and freshly felled it would not take fire, but the flames
+      dropping through, with much boiling pitch and other materials, did
+      grievously burn and scald the soldiers working below it. Upon both sides
+      every device was tried. The crossbowmen among the mercenaries kept up a
+      fire upon the walls to hinder the defenders from interfering with the
+      operations, while the archers above shot steadily, and killed many of
+      those who ventured within range of their bows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After ten days' labor a portion of the moat some twenty yards in length
+      was filled with bags of earth, and all was ready for the assault. The
+      besiegers had prepared great numbers of strong ladders, and these were
+      brought up under shelter of the screens. Then, all being ready, the
+      trumpets sounded for the assault, and the troops moved forward in a close
+      body, covering themselves with their shields so that no man's head or body
+      was visible, each protecting the one before him with his shield held over
+      him. Thus the body presented the appearance of a great scale-covered
+      animal. In many respects, indeed, the warfare of those days was changed in
+      no way from that of the time of the Romans. In the twelve hundred years
+      which had elapsed between the siege of Jerusalem and the days of the
+      Crusades there had been but little change in arms or armor, and the
+      operations which Titus undertook for the reduction of the Jewish
+      stronghold differed but little from those which a Norman baron employed in
+      besieging his neighbor's castle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Within Evesham Castle all was contentment and merriment during these days.
+      The garrison had no fear whatever of being unable to repel the assault
+      when it should be delivered. Huge stones had been collected in numbers on
+      the walls, caldrons of pitch, beneath which fires kept simmering, stood
+      there in readiness. Long poles with hooks with which to seize the ladders
+      and cut them down were laid there; and all that precaution and science
+      could do was prepared.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert passed much of the day, when not required upon the walls,
+      chatting with the Lady Margaret, who, attended by her maidens, sat working
+      in her bower. She had learned to read from the good nuns of the convent&mdash;an
+      accomplishment which was by no means general, even among the daughters of
+      nobles; but books were rare, and Evesham boasted but few manuscripts. Here
+      Margaret learned in full all the details of Cuthbert's adventures since
+      leaving England, and the fondness with which as a child she had regarded
+      the lad grew gradually into the affection of a woman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The courage of the garrison was high, for although they believed that
+      sooner or later the castle might be carried by the besiegers, they had
+      already been told by Cnut that there was a means of egress unknown to the
+      besiegers, and that when the time came they would be able to escape
+      unharmed. This, while it in no way detracted from their determination to
+      defend the castle to the last, yet rendered their task a far lighter and
+      more agreeable one than it would have been had they seen the gallows
+      standing before them as the end of the siege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the testudo, as it was called in those days, advanced toward the
+      castle, the machines upon the walls&mdash;catapults, mangonels and
+      arbalasts&mdash;poured forth showers of stones and darts upon it, breaking
+      up the array of shields and killing many; and as these openings were made,
+      the archers, seizing their time, poured in volleys of arrows. The
+      mercenaries, however, accustomed to war, advanced steadily, and made good
+      their footing beneath the castle wall, and proceeded to rear their
+      ladders. Here, although free from the action of the machines, they were
+      exposed to the hand missiles, which were scarcely less destructive. In
+      good order, and with firmness, however, they reared the ladders, and
+      mounted to the assault, covering themselves as well as they could with
+      their shields. In vain, however, did they mount. The defenders poured down
+      showers of boiling pitch and oil, which penetrated the crevices of their
+      armor and caused intolerable torment. Great stones were toppled over from
+      the battlements upon them; and sometimes the ladders, seized by the poles
+      with hooks, were cast backward, with all upon them, on the throng below.
+      For half an hour, encouraged by the shouts of Sir Rudolph and their
+      leaders, the soldiers strove gallantly; but were at last compelled to draw
+      off, having lost nigh one hundred men, without one gaining a footing upon
+      the walls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That evening another council of war was held without. Already some large
+      machines for which Sir Rudolph had sent had arrived. In anticipation of
+      the possibility of failure, two castles upon wheels had been prepared, and
+      between these a huge beam with an iron head was hung. This was upon the
+      following day pushed forward on the newly-formed ground across the moat.
+      Upon the upper part of each tower were armed men who worked machines
+      casting sheaves of arrows and other missiles. Below were those who worked
+      the ram. To each side of the beam were attached numerous cords, and with
+      these it was swung backward and forward, giving heavy blows each stroke
+      upon the wall. The machines for casting stones, which had arrived, were
+      also brought in play, and day and night these thundered against the walls;
+      while the ram repeated its ceaseless blows upon the same spot, until the
+      stone crumbled before it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Very valiantly did the garrison oppose themselves to these efforts. But
+      each day showed the progress made by the besiegers. Their forces had been
+      increased, Prince John having ordered his captain at Gloucester to send
+      another one hundred men to the assistance of Sir Rudolph. Other towers had
+      now been prepared. These were larger than the first, and overtopped the
+      castle walls. From the upper story were drawbridges, so formed as to drop
+      from the structures upon the walls, and thus enable the besiegers to rush
+      upon them. The process was facilitated by the fact that the battlements
+      had been shot away by the great stones, and there was a clear space on
+      which the drawbridges could fall. The attack was made with great vigor;
+      but for a long time the besieged maintained their post, and drove back the
+      assailants as they poured out across the drawbridges on to the wall. At
+      last Cuthbert saw that the forces opposed to him were too numerous to be
+      resisted, and gave orders to his men to fall back upon the inner keep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Making one rush, and clearing the wall of those who had gained a footing,
+      the garrison fell back hastily, and were safely within the massive keep
+      before the enemy had mustered in sufficient numbers upon the wall to
+      interfere with them. The drawbridge was now lowered, and the whole of the
+      assailants gained footing within the castle. They were still far from
+      having achieved a victory. The walls of the keep were massive and strong,
+      and its top far higher than the walls, so that from above a storm of
+      arrows poured down upon all who ventured to show themselves. The keep had
+      no windows low enough down for access to be gained; and those on the
+      floors above were so narrow, and protected by bars, that it seemed by
+      scaling the walls alone could an entry be effected. This was far too
+      desperate an enterprise to be attempted, for the keep rose eighty feet
+      above the courtyard. It was upon the door, solid and studded with iron,
+      that the attempt had to be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Several efforts were made by Sir Rudolph, who fought with a bravery worthy
+      of a better cause, to assault and batter down the door. Protected by
+      wooden shields from the rain of missiles from above, he and his knights
+      hacked at the door with their battle-axes. But in vain. It had been
+      strengthened by beams behind, and by stones piled up against it. Then fire
+      was tried. Fagots were collected in the forest, and brought; and a huge
+      pile having been heaped against the door, it was lighted. "We could
+      doubtless prolong the siege for some days, Lady Margaret," said Cuthbert,
+      "but the castle is ours; and we wish not, when the time comes that we
+      shall again be masters of it, that it should be a mere heap of ruins.
+      Methinks we have done enough. With but small losses on our side, we have
+      killed great numbers of the enemy, and have held them at bay for a month.
+      Therefore, I think that to-night it will be well for us to leave the
+      place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Lady Margaret was rejoiced at the news that the time for escape had come,
+      for the perpetual clash of war, the rattling of arrows, the ponderous thud
+      of heavy stones caused a din very alarming to a young girl; and although
+      the room in which she sat, looking into the inner court of the castle, was
+      not exposed to missiles, she trembled at the thought that brave men were
+      being killed, and that at any moment a shot might strike Cuthbert, and so
+      leave her without a friend or protector.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Content with having destroyed the door, the assailants made no further
+      effort that evening, but prepared in the morning to attack it, pull down
+      the stones filled behind it, and force their way into the keep. There was,
+      with the exception of the main entrance, but one means of exit, a small
+      postern door behind the castle, and throughout the siege a strong body of
+      troops had been posted here, to prevent the garrison making a sortie.
+      Feeling secure therefore that upon the following day his enemies would
+      fall into his power, Sir Rudolph retired to rest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An hour before midnight the garrison assembled in the hall. The table was
+      removed, and Cuthbert having pressed the spring, which was at a distance
+      from the stone and could not be discovered without a knowledge of its
+      existence, the stone turned aside by means of a counterpoise, and a flight
+      of steps was seen. Torches had been prepared. Cnut and a chosen band went
+      first; Cuthbert followed, with Lady Margaret and her attendants; and the
+      rest of the archers brought up the rear, a trusty man being left in charge
+      at last with orders to swing back the stone into its place, having first
+      hauled the table over the spot, so that their means of escape should be
+      unknown.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The passage was long and dreary, the walls were damp with wet, and the
+      massive doors so swollen by moisture that it was with the greatest
+      difficulty they could be opened. At last, however, they emerged into the
+      little friary in the wood. It was deserted, the priest who usually dwelt
+      there having fled when the siege began. The stone which there, as in the
+      castle, concealed the exit, was carefully closed, and the party then
+      emerged into the open air. Here Cuthbert bade adieu to his comrades. Cnut
+      had very anxiously begged to be allowed to accompany him and share his
+      fortunes, and Cuthbert had promised him that if at any time he should
+      again take up arms in England, he would summon him to his side, but that
+      at present as he knew not whither his steps would be turned, it would be
+      better that he should be unattended. The archers had all agreed to scatter
+      far and wide through the country, many of them proceeding to Nottingham
+      and joining the bands in the forest of Sherwood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert himself had determined to make his way to the castle of his
+      friend, Sir Baldwin, and to leave the Lady Margaret in his charge. Cnut
+      hurried on at full speed to the house of a franklin, some three miles
+      distant. Here horses were obtained and saddled, and dresses prepared; and
+      when Cuthbert with Lady Margaret arrived there, no time was lost. Dressed
+      as a yeoman, with the Lady Margaret as his sister, he mounted a horse,
+      with her behind him on a pillion. The other damsels also mounted, as it
+      would not have been safe for them to remain near Evesham. They therefore
+      purposed taking refuge in a convent near Gloucester for the present.
+      Bidding a hearty adieu to Cnut, and with thanks to the franklin who had
+      aided them, they set forward on their journey. By morning they had reached
+      the convent, and here the two girls were left, and Cuthbert continued his
+      journey. He left his charge at a convent a day's ride distant from the
+      castle of Sir Baldwin, as he wished to consult the knight first as to the
+      best way of her entering the castle without exciting talk or suspicion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Baldwin received him with joy. He had heard something of his doings,
+      and the news of the siege of Evesham had been noised abroad. He told him
+      that he was in communication with many other barons, and that ere long
+      they hoped to rise against the tyranny of Prince John, but that at present
+      they were powerless, as many, hoping that King Richard would return ere
+      long, shrank from involving the country in a civil war. When Cuthbert told
+      him that the daughter of his old friend was at a convent but a day's ride
+      distant, and that he sought protection for her, Sir Baldwin instantly
+      offered her hospitality.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I will," he said, "send my good wife to fetch her. Some here know your
+      presence, and it would be better therefore that she did not arrive for
+      some days, as her coming will then seem to be unconnected with yourself.
+      My wife and I will, a week hence, give out that we are going to fetch a
+      cousin of my wife's to stay here with her; and when we return no suspicion
+      will be excited that she is other than she seems. Should it be otherwise,
+      I need not say that Sir Baldwin of Béthune will defend his castle against
+      any of the minions of Prince John. But I have no fear that her presence
+      here will be discovered. What think you of doing in the meantime?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am thinking," Cuthbert said, "of going east. No news has been obtained
+      of our lord the king save that he is a prisoner in the hands of the
+      emperor; but where confined, or how, we know not. It is my intent to
+      travel to the Tyrol, and to trace his steps from the time that he was
+      captured. Then, when I obtain knowledge of the place where he is kept, I
+      will return, and consult upon the best steps to be taken. My presence in
+      England is now useless. Did the barons raise the standard of King Richard
+      against the prince, I should at once return and join them. But without
+      land or vassals, I can do nothing here, and shall be indeed like a hunted
+      hare, for I know that the false earl will move heaven and earth to capture
+      me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sir Baldwin approved of the resolution; but recommended Cuthbert to take
+      every precaution not to fall himself into the hands of the emperor; "for,"
+      he said, "if we cannot discover the prison of King Richard, I fear that it
+      would be hopeless indeed ever to attempt to find that in which a simple
+      knight is confined."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0025" id="link2HCH0025"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXV. &mdash; IN SEARCH OF THE KING.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The following day, with many thanks, Cuthbert started from the castle, and
+      in the first place visited the convent, and told Lady Margaret that she
+      would be fetched in a few days by Sir Baldwin and his wife. He took a
+      tender adieu of her, not without many forebodings and tears upon her part;
+      but promising blithely that he would return and lead her back in triumph
+      to her castle, he bade adieu and rode for London.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had attired himself as a merchant, and took up his abode at a hostelry
+      near Cheapside. Here he remained quietly for some days, and, mixing among
+      the people, learned that in London as elsewhere the rapacity of Prince
+      John had rendered him hateful to the people, and that they would gladly
+      embrace any opportunity of freeing themselves from his yoke. He was
+      preparing to leave for France, when the news came to him that Prince John
+      had summoned all the barons faithful to him to meet him near London, and
+      had recalled all his mercenaries from different parts of the country, and
+      was gathering a large army; also, that the barons faithful to King
+      Richard, alarmed by the prospect, had raised the royal standard, and that
+      true men were hurrying to their support. This entirely destroyed the plans
+      that he had formed. Taking horse again, and avoiding the main road, by
+      which he might meet the hostile barons on their way to London, he
+      journeyed down to Nottingham. Thence riding boldly into the forest, he
+      sought the outlaws, and was not long ere he found them. At his request he
+      was at once taken before their leader, a man of great renown both for
+      courage and bowmanship, one Robin Hood. This bold outlaw had long held at
+      defiance the sheriff of Nottingham, and had routed him and all bodies of
+      troops who had been sent against him. With him Cuthbert found many of his
+      own men; and upon hearing that the royal standard had been raised, Robin
+      Hood at once agreed to march with all his men to join the royal force.
+      Messengers were dispatched to summon the rest of the forest band from
+      their hiding-places, and a week later Cuthbert, accompanied by Robin Hood
+      and three hundred archers, set out for the rendezvous. When they arrived
+      there they found that Sir Baldwin had already joined with his retainers,
+      and was by him most warmly received, and introduced to the other barons in
+      the camp, by whom Cuthbert was welcomed as a brother. The news that Prince
+      John's army was approaching was brought in a fortnight after Cuthbert had
+      joined the camp, and the army in good order moved out to meet the enemy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The forces were about equal. The battle began by a discharge of arrows;
+      but Robin Hood and his men shot so true and fast that they greatly
+      discomfited the enemy; and King John's mercenaries having but little
+      stomach for the fight, and knowing how unpopular they were in England, and
+      that if defeated small mercy was likely to be shown to them, refused to
+      advance against the ranks of the loyal barons, and falling back declined
+      to join in the fray. Seeing their numbers so weakened by this defection,
+      the barons on the prince's side hesitated, and surrounding the prince
+      advised him to make terms with the barons while there was yet time. Prince
+      John saw that the present was not a favorable time for him, and concealing
+      his fury under a mask of courtesy, he at once acceded to the advice of his
+      followers, and dispatched a messenger to the barons with an inquiry as to
+      what they wanted of him. A council was held, and it was determined to
+      demand the dismissal of the mercenaries and their dispatch back to their
+      own country; also that John would govern only as his brother's
+      representative; that the laws of the country should be respected; that no
+      taxes should be raised without the assent of the barons; that all men who
+      had taken up arms against his authority should be held free; and that the
+      barons on Prince John's side should return peaceably home and disband
+      their forces. Seeing, under the circumstances, that there was no way
+      before him but to yield to these demands, Prince John accepted the terms.
+      The mercenaries were ordered to march direct to London, and orders were
+      given that ships should be at once prepared to take them across to
+      Normandy, and the barons marched for their homes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Satisfied, now that the mercenaries were gone, that they could henceforth
+      hold their ground against Prince John, the royal barons also broke up
+      their forces. Robin Hood with his foresters returned to Sherwood; and
+      Cuthbert, bidding adieu to Sir Baldwin, rode back to London, determined to
+      carry out the plan which he had formed. He was the more strengthened in
+      this resolution, inasmuch as in the royal camp he had met a friend from
+      whom he parted last in the Holy Land. This was Blondel, the minstrel of
+      King Richard, whose songs and joyous music had often lightened the evening
+      after days of fighting and toil in Palestine. To him Cuthbert confided his
+      intention, and the minstrel instantly offered to accompany him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I shall," he said, "be of assistance to you. Minstrels are like heralds.
+      They are of no nationality, and can pass free where a man-at-arms would be
+      closely watched and hindered. Moreover, it may be that I might aid you
+      greatly in discovering the prison of the king. So great is the secrecy
+      with which this has been surrounded that I question if any inquiries you
+      could make would enable you to trace him. My voice, however, can penetrate
+      into places where we cannot enter. I will take with me my lute, and as we
+      journey I will sing outside the walls of each prison we come to one of the
+      songs which I sang in Palestine. King Richard is himself a singer and
+      knows my songs as well as myself. If I sing a verse of some song which I
+      wrote there and which, therefore, would be known only to him, if he hears
+      it he may follow with the next verse, and so enable us to know of his
+      hiding-place."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert at once saw the advantages which such companionship would bring
+      him, and joyfully accepted the minstrel's offer, agreeing himself to go as
+      serving man to Blondel. The latter accompanied him to London. Here their
+      preparations were soon made, and taking ship in a merchantman bound for
+      the Netherlands, they started without delay upon their adventure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The minstrels and troubadours were at that time a privileged race in
+      Europe, belonging generally to the south of France, although produced in
+      all lands. They traveled over Europe singing the lays which they
+      themselves had composed, and were treated with all honor at the castles
+      where they chose to alight. It would have been considered as foul a deed
+      to use discourtesy to a minstrel as to insult a herald. Their persons
+      were, indeed, regarded as sacred, and the knights and barons strove to
+      gain their good-will by hospitality and presents, as a large proportion of
+      their ballads related to deeds of war; and while they would write lays in
+      honor of those who courteously entertained them, they did not hesitate to
+      heap obloquy upon those who received them discourteously, holding them up
+      to the gibes and scoffs of their fellows. In no way, therefore, would
+      success be so likely to attend the mission of those who set out to
+      discover the hiding-place of King Richard as under the guise of a minstrel
+      and his attendant. No questions would be asked them; they could halt where
+      they would, in castle or town, secure of hospitality and welcome. Blondel
+      was himself a native of the south of France, singing his songs in the soft
+      language of Languedoc. Cuthbert's Norman French would pass muster anywhere
+      as being that of a native of France; and although when dressed as a
+      servitor attention might be attracted by his bearing, his youth might
+      render it probable that he was of noble family, but that he had entered
+      the service of the minstrel in order to qualify himself some day for
+      following that career. He carried a long staff, a short sword, and at his
+      back the lute or small harp played upon by the troubadour. Blondel's
+      attire was rich, and suitable to a person of high rank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They crossed to the Scheldt, and thence traveled by the right bank of the
+      Rhine as far as Mannheim, sometimes journeying by boat, sometimes on foot.
+      They were also hospitably entertained, and were considered to more than
+      repay their hosts by the songs which Blondel sang.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At Mannheim they purchased two horses, and then struck east for Vienna.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The journey was not without danger, for a large portion of this part of
+      Europe was under no settled government, each petty baron living in his own
+      castle, and holding but slight allegiance to any feudal lord, making war
+      upon his neighbor on his own account, levying blackmail from travelers,
+      and perpetually at variance with the burghers of the towns.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The hills were covered with immense forests, which stretched for many
+      leagues in all directions, and these were infested by wolves, bears, and
+      robbers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The latter, however, although men without pity or religion, yet held the
+      troubadours in high esteem, and the travelers without fear entered the
+      gloomy shades of the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They had not gone far when their way was barred by a number of armed men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am a minstrel," Blondel said; "and as such doubt not that your courtesy
+      will be extended to me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Of a surety," the leader said; "the gay science is as much loved and
+      respected in the greenwood as in the castle; and moreover, the purses of
+      those who follow it are too light to offer any temptation to us. We would
+      pray you, however, to accompany us to our leader, who will mightily
+      rejoice to see you, for he loves music, and will gladly be your host so
+      long as you will stay with him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Blondel, without objection, turned his horse's head and accompanied the
+      men, followed by Cuthbert. After half an hour's traveling they came to a
+      building which had formerly been a shrine, but which was now converted to
+      the robbers' headquarters. The robber chief, on hearing from his followers
+      the news that a minstrel had arrived, came forward to meet him, and
+      courteously bade him welcome.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am Sir Adelbert, of Rotherheim," he said, "although you see me in so
+      poor a plight. My castle and lands have been taken by my neighbor, with
+      whom for generations my family have been at feud. I was in the Holy Land
+      with the emperor, and on my return found that the baron had taken the
+      opportunity of my absence, storming my castle and seizing my lands. In
+      vain I petitioned the emperor to dispossess this traitorous baron of my
+      lands, which by all the laws of Christendom should have been respected
+      during my absence. The emperor did indeed send a letter to the baron to
+      deliver them up to me; but his power here is but nominal, and the baron
+      contemptuously threw the royal proclamation into the fire and told the
+      messenger that what he had taken by the sword he would hold by the sword;
+      and the emperor having weightier matters on hand than to set troops in
+      motion to redress the grievances of a simple knight, gave the matter no
+      further thought. I have therefore been driven to the forest, where I live
+      as best I may with my followers, most of whom were retainers upon my
+      estate, and some my comrades in the Holy Land. I make war upon the rich
+      and powerful, and beyond that do harm to no man. But, methinks," he
+      continued, "I know your face, gentle sir."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It may well be so, Sir Adelbert," the minstrel said, "for I too was in
+      the Holy Land. I followed the train of King Richard, and mayhap at some of
+      the entertainments given by him you have seen my face. My name is
+      Blondel."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I remember now," the knight said. "It was at Acre that I first saw you,
+      and if I remember rightly you can wield the sword as well as the lute."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "One cannot always be playing and singing," Blondel said, "and in lack of
+      amusement I was forced to do my best against the infidel, who indeed would
+      have but little respected my art had I fallen into his hands. The
+      followers of the prophet hold minstrels but in slight reverence."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "What is the news of King Richard?" the knight said. "I have heard that he
+      was lost on the voyage homeward."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is not so," Blondel said. "He landed safely on the coast, and was
+      journeying north with a view of joining his sister at the court of Saxony,
+      when he was foully seized and imprisoned by the Archduke John."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That were gross shame indeed," the knight said, "and black treachery on
+      the part of Duke John. And where is the noble king imprisoned?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That," said Blondel, "no man knows. On my journey hither I have gathered
+      that the emperor claimed him from the hand of the archduke, and that he is
+      imprisoned in one of the royal fortresses, but which I know not. And
+      indeed, sir knight, since you are well disposed toward him, I may tell you
+      that the purport of my journey is to discover if I can the place of his
+      confinement. He was a kind and noble master, and however long my search
+      may be, I will yet obtain news of him."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight warmly applauded the troubadour's resolution, and was turning
+      to lead him into his abode, when his eye fell upon Cuthbert.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks I know the face of your attendant as well as your own; though
+      where I can have seen him I know not. Was he with you in the Holy Land?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Yes," Blondel said, "the youth was also there; and doubtless you may have
+      noticed him, for he is indeed of distinguished and of good family."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Then let him share our repast," the knight said, "if it seems good to
+      you. In these woods there is no rank, and I myself have long dropped my
+      knightly title, and shall not reassume it until I can pay off my score to
+      the Baron of Rotherheim, and take my place again in my castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The minstrel and Cuthbert were soon seated at the table with the knight
+      and one or two of his principal companions. A huge venison pasty formed
+      the staple of the repast, but hares and other small game were also upon
+      the table. Nor was the generous wine of the country wanting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight had several times glanced at Cuthbert, and at last exclaimed,
+      "I have it now. This is no attendant, sir minstrel, but that valiant young
+      knight who so often rode near King Richard in battle. He is, as I guess,
+      your companion in this quest; is it not so?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is," Cuthbert replied frankly. "I am, like yourself, a disinherited
+      knight, and my history resembles yours. Upon my return to England I found
+      another in possession of the land and titles that belonged to the noble I
+      followed, and which King Richard bestowed upon me. The Earl of Evesham was
+      doubtless known to you, and before his death King Richard, at his request,
+      bestowed upon me as his adopted son&mdash;although but a distant
+      connection&mdash;his title and lands and the hand of his daughter. Prince
+      John, who now rules in England, had however granted these things to one of
+      his favorites, and he having taken possession of the land and title,
+      though not, happily, of the lady, closed his door somewhat roughly in my
+      face. I found means, however, to make my mark upon him; but as our quarrel
+      could not be fought out to the end, and as the false knight had the aid of
+      Prince John, I am forced for awhile to postpone our settlement, and
+      meeting my good friend the minstrel, agreed to join him in his enterprise
+      to discover our lord the king."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight warmly grasped Cuthbert's hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am glad," he said, "to meet so true and valiant a knight. I have often
+      wondered at the valor with which you, although so young, bore yourself;
+      and there were tales afloat of strange adventures which you had undergone
+      in captivity for a time among the infidels."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At Sir Adelbert's request Cuthbert related the story of his adventures
+      among the Saracens; and then Blondel, tuning his lute, sang several
+      canzonets which he had composed in the Holy Land, of feats of arms and
+      adventure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "How far are you," Cuthbert asked presently, when Blondel laid his lute
+      aside, "from the estates which were wrongfully wrested from you?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "But twenty leagues," the knight said. "My castle was on the Rhine,
+      between Coblentz and Mannheim."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Does the baron know that you are so near?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks that he does not," the knight replied, "but that he deems me to
+      have gone to the court of the emperor to seek for redress&mdash;which, he
+      guesses, I shall certainly fail to obtain."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "How many men have you with you?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Fifty men, all good and true," the knight said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Has it never entered your thoughts to attempt a surprise upon his
+      castle?" Cuthbert said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight was silent for a minute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "At times," he said at length, "thoughts of so doing have occurred to me;
+      but the castle is strong, and a surprise would be difficult indeed."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If the baron is lulled in security at present," Cuthbert said, "and deems
+      you afar off, the watch is likely to be relaxed, and with a sudden
+      onslaught you might surely obtain possession. Blondel and myself are not
+      pressed for time, and the delay of a few days can make but little
+      difference. If, therefore, you think we could be of assistance to you in
+      such an attempt, my sword, and I am sure that of my friend, would be at
+      your disposal."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight sat for some time in silence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Thanks, generous knight," he said at last, "I am sorely tempted to avail
+      myself of your offer; but I fear that the enterprise is hopeless. The aid,
+      however, of your arm and knowledge of war would greatly add to my chances,
+      and if it pleases you we will ride to-morrow to a point where we can
+      obtain a sight of the baron's castle. When you see it you shall judge
+      yourself how far such an enterprise as you propose is possible."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Is your own castle intact?" Cuthbert asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "The walls are standing," he said; "but a breach has been made in them,
+      and at present it is wholly deserted."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Do you think," Cuthbert asked, "that if you succeeded in surprising and
+      defeating the garrison of the castle that you could then regain your own,
+      and hold it against your enemy?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I think that I could," Sir Adelbert said. "The baron's domains are but
+      little larger than my own. Many of my retainers still live upon the
+      estate, and would, I am sure, gladly join me, if I were to raise my flag.
+      The baron, too, is hated by his neighbors, and could I inflict a crushing
+      blow upon him, methinks it would be so long a time before he could
+      assemble a force, that I might regain my castle and put it in an attitude
+      of defense before he could take the field against me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "If," Cuthbert said, "we could surprise the castle, it might well be that
+      the baron would fall into your hands, and in that case you might be able
+      to make your own terms with him. How strong a force is he likely to have
+      in his castle?"
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Some fifty or sixty men," the knight replied; "for with such a force he
+      could hold the castle against an attack of ten times their number, and he
+      could in twelve hours call in his retainers, and raise the garrison to
+      three hundred or four hundred men."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Blondel warmly assented to Cuthbert's scheme, and it was settled that at
+      daybreak they should start to view the Castle of Rotherheim. At early dawn
+      they were in the saddle, and the three rode all day, until toward sunset
+      they stood on the crest of a hill looking down into the valley of the
+      Rhine.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The present aspect of that valley affords but a slight idea of its beauty
+      in those days. The slopes are now clad with vineyards, which, although
+      picturesque in idea, are really, to look at from a distance, no better
+      than so many turnip fields. The vines are planted in rows and trained to
+      short sticks, and as these rows follow the declivities of the hillside,
+      they are run in all directions, and the whole mountain side, from the
+      river far up, is cut up into little patches of green lines. In those days
+      the mountains were clad with forests, which descended nearly to the
+      riverside. Here and there, upon craggy points, were situate the fortalices
+      of the barons. Little villages nestled in the woods, or stood by the river
+      bank, and a fairer scene could not be witnessed in Europe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "That is Rotherheim," the knight said, pointing to a fortress standing on
+      a crag, which rose high above the woods around it; "and that," he said,
+      pointing to another some four miles away, similarly placed, "is my own."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cuthbert examined closely the fortress of Rotherheim. It was a large
+      building, with towers at the angles, and seemed to rise almost abruptly
+      from the edge of the rock. Inside rose the gables and round turrets of the
+      dwelling-place of the baron, and the only access was by a steep winding
+      path on the riverside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It is indeed a strong place," Cuthbert said, "and difficult to take by
+      surprise. A watch no doubt is always kept over the entrance, and there we
+      can hope for no success. The only plan will be to scale the wall by means
+      of a ladder; but how the ladder is to be got to so great a height, I own
+      at present passes my comprehension." After much thought, Cuthbert went on,
+      "It might, methinks, be practicable for an archer to approach the walls,
+      and to shoot an arrow over the angle of the castle so that it would pass
+      inside the turret there, and fall in the forest beyond. If to this arrow
+      were attached a light cord, it could be gained by one on the other side,
+      and a stronger cord hauled over. To this could be attached a rope ladder,
+      and so this could be raised to the top of the wall. If a sentinel were
+      anywhere near he might hear the rope pulled across the battlements; but
+      if, as we may hope, a watch is kept only over the entrance, the operation
+      might be performed without attracting notice."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The knight was delighted with the project, which seemed perfectly
+      feasible, and it was agreed that the attempt should be made.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "It will need," Sir Adelbert said, "an archer with a strong arm indeed to
+      shoot an arrow with a cord attached to it, however light, over the corner
+      of the castle."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that I can do that, for as a lad I was used to
+      the strong bows of my country. The first thing, however, will be to obtain
+      such a bow; but doubtless one can be purchased in one of the towns, which,
+      if not so strong as those to which I was accustomed, will at any rate
+      suffice for us."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The party bivouacked in the woods for the night, for the horses had
+      already done a very long journey, and needed rest before starting back for
+      the Black Forest. At daybreak, however, they started, and at nightfall
+      rejoined their band. These were delighted when they heard the scheme that
+      had been set on foot, and all avowed their eagerness to join in the
+      attempt to restore their lord to his rights.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days later they set out, having already procured from the nearest town
+      a strong bow, some arrows, a very light rope, and a stronger one from a
+      portion of which they manufactured a rope ladder capable of reaching from
+      the top of the wall to the rock below. The journey this time occupied two
+      days, as the men on foot were unable to march at the pace at which the
+      mounted party had traversed the ground. The evening of the second day,
+      however, saw them in sight of the castle. By Cuthbert's advice, Sir
+      Adelbert determined to give them twenty-four hours of rest, in order that
+      they might have their full strength for undertaking the task before them.
+      During the day Cuthbert, guided by the knight, made his way through the
+      woods to the foot of the rocks on which the castle stood. They were
+      extremely steep, but could be mounted by active men if unopposed from
+      above. Cuthbert measured the height with his eye from the top of the
+      castle wall to the place which he selected as most fitting from which to
+      shoot the arrow, and announced to the knight that he thought there would
+      be no difficulty in discharging an arrow over the angle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At nightfall the whole party made their way silently through the woods.
+      Three men were sent round to the side of the castle opposite that from
+      which Cuthbert was to shoot. The length of light string was carefully
+      coiled on the ground, so as to unwind with the greatest facility, and so
+      offer as little resistance to the flight of the arrow as might be. Then,
+      all being in readiness, Cuthbert attached the end to an arrow, and drawing
+      the bow to its full compass, let fly the arrow. All held their breath; but
+      no sound followed the discharge. They were sure, therefore, that the arrow
+      had not struck the wall, but that it must have passed clear over it. Half
+      an hour elapsed before they felt that the cord was pulled, and knew that
+      the men upon the other side had succeeded in finding the arrow and string
+      attached. The stronger cord was now fastened to that which the arrow had
+      carried, and this gradually disappeared in the darkness. A party now stole
+      up the rock, and posted themselves at the foot of the castle wall. They
+      took with them the coil of rope-ladder and the end of the rope. At length
+      the rope tightened, and to the end they attached the ladder. This again
+      ascended until the end only remained upon the ground, and they knew that
+      it must have reached the top of the wall. They now held fast, and knew
+      that those on the other side, following the instructions given them, would
+      have fastened the rope to a tree upon the opposite side. They were now
+      joined by the rest of the party, and Sir Adelbert leading the way, and
+      followed by Cuthbert and Blondel, began cautiously to ascend the rope
+      ladder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All this time no sound from the castle proclaimed that their intention was
+      suspected, or that any alarm had been given, and in silence they gained
+      the top of the wall. Here they remained quiet until the whole band were
+      gathered there, and then made their way along until they reached the
+      stairs leading to the courtyard. These they descended, and then, raising
+      his war-cry, Sir Adelbert sprang upon the men who, round a fire, were
+      sitting by the gate. These were cut down before they could leap to their
+      feet, and the party then rushed at the entrance to the dwelling-house. The
+      retainers of the castle, aroused by the sudden din, rushed from their
+      sleeping places, but taken completely by surprise, were unable to offer
+      any resistance whatever to the strong force which had, as if by magic,
+      taken possession of the castle. The surprise was complete, and with scarce
+      a blow struck they found themselves in possession. The baron himself was
+      seized as he rose from his bed, and his rage at finding himself in the
+      power of his enemy was so great as for some time to render him speechless.
+      Sir Adelbert briefly dictated to him the conditions upon which only he
+      should desist from using his power to hang him over his own gate. The
+      baron was instantly to issue orders to all his own retainers and tenantry
+      to lend their aid to those of Sir Adelbert in putting the castle of the
+      latter into a state of defense and mending the breach which existed. A sum
+      of money, equal to the revenues of which he had possessed himself, was to
+      be paid at once, and the knight was to retain possession of Rotherheim and
+      of the baron's person until these conditions were all faithfully carried
+      out. The baron had no resource but to assent to these terms, and upon the
+      following day Cuthbert and Blondel departed upon their way, overwhelmed
+      with thanks by Sir Adelbert, and confident that he would now be able to
+      regain and hold the possession of his estate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2HCH0026" id="link2HCH0026"> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      CHAPTER XXVI. &mdash; KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO ENGLAND.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Journeying onward, Blondel and his companion stopped at many castles, and
+      were everywhere hospitably entertained. Arriving at Vienna they lingered
+      for some time, hoping there to be able to obtain some information of the
+      whereabouts of King Richard. Blondel in his songs artfully introduced
+      allusions to the captive monarch and to the mourning of all Christendom at
+      the imprisonment of its champion. These allusions were always well
+      received, and he found that the great bulk of the nobles of the empire
+      were indignant and ashamed at the conduct of the emperor in imprisoning
+      his illustrious rival. The secret of his prison place, however, appeared
+      to have been so well kept that no information whatever was obtainable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "We must carry out our original plan," he said at length, "and journey
+      into the Tyrol. In one of the fortresses there he is most likely to be
+      confined."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaving the capital they wandered up into the mountains for weeks,
+      visiting one castle after another. It was no easy matter in all cases to
+      get so near to these prisons as to give a hope that their voice might be
+      heard within, or an answer received without. More than once crossbow bolts
+      were shot at them from the walls when they did not obey the sentinel's
+      challenge and move further away. Generally, however, it was in the daytime
+      that they sang. Wandering carelessly up, they would sit down within
+      earshot of the castle, open their wallets, and take out provisions from
+      their store, and then, having eaten and drunk, Blondel would produce his
+      lute and sing, as if for his own pleasure. It needed, however, four visits
+      to each castle before they could be sure that the captive was not there;
+      for the song had to be sung on each side. Sometimes they would cheat
+      themselves with the thought that they heard an answering voice; but it was
+      not until the end of the fourth week, when singing outside the castle of
+      Diernstein, that a full rich voice, when Blondel ceased, sang out the
+      second stanza of the poem. With difficulty Blondel and Cuthbert restrained
+      themselves from an extravagant exhibition of joy. They knew, however, that
+      men on the prison wall were watching them as they sat singing, and
+      Blondel, with a final strain taken from a ballad of a knight who, having
+      discovered the hiding-place of his lady love, prepared to free her from
+      her oppressors, shouldered his lute, and they started on their homeward
+      journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no delay now. At times they sang indeed at castles; but only
+      when their store was exhausted, for upon these occasions Blondel would be
+      presented with a handsome goblet or other solid token of the owner's
+      approval, and the sale of this at the next city would take them far on
+      their way. They thought it better not to pass through France, as Philip,
+      they knew, was on the watch to prevent any news of King Richard reaching
+      England. They therefore again passed through Brabant, and so by ship to
+      England.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hearing that Longchamp, Bishop of Ely, one of Richard's vicegerents, was
+      over in Normandy, and rightly deeming him the most earnest of his
+      adherents, they at once recrossed the sea, and found the warlike prelate
+      at Rouen. Greatly delighted was he at hearing that Richard's hiding-place
+      had been discovered. He at once sent across the news to England, and
+      ordered it to be published far and wide, and himself announced it to the
+      barons of Normandy. Then with a gorgeous retinue, including Cuthbert and
+      Blondel, he started for Vienna, and arriving there demanded an interview
+      with the emperor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The news that it was now certain that Richard was imprisoned in a castle
+      of the emperor had already spread through Europe, and the bishop had been
+      received everywhere with tokens of sympathy; and so great was the feeling
+      shown by the counts and barons of the empire that the Emperor Henry felt
+      that he could no longer refuse to treat for the surrender of his captive.
+      Therefore he granted the interview which Longchamp demanded. The English
+      envoy was received by the emperor surrounded by his nobles. The prelate
+      advanced with great dignity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I come," he said, "in the name of the people of England to demand the
+      restoration of King Richard, most unjustly and unknightly detained a
+      prisoner in his passage through your dominions."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "King Richard was my foe," the emperor said, "open and secret, and I was
+      justified in detaining one who is alike my enemy and a scourge to Europe
+      as a prisoner, when fortune threw him in my hands. I am, however, willing
+      to put him to a ransom, and will upon the payment of one hundred and fifty
+      thousand marks allow him to go free."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I deny your right to detain him or to put him to ransom," the bishop
+      said. "But as you have the power, so my denial is useless. England is
+      poor, impoverished with war and by the efforts which she made in the
+      service of our holy religion. Nevertheless, poor as she is, she will raise
+      the sum you demand. There is not an Englishman who will not furnish all he
+      can afford for the rescue of our king. But once again, in the presence of
+      your nobles, I denounce your conduct as base and unkingly."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The emperor could with difficulty restrain his passion; but the sight of
+      the somber visages of his nobles showed that they shared in no slight
+      degree the feelings which the English envoy had so boldly announced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Before, however," the emperor said, "I surrender King Richard, he must be
+      tried by my peers of many and various crimes of which he is accused.
+      Should he be found guilty of these, no gold can purchase his release.
+      Should he, however, be acquitted, then as my word is given so shall it
+      be."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Although," the prelate said, "I deny your right to try our king, and
+      believe that he himself will refuse to accept your jurisdiction, yet I
+      fear not the result if our lord be left in the hands of the nobles of the
+      empire and not in yours. I can trust their honor and courtesy."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And turning upon his heel, without another word he quitted the apartment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An hour later the bishop and his following took horse and rode with all
+      speed to the north coast, and thence sailed for England. The news of the
+      amount of ransom filled the people with consternation; but preparations
+      were at once made for collecting the sum demanded. Queen Eleanor was
+      unceasing in her efforts to raise the money for the release of her
+      favorite son. The nobles contributed their jewels and silver; the people
+      gave contributions of goods, for money was so scarce in England that few
+      had the wherewithal to pay in coin. Prince John placed every obstacle in
+      the way of the collection; but the barons had since their successful stand
+      obtained the upper hand, and it was by intrigue only that he could hinder
+      the collection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meantime, popular opinion throughout Europe was strong upon the
+      side of King Richard. The pope himself wrote to the emperor on his behalf.
+      The barons of the empire were indignant at the shame placed upon their
+      country; and the emperor, although he would fain have thrown further
+      delays in the way, was obliged at last to order the first step to be
+      taken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A solemn diet was ordered to assemble at Worms. Here were collected all
+      the nobles of the empire, and before them King Richard was brought. It was
+      a grand assembly. Upon a raised throne on the daïs sat the emperor
+      himself, and beside him and near him were the great feudatories of the
+      empire, and along the sides of the walls were ranged in long rows the
+      lesser barons. When the doors were opened and King Richard entered, the
+      whole assembly, save the emperor, rose in respect to the captive monarch.
+      Although pale from his long confinement, the proud air of Richard was in
+      no way abated, and the eyes that had flashed so fearlessly upon the
+      Saracens looked as sternly down the long lines of the barons of Germany.
+      Of splendid stature and physique, King Richard was unquestionably the
+      finest man of his time. He was handsome, with a frank face, but with a
+      fierce and passionate eye. He wore his mustache with a short beard and
+      closely-cut whisker. His short curly hair was cropped closely to his head,
+      upon which he wore a velvet cap with gold coronet, while a scarlet robe
+      lined with fur fell over his coat of mail, for the emperor had deemed it
+      imprudent to excite the feeling of the assembly in favor of the prisoner
+      by depriving him of the symbols of his rank.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      King Richard strode to the place prepared for him, and then turning to the
+      assembly he said, in a voice which rang through the hall:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Counts and lords of the Empire of Germany, I, Richard, King of England,
+      do deny your right to try me. I am a king, and can only be tried by my
+      peers and by the pope, who is the head of Christendom. I might refuse to
+      plead, refuse to take any part in this assembly, and appeal to the pope,
+      who alone has power to punish kings. But I will waive my rights. I rely
+      upon the honor and probity of the barons of Germany. I have done no man
+      wrong, and would appear as fearlessly before an assembly of peasants as
+      before a gathering of barons. Such faults as I may have, and none are
+      without them, are not such as those with which I am charged. I have slain
+      many men in anger, but none by treachery. When Richard of England strikes
+      he strikes in the light of day. He leaves poison and treachery to his
+      enemies, and I hurl back with indignation and scorn in the teeth of him
+      who makes them the charges brought against me."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So saying King Richard took his seat amid a murmur of applause from the
+      crowded hall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trial then commenced. The accusations against Richard were of many
+      kinds. Chief among them was the murder of Conrad of Montferat; but there
+      were charges of having brought the Crusade to naught by thwarting the
+      general plans, by his arrogance in refusing to be bound by the decision of
+      the other leaders, and by having made a peace contrary to the interests of
+      the Crusaders. The list was a long one; but the evidence produced was
+      pitiably weak. Beyond the breath of suspicion, no word of real evidence
+      connecting him with the murder of Conrad of Montferat was adduced, and the
+      other charges were supported by no better evidence. Many of the German
+      barons who had been at the Crusades themselves came forward to testify to
+      the falsity of these charges, and the fact that Richard had himself placed
+      Conrad of Montferat upon the throne, and had no possible interest in his
+      death, was alone more than sufficient to nullify the vague rumors brought
+      against him. Richard himself in a few a scornful words disposed of this
+      accusation. The accusation that he, Richard of England, would stoop to
+      poison a man whom he could have crushed in an instant was too absurd to be
+      seriously treated.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "I am sure," the king said, "that not one person here believes this idle
+      tale. That I did not always agree with the other leaders is true; but I
+      call upon every one here to say whether, had they listened to me and
+      followed my advice, the Crusade would not have had another ending. Even
+      after Philip of France had withdrawn; even after I had been deserted by
+      John of Austria, I led the troops of the Crusaders from every danger and
+      every difficulty to within sight of the walls of Jerusalem. Had I been
+      supported with zeal, the holy city would have been ours; but the apathy,
+      the folly, and the weakness of the leaders brought ruin upon the army.
+      They thought not of conquering Jerusalem, but of thwarting me; and I
+      retort upon them the charge of having sacrificed the success of the
+      Crusade. As to the terms of peace, how were they made? I, with some fifty
+      knights and one thousand followers, alone remained in the Holy Land. Who
+      else, I ask, so circumstanced, could have obtained any terms whatever from
+      Saladin? It was the weight of my arm alone which saved Jaffa and Acre, and
+      the line of seacoast, to the Cross. And had I followed the example set me
+      by him of Austria and the Frenchman, not one foot of the Holy Land would
+      now remain in Christian hands."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The trial was soon over, and without a single dissentient the King of
+      England was acquitted of all the charges brought against him. But the
+      money was not yet raised, and King Richard was taken back into the heart
+      of Germany. At length, by prodigious exertions, half the amount claimed
+      was collected, and upon the solicitations of the pope and of the counts of
+      his own empire, the emperor consented to release Richard upon receipt of
+      this sum, and his royal promise that the remainder should be made up.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Not as yet, however, were the intrigues at an end. Prince John and King
+      Philip alike implored the emperor to retain his captive, and offered to
+      him a larger sum than the ransom if he would still hold him in his hands.
+      Popular opinion, was, however, too strong. When the news of these
+      negotiations became bruited abroad the counts of the empire, filled with
+      indignation, protested against this shame and dishonor being brought upon
+      the country. The pope threatened him with excommunication; and at last the
+      emperor, feeling that he would risk his throne did he further insist, was
+      forced to open the prison gates and let the king free. Cuthbert, Blondel,
+      and a few other trusty friends were at hand, and their joy at receiving
+      their long-lost sovereign was indeed intense. Horses had been provided in
+      readiness, and without a moment's delay the king started, for even at the
+      last moment it was feared that the emperor might change his mind. This
+      indeed was the case. The king had not started many hours, when the arrival
+      of fresh messengers from Philip and John induced the emperor once more to
+      change his intentions, and a body of men were sent in pursuit of the king.
+      The latter fortunately made no stay on the way, but changing horses
+      frequently&mdash;for everywhere he was received with honor and attention&mdash;he
+      pushed forward for the coast of the North Sea, and arrived there two or
+      three hours only before his oppressors. Fortunately it was night, and
+      taking a boat he embarked without a moment's delay; and when the
+      emissaries of the emperor arrived the boat was already out of sight, and
+      in the darkness pursuit was hopeless.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On landing at Dover, the first to present himself before him was Prince
+      John, who, in the most abject terms besought pardon for the injuries he
+      had inflicted. King Richard waved him contemptuously aside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      "Go," he said, "and may I forget your injuries as speedily as you will
+      forget my pardon."
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then taking horse, he rode on to London, where he was received with the
+      most lively acclamation by his subjects.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The first step of King Richard was to dispossess all the minions of John
+      from the castles and lands which had been taken from his faithful
+      adherents. Some of these resisted; but their fortresses were speedily
+      stormed. Sir Rudolph was not one of these. Immediately the news of King
+      Richard's arrival in England reached him, feeling that all was now lost,
+      he rode to the seacoast, took ship, and passed into France, and Cuthbert,
+      on his arrival at Evesham, found himself undisputed lord of the place. He
+      found that the hiding-place of his mother had not been discovered, and,
+      after a short delay to put matters in train, he, attended by a gallant
+      retinue, rode into Wiltshire to the castle of Sir Baldwin of Béthune. Here
+      he found the Lady Margaret safe and sound, and mightily pleased to see
+      him. She was now seventeen, and offered no objections whatever to the
+      commands of King Richard that she should at once bestow her hand upon the
+      Earl of Evesham. By the king's order, the wedding took place at London,
+      the king himself bestowing the bride upon his faithful follower, whom we
+      may now leave to the enjoyment of the fortune and wife he had so valiantly
+      won.
+    </p>
+    <h3>
+      THE END.
+    </h3>
+    <div style="height: 6em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
+
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Boy Knight
+
+Author: G.A. Henty
+
+Release Date: September 2, 2004 [EBook #13354]
+[Last updated: August 4, 2013]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOY KNIGHT ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Ted Garvin, Annika Feilbach and PG Distributed Proofreaders
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BOY KNIGHT.
+
+A TALE OF THE CRUSADES.
+
+
+BY G.A. HENTY,
+
+_Author of "The Young Buglers," "Through the Fray," "The Cornet of
+Horse," "The Young Colonists," "In Times of Peril," etc., etc._
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+The Outlaws.
+
+CHAPTER II.
+A Rescue.
+
+CHAPTER III.
+The Capture of Wortham Hold.
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+The Crusades.
+
+CHAPTER V.
+Preparations.
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+The Lists.
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+Revenge.
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+The Attack.
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+The Princess Berengaria.
+
+CHAPTER X.
+Pirates.
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+In the Holy Land.
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+The Accolade.
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+In the Hands of the Saracens.
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+An Effort for Freedom.
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+A Hermit's Tale.
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+A Fight of Heroes.
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+An Alpine Storm.
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+Sentenced to Death.
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+Dresden.
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+Under the Greenwood.
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+The Attempt on the Convent.
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+A Dastardly Stratagem.
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+The False and Perjured Knight.
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+The Siege of Evesham Castle.
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+In Search of the King.
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+King Richard's Return to England.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BOY KNIGHT.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE OUTLAWS.
+
+
+It was a bright morning in the month of August, when a lad of some
+fifteen years of age, sitting on a low wall, watched party after party
+of armed men riding up to the castle of the Earl of Evesham. A casual
+observer glancing at his curling hair and bright open face, as also at
+the fashion of his dress, would at once have assigned to him a purely
+Saxon origin; but a keener eye would have detected signs that Norman
+blood ran also in his veins, for his figure was lither and lighter, his
+features more straightly and shapely cut, than was common among Saxons.
+His dress consisted of a tight-fitting jerkin, descending nearly to his
+knees. The material was a light-blue cloth, while over his shoulder hung
+a short cloak of a darker hue. His cap was of Saxon fashion, and he wore
+on one side a little plume of a heron. In a somewhat costly belt hung a
+light short sword, while across his knees lay a crossbow, in itself
+almost a sure sign of its bearer being of other than Saxon blood. The
+boy looked anxiously as party after party rode past toward the castle.
+
+"I would give something," he said, "to know what wind blows these knaves
+here. From every petty castle in the Earl's feu the retainers seem
+hurrying here. Is he bent, I wonder, on settling once and for all his
+quarrels with the Baron of Wortham? or can he be intending to make a
+clear sweep of the woods? Ah! here comes my gossip Hubert; he may tell
+me the meaning of this gathering."
+
+Leaping to his feet, the speaker started at a brisk walk to meet a
+jovial-looking personage coming down from the direction of the castle.
+The newcomer was dressed in the attire of a falconer, and two dogs
+followed at his heels.
+
+"Ah, Master Cuthbert," he said, "what brings you so near to the castle?
+It is not often that you favor us with your presence."
+
+"I am happier in the woods, as you well know, and was on my way thither
+but now, when I paused at the sight of all these troopers flocking in to
+Evesham. What enterprise has Sir Walter on hand now, think you?"
+
+"The earl keeps his own counsel," said the falconer, "but methinks a
+shrewd guess might be made at the purport of the gathering. It was but
+three days since that his foresters were beaten back by the landless
+men, whom they caught in the very act of cutting up a fat buck. As thou
+knowest, my lord though easy and well-disposed to all, and not fond of
+harassing and driving the people as are many of his neighbors, is yet to
+the full as fanatical anent his forest privileges as the worst of them.
+They tell me that when the news came in of the poor figure that his
+foresters cut with broken bows and draggled plumes--for the varlets had
+soused them in a pond of not over savory water--he swore a great oath
+that he would clear the forest of the bands. It may be, indeed, that
+this gathering is for the purpose of falling in force upon that
+evil-disposed and most treacherous baron, Sir John of Wortham, who has
+already begun to harry some of the outlying lands, and has driven off, I
+hear, many heads of cattle. It is a quarrel which will have to be fought
+out sooner or later, and the sooner the better, say I. Although I am no
+man of war, and love looking after my falcons or giving food to my dogs
+far more than exchanging hard blows, yet would I gladly don the buff and
+steel coat to aid in leveling the keep of that robber and tyrant, Sir
+John of Wortham."
+
+"Thanks, good Hubert," said the lad. "I must not stand gossiping here.
+The news you have told me, as you know, touches me closely, for I would
+not that harm should come to the forest men."
+
+"Let it not out, I beseech thee, Cuthbert, that the news came from me,
+for temperate as Sir Walter is at most times, he would, methinks, give
+me short shift did he know that the wagging of my tongue might have
+given warning through which the outlaws of the Chase should slip through
+his fingers."
+
+"Fear not, Hubert; I can be mum when the occasion needs. Can you tell
+me further, when the bands now gathering are likely to set forth?"
+
+"In brief breathing space," the falconer replied. "Those who first
+arrived I left swilling beer, and devouring pies and other provisions
+cooked for them last night, and from what I hear, they will set forth as
+soon as the last comer has arrived. Whichever be their quarry, they will
+try to fall upon it before the news of their arrival is bruited abroad."
+
+With a wave of his hand to the falconer the boy started. Leaving the
+road, and striking across the slightly undulated country dotted here and
+there by groups of trees, the lad ran at a brisk trot, without stopping
+to halt or breathe, until after half an hour's run he arrived at the
+entrance of a building, whose aspect proclaimed it to be the abode of a
+Saxon franklin of some importance. It would not be called a castle, but
+was rather a fortified house, with a few windows looking without, and
+surrounded by a moat crossed by a drawbridge, and capable of sustaining
+anything short of a real attack. Erstwood had but lately passed into
+Norman hands, and was indeed at present owned by a Saxon. Sir William de
+Lance, the father of the lad who is now entering its portals, was a
+friend and follower of the Earl of Evesham; and soon after his lord had
+married Gweneth, the heiress of all these fair lands--given to him by
+the will of the king, to whom by the death of her father she became a
+ward--Sir William had married Editha, the daughter and heiress of the
+franklin of Erstwood, a cousin and dear friend of the new Countess of
+Evesham.
+
+In neither couple could the marriage at first have been called one of
+inclination on the part of the ladies, but love came after marriage.
+Although the knights and barons of the Norman invasion would, no doubt,
+be considered rude and rough in these days of broadcloth and
+civilization, yet their manners were gentle and polished by the side of
+those of the rough though kindly Saxon franklins; and although the Saxon
+maids were doubtless as patriotic as their fathers and mothers, yet the
+female mind is greatly led by gentle manners and courteous address.
+Thus, then, when bidden or forced to give their hands to the Norman
+knights, they speedily accepted their lot, and for the most part grew
+contented and happy enough. In their changed circumstances it was
+pleasanter to ride by the side of their Norman husbands, surrounded by a
+gay cavalcade, to hawk and to hunt, than to discharge the quiet duties
+of mistress of a Saxon farmhouse. In many cases, of course, their lot
+was rendered wretched by the violence and brutality of their lords; but
+in the majority they were well satisfied with their lot, and these mixed
+marriages did more to bring the peoples together and weld them in one
+than all the laws and decrees of the Norman sovereigns.
+
+This had certainly been the case with Editha, whose marriage with Sir
+William had been one of the greatest happiness. She had lost him three
+years before the story begins, fighting in Normandy, in one of the
+innumerable wars in which our first Norman kings were constantly
+involved. On entering the gates of Erstwood Cuthbert had rushed hastily
+to the room where his mother was sitting, with three or four of her
+maidens, engaged in work.
+
+"I want to speak to you at once, mother," he said.
+
+"What is it now, my son?" said his mother, who was still young and very
+comely. Waving her hand to the girls they left her.
+
+"Mother," he said, when they were alone, "I fear me that Sir Walter is
+about to make a great raid upon the outlaws. Armed men have been coming
+in all the morning from the castles round, and if it be not against the
+Baron de Wortham that these preparations are intended, and methinks it
+is not, it must needs be against the landless men."
+
+"What would you do, Cuthbert?" his mother asked anxiously. "It will not
+do for you to be found meddling in these matters. At present you stand
+well in the favor of the earl, who loves you for the sake of his wife,
+to whom you are kin, and of your father, who did him good liegeman's
+service."
+
+"But, mother, I have many friends in the wood. There is Cnut, their
+chief, your own first cousin, and many others of our friends, all good
+men and true, though forced by the cruel Norman laws to refuge in the
+woods."
+
+"What would you do?" again his mother asked.
+
+"I would take Ronald my pony and ride to warn them of the danger that
+threatens."
+
+"You had best go on foot, my son. Doubtless men have been set to see
+that none from the Saxon homesteads carry the warning to the woods. The
+distance is not beyond your reach, for you have often wandered there,
+and on foot you can evade the eye of the watchers; but one thing, my
+son, you must promise, and that is, that in no case, should the earl and
+his bands meet with the outlaws, will you take part in any fray or
+struggle."
+
+"That will I willingly, mother," he said. "I have no cause for offense
+against the castle or the forest, and my blood and my kin are with both.
+I would fain save shedding of blood in a quarrel like this. I hope that
+the time may come when Saxon and Norman may fight side by side, and I
+may be there to see."
+
+A few minutes later, having changed his blue doublet for one of more
+sober and less noticeable color, Cuthbert started for the great forest,
+which then stretched to within a mile of Erstwood. In those days a large
+part of the country was covered with forest, and the policy of the
+Normans in preserving these woods for the chase tended to prevent the
+increase of cultivation.
+
+The farms and cultivated lands were all held by Saxons, who although
+nominally handed over to the nobles to whom William and his successors
+had given the fiefs, saw but little of their Norman masters. These
+stood, indeed, much in the position in which landlords stand to their
+tenants, payment being made, for the most part, in produce. At the edge
+of the wood the trees grew comparatively far apart, but as Cuthbert
+proceeded further into its recesses, the trees in the virgin forest
+stood thick and close together. Here and there open glades ran across
+each other, and in these his sharp eye, accustomed to the forest, could
+often see the stags starting away at the sound of his footsteps.
+
+It was a full hour's journey before Cuthbert reached the point for which
+he was bound. Here, in an open space, probably cleared by a storm ages
+before, and overshadowed by giant trees, was a group of men of all ages
+and appearances. Some were occupied in stripping the skin off a buck
+which hung from the bough of one of the trees. Others were roasting
+portions of the carcass of another deer. A few sat apart, some talking,
+others busy in making arrows, while a few lay asleep on the greensward.
+As Cuthbert entered the clearing several of the party rose to their
+feet.
+
+"Ah, Cuthbert," shouted a man of almost gigantic stature, who appeared
+to be one of the leaders of the party, "what brings you here, lad, so
+early? You are not wont to visit us till even, when you can lay your
+crossbow at a stag by moonlight."
+
+"No, no, Cousin Cnut," Cuthbert said, "thou canst not say that I have
+ever broken the forest laws, though I have looked on often and often,
+while you have done so."
+
+"The abettor is as bad as the thief," laughed Cnut, "and if the
+foresters caught us in the act, I wot they would make but little
+difference whether it was the shaft of my longbow or the quarrel from
+thy crossbow which brought down the quarry. But again, lad, why comest
+thou here? for I see by the sweat on your face and by the heaving of
+your sides that you have run fast and far."
+
+"I have, Cnut; I have not once stopped for breathing since I left
+Erstwood. I have come to warn you of danger. The earl is preparing for a
+raid."
+
+Cnut laughed somewhat disdainfully.
+
+"He has raided here before, and I trow has carried off no game. The
+landless men of the forest can hold their own against a handful of
+Norman knights and retainers in their own home."
+
+"Ay," said Cuthbert, "but this will be no common raid. This morning
+bands from all the holds within miles round are riding in, and at least
+five hundred men-at-arms are likely to do chase to-day."
+
+"Is it so?" said Cnut, while exclamations of surprise, but not of
+apprehension, broke from those standing round. "If that be so, lad, you
+have done us good service indeed. With fair warning we can slip through
+the fingers of ten times five hundred men, but if they came upon us
+unawares, and hemmed us in, it would fare but badly with us, though we
+should, I doubt not, give a good account of them before their
+battle-axes and maces ended the strife. Have you any idea by which road
+they will enter the forest, or what are their intentions?"
+
+"I know not," Cuthbert said; "all that I gathered was that the earl
+intended to sweep the forest, and to put an end to the breaches of the
+laws, not to say of the rough treatment that his foresters have met with
+at your hands. You had best, methinks, be off before Sir Walter and his
+heavily-armed men are here. The forest, large as it is, will scarce hold
+you both, and methinks you had best shift your quarters to Langholm
+Chase until the storm has passed."
+
+"To Langholm be it, then," said Cnut, "though I love not the place. Sir
+John of Wortham is a worse neighbor by far than the earl. Against the
+latter we bear no malice, he is a good knight and a fair lord; and could
+he free himself of the Norman notions that the birds of the air, and the
+beasts of the field, and the fishes of the water, all belong to Normans,
+and that we Saxons have no share in them, I should have no quarrel with
+him. He grinds not his neighbors, he is content with a fair tithe of the
+produce, and as between man and man is a fair judge without favor. The
+baron is a fiend incarnate; did he not fear that he would lose by so
+doing, he would gladly cut the throats, or burn, or drown, or hang every
+Saxon within twenty miles of his hold. He is a disgrace to his order,
+and some day, when our band gathers a little stronger, we will burn his
+nest about his ears."
+
+"It will be a hard nut to crack," Cuthbert said, laughing. "With such
+arms as you have in the forest the enterprise would be something akin to
+scaling the skies."
+
+"Ladders and axes will go far, lad, and the Norman men-at-arms have
+learned to dread our shafts. But enough of the baron; if we must be his
+neighbors for a time, so be it."
+
+"You have heard, my mates," he said, turning to his comrades gathered
+around him, "what Cuthbert tells us. Are you of my opinion, that it is
+better to move away till the storm is past than to fight against heavy
+odds, without much chance of either booty or victory?"
+
+A general chorus proclaimed that the outlaws approved of the proposal
+for a move to Langholm Chase. The preparations were simple. Bows were
+taken down from the boughs on which they were hanging, quivers slung
+across the backs, short cloaks thrown over the shoulders. The deer was
+hurriedly dismembered, and the joints fastened to a pole slung on the
+shoulders of two of the men. The drinking-cups, some of which were of
+silver, looking strangely out of place among the rough horn implements
+and platters, were bundled together, carried a short distance and
+dropped among some thick bushes for safety; and then the band started
+for Wortham.
+
+With a cordial farewell and many thanks to Cuthbert, who declined their
+invitations to accompany them, the retreat to Langholm commenced.
+
+Cuthbert, not knowing in which direction the bands were likely to
+approach, remained for awhile motionless, intently listening.
+
+In a quarter of an hour he heard the distant note of a bugle.
+
+It was answered in three different directions, and Cuthbert, who knew
+every path and glade of the forest, was able pretty accurately to
+surmise those by which the various bands were commencing to enter the
+wood.
+
+Knowing that they were still a long way off, he advanced as rapidly as
+he could in the direction in which they were coming. When by the sound
+of distant voices and the breaking of branches he knew that one, at
+least, of the parties was near at hand, he rapidly climbed a thick tree
+and ensconced himself in the branches, and there watched, secure and
+hidden from the sharpest eye, the passage of a body of men-at-arms fully
+a hundred strong, led by Sir Walter himself, accompanied by some half
+dozen of his knights.
+
+When they had passed Cuthbert again slipped down the tree and made at
+all speed for home. He reached it, so far as he knew, without having
+been observed by a single passer-by.
+
+After a brief talk with his mother he started for the castle, as his
+appearance there would divert any suspicion that might arise; and it
+would also appear natural that seeing the movements of so large a body
+of men, he should go up to gossip with his acquaintances there.
+
+When distant a mile from Evesham he came upon a small party.
+
+On a white palfrey rode Margaret, the little daughter of the earl. She
+was accompanied by her nurse and two retainers on foot.
+
+Cuthbert--who was a great favorite with the earl's daughter, for whom he
+frequently brought pets, such as nests of young owlets, falcons, and
+other creatures--was about to join the party when from a clump of trees
+near burst a body of ten mounted men.
+
+Without a word they rode straight at the astonished group. The retainers
+were cut to the ground before they had thought of drawing a sword in
+defense.
+
+The nurse was slain by a blow with a battle-ax, and Margaret, snatched
+from her palfrey, was thrown across the saddlebow of one of the mounted
+men, who then with his comrades dashed off at full speed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+A RESCUE.
+
+
+The whole of the startling scene of the abduction of the Earl of
+Evesham's daughter occupied but a few seconds. Cuthbert was so astounded
+at the sudden calamity that he remained rooted to the ground at the spot
+where, fortunately for himself, unnoticed by the assailants, he had
+stood when they first burst from their concealment.
+
+For a short time he hesitated as to the course he should take.
+
+The men-at-arms who remained in the castle were scarce strong enough to
+rescue the child, whose captors would no doubt be reinforced by a far
+stronger party lurking near.
+
+The main body of Sir Walter's followers were deep in the recesses of the
+forest, and this lay altogether out of the line for Wortham, and there
+would be no chance whatever of bringing them up in time to cut off the
+marauders on their way back.
+
+There remained only the outlaws, who by this time would be in Langholm
+Forest, perhaps within a mile or two of the castle itself.
+
+The road by which the horsemen would travel would be far longer than
+the direct line across country, and he resolved at once to strain every
+nerve to reach his friends in time to get them to interpose between the
+captors of the Lady Margaret and their stronghold.
+
+For an instant he hesitated whether to run back to Erstwood to get a
+horse; but he decided that it would be as quick to go on foot, and far
+easier so to find the outlaws.
+
+These thoughts occupied but a few moments, and he at once started at the
+top of his speed for his long run across the country.
+
+Had Cuthbert been running in a race of hare and hound, he would
+assuredly have borne away the prize from most boys of his age. At
+headlong pace he made across the country, every foot of which, as far as
+the edge of Langholm Chase, he knew by heart.
+
+The distance to the woods was some twelve miles, and in an hour and a
+half from the moment of his starting Cuthbert was deep within its
+shades. Where he would be likely to find the outlaws he knew not; and,
+putting a whistle to his lips, he shrilly blew the signal, which would,
+he knew, be recognized by any of the band within hearing.
+
+He thought that he heard an answer, but was not certain, and again
+dashed forward, almost as speedily as if he had but just started.
+
+Five minutes later a man stood in the glade up which he was running. He
+recognized him at once as one of Cnut's party.
+
+"Where are the band?" he gasped.
+
+"Half a mile or so to the right," replied the man.
+
+Guided by the man, Cuthbert ran at full speed, till, panting and scarce
+able to speak, he arrived at the spot where Cnut's band were gathered.
+
+In a few words he told them what had happened, and although they had
+just been chased by the father of the captured child, there was not a
+moment of hesitation in promising their aid to rescue her from a man
+whom they regarded as a far more bitter enemy, both of themselves and
+their race.
+
+"I fear we shall be too late to cut them off," Cnut said, "they have so
+long a start; but at least we will waste no time in gossiping."
+
+Winding a horn to call together some of the members of the band who had
+scattered, and leaving one at the meeting-place to give instructions to
+the rest, Cnut, followed by those assembled there, went off at a
+swinging trot through the glades toward Wortham Castle.
+
+After a rapid calculation of distances, and allowing for the fact that
+the baron's men--knowing that Sir Walter's retainers and friends were
+all deep in the forest, and even if they heard of the outrage could not
+be on their traces for hours--would take matters quietly, Cnut concluded
+that they had arrived in time.
+
+Turning off, they made their way along the edge of the wood, to the
+point where the road from Evesham ran through the forest.
+
+Scarcely had the party reached this point when they heard a faint
+clatter of steel.
+
+"Here they come!" exclaimed Cuthbert.
+
+Cnut gave rapid directions, and the band took up their posts behind the
+trees, on either side of the path.
+
+"Remember," Cnut said, "above all things be careful not to hit the
+child, but pierce the horse on which she is riding. The instant he
+falls, rush forward. We must trust to surprise to give us the victory."
+
+Three minutes later the head of a band of horsemen was seen through the
+trees. They were some thirty in number, and, closely grouped as they
+were together, the watchers behind the trees could not see the form of
+the child carried in their midst.
+
+When they came abreast of the concealed outlaws Cnut gave a sharp
+whistle, and fifty arrows flew from tree and bush into the closely
+gathered party of horsemen. More than half their number fell at once;
+some, drawing their swords, endeavored to rush at their concealed foes,
+while others dashed forward in the hope of riding through the snare into
+which they had fallen. Cuthbert had leveled his crossbow, but had not
+fired; he was watching with intense anxiety for a glimpse of the
+bright-colored dress of the child. Soon he saw a horseman separate
+himself from the rest and dash forward at full speed. Several arrows
+flew by him, and one or two struck the horse on which he rode.
+
+The animal, however, kept on its way.
+
+Cuthbert leveled his crossbow on the low arm of a tree, and as the rider
+came abreast of him touched the trigger, and the steel-pointed quarrel
+flew true and strong against the temple of the passing horseman. He fell
+from his horse like a stone, and the well-trained animal at once stood
+still by the side of his rider.
+
+Cuthbert leaped forward, and to his delight the child at once opened her
+arms and cried in a joyous tone:
+
+"Cuthbert!"
+
+The fight was still raging fiercely, and Cuthbert, raising her from the
+ground, ran with her into the wood, where they remained hidden until the
+combat ceased, and the last survivors of the baron's band had ridden
+past toward the castle.
+
+Then Cuthbert went forward with his charge and joined the band of
+outlaws, who, absorbed in the fight, had not witnessed the incident of
+her rescue, and now received them with loud shouts of joy and triumph.
+
+"This is a good day's work indeed for all," Cuthbert said; "it will make
+of the earl a firm friend instead of a bitter enemy; and I doubt not
+that better days are dawning for Evesham Forest."
+
+A litter was speedily made with boughs; on this Margaret was placed, and
+on the shoulders of two stout foresters started for home, Cnut and
+Cuthbert walking beside, and a few of the band keeping at a short
+distance behind, as a sort of rearguard, should the baron attempt to
+regain his prey.
+
+There was now no cause for speed, and Cuthbert in truth could scarce
+drag one foot before another, for he had already traversed over twenty
+miles, the greater portion of the distance at his highest rate of speed.
+
+Cnut offered to have a litter made for him also, but this Cuthbert
+indignantly refused; however, in the forest they came upon the hut of a
+small cultivator, who had a rough forest pony, which was borrowed for
+Cuthbert's use.
+
+It was late in the afternoon before they came in sight of Evesham
+Castle. From the distance could be seen bodies of armed men galloping
+toward it, and it was clear that only now the party were returning from
+the wood, and had learned the news of the disappearance of the earl's
+daughter, and of the finding of the bodies of her attendants.
+
+Presently they met one of the mounted retainers riding at headlong
+speed.
+
+"Have you heard or seen anything," he shouted, as he approached, "of the
+Lady Margaret? She is missing, and foul play has taken place."
+
+"Here I am, Rudolph," cried the child, sitting up on the rude litter.
+
+The horseman gave a cry of astonishment and pleasure, and without a word
+wheeled his horse and galloped past back at headlong speed toward the
+castle.
+
+As Cuthbert and the party approached the gate the earl himself,
+surrounded by his knights and followers, rode out hastily from the gate
+and halted in front of the little party. The litter was lowered, and as
+he dismounted from his horse his daughter sprang out and leaped into his
+arms.
+
+For a few minutes the confusion and babble of tongues were too great for
+anything to be heard, but Cuthbert, as soon as order was somewhat
+restored, stated what had happened, and the earl was moved to fury at
+the news of the outrage which had been perpetrated by the Baron of
+Wortham upon his daughter and at the very gates of his castle, and also
+at the thought that she should have been saved by the bravery and
+devotion of the very men against whom he had so lately been vowing
+vengeance in the depths of the forest.
+
+"This is not a time," he said to Cnut, "for talk or making promises, but
+be assured that henceforth the deer of Evesham Chase are as free to you
+and your men as to me. Forest laws or no forest laws, I will no more
+lift a hand against men to whom I owe so much. Come when you will to the
+castle, my friends, and let us talk over what can be done to raise your
+outlawry and restore you to an honest career again."
+
+Cuthbert returned home tired, but delighted with his day's work, and
+Dame Editha was surprised indeed with the tale of adventure he had to
+tell. The next morning he went over to the castle, and heard that a
+grand council had been held the evening before, and that it had been
+determined to attack Wortham Castle and to raze it to the ground.
+
+Immediately on hearing of his arrival, the earl, after again expressing
+his gratitude for the rescue of his daughter, asked him if he would go
+into the forest and invite the outlaws to join their forces with those
+of the castle to attack the baron.
+
+Cuthbert willingly undertook the mission, as he felt that this alliance
+would further strengthen the position of the forest men.
+
+When he arrived there was some considerable consultation and discussion
+between the outlaws as to the expediency of mixing themselves in the
+quarrels between the Norman barons. However, Cnut persuaded them that as
+the Baron of Wortham was an enemy and oppressor of all Saxons, it was in
+fact their own quarrel that they were fighting rather than that of the
+earl, and they therefore agreed to give their aid, and promised to be at
+the rendezvous outside the castle to be attacked soon after dawn next
+morning. Cuthbert returned with the news which gave great satisfaction
+to the earl.
+
+The castle was now a scene of bustle and business; armorers were at work
+repairing headpieces and breastplates, sharpening swords and
+battle-axes, while the fletchers prepared sheaves of arrows. In the
+courtyard a number of men were engaged oiling the catapults, ballistas,
+and other machines for hurling stones. All were discussing the chances
+of the assault, for it was no easy matter which they had set themselves
+to do. Wortham Hold was an extremely strong one, and it needed all and
+more than all the machines at their disposal to undertake so formidable
+an operation as a siege.
+
+The garrison, too, were strong and desperate; and the baron, knowing
+what must follow his outrage of the day before, would have been sure to
+send off messengers round the country begging his friends to come to
+his assistance. Cuthbert had begged permission of his mother to ask the
+earl to allow him to join as a volunteer, but she would not hear of it.
+Neither would she suffer him to mingle with the foresters. The utmost
+that he could obtain was that he might go as a spectator, with strict
+injunctions to keep himself out of the fray, and as far as possible
+beyond bow-shot of the castle wall.
+
+It was a force of some four hundred strong that issued from the wood
+early next morning to attack the stronghold at Wortham. The force
+consisted of some ten or twelve knights and barons, some one hundred and
+fifty or one hundred and sixty Norman men-at-arms, a miscellaneous
+gathering of other retainers, two hundred strong, and some eighty of the
+forest men. These last were not to fight under the earl's banner, but
+were to act on their own account. There were among them outlaws, escaped
+serfs, and some men guilty of bloodshed. The earl then could not have
+suffered these men to fight under his flag until purged in some way of
+their offenses.
+
+This arrangement suited the foresters well.
+
+Their strong point was shooting; and by taking up their own position,
+and following their own tactics, under the leadership of Cnut, they
+would be able to do far more execution, and that with less risk to
+themselves, than if compelled to fight according to the fashion of the
+Normans.
+
+As they approached the castle a trumpet was blown, and the herald
+advancing, demanded its surrender, stigmatized the Baron of Wortham as a
+false knight and a disgrace to his class and warned all those within
+the castle to abstain from giving him aid or countenance, but to submit
+themselves to the earl, Sir Walter of Evesham, the representative of
+King Richard.
+
+The reply to the summons was a burst of taunting laughter from the
+walls; and scarcely had the herald withdrawn than a flight of arrows
+showed that the besieged were perfectly ready for the fray.
+
+Indeed the baron had not been idle. Already the dispute between himself
+and the earl had come to such a point that it was certain that sooner or
+later open hostilities would break out.
+
+He had therefore been for some time quietly accumulating a large store
+of provisions and munitions of war, and strengthening the castle in
+every way.
+
+The moat had been cleaned out, and filled to the brim with water. Great
+quantities of heavy stones had been accumulated on the most exposed
+points of the walls, in readiness to hurl upon any who might try to
+climb. Huge sheaves of arrows and piles of crossbow bolts were in
+readiness, and in all, save the number of men, Wortham had for weeks
+been prepared for the siege.
+
+On the day when the attempt to carry off the earl's daughter had failed,
+the baron, seeing that his bold stroke to obtain a hostage which would
+have enabled him to make his own terms with the earl had been thwarted,
+knew that the struggle was inevitable.
+
+Fleet messengers had been sent in all directions. To Gloucester and
+Hereford, Stafford, and even Oxford, men had ridden, with letters to the
+baron's friends, beseeching them to march to his assistance.
+
+"I can," he said, "defend my hold for weeks. But it is only by aid from
+without that I can finally hope to break the power of this baggart
+[Transcriber's note: sic] earl."
+
+Many of those to whom he addressed his call had speedily complied with
+his demand, while those at a distance might be expected to reply later
+to the appeal.
+
+There were many among the barons who considered the mildness of the Earl
+of Evesham toward the Saxons in his district to be a mistake, and who,
+although not actually approving of the tyranny and brutality of the
+Baron of Wortham, yet looked upon his cause to some extent as their own.
+
+The Castle of Wortham stood upon ground but very slightly elevated above
+the surrounding country. A deep and wide moat ran round it, and this
+could, by diverting a rivulet, be filled at will.
+
+From the edge of the moat the walls rose high, and with strong flanking
+towers and battlements.
+
+There were strong works also beyond the moat opposite to the drawbridge;
+while in the center of the castle rose the keep, from whose summit the
+archers, and the machines for casting stones and darts, could command
+the whole circuit of defense.
+
+As Cuthbert, accompanied by one of the hinds of the farm, took his post
+high up in a lofty tree, where at his ease he could command a view of
+the proceedings, he marveled much in what manner an attack upon so fair
+a fortress would be commenced.
+
+"It will be straightforward work to attack the outwork," he said, "but
+that once won, I see not how we are to proceed against the castle
+itself. The machines that the earl has will scarcely hurl stones strong
+enough even to knock the mortar from the walls. Ladders are useless
+where they cannot be planted; and if the garrison are as brave as the
+castle is strong, methinks that the earl has embarked upon a business
+that will keep him here till next spring."
+
+There was little time lost in commencing the conflict.
+
+The foresters, skirmishing up near to the castle, and taking advantage
+of every inequality in the ground, of every bush and tuft of high grass,
+worked up close to the moat, and then opened a heavy fire with their
+bows against the men-at-arms on the battlements, and prevented their
+using the machines against the main force now advancing to the attack
+upon the outwork.
+
+This was stoutly defended. But the impetuosity of the earl, backed as it
+was by the gallantry of the knights serving under him, carried all
+obstacles.
+
+The narrow moat which encircled this work was speedily filled with great
+bundles of brushwood, which had been prepared the previous night. Across
+these the assailants rushed.
+
+Some thundered at the gate with their battle-axes, while others placed
+ladders by which, although several times hurled backward by the
+defenders, they finally succeeded in getting a footing on the wall.
+
+Once there, the combat was virtually over.
+
+The defenders were either cut down or taken prisoners, and in two hours
+after the assault began the outwork of Wortham Castle was taken.
+
+This, however, was but the commencement of the undertaking, and it had
+cost more than twenty lives to the assailants.
+
+They were now, indeed, little nearer to capturing the castle than they
+had been before.
+
+The moat was wide and deep. The drawbridge had been lifted at the
+instant that the first of the assailants gained a footing upon the wall.
+And now that the outwork was captured, a storm of arrows, stones, and
+other missiles was poured into it from the castle walls, and rendered it
+impossible for any of its new masters to show themselves above it.
+
+Seeing that any sudden attack was impossible, the earl now directed a
+strong body to cut down trees, and prepare a moveable bridge to throw
+across the moat.
+
+This would be a work of fully two days; and in the meantime Cuthbert
+returned to the farm.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE CAPTURE OF WORTHAM HOLD.
+
+
+Upon his return home, after relating to his mother the events of the
+morning's conflict, Cuthbert took his way to the cottage inhabited by an
+old man who had in his youth been a mason.
+
+"Have I not heard, Gurth," he said, "that you helped to build the Castle
+of Wortham?"
+
+"No, no, young sir," he said; "old as I am, I was a child when the
+castle was built. My father worked at it, and it cost him, and many
+others, his life."
+
+"And how was that, prithee?" asked Cuthbert.
+
+"He was, with several others, killed by the baron, the grandfather of
+the present man, when the work was finished."
+
+"But why was that, Gurth?"
+
+"We were but Saxon swine," said Gurth bitterly, "and a few of us more or
+less mattered not. We were then serfs of the baron. But my mother fled
+with me on the news of my father's death. For years we remained far away
+with some friends in a forest near Oxford. Then she pined for her native
+air, and came back and entered the service of the franklin."
+
+"But why should your mother have taken you away?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"She always believed, Master Cuthbert, that my father was killed by the
+baron to prevent him giving any news of the secrets of the castle. He
+and some others had been kept in the walls for many months, and were
+engaged in the making of secret passages."
+
+"That is just what I came to ask you, Gurth. I have heard something of
+this story before, and now that we are attacking Wortham Castle, and the
+earl has sworn to level it to the ground, it is of importance if
+possible to find out whether any of the secret passages lead beyond the
+castle, and if so, where. Almost all the castles have, I have been told,
+an exit by which the garrison can at will make sorties or escape; and I
+thought that maybe you might have heard enough to give us some clue as
+to the existence of such a passage at Wortham."
+
+The old man thought for some time in silence and then said:
+
+"I may be mistaken, but methinks a diligent search in the copse near the
+stream might find the mouth of the outlet."
+
+"What makes you think that this is so, Gurth?"
+
+"I had been with my mother to carry some clothes to my father on the
+last occasion on which I saw him. As we neared the castle I saw my
+father and three other of the workmen, together with the baron, coming
+down from the castle toward the spot. As my mother did not wish to
+approach while the baron was at hand, we stood within the trees at the
+edge of the wood and watched what was being done. The baron came with
+them down to the bushes, and then they again came out, crossed the
+river, and one of them cut some willows, peeled them, and erected the
+white staves in a line toward the castle. They walked for a bit on each
+side, and seemed to be making calculations. Then they went back into the
+castle, and I never saw my father again."
+
+"Why did you not go in at once according to your intention?"
+
+"Because my mother said that she thought some important work was on
+hand, and that maybe the baron would not like that women should know
+aught of it, for he was of suspicious and evil mind. More than this I
+know not. The castle had already been finished and most of the masons
+discharged. There were, however, a party of serfs kept at work, and also
+some masons, and rumor had it that they were engaged in making the
+secret passages. Whether it was so or not I cannot say, but I know that
+none of that party ever left the castle alive. It was given out that a
+bad fever had raged there, but none believed it; and the report went
+about, and was I doubt not true, that all had been killed, to preserve
+the secret of the passage."
+
+Cuthbert lost no time in making use of the information that he had
+gained.
+
+Early next morning, at daybreak, he started on his pony to Wortham.
+
+As he did not wish the earl or his followers to know the facts that he
+had learned until they were proved, he made his way round the camp of
+the besiegers, and by means of his whistle called one of the foresters
+to him.
+
+"Where is Cnut?" he asked.
+
+"He is with a party occupied in making ladders."
+
+"Go to him," Cuthbert said, "and tell him to withdraw quietly and make
+his way here. I have an important matter on which I wish to speak to
+him."
+
+Cnut arrived in a few minutes, somewhat wondering at the message. He
+brightened greatly when Cuthbert told him what he had learned.
+
+"This is indeed important," he said. "We will lose no time in searching
+the copse you speak of. You and I, together with two of my most trusty
+men, with axes to clear away the brush, will do. At present a thing of
+this sort had best be kept between as few as may be."
+
+They started at once and soon came down upon the stream.
+
+It ran at this point in a little valley, some twenty or thirty feet
+deep. On the bank not far from the castle grew a small wood, and it was
+in this that Cuthbert hoped to find the passage spoken of by Gurth.
+
+The trees and brushwood were so thick that it was apparent at once that
+if the passage had ever existed it had been unused for some years.
+
+The woodmen were obliged to chop down dozens of young saplings to make
+their way up from the water toward the steeper part of the bank.
+
+The wood was some fifty yards in length, and as it was uncertain at
+which point the passage had come out, a very minute search had to be
+made.
+
+"What do you think it would be like, Cnut?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Like enough to a rabbit-hole, or more likely still there would be no
+hole whatever. We must look for moss and greenery, for it is likely that
+such would have been planted, so as to conceal the door from any
+passer-by, while yet allowing a party from inside to cut their way
+through it without difficulty."
+
+After a search of two hours, Cnut decided that the only place in the
+copse in which it was likely that the entrance to a passage could be
+hidden was a spot where the ground was covered thickly with ivy and
+trailing plants.
+
+"It looks level enough with the rest," Cuthbert said.
+
+"Ay, lad, but we know not what lies behind this thick screen of ivy.
+Thrust in that staff."
+
+One of the woodmen began to probe with the end of a staff among the ivy.
+For some time he was met by the solid ground, but presently the butt of
+the staff went through suddenly, pitching him on his head, amid a
+suppressed laugh from his comrades.
+
+"Here it is, if anywhere," said Cnut, and with their billhooks they at
+once began to clear away the thickly grown creepers.
+
+Five minutes' work was sufficient to show a narrow cut, some two feet
+wide, in the hillside, at the end of which stood a low door.
+
+"Here it is," said Cnut, with triumph, "and the castle is ours. Thanks,
+Cuthbert, for your thought and intelligence. It has not been used
+lately, that is clear," he went on. "These creepers have not been moved
+for years. Shall we go and tell the earl of our discovery? What think
+you, Cuthbert?"
+
+"I think we had better not," Cuthbert said.
+
+"We might not succeed in getting in, as the passage may have fallen
+further along; but I will speak to him and tell him that we have
+something on hand which may alter his dispositions for fighting
+to-morrow."
+
+Cuthbert made his way to the earl, who had taken possession of a small
+cottage a short distance from the castle.
+
+"What can I do for you?" Sir Walter said.
+
+"I want to ask you, sir, not to attack the castle to-morrow until you
+see a white flag waved from the keep."
+
+"But how on earth is a white flag to be raised from the keep?"
+
+"It may be," Cuthbert said, "that I have some friends inside who will be
+able to make a diversion in our favor. However, sir, it can do no harm
+if you will wait till then, and may save many lives. At what hour do you
+mean to attack ?"
+
+"The bridges and all other preparations to assist us across the moat
+will be ready to-night. We will advance then under cover of darkness,
+and as soon after dawn as may be attack in earnest."
+
+"Very well, sir," Cuthbert said. "I trust that within five minutes after
+your bugle has sounded the white flag will make its appearance on the
+keep, but it cannot do so until after you have commenced an attack, or
+at least a pretense of an attack."
+
+Two or three hours before daylight Cuthbert accompanied Cnut and
+twenty-five picked men of the foresters to the copse. They were provided
+with crowbars, and all carried heavy axes. The door was soon pried open.
+It opened silently and without a creak.
+
+"It may be," Cnut said, "that the door has not been opened as you say
+for years, but it is certain," and he placed his torch to the hinges,
+"that it has been well oiled within the last two or three days. No doubt
+the baron intended to make his escape this way, should the worst arrive.
+Now that we have the door open we had better wait quiet until the dawn
+commences. The earl will blow his bugle as a signal for the advance; it
+will be another ten minutes before they are fairly engaged, and that
+will be enough for us to break open any doors that there may be between
+this and the castle, and to force our way inside."
+
+It seemed a long time waiting before the dawn fairly broke--still longer
+before the earl's bugle was heard to sound the attack. Then the band,
+headed by Cnut and two or three of the strongest of the party entered
+the passage.
+
+Cuthbert had had some misgivings as to his mother's injunctions to take
+no part in the fray, and it cannot be said that in accompanying the
+foresters he obeyed the letter of her instructions. At the same time as
+he felt sure that the effect of a surprise would be complete and
+crushing, and that the party would gain the top of the keep without any
+serious resistance, he considered the risk was so small as to justify
+him in accompanying the foresters.
+
+The passage was some five feet high, and little more than two feet wide.
+It was dry and dusty, and save the marks on the ground of a human foot
+going and returning, doubtless that of the man who had oiled the lock
+the day before, the passage appeared to have been unused from the time
+that it left the hands of its builders.
+
+Passing along for some distance they came to another strong oaken door.
+This, like the last, yielded to the efforts of the crowbars of the
+foresters, and they again advanced. Presently they came to a flight of
+steps.
+
+"We must now be near the castle," Cnut said. "In fact, methinks I can
+hear confused noises ahead."
+
+Mounting the steps, they came to a third door; this was thickly studded
+with iron, and appeared of very great strength. Fortunately the lock was
+upon their side, and they were enabled to shoot the bolt; but upon the
+other side the door was firmly secured by large bolts, and it was fully
+five minutes before the foresters could succeed in opening it. It was
+not without a good deal of noise that they at last did so; and several
+times they paused, fearing that the alarm must have been given in the
+castle. As, however, the door remained closed, they supposed that the
+occupants were fully engaged in defending themselves from the attacks of
+the earl's party.
+
+When the door gave way they found hanging across in front of them a very
+thick arras, and pressing this aside they entered a small room in the
+thickness of the wall of the keep. It contained the merest slit for
+light, and was clearly unused. Another door, this time unfastened, led
+into a larger apartment, which was also at present unoccupied. They
+could hear now the shouts of the combatants without, the loud orders
+given by the leaders on the walls, the crack, as the stones hurled by
+the mangonels struck the walls, and the ring of steel as the arrows
+struck against steel cap and cuirass.
+
+"It is fortunate that all were so well engaged, or they would certainly
+have heard the noise of our forcing the door, which would have brought
+all of them upon us. As it is, we are in the heart of the keep. We have
+now but to make a rush up these winding steps, and methinks we shall
+find ourselves on the battlements. They will be so surprised that no
+real resistance can be offered to us. Now let us advance."
+
+So saying Cnut led the way upstairs, followed by the foresters,
+Cuthbert, as before, allowing five or six of them to intervene between
+him and the leader. He carried his short sword and a quarterstaff, a
+weapon by no means to be despised in the hands of an active and
+experienced player.
+
+Presently, after mounting some fifty or sixty steps, they issued on the
+platform of the keep. Here were gathered some thirty or forty men, who
+were so busied in shooting with crossbows, and in working machines
+casting javelins, stones, and other missiles upon the besiegers, that
+they were unaware of the addition to their numbers until the whole of
+the foresters had gathered on the summit, and at the order of Cnut
+suddenly fell upon them with a loud shout.
+
+Taken wholly by surprise by the foe, who seemed to have risen from the
+bowels of the earth by magic, the soldiers of the Baron of Wortham
+offered but a feeble resistance. Some were cast over the battlement of
+the keep, some driven down staircases, others cut down, and then,
+Cuthbert fastening a small white flag he had prepared to his
+quarterstaff, waved it above the battlements.
+
+Even now the combatants on the outer wall were in ignorance of what had
+happened in the keep; so great was the din that the struggle which had
+there taken place had passed unnoticed; and it was not until the
+fugitives, rushing out into the courtyard, shouted that the keep had
+been captured, that the besieged became aware of the imminence of the
+danger.
+
+[Illustration: CUTHBERT FASTENED A SMALL WHITE FLAG TO HIS QUARTER-STAFF
+AND WAVED IT ABOVE THE BATTLEMENTS.]
+
+Hitherto the battle had been going well for the defenders of the
+castle. The Baron of Wortham was indeed surprised at the feebleness of
+the assault. The arrows which had fallen in clouds upon the first day's
+attack upon the castle among his soldiers were now comparatively few and
+ineffective. The besiegers scarcely appeared to push forward their
+bridges with any vigor, and it seemed to him that a coldness had fallen
+upon them, and that some disagreement must have arisen between the
+foresters and the earl, completely crippling the energy of the attack.
+
+When he heard the words shouted from the courtyard below he could not
+believe his ears. That the keep behind should have been carried by the
+enemy appeared to him impossible. With a roar he called upon the bravest
+of his men to follow, and rushing across the courtyard, rapidly ascended
+the staircase. The movement was observed from the keep, and Cnut and a
+few of his men stationed themselves with their battle-axes at the top of
+various stairs leading below.
+
+The signal shown by Cuthbert had not passed unobserved. The earl, who
+had given instructions to his followers to make a mere feint of
+attacking, now blew the signal for the real onslaught. The bridges were
+rapidly run across the moat, ladders were planted, and the garrison
+being paralyzed and confused by the attack in their rear, as well as
+hindered by the arrows which now flew down upon them from the keep
+above, offered but a feeble resistance, and the assailants, led by Sir
+Walter himself, poured over the walls.
+
+Now there was a scene of confusion and desperate strife. The baron had
+just gained the top of the stairs, and was engaged in a fierce conflict
+with Cnut and his men, when the news reached him that the wall was
+carried from without. With an execration he again turned and rushed down
+the stairs, hoping by a vigorous effort to cast back the foe.
+
+It was, however, all too late; his followers, disheartened and alarmed,
+fought without method or order in scattered groups of threes and fours.
+They made their last stand in corners and passages. They knew there was
+but little hope of mercy from the Saxon foresters, and against these
+they fought to the last. To the Norman retainers, however, of the earl
+they offered a less determined resistance, throwing down their arms and
+surrendering at discretion.
+
+The baron, when fiercely fighting, was slain by an arrow from the keep
+above, and with his fall the last resistance ceased. A short time was
+spent in searching the castle, binding the prisoners, and carrying off
+the valuables that the baron had collected in his raids. Then a light
+was set to the timbers, the granaries were fired, and in a few minutes
+the smoke wreathing out of the various loopholes and openings told the
+country round that the stronghold had fallen, and that they were free
+from the oppressor at last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE CRUSADES.
+
+
+Warm thanks and much praise were bestowed upon Cuthbert for his share in
+the capture of the castle, and the earl, calling the foresters round
+him, then and there bestowed freedom upon any of them who might have
+been serfs of his, and called upon all his knights and neighbors to do
+the same, in return for the good service which they had rendered.
+
+This was willingly done, and a number of Cnut's party, who had before
+borne the stigma of escaped serfs, were now free men.
+
+We are too apt to forget, in our sympathy with the Saxons, that, fond as
+they were of freedom for themselves, they were yet severe masters, and
+kept the mass of the people in a state of serfage. Although their laws
+provided ample justice as between Saxon man and man, there was no
+justice for the unhappy serfs, who were either the original inhabitants
+or captives taken in war, and who were distinguished by a collar of
+brass or iron round their neck.
+
+Cnut's party had indeed long got rid of these badges, the first act of a
+serf when he took to the woods being always to file off his collar; but
+they were liable when caught to be punished, even by death, and were
+delighted at having achieved their freedom.
+
+"And what can I do for you, Cuthbert?" Sir Walter said, as they rode
+homeward. "It is to you that I am indebted: in the first place for the
+rescue of my daughter, in the second for the capture of that castle,
+which I doubt me much whether we should ever have taken in fair fight
+had it not been for your aid."
+
+"Thanks, Sir Walter," the lad replied. "At present I need nothing, but
+should the time come when you may go to the wars I would fain ride with
+you as your page, in the hope of some day winning my spurs also in the
+field."
+
+"So shall it be," the earl said, "and right willingly. But who have we
+here?"
+
+As he spoke a horseman rode up and presented a paper to the earl.
+
+"This is a notice," the earl said, after perusing it, "that King Richard
+has determined to take up the cross, and that he calls upon his nobles
+and barons to join him in the effort to free the holy sepulcher from the
+infidels. I doubt whether the minds of the people are quite prepared,
+but I hear that there has been much preaching by friars and monks in
+some parts, and that many are eager to join in the war."
+
+"Think you that you will go to the war, Sir Walter?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"I know not as yet; it must much depend upon the king's mood. For myself
+I care not so greatly as some do about this question of the Holy Land.
+There has been blood enough shed already to drown it, and we are no
+nearer than when the first swarms of pilgrims made their way thither."
+
+On Cuthbert's returning home and telling his mother all that had passed,
+she shook her head, but said that she could not oppose his wishes to go
+with the earl when the time should come, and that it was only right he
+should follow in the footsteps of the good knight his father.
+
+"I have heard much of these Crusades," he said; "canst tell me about
+them?"
+
+"In truth I know not much, my son; but Father Francis, I doubt not, can
+tell you all the particulars anent the affair."
+
+The next time that Father Francis, who was the special adviser of Dame
+Editha, rode over from the convent on his ambling nag, Cuthbert eagerly
+asked him if he would tell him what he knew of the Crusades.
+
+"Hitherto, my son," he said, "the Crusades have, it must be owned,
+brought many woes upon Europe. From the early times great swarms of
+pilgrims were accustomed to go from all parts of Europe to the holy
+shrines.
+
+"When the followers of the evil prophet took possession of the land,
+they laid grievous burdens upon the pilgrims, heavily they fined them,
+persecuted them in every way, and treated them as if indeed they were
+but the scum of the earth under their feet.
+
+"So terrible were the tales that reached Europe that men came to think
+that it would be a good deed truly to wrest the sepulcher of the Lord
+from the hands of these heathens. Pope Urban was the first to give
+authority and strength to the movement, and at a vast meeting at
+Claremont of thirty thousand clergy and four thousand barons, it was
+decided that war must be made against the infidel. From all parts of
+France men flocked to hear Pope Urban preach there; and when he had
+finished his oration the vast multitude, carried away by enthusiasm,
+swore to win the holy sepulcher or to die.
+
+"Mighty was the throng that gathered for the First Crusade. Monks threw
+aside their gowns and took to the sword and cuirass; even women and
+children joined in the throng. What, my son, could be expected from a
+great army so formed? Without leaders, without discipline, without
+tactics, without means of getting food, they soon became a scourge of
+the country through which they passed.
+
+"Passing through Hungary, where they greatly ravaged the fields, they
+came to Bulgaria. Here the people, struck with astonishment and dismay
+at this great horde of hungry people who arrived among them like
+locusts, fell upon them with the sword, and great numbers fell. The
+first band that passed into that country perished miserably, and of all
+that huge assembly, it may be said that, numbering at the start not less
+than two hundred and fifty thousand persons, only about one hundred
+thousand crossed into Asia Minor. The fate of these was no better than
+that of those who had perished in Hungary and Bulgaria. After grievous
+suffering and loss they at last reached Nicaea. There they fell into an
+ambuscade; and out of the whole of the undisciplined masses who had
+followed Peter the Hermit, it is doubtful whether ten thousand ever
+returned home.
+
+"This first attempt to rescue the holy sepulcher was followed by others
+equally wild, misguided, and unfortunate. Some of them indeed began
+their evil deeds as soon as they had left their home. The last of these
+bodies fell upon the Jews, who are indeed enemies of the Christian
+faith, but who have now, at least, nothing to do with the question of
+the holy sepulcher. As soon as they entered into Germany the Crusaders
+put them to death with horrible torture. Plunder and rapine indeed
+appeared to be the object of the Crusaders. On this as well as on most
+other preceding bands, their misdeeds drew down the vengeance of the
+people. At an early period of their march, and as soon as they reached
+Hungary, the people fell upon them, and put the greater portion to the
+sword.
+
+"Thus, in these irregular expeditions no less than five hundred thousand
+people are supposed to have perished. Godfrey de Bouillon was the first
+who undertook to lead a Crusade according to the military knowledge of
+the day. With him were his brothers Eustace and Baldwin, the Counts of
+Anault and St. Paul, and many other nobles and gentlemen, with their
+retainers, well armed and under good order; and so firm was the
+discipline of Duke Godfrey that they were allowed to pass freely by the
+people of the countries who had opposed the previous bands.
+
+"Through Hungary, Bulgaria, and Thrace he made his way; and though he
+met with many difficulties from Alexius, the crafty and treacherous
+Emperor of the Greeks, he at last succeeded in crossing into Asia. There
+he was joined by many from England, as well as from France and other
+countries. Duke Robert, the son of our first William, led a strong band
+of Normans to the war, as did the other great princes of France and
+Spain.
+
+"The army which crossed the narrow passage of the Hellespont is
+estimated at no less than seven hundred thousand fighting men. Of these
+one hundred thousand were knights clad in complete armor, the remainder
+were men-at-arms and bowmen.
+
+"Nicaea, the place which had been the scene of the massacre of Peter the
+Hermit's hosts, was taken after a desperate conflict, lasting for many
+weeks, and the Crusaders afterward defeated the Turks in a great battle
+near the town of Doryleum. After these successes disputes arose among
+the leaders, and Count Baldwin, brother of Duke Godfrey, left the main
+body with about fifteen hundred men, and founded a kingdom for himself
+in Mesopotamia.
+
+"The main body, slowly and painfully, and suffering from disease,
+famine, and the heat, made its way south. Antioch, a city of great
+strength and importance, was besieged, but it proved so strong that it
+resisted for many months, and was at last only taken by treachery.
+
+"After the capture of this place the sufferings of the Crusaders so far
+from being diminished were redoubled. They themselves during the siege
+had bought up all the food that could be brought from the surrounding
+country, while the magazines of the town were found, when an entry was
+effected, to be entirely deserted. The enemy, aided by a great Persian
+host, came down, and those who had been the besiegers were now besieged.
+However, when in the last strait the Christian army sallied out, and
+inspired with supernatural strength, defeated the Turks and Persians,
+with a slaughter of one hundred thousand men. Another slow movement to
+the south brought them into the Holy Land, and pressing forward, they
+came at last within sight of Jerusalem itself.
+
+"So fearful had been the losses of the Crusaders that of seven hundred
+thousand who crossed the Hellespont, not more than forty thousand
+reached the end of the pilgrimage. This fragment of an army, which had
+appeared before a very strongly fortified town, possessed no means of
+capturing the place--none of the machines of war necessary for the
+purpose, no provisions or munitions of any kind. Water was scarce also;
+and it appeared as if the remnant of the great army of Godfrey de
+Bouillon had arrived before Jerusalem only to perish there.
+
+"Happily just at this time a further band of Crusaders from Genoa, who
+had reached Jaffa, made their appearance. They were provided with
+stores, and had skilled workmen capable of making the machines for the
+siege. On July 14, 1099, the attack was made, and after resistance
+gallant and desperate as the assault, the Crusaders burst into the city,
+massacred the whole of the defenders and inhabitants, calculated at
+seventy thousand in number, and so became masters of the holy sepulcher.
+
+"The Sultan of Egypt was meanwhile advancing to the assistance of the
+Mohammedans of Syria; but Godfrey, with twenty thousand of his best men,
+advanced to meet the vast host, and scattered them as if they had been
+sheep. Godfrey was now chosen King of Jerusalem, and the rest of his
+army--save three hundred knights and two hundred soldiers, who agreed to
+remain with him--returned to their home. The news of the victory led
+other armies of Crusaders to follow the example of that of Godfrey; but
+as these were almost as completely without organization or leadership as
+those of Peter the Hermit, they suffered miserably on their way, and few
+indeed ever reached the Holy Land. Godfrey died in 1100, and his brother
+Baldwin succeeded him.
+
+"The history of the last hundred years has been full of fresh efforts to
+crush the Moslem power, but hitherto it cannot be said that fortune has
+attended the efforts of the Christians. Had it not been indeed for the
+devotion of the Knights of St. John and of the Templars, two great
+companies formed of men who devoted their lives to the holding of the
+sepulcher against the infidel, our hold of the Holy Land would have been
+lost.
+
+"Gradually the Saracens have wrested post after post from our hands.
+Edessa was taken in 1144, and the news of this event created an intense
+excitement. The holy St. Bernard stirred up all France, and Louis VII.
+himself took the vow and headed a noble army. The ways of God are not
+our ways, and although the army of Germany joined that of France, but
+little results came of this great effort.
+
+"The Emperor Conrad, with the Germans, was attacked by the Turk Saladin
+of Iconium, and was defeated with a loss of sixty thousand men. The King
+of France, with his army, was also attacked with fury, and a large
+portion of his force were slaughtered. Nothing more came of this great
+effort, and while the first Crusade seemed to show that the men-at-arms
+of Europe were irresistible, the second on the contrary gave proof that
+the Turks were equal to the Christian knights. Gradually the Christian
+hold of the Holy Land was shaken. In 1187, although fighting with
+extraordinary bravery, the small army of Christian Knights of the Temple
+and of St. John were annihilated, the King of Jerusalem was made
+prisoner, and the Christian power was crushed. Then Saladin, who
+commanded the Turks, advanced against Jerusalem, and forced it to
+capitulate.
+
+"Such, my boy, is the last sad news which has reached us; and no wonder
+that it has stirred the hearts of the monarchs of Europe, and that every
+effort will be again made to recapture the holy sepulcher, and to avenge
+our brethren who have been murdered by the infidels."
+
+"But, Father Francis, from your story it would seem that Europe has
+already sacrificed an enormous number of lives to take the holy
+sepulcher, and that after all the fighting, when she has taken it, it is
+only to lose it again."
+
+"That is so, my son; but we will trust that in future things will be
+better managed. The Templars and Hospitalers now number so vast a number
+of the best lances in Europe, and are grown to be such great powers,
+that we may believe that when we have again wrested the holy sepulcher
+from the hands of the infidels they will be able to maintain it against
+all assaults. Doubtless the great misfortunes which have fallen upon the
+Christian armies have been a punishment from heaven, because they have
+not gone to work in the right spirit. It is not enough to take up lance
+and shield, and to place a red cross upon the shoulder. Those who desire
+to fight the battle of the Lord must cleanse their hearts, and go forth
+in the spirit of pilgrims rather than knights. I mean not that they
+should trust wholly to spiritual weapons--for in truth the infidel is a
+foe not to be despised--but I mean that they should lay aside all
+thoughts of worldly glory and rivalry one against another."
+
+"And think you, Father, that such is the spirit with which King Richard
+and the other kings and nobles now preparing to go to the Holy Land are
+animated?"
+
+Father Francis hesitated.
+
+"It is not for me, my son, to judge motives, or to speak well or ill of
+the instruments who have been chosen for this great work. It is of all
+works the most praiseworthy, most holy. It is horrible to think that the
+holy shrines of Jerusalem should be in the hands of men who believe not
+in our Redeemer; and I hold it to be the duty of every man who can bear
+arms, no matter what his rank or his station, to don his armor and to go
+forth to battle in the cause. Whether success will crown the effort, or
+whether God wills it otherwise, it is not for man to discuss; it is
+enough that the work is there, and it is our duty to do it."
+
+"And think you, Father, that it will do good to England?"
+
+"That do I, my son, whether we gain the Holy Land or no. Methinks that
+it will do good service to the nation that Saxon and Norman should fight
+together under the holy cross. Hitherto the races have stood far too
+much apart. They have seen each other's bad qualities rather than good;
+but methinks that when the Saxon and the Norman stand side by side on
+the soil of the Holy Land, and shout together for England, it must needs
+bind them together, and lead them to feel that they are no longer
+Normans and Saxons, but Englishmen. I intend to preach on the village
+green at Evesham next Sunday morning on this subject, and as I know you
+are in communication with the forest men, I would, Cuthbert, that you
+would persuade them to come in to hear me. You were wondering what could
+be found for these vagrants. They have many of them long since lost the
+habits of honest labor. Many of them are still serfs, although most have
+been freed by the good earl and the knights his followers. Some of those
+who would fain leave the life in the woods still cling to it because
+they think that it would be mean to desert their comrades, who being
+serfs are still bound to lurk there; but methinks that this is a great
+opportunity for them. They are valiant men, and the fact that they are
+fond of drawing an arrow at a buck does not make them one whit the worse
+Christians. I will do my best to move their hearts, and if they will but
+agree together to take the cross, they would make a goodly band of
+footmen to accompany the earl."
+
+"Is the earl going?" Cuthbert asked eagerly.
+
+"I know not for certain," said Father Francis; "but I think from what I
+hear from his chaplain, Father Eustace, that his mind turns in that
+direction."
+
+"Then, Father, if he goes, I will go too," Cuthbert exclaimed. "He
+promised to take me as his page the first time he went to war."
+
+Father Francis shook his head.
+
+"I fear me, Cuthbert, this is far from the spirit in which we awhile ago
+agreed that men should go to the holy war."
+
+Cuthbert hung his head a little.
+
+"Ay, Father Francis, men; but I am a boy," he said, "and after all, boys
+are fond of adventure for adventure's sake. However, Father," he said,
+with a smile, "no doubt your eloquence on the green will turn me
+mightily to the project, for you must allow that the story you have told
+me this morning is not such as to create any very strong yearning in
+one's mind to follow the millions of men who have perished in the Holy
+Land."
+
+"Go to," said Father Francis, smiling, "thou art a pert varlet. I will
+do my best on Sunday to turn you to a better frame of mind."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+PREPARATIONS.
+
+
+Next Sunday a large number of people from some miles round were gathered
+on the green at Evesham, to hear Father Francis preach on the holy
+sepulcher. The forest men in their green jerkins mingled with the crowd,
+and a look of attention and seriousness was on the faces of all, for the
+news of the loss of the holy sepulcher had really exercised a great
+effect upon the minds of the people in England as elsewhere.
+
+Those were the days of pilgrimage to holy places, when the belief in the
+sanctity of places and things was overwhelming, and when men believed
+that a journey to the holy shrines was sufficient to procure for them a
+pardon for all their misdeeds. The very word "infidel" in those days was
+full of horror, and the thought that the holy places of the Christians
+were in the hands of Moslems affected all Christians throughout Europe
+with a feeling of shame as well as of grief.
+
+Among the crowd were many of the Norman retainers from the castle and
+from many of the holds around, and several knights with the ladies of
+their family stood a little apart from the edge of the gathering; for
+it was known that Father Francis would not be alone, but that he would
+be accompanied by a holy friar who had returned from the East, and who
+could tell of the cruelties which the Christians had suffered at the
+hands of the Saracens.
+
+Father Francis, at ordinary times a tranquil preacher, was moved beyond
+himself by the theme on which he was holding forth. He did not attempt
+to hide from those who stood around that the task to be undertaken was
+one of grievous peril and trial; that disease and heat, hunger and
+thirst, must be dared, as well as the sword of the infidel. But he spoke
+of the grand nature of the work, of the humiliation to Christians, of
+the desecration of the shrines, and of the glory which awaited those who
+joined the Crusade, whether they lived or whether they died in the Holy
+Land.
+
+His words had a strong effect upon the simple people who listened to
+him, but the feelings so aroused were as naught to the enthusiasm which
+greeted the address of the friar.
+
+Meager and pale, with a worn, anxious face as one who had suffered much,
+the friar, holding aloft two pieces of wood from the Mount of Olives
+tied together in the form of a cross, harangued the crowd. His words
+poured forth in a fiery stream, kindling the hearts, and stirring at
+once the devotion and the anger of his listeners.
+
+He told of the holy places, he spoke of the scenes of Holy Writ, which
+had there been enacted; and then he depicted the men who had died for
+them. He told of the knights and men-at-arms, each of whom proved
+himself again and again a match for a score of infidels. He spoke of the
+holy women, who, fearlessly and bravely, as the knights themselves, had
+borne their share in the horrors of the siege and in the terrible times
+which had preceded it.
+
+He told them that this misfortune had befallen Christianity because of
+the lukewarmness which had come upon them.
+
+"What profited it," he asked, "if a few knights who remained to defend
+the holy sepulcher were heroes? A few heroes cannot withstand an army.
+If Christendom after making a mighty effort to capture the holy
+sepulcher had not fallen away, the conquest which had been made with so
+vast an expenditure of blood would not have been lost. This is a work in
+which no mere passing fervor will avail; bravery at first, endurance
+afterward, are needed. Many men must determine not only to assist to
+wrest the holy sepulcher from the hands of the infidels, but to give
+their lives, so long as they might last, to retaining it. It is scarce
+to be expected that men with wives and families will take a view like
+this, indeed it is not to be desired. But there are single men, men of
+no ties, who can devote their whole lives, as did the Knights of the
+Orders of the Cross, to this great object. When their life has come to
+an end doubtless others will take up the banner that their hands can no
+longer hold. But for life it is, indeed, that many of humble as well as
+of princely class must bind themselves to take and defend to death the
+holy sepulcher."
+
+So, gradually raising the tone of his speech, the friar proceeded; until
+at length by his intense earnestness, his wild gesticulations, his
+impassioned words, he drew the whole of his listeners along with him;
+and when he ceased, a mighty shout of "To the Holy Land!" burst from his
+hearers.
+
+Falling upon their knees the crowd begged of him to give them the sign
+of the cross, and to bestow his blessing upon their swords, and upon
+their efforts.
+
+Father Francis had prepared, in contemplation of such a movement, a
+large number of small white crosses of cloth. These he and the friar now
+fastened to the shoulders of the men as they crowded up to receive it,
+holding their hands aloft, kissing the cross that the friar extended to
+them, and swearing to give their lives, if need be, to rescue the holy
+shrines from the infidel.
+
+When all had received the holy symbol, Father Francis again ascended the
+bank from which they had addressed the crowd:
+
+"Now go to your homes, my sons," he said. "Think of the oath that you
+have taken, and of the course that lies open to you when the time comes.
+When King Richard is prepared to start, then will you be called upon to
+fulfill your vows. It may be that all who have sworn may not be called
+upon to go. It needs that the land here should be tilled, it needs that
+there should be protectors for the women and children, it needs that
+this England of ours should flourish, and we cannot give all her sons,
+however willing they might be to take the cross. But the willingness
+which you will, I am sure, show to go if needs be, and to redeem your
+vows, will be sufficient. Some must go and some must stay; these are
+matters to be decided hereafter; for the time let us separate; you will
+hear when the hour for action arrives."
+
+A fortnight later the Earl of Evesham, who had been on a long journey to
+London, returned with full authority to raise and organize a force as
+his contingent to the holy wars.
+
+All was now bustle and activity in the castle. Father Francis informed
+him of the willingness of such of the forest men as he deemed fit to
+enlist under his banner; and the earl was much gratified at finding that
+the ranks of heavily-armed retainers whom he would take with him were to
+be swollen by the addition of so useful a contingent as that of one
+hundred skillful archers.
+
+Cuthbert was not long in asking for an interview with the earl.
+
+He had indeed great difficulty in persuading Dame Editha that he was old
+enough to share in the fatigues of so great an expedition, but he had
+Father Francis on his side; and between the influence of her confessor,
+and the importunities of her son, the opposition of the good lady fell
+to the ground.
+
+Cuthbert was already, for his age, well trained to arms. Many of the old
+soldiers at the castle who had known and loved his father had been ever
+ready to give lessons in the use of arms to Cuthbert, who was
+enthusiastic in his desire to prove as good a knight as his father had
+been. His friends, the outlaws, had taught him the use of the bow and of
+the quarterstaff; and Cuthbert, strong and well-built for his age, and
+having little to do save to wield the sword and the bow, had attained a
+very considerable amount of skill with each.
+
+He had too, which was unusual, a certain amount of book learning,
+although this, true to say, had not been acquired so cheerfully or
+willingly as the skill at arms. Father Francis had, however, taught him
+to read and to write--accomplishments which were at that time rare,
+except in the cloister. In those days if a knight had a firm seat in his
+saddle, a strong arm, a keen eye, and high courage, it was thought to be
+of little matter whether he could or could not do more than make his
+mark on the parchment. The whole life of the young was given to
+acquiring skill in arms; and unless intended for the convent, any idea
+of education would in the great majority of cases have been considered
+as preposterous.
+
+To do Cuthbert justice, he had protested with all his might against the
+proposition of Father Francis to his mother to teach him some clerkly
+knowledge. He had yielded most unwillingly at last to her entreaties,
+backed as they were by the sound arguments and good sense of Father
+Francis.
+
+The Earl of Evesham received Cuthbert's application very graciously.
+
+"Certainly, Cuthbert," he said, "you shall accompany me; first, on
+account of my promise to you; secondly, because from the readiness you
+displayed both in the matter of my daughter and of the attack on
+Wortham, you will be a notable aid and addition to my party; thirdly,
+from my friendship for your father and Dame Editha."
+
+This point being settled, Cuthbert at once assumed his new duties. There
+was plenty for him to do--to see that the orders of the earl were
+properly carried out; to bear messages to the knights who followed the
+earl's fortunes, at their various holds; to stand by and watch the
+armorers at work, and the preparation of the stores of arms and missiles
+which would be necessary for the expedition.
+
+Sometimes he would go round to summon the tenants of the various farms
+and lands, who held from the earl, to come to the castle; and here Sir
+Walter would, as far as might be without oppression, beg of them to
+contribute largely to the expedition.
+
+In these appeals he was in no slight way assisted by Father Francis, who
+pointed out loudly to the people that those who stayed behind were bound
+to make as much sacrifice of their worldly goods as those who went to
+the war might make of their lives. Life and land are alike at the
+service of God. Could the land be sold, it would be a good deed to sell
+it; but as this could not be, they should at least sell all that they
+could, and pledge their property if they could find lenders, in order to
+contribute to the needs of their lord, and the fitting out of this great
+enterprise.
+
+The preparations were at last complete, and a gallant band gathered at
+the castle ready for starting. It consisted of some two hundred
+men-at-arms led by six knights, and of one hundred bowmen dressed in
+Lincoln green, with quilted jerkins to keep out the arrows of the enemy.
+All the country from around gathered to see the start. Dame Editha was
+there, and by her side stood the earl's little daughter. The earl
+himself was in armor, and beside him rode Cuthbert in the gay attire of
+a page.
+
+Just at that moment, however, his face did not agree with his costume,
+for although he strove his best to look bright and smiling, it was a
+hard task to prevent the tears from filling his eyes at his departure
+from his mother. The good lady cried unrestrainedly, and Margaret joined
+in her tears. The people who had gathered round cheered lustily; the
+trumpets blew a gay fanfaronade, and the squire threw to the wind the
+earl's colors.
+
+It was no mere pleasure trip on which they were starting, for all knew
+that, of the preceding Crusades, not one in ten of those who had gone so
+gladly forth had ever returned.
+
+It must not be supposed that the whole of those present were animated by
+any strong religious feeling. No doubt there existed a desire, which was
+carefully fanned by the preaching of the priests and monks, to rescue
+the holy sepulcher from the hands of the Saracens; but a far stronger
+feeling was to be found in the warlike nature of the people in those
+days. Knights, men-at-arms, and indeed men of all ranks were full of a
+combative spirit. Life in the castle and hut was alike dull and
+monotonous, and the excitement of war and adventure was greatly looked
+for, both as a means of obtaining glory and booty, and for the change
+they afforded to the dreary monotony of life.
+
+There is little to tell of the journey of the Earl of Evesham's band
+through England to Southampton, at which place they took ship and
+crossed to France--or rather to Normandy, for in those days Normandy was
+regarded, as indeed it formed, a part of England.
+
+Cuthbert, as was natural to his age, was full of delight at all the
+varying scenes through which they passed. The towns were to him an
+especial source of wonder, for he had never visited any other than that
+of Worcester, to which he had once or twice been taken on occasions of
+high festival. Havre was in those days an important place, and being the
+landing-place of a great portion of the English bands, it was full of
+bustle and excitement. Every day ships brought in nobles and their
+followings.
+
+The King of England was already in Normandy hastening the preparations,
+and each band, as it landed, marched down to the meeting-place on the
+plains of Vezelay. Already they began to experience a taste of the
+hardships which they were to endure.
+
+In those days there was no regular supply train for an army, but each
+division or band supported itself by purchase or pillage, as the case
+might be, from the surrounding country.
+
+As the English troops were marching through a friendly country, pillage
+was of course strictly forbidden; but while many of the leaders paid for
+all they had, it must be owned that among the smaller leaders were many
+who took anything that they required with or without payment.
+
+The country was eaten up.
+
+The population in those days was sparse, and the movement of so large a
+number of men along a certain route completely exhausted all the
+resources of the inhabitants; and although willing to pay for all that
+his men required, the Earl of Evesham had frequently to lie down on the
+turf supperless himself.
+
+"If this is the case now," he said to Cuthbert, "what will it be after
+we have joined the French army? Methinks whatever we may do if we reach
+the Holy Land, that we have a fair chance of being starved before we
+sail."
+
+After a long succession of marches they arrived in sight of the great
+camp at Vezelay. It was indeed rather a canvas town than a camp. Here
+were gathered nearly one hundred thousand men, a vast host at any time,
+but in those days far greater in proportion to the strength of the
+countries than at present. The tents of the leaders, nobles, and other
+knights and gentlemen rose in regular lines, forming streets and
+squares.
+
+The great mass of troops, however, were contented to sleep in the open
+air; indeed the difficulties of carriage were so great that it was only
+the leaders who could carry with them their canvas abodes. Before each
+tent stood the lance and colors of its owner, and side by side in the
+center of the camp stood the royal pavilions of Philip of France and
+Richard of England, round which could be seen the gonfalons of all the
+nobles of Western Europe.
+
+Nothing could be gayer than the aspect of this camp as the party rode
+into it. They were rather late, and the great body of the host were
+already assembled.
+
+Cuthbert gazed with delight at the varied colors, the gay dresses, the
+martial knights, and the air of discipline and order which reigned
+everywhere.
+
+This was indeed war in its most picturesque form, a form which, as far
+as beauty is concerned, has been altogether altered, and indeed
+destroyed, by modern arms.
+
+In those days individual prowess and bravery went for everything. A
+handful of armored knights were a match for thousands of footmen, and
+battles were decided as much by the prowess and bravery of the leader
+and his immediate following as by that of the great mass of the army.
+
+The earl had the day before sent on a messenger to state that he was
+coming, and as the party entered the camp they were met by a squire of
+the camp-marshal, who conducted them to the position allotted to them.
+
+The earl's tent was soon erected, with four or five grouped around it
+for his knights, one being set aside for his squires and pages.
+
+When this was done Cuthbert strolled away to look at the varied sights
+of the camp. A military officer in these days would be scandalized at
+the scenes which were going on, but the strict, hard military discipline
+of modern times was then absolutely unknown.
+
+A camp was a moving town, and to it flocked the country people with
+their goods; smiths and armorers erected their forges; minstrels and
+troubadours flocked in to sing of former battles, and to raise the
+spirits of the soldiers by merry lays of love and war; simple countrymen
+and women came in to bring their presents of fowls or cakes to their
+friends in camp; knights rode to and fro on their gayly caparisoned
+horses through the crowd; the newly-raised levies, in many cases
+composed of woodmen and peasants who had not in the course of their
+lives wandered a league from their birthplaces, gaped in unaffected
+wonder at the sights around them; while last, but by no means least, the
+maidens and good wives of the neighborhood, fond then as now of brave
+men and gay dresses, thronged the streets of the camp, and joined in,
+and were the cause of, merry laughter and jest.
+
+Here and there, a little apart from the main stream of traffic, the
+minstrels would take up their position, and playing a gay air, the
+soldier lads and lasses would fall to and foot it merrily to the
+strains. Sometimes there would be a break in the gayety, and loud
+shouts, and perhaps fierce oaths, would rise. Then the maidens would fly
+like startled fawns, and men hasten to the spot; though the quarrel
+might be purely a private one, yet should it happen between the
+retainers of two nobles, the friends of each would be sure to strike in,
+and serious frays would arise before the marshal of the camp with his
+posse could arrive to interfere. Sometimes, indeed, these quarrels
+became so serious and desperate that alliances were broken up and great
+intentions frustrated by the quarrels of the soldiery.
+
+Here and there, on elevated platforms, or even on the top of a pile of
+tubs, were friars occupied in haranguing the soldiers, and in inspiring
+them with enthusiasm for the cause upon which they were embarked. The
+conduct of their listeners showed easily enough the motives which had
+brought them to war. Some stood with clasped hands and eager eyes,
+listening to the exhortations of the priests, and ready, as might be
+seen from their earnest gaze, to suffer martyrdom in the cause. More,
+however, stood indifferently round, or, after listening to a few words,
+walked on with a laugh or a scoff; indeed, preaching had already done
+all that lay in its power. All those who could be moved by exhortations
+of this kind were there, and upon the rest the discourses and sermons
+were thrown away.
+
+Several times in the course of his stroll round the camp Cuthbert
+observed the beginnings of quarrels, which were in each case only
+checked by the intervention of some knight or other person in authority
+coming past, and he observed that these in every instance occurred
+between men of the English and those of the French army.
+
+Between the Saxon contingent of King Richard's army and the French
+soldiers there could indeed be no quarrel, for the Saxons understood no
+word of their language; but with the Normans the case was different, for
+the Norman-French, which was spoken by all the nobles and their
+retainers in Britain, was as nearly as possible the same as that in use
+in France.
+
+It seemed, however, to Cuthbert, watching narrowly what was going on,
+that there existed by no means a good feeling between the men of the
+different armies; and he thought that this divergence so early in the
+campaign boded but little good for the final success of the expedition.
+
+When he returned to the tent the earl questioned him as to what he had
+seen, and Cuthbert frankly acknowledged that it appeared to him that the
+feeling between the men of the two armies was not good.
+
+"I have been," the earl said, "to the royal camp, and from what I hear,
+Cuthbert, methinks that there is reason for what you say. King Richard
+is the most loyal and gallant of kings, but he is haughty and hasty in
+speech. The Normans, too, have been somewhat accustomed to conquer our
+neighbors, and it may well be that the chivalry of France love us not.
+However, it must be hoped that this feeling will die away, and that we
+shall emulate each other only in our deeds on the battlefield."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+THE LISTS.
+
+
+The third day after the arrival of the Earl of Evesham there was a great
+banquet given by the King of France to King Richard and his principal
+nobles.
+
+Among those present was the Earl of Evesham, and Cuthbert as his page
+followed him to the great tent where the banquet was prepared.
+
+Here, at the top of the tent, on a raised dais, sat the King of France,
+surrounded by his courtiers. The Earl of Evesham, having been conducted
+by the herald to the dais, paid his compliments to the king, and was
+saluted by him with many flattering words.
+
+The sound of a trumpet was heard, and Richard of England, accompanied by
+his principal nobles, entered.
+
+It was the first time that Cuthbert had seen the king.
+
+Richard was a man of splendid stature and of enormous strength. His
+appearance was in some respects rather Saxon than Norman, for his hair
+was light and his complexion clear and bright. He wore the mustache and
+pointed beard at that time in fashion; and although his expression was
+generally that of frankness and good humor, there might be observed in
+his quick motions and piercing glances signs of the hasty temper and
+unbridled passion which went far to wreck the success of the enterprise
+upon which he was embarked.
+
+Richard possessed most of the qualities which make a man a great king
+and render him the idol of his subjects, especially in a time of
+semi-civilization, when personal prowess is placed at the summit of all
+human virtues. In all his dominions there was not one man who in
+personal conflict was a match for his king.
+
+Except during his fits of passion, King Richard was generous, forgiving,
+and royal in his moods. He was incapable of bearing malice. Although
+haughty of his dignity, he was entirely free from any personal pride,
+and while he would maintain to the death every right and privilege
+against another monarch, he could laugh and joke with the humblest of
+his subjects on terms of hearty good fellowship. He was impatient of
+contradiction, eager to carry out whatever he had determined upon; and
+nothing enraged him so much as hesitation or procrastination. The delays
+which were experienced in the course of the Crusade angered him more
+than all the opposition offered by the Saracens, or than the hardships
+through which the Christian host had to pass.
+
+At a flourish of trumpets all took their seats at dinner, their places
+being marked for them by a herald, whose duty it was to regulate nicely
+the various ranks and dignities.
+
+The Earl of Evesham was placed next to a noble of Brabant. Cuthbert took
+his place behind his lord and served him with wines and meats, the
+Brabant being attended by a tall youth, who was indeed on the verge of
+manhood.
+
+As the dinner went on the buzz of conversation became fast and furious.
+In those days men drank deep, and quarrels often arose over the cups.
+From the time that the dinner began Cuthbert noticed that the manner of
+Sir de Jacquelin Barras, Count of Brabant, was rude and offensive.
+
+It might be that he was accustomed to live alone with his retainers, and
+that his manners were rude and coarse to all. It might be that he had a
+special hostility to the English. At any rate, his remarks were
+calculated to fire the anger of the earl.
+
+He began the conversation by wondering how a Norman baron could live in
+a country like England, inhabited by a race but little above pigs.
+
+The earl at once fired up at this, for the Normans were now beginning to
+feel themselves English, and to resent attacks upon a people for whom
+their grandfathers had entertained contempt.
+
+He angrily repelled the attack upon them by the Brabant knight, and
+asserted at once that the Saxons were every bit as civilized, and in
+some respects superior to the Normans or French.
+
+The ill-feeling thus began at starting clearly waxed stronger as dinner
+went on. The Brabant knight drank deeply, and although his talk was not
+clearly directed against the English, yet he continued to throw out
+innuendos and side attacks, and to talk with a vague boastfulness, which
+greatly irritated Sir Walter.
+
+Presently, as Cuthbert was about to serve his master with a cup of wine,
+the tall page pushed suddenly against him, spilling a portion of the
+wine over his dress.
+
+"What a clumsy child!" he said scoffingly.
+
+"You are a rough and ill-mannered loon," Cuthbert said angrily. "Were
+you in any other presence I would chastise you as you deserve."
+
+The tall page burst into a mocking laugh.
+
+"Chastise me!" he said. "Why, I could put you in my pocket for a little
+hop-of-my-thumb as you are."
+
+"I think," said Sir Jacquelin--for the boys' voices both rose loud--to
+the earl, "you had better send that brat home and order him to be
+whipped."
+
+"Sir count," said the earl, "your manners are insolent, and were we not
+engaged upon a Crusade, it would please me much to give you a lesson on
+that score."
+
+Higher and higher the dispute rose, until some angry word caught the ear
+of the king.
+
+Amid the general buzz of voices King Philip rose, and speaking a word
+to King Richard, moved from the table, thus giving the sign for the
+breaking up of the feast.
+
+Immediately afterward a page touched the earl and Sir Jacquelin upon the
+shoulder, and told them that the kings desired to speak with them in the
+tent of the King of France.
+
+The two nobles strode through the crowd, regarding each other with eyes
+much like those of two dogs eager to fly at each other's throat.
+
+"My lords, my lords," said King Philip when they entered, "this is
+against all law and reason. For shame, to be brawling at my table. I
+would not say aught openly, but methinks it is early indeed for the
+knights and nobles engaged in a common work to fall to words."
+
+"Your majesty," said the Earl of Evesham, "I regret deeply what has
+happened. But it seemed from the time we sat down to the meal that this
+lord sought to pass a quarrel upon me, and I now beseech your majesty
+that you will permit us to settle our differences in the lists."
+
+King Richard gave a sound of assent, but the King of France shook his
+head gravely.
+
+"Do you forget," he said, "the mission upon which you are assembled
+here? Has not every knight and noble in these armies taken a solemn oath
+to put aside private quarrels and feuds until the holy sepulcher is
+taken? Shall we at this very going off show that the oath is a mere form
+of words? Shall we show before the face of Christendom that the knights
+of the cross are unable to avoid flying at each other's throats, even
+while on their way to wrest the holy sepulcher from the infidel? No,
+sirs, you must lay aside your feuds, and must promise me and my good
+brother here that you will keep the peace between you until this war is
+over. Whose fault it was that the quarrel began I know not. It may be
+that my Lord of Brabant was discourteous. It may be that the earl here
+was too hot. But whichever it be, it matters not."
+
+"The quarrel, sire," said Sir Jacquelin, "arose from a dispute between
+our pages, who were nigh coming to blows in your majesty's presence. I
+desired the earl to chide the insolence of his varlet, and instead of so
+doing he met my remarks with scorn."
+
+"Pooh, pooh," said King Richard, "there are plenty of grounds for
+quarrel without two nobles interfering in the squabbles of boys. Let
+them fight; it will harm no one. By the bye, your Majesty," he said,
+turning to the King of France with a laugh, "if the masters may not
+fight, there is no reason in the world why the varlets should not. We
+are sorely dull for want of amusement. Let us have a list to-morrow, and
+let the pages fight it out for the honor of their masters and their
+nations."
+
+"It were scarce worth while to have the lists set for two boys to
+fight," said the King of France.
+
+"Oh, we need not have regular lists," said King Richard. "Leave that
+matter in my hands. I warrant you that if the cockerels are well
+plucked, they will make us sport. What say you, gentlemen?"
+
+The Brabant noble at once assented, answering that he was sure that his
+page would be glad to enter the lists; and the earl gave a similar
+assent, for he had not noticed how great was the discrepancy between the
+size of the future combatants.
+
+"That is agreed, then," said King Richard joyously. "I will have a piece
+of ground marked out on the edge of the camp to-morrow morning. It shall
+be kept by my men-at-arms, and there shall be a raised place for King
+Philip and myself, who will be the judges of the conflict. Will they
+fight on foot or on horse?"
+
+"On foot, on foot," said the King of France. "It would be a pity that
+knightly exercises should be brought to scorn by any failure on their
+part on horseback. On foot at least it will be a fair struggle."
+
+"What arms shall they use?" the Brabant knight asked.
+
+"Oh, swords and battle-axes, of course," said King Richard with a laugh.
+
+"Before you go," King Philip said, "you must shake hands, and swear to
+let the quarrel between you drop, at least until after our return. If
+you still wish to shed each other's blood, I shall offer no hindrance
+thereto."
+
+The earl and Count Jacquelin touched each other's hands in obedience to
+the order, went out of the tent together, and strode off without a word
+in different directions.
+
+"My dear lad," the Earl of Evesham said on entering his tent where his
+page was waiting him, "this is a serious business. The kings have
+ordered this little count and myself to put aside our differences till
+after the Crusade, in accordance with our oath. But as you have in no
+wise pledged yourself in the same fashion, and as their majesties feel
+somewhat dull while waiting here, it is determined that the quarrel
+between the count and me, and between you and the count's page, shall be
+settled by a fight between you two in the presence of the kings."
+
+"Well, sir," Cuthbert said, "I am glad that it should be, seeing the
+varlet insulted me without any cause, and purposely upset the cup over
+me."
+
+"What is he like?" the earl asked. "Dost think that you are a fair
+match?"
+
+"I doubt not that we are fair match enough," Cuthbert said. "As you
+know, sir, I have been well trained to arms of all kinds, both by my
+father and by the men-at-arms at the castle, and could hold my own
+against any of your men with light weapons, and have then no fear that
+this gawky loon, twenty years old though he seems to be, will bring
+disgrace upon me or discredit upon my nation."
+
+"If thou thinkest so," the earl said, "the matter can go on. But had it
+been otherwise I would have gone to the king and protested that the
+advantage of age was so great that it would be murder to place you in
+the lists together."
+
+"There is," Cuthbert said, "at most no greater difference between us
+than between a strong man and a weak one, and these, in the ordeal of
+battle, have to meet in the lists. Indeed I doubt if the difference is
+so great, for if he be a foot taller than I, methinks that round the
+shoulders I should have the advantage of him."
+
+"Send hither my armorer," the earl said; "we must choose a proper suit
+for you. I fear that mine would be of little use; but doubtless there
+are some smaller suits among my friends."
+
+"The simpler and lighter the better," Cuthbert said. "I'd rather have a
+light coat of mail and a steel cap than heavy armor and a helmet which
+would press me down, and a visor through which I could scarce see. The
+lighter the better, for after all if my sword cannot keep my head,
+sooner or later the armor would fail to do so too."
+
+The armorer speedily arrived, and the knights and followers of the earl
+being called in and the case stated, there was soon found a coat of fine
+linked mail, which fitted Cuthbert well. As to the steel cap there was
+no difficulty whatever.
+
+"You must have a plume at least," the earl said, and took some feathers
+from his own casque and fastened them in. "Will you want a light sword
+and battle-ax?"
+
+"No," Cuthbert said, "my arms are pretty well used to those of the
+men-at-arms. I could wield my father's sword, and that was a heavy
+one."
+
+The lightest of the earl's weapons were chosen, and it was agreed that
+all was now ready for the conflict to-morrow.
+
+In the morning there was a slight bustle in the camp.
+
+The news that a fight was to take place between an English and a Brabant
+page, by the permission of the kings of England and France, that their
+majesties were to be present, and that all was to be conducted on
+regular rules, caused a stir of excitement and novelty in the camp.
+
+Nowhere is life duller than among a large body of men kept together for
+any time under canvas, and the thought of a combat of this novel kind
+excited general interest.
+
+In a meadow at a short distance from the camp a body of King Richard's
+men-at-arms marked off an oval space of about an acre. Upon one side of
+this a tent was pitched for the kings, and a small tent was placed at
+each end for the combatants. Round the inclosure the men-at-arms formed
+the ring, and behind them a dense body of spectators gathered, a place
+being set aside for nobles, and others of gentle blood.
+
+At the hour fixed the kings of England and France arrived together. King
+Richard was evidently in a state of high good humor, for he preferred
+the clash of arms and the sight of combat to any other pleasure.
+
+The King of France, on the other hand, looked grave. He was a far wiser
+and more politic king than Richard; and although he had consented to
+the sudden proposal, yet he felt in his heart that the contest was a
+foolish one, and that it might create bad feeling among the men of the
+two nationalities whichever way it went. He had reserved to himself the
+right of throwing down the baton when the combat was to cease, and he
+determined to avail himself of this right to put a stop to the conflict
+before either party was likely to sustain any deadly injury.
+
+When the monarchs had taken their places the trumpeters sounded their
+trumpets, and the two combatants advanced on foot from their ends of the
+lists. A murmur of surprise and dissatisfaction broke from the crowd.
+"My Lord of Evesham," the king said angrily to the earl, who with Count
+Jacquelin was standing by the royal party, "thou shouldst have said that
+the difference between the two was too great to allow the combat to be
+possible. The Frenchman appears to be big enough to take your page under
+his arm and walk off with him."
+
+The difference was indeed very striking. The French champion was arrayed
+in a full suit of knightly armor--of course without the gold spurs which
+were the distinguishing mark of that rank--and with his helmet and lofty
+plume of feathers he appeared to tower above Cuthbert, who, in his
+close-fitting steel cap and link armor seemed a very dwarf by the side
+of a giant.
+
+"It is not size, sire, but muscle and pluck will win in a combat like
+this. Your majesty need not be afraid that my page will disgrace me. He
+is of my blood, though the kinship is not close. He is of mixed Saxon
+and Norman strain, and will, believe me, do no discredit to either."
+
+The king's brow cleared, for in truth he was very proud of his English
+nationality, and would have been sorely vexed to see the discomfiture of
+an English champion, even though that champion were a boy.
+
+"Brother Philip," he said, turning to the king, "I will wager my gold
+chain against yours on yonder stripling."
+
+"Methinks that it were robbery to take your wager," the King of France
+said. "The difference between their bulk is disproportionate. However, I
+will not balk your wish. My chain against yours."
+
+The rule of the fight was that they were to commence with swords, but
+that either could, if he chose, use his battle-ax.
+
+The fight need scarcely be described at length, for the advantage was
+all one way. Cuthbert was fully a match in strength for his antagonist,
+although standing nigh a foot shorter. Constant exercise, however, had
+hardened his muscles into something like steel, while the teaching that
+he had received had embraced all what was then known of the use of arms.
+
+Science in those days there was but little of; it was a case rather of
+hard, heavy hitting, than of what we now call swordsmanship.
+
+With the sword Cuthbert gained but slight advantage over his adversary,
+whose superior height enabled him to rain blows down upon the lad, which
+he was with difficulty enabled to guard; but when the first paroxysm of
+his adversary's attack had passed he took to the offensive, and drove
+his opponent back step by step. With his sword, however, he was unable
+to cut through the armor of the Frenchman, but in the course of the
+encounter, guarding a severe blow aimed at him, his sword was struck
+from his hand, and he then, seizing his ax, made such play with it that
+his foe dropped his own sword and took to the same weapon.
+
+In this the superior height and weight of his opponent gave him even a
+greater advantage than with the sword, and Cuthbert knowing this, used
+his utmost dexterity and speed to avoid the sweeping blows showered upon
+him. He himself had been enabled to strike one or two sweeping strokes,
+always aiming at the same place, the juncture of the visor with the
+helmet. At last the Frenchman struck him so heavy a blow that it beat
+down his guard and struck his steel cap from his head, bringing him to
+the knee. In an instant he was up, and before his foe could be again on
+guard, he whirled his ax round with all its force, and bringing it just
+at the point of the visor which he had already weakened with repeated
+blows, the edge of the ax stove clean through the armor, and the page
+was struck senseless to the ground.
+
+A great shout broke from the English portion of the soldiery as
+Cuthbert leaned over his prostrate foe, and receiving no answer to the
+question "Do you yield?" rose to his feet, and signified to the squire
+who had kept near that his opponent was insensible.
+
+King Richard ordered the pursuivant to lead Cuthbert to the royal
+inclosure.
+
+"Thou art a brave lad and a lusty," the king said, "and hast borne thee
+in the fight as well as many a knight would have done. Wert thou older,
+I would myself dub thee knight; and I doubt not that the occasion will
+yet come when thou wilt do as good deeds upon the bodies of the Saracens
+as thou hast upon that long-shanked opponent of thine. Here is a gold
+chain; take it as a proof that the King of England holds that you have
+sustained well the honor of his country; and mark me, if at any time you
+require a boon, bring or send me that chain, and thou shalt have it
+freely. Sir Walter," he said, turning to the earl, "in this lad thou
+hast a worthy champion, and I trust me that thou wilt give him every
+chance of distinguishing himself. So soon as thou thinkest him fit for
+the knightly rank I myself will administer the accolade."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+REVENGE.
+
+
+After his interview with the king Cuthbert was led to his tent amid the
+hearty plaudits of the English troops.
+
+His own comrades flocked round him; the men of the greenwood, headed by
+Cnut, were especially jubilant over his victory.
+
+"Who would have thought," said the tall forester, "that the lad who but
+a short time ago was a child should now have sustained the honor of the
+country? We feel proud of you, Cuthbert; and trust us some day or other
+to follow wherever you may lead, and to do some deed which will attain
+for you honor and glory, and show that the men of Evesham are as doughty
+as any under King Richard's rule."
+
+"You must be wary, Cuthbert," the earl said to him that evening.
+"Believe me that you and I have made a foe, who, although he may not
+have the power, has certainly the will to injure us to the death. I
+marked the eye of Count Jacquelin during the fight, and again when you
+were led up to the king. There was hatred and fury in his eye. The page
+too, I hear, is his own nephew, and he will be the laughing-stock of the
+French camp at having been conquered by one so much younger than
+himself. It will be well to keep upon your guard, and not to go out at
+night unattended. Keep Cnut near you; he is faithful as a watch-dog, and
+would give his life, I am sure, for you. I will myself be also upon my
+guard, for it was after all my quarrel, and the fury of this fierce
+knight will vent itself upon both of us if the opportunity should come.
+I hear but a poor account of him among his confreres. They say he is one
+of those disgraces to the name of knight who are but a mixture of robber
+and soldier; that he harries all the lands in his neighborhood; and that
+he has now only joined the Crusade to avoid the vengeance which the
+cries of the oppressed people had invoked from his liege lord. I am told
+indeed that the choice was given him to be outlawed, or to join the
+Crusades with all the strength he could raise. Naturally he adopted the
+latter alternative; but he has the instincts of the robber still, and
+will do us an evil turn, if he have the chance."
+
+Two days later the great army broke up its camp and marched south. After
+a week's journeying they encamped near a town, and halted there two or
+three days in order to collect provisions for the next advance; for the
+supplies which they could obtain in the country districts were wholly
+insufficient for so great a host of men. Here the armies were to
+separate, the French marching to Genoa, the English to Marseilles, the
+town at which they were to take ship.
+
+One evening the earl sent Cuthbert with a message to another English
+lord, staying in the town at the palace of the bishop, who was a friend
+of his.
+
+Cnut accompanied Cuthbert, for he now made a point of seldom letting him
+out of his sight. It was light when they reached the bishop's palace,
+but here they were delayed for some time, and night had fallen when they
+sallied out.
+
+The town was already quiet, for the inhabitants cared not to show
+themselves in the streets now that such a large army of fierce men were
+in the neighborhood.
+
+The orders indeed of the monarchs were stringent, but discipline there
+was but little of, and the soldiery in those days regarded peaceful
+citizens as fair game; hence, when they came from the palace the streets
+of the city were already hushed and quiet, for the orders of the king
+had been peremptory that no men-at-arms, or others except those on duty,
+were to be away from their camp after nightfall. This order had been
+absolutely necessary, so many were the complaints brought in by country
+peasants and farmers of the doings of bands of soldiers.
+
+Cnut and Cuthbert proceeded along the streets unmolested for some
+distance. Occasionally a solitary passer-by, with hooded cape, hurried
+past. The moon was half full, and her light was welcome indeed, for in
+those days the streets were unlighted, and the pavement so bad that
+passage through the streets after dark was a matter of difficulty, and
+even of danger.
+
+Here and there before some roadside shrine a lamp dimly burned; before
+these they paused, and, as good Catholics, Cnut and Cuthbert crossed
+themselves. Just as they had passed one of these wayside shrines, a
+sudden shout was heard, and a party of eight or ten men sprang out from
+a side street and fell upon them.
+
+Cnut and Cuthbert drew their swords and laid about them heartily, but
+their assailants were too strong. Cnut was stricken to the ground, and
+Cuthbert, seeing that defense was hopeless, took to his heels and ran
+for his life. He was already wounded, but happily not so severely as in
+any way to disable him.
+
+Seeing that it was speed, and speed alone, which now could save him, he
+flung aside his belt and scabbard as he ran, and with rapid steps flew
+along the streets, not knowing whither he went, and striving only to
+keep ahead of his pursuers. They, more incumbered by arms and armor,
+were unable to keep up with the flying footsteps of a lad clothed in the
+light attire of a page; but Cuthbert felt that the blood running from
+his wound was weakening him fast, and that unless he could gain some
+refuge his course must speedily come to an end. Happily he saw at some
+little distance ahead of him a man standing by a door. Just as he
+arrived the door opened, and a glow of light from within fell on the
+road, showing that the person entering was a monk.
+
+Without a moment's hesitation Cuthbert rushed through the door, shouting
+"Sanctuary!" and sank almost fainting on the ground.
+
+The monks, accustomed to wild pursuits and scenes of outrage in those
+warlike days, hastily closed the door, barring it securely. In a moment
+there was a rush of men against it from without.
+
+One of the monks opened a lattice above the door.
+
+"What mean you," he said, "by this outrage? Know ye not that this is the
+Monastery of St. John, and that it is sacrilege to lay a hand of
+violence even against its postern? Begone," he said, "or we'll lodge a
+complaint before the king."
+
+The assailants, nothing daunted, continued to batter at the door; but at
+this moment the monks, aroused from their beds, hastened to the spot,
+and seizing bill and sword--for in those days even monks were obliged at
+times to depend upon carnal weapons--they opened the door, and flung
+themselves upon the assailants with such force that the latter,
+surprised and discomfited, were forced to make a hasty retreat.
+
+The doors were then again barred, and Cuthbert was carried up to a cell
+in the building, where the leech of the monastery speedily examined his
+wound, and pronounced that although his life was not in danger by it, he
+was greatly weakened by the loss of blood, that the wound was a serious
+one and that it would be some time before the patient would recover.
+
+[Illustration: THE DOORS WERE AGAIN BARRED, AND CUTHBERT WAS CARRIED TO
+A CELL.]
+
+It was two days before Cuthbert was sufficiently restored to be able to
+speak. His first question to the monk was as to his whereabouts, and how
+long he had been there. Upon being answered, he entreated that a
+messenger might be dispatched to the camp of the Earl of Evesham, to beg
+that a litter might be sent for him, and to inquire what had become of
+Cnut, whom he had last seen stricken down.
+
+The monk replied, "My son, I grieve to tell you that your request cannot
+be complied with. The army moved away yesternoon, and is now some
+twenty-five miles distant. There is nothing for you but patience, and
+when restored you can follow the army, and rejoin your master before he
+embarks at Marseilles. But how is it that a lad so young as you can have
+incurred the enmity of those who sought your life? For it is clear from
+the pertinacity with which they urged their attack that their object was
+not plunder, of which indeed they would get but little from you, but to
+take your life."
+
+Cuthbert recounted the circumstances which had led to the feud of the
+Count of Brabant against him, for he doubted not that this truculent
+knight was at the bottom of the attack.
+
+"After what has happened," the monk said, "you will need have caution
+when you leave here. The place where you have taken refuge is known to
+them, and should this wild noble persist in his desire for vengeance
+against you, he will doubtless leave some of his ruffians to watch the
+monastery. We will keep a lookout, and note if any strangers are to be
+seen near the gates; if we find that it is so, we shall consider what is
+best to be done. We could of course appeal to the mayor for protection
+against them, and could even have the strangers ejected from the town or
+cast into prison; but it is not likely that we should succeed in
+capturing more than the fellow who may be placed on the lookout, and the
+danger would be in no wise lessened to yourself. But there is time to
+talk over this matter before you leave. It will be another fortnight at
+least before you will be able to pursue your journey."
+
+Cuthbert gained strength more rapidly than the monk had expected. He was
+generously fed, and this and his good constitution soon enabled him to
+recover from the loss of blood; and at the end of five days he expressed
+his hope that he could on the following day pursue his journey. The monk
+who attended him shook his head.
+
+"Thou mightst, under ordinary circumstances, quit us to-morrow, for thou
+art well enough to take part in the ordinary pursuits of a page; but to
+journey is a different thing. You may have all sorts of hardships to
+endure; you may have even to trust for your life to your speed and
+endurance; and it would be madness for you to go until your strength is
+fully established. I regret to tell you that we have ascertained beyond
+a doubt that the monastery is closely watched. We have sent some of the
+acolytes out, dressed in the garbs of monks, and attended by one of our
+elder brethren; and in, each case, a monk who followed at a distance of
+fifty yards was able to perceive that they were watched. The town is
+full of rough men, the hangers-on of the army; some, indeed, are
+followers of laggard knights, but the greater portion are men who merely
+pursue the army with a view to gain by its necessities, to buy plunder
+from the soldiers, and to rob, and, if necessary, to murder should there
+be a hope of obtaining gold. Among these men your enemies would have
+little difficulty in recruiting any number, and no appeal that we could
+make to the mayor would protect you from them when you have left the
+walls. We must trust to our ingenuity in smuggling you out. After that,
+it is upon your own strength and shrewdness that you must rely for an
+escape from any snares that may be laid for you. You will see, then,
+that at least another three or four days are needed before you can set
+forth. Your countrymen are so far away that a matter of a few days will
+make but little difference. They will in any case be delayed for a long
+time at Marseilles before they embark; and whether you leave now or a
+month hence, you would be equally in time to join them before their
+embarkation--that is, supposing that you make your way through the
+snares which beset you."
+
+Cuthbert saw the justice of the reasoning, and it was another week
+before he announced himself as feeling absolutely restored to strength
+again, and capable of bearing as much exertion as he could have done
+before his attack.
+
+A long consultation was held with the prior and a monk who had acted as
+his leech, as to the best plan of getting Cuthbert beyond the walls of
+the city. Many schemes were proposed and rejected. Every monk who
+ventured beyond the walls had been closely scrutinized, and one or two
+of short stature had even been jostled in the streets, so as to throw
+back their hoods and expose a sight of their faces. It was clear, then,
+that it would be dangerous to trust to a disguise. Cuthbert proposed
+that he should leave at night, trusting solely to their directions as to
+the turnings he should take to bring him to the city walls, and that,
+taking a rope, he should there let himself down, and make the best of
+his way forward. This, however, the monks would not consent to, assuring
+him that the watch was so strictly kept round the monastery that he
+would inevitably be seen.
+
+"No," the prior said, "the method, whatever it is, must be as open as
+possible; and though I cannot at this moment hit upon a plan, I will
+think it over to-night, and putting my ideas with those of Father Jerome
+here, and the sacristan, who has a shrewd head, it will be hard if we
+cannot between us contrive some plan to evade the watch of those robber
+villains who beset the convent."
+
+The next morning, when the prior came in to see Cuthbert, the latter
+said: "Good father, I have determined not to endeavor to make off in
+disguise. I doubt not that your wit could contrive some means by which I
+should get clear of the walls without observation from the scouts of
+this villain noble. But once in the country, I should have neither horse
+nor armor, and should have hard work indeed to make my way down through
+France, even though none of my enemies were on my track. I will
+therefore, if it please you, go down boldly to the mayor and claim a
+protection and escort. If he will but grant me a few men-at-arms for one
+day's ride from the town, I can choose my own route, and riding out in
+mail, can then take my chance of finding my way down to Marseilles."
+
+"I will go down with you, my son," the prior said, "to the mayor. Two of
+my monks shall accompany us; and assuredly no insult will be offered to
+you in the street thus accompanied." Shortly afterward Cuthbert started
+as arranged, and soon arrived at the house of the mayor, Sir John de
+Cahors.
+
+Upon the prior making known to this knight whom he had brought with him
+the mayor exclaimed:
+
+"_Peste!_ young gentleman; you have caused us no small trouble and
+concern. We have had ridings to and fro concerning you, and furious
+messages from your fiery king. When in the morning a tall, stalwart
+knave dressed in green was found, slashed about in various places, lying
+on the pavement, the townsmen, not knowing who he was, but finding that
+he still breathed, carried him to the English camp, and he was claimed
+as a follower of the Earl of Evesham. There was great wrath and anger
+over this; and an hour later the earl himself came down and stated that
+his page was missing, and that there was reason to believe that he had
+been foully murdered, as he had accompanied the man found wounded.
+Fortunately the bulk of the armies had marched away at early dawn, and
+the earl had only remained behind in consequence of the absence of his
+followers. I assured the angry Englishman that I would have a thorough
+search made in the town; and although in no way satisfied, he rode off
+after his king with all his force, carrying with him the long-limbed man
+whom we had picked up. Two days after a message came back from King
+Richard himself, saying that unless this missing page were discovered,
+or if, he being killed, his murderers were not brought to justice and
+punished, he would assuredly on his return from the Holy Land burn the
+town over our ears. Your king is not a man who minces matters. However,
+threatened men live long, especially when the person who threatens is
+starting for a journey, from which, as like as not, he may never return.
+However, I have had diligent search made for you. All the houses of bad
+repute have been examined and their inhabitants questioned. But there
+are so many camp-followers and other rabble at present in the town that
+a hundred men might disappear without our being able to obtain a clew. I
+doubted not indeed that your body had been thrown in the river, and
+that we should never hear more of you. I am right glad that you have
+been restored; not indeed from any fear of the threats of the king your
+master, but because, from what the Earl of Evesham said, you were a lad
+likely to come to great fame and honor. The earl left in my charge your
+horse, and the armor which he said you wore at a tournament lately, in
+case we should hear aught of you."
+
+Cuthbert gave an exclamation of pleasure. His purse contained but a few
+pieces of silver, and being without arms except for his short dagger, or
+means of locomotion, the difficulties of the journey down to Marseilles
+had sorely puzzled him. But with his good horse between his knees, and
+his suit of Milan armor on his back, he thought that he might make his
+way through any dangers which threatened him.
+
+The prior now told the knight that circumstances had occurred which
+showed that it was known to the assailants of Cuthbert that he had taken
+refuge in the convent, over which a strict watch had been kept by
+Cuthbert's enemies.
+
+"If I could find the varlets I would hang them over the gates of the
+town," the knight said wrathfully. "But as at the present moment there
+are nearly as many rogues as honest men in the place it would be a
+wholesale hanging indeed to insure getting hold of the right people.
+Moreover, it is not probable that another attempt upon his life will be
+made inside our walls; and doubtless the main body of this gang are
+somewhere without, intending to assault him when he continues his
+journey, and they have left but a spy or two here to inform them as to
+his movements. I will give you any aid in my power, young sir. The army
+is by this time nigh Marseilles, and, sooth to say, I have no body of
+men-at-arms whom I could send as your escort for so long a distance. I
+have but a small body here, and they are needed, and sorely, too, to
+keep order within the walls."
+
+"I thought, sir," Cuthbert said, "that if you could lend me a party of
+say four men-at-arms to ride with me for the first day I could then
+trust to myself, especially if you could procure me one honest man to
+act as guide and companion. Doubtless they suppose that I should travel
+by the main road south; but by going the first day's journey either east
+or west, and then striking some southward road, I should get a fair
+start of them, throw all their plans out, and perchance reach Marseilles
+without interruption."
+
+The knight willingly agreed to furnish four men-at-arms, and a
+trustworthy guide who would at least take him as far south as Avignon.
+
+"I will," he said, "tell the men-at-arms off to-night. They shall be at
+the western gate at daybreak, with the pass permitting them to ride
+through. The guide shall be at the convent door half an hour earlier. I
+will send up to-night your armor and horse. Here is a purse which the
+Earl of Evesham also left for your use. Is there aught else I can do for
+you?"
+
+"Nothing, sir," Cuthbert said; "and if I regain the army in safety I
+shall have pleasure in reporting to King Richard how kindly and
+courteously you have treated me."
+
+The arrangements were carried out.
+
+An hour before daybreak Cuthbert was aroused, donned his armor and steel
+casque, drank a flask of wine, and ate a manchet of bread which the
+prior himself brought him, and then, with a cordial adieu to the kind
+monks, issued forth.
+
+The guide had just reached the gate, and together they trotted down the
+narrow streets to the west gate of the city, where four men-at-arms were
+awaiting them.
+
+The gates were at once opened, and Cuthbert and his little troop sallied
+forth.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+THE ATTACK.
+
+
+All day they rode with their faces west, and before nightfall had made a
+journey of over forty miles. Then bestowing a largess upon the
+men-at-arms, Cuthbert dismissed them, and took up his abode at a
+hostelry, his guide looking to the two horses.
+
+Cuthbert was pleased with the appearance of the man who had been placed
+at his disposal. He was a young fellow of twenty-two or twenty-three,
+with an honest face. He was, he told Cuthbert, the son of a small farmer
+near Avignon; but having a fancy for trade, he had been apprenticed to a
+master smith. Having served his apprenticeship, he found that he had
+mistaken his vocation, and intended to return to the paternal vineyards.
+
+Cuthbert calculated that he would make at least four days' journey to
+the south before he could meet with any dangers. Doubtless his exit from
+the convent had been discovered, and the moment the gates of the city
+were opened the spy would have proceeded south to warn his comrades, and
+these would doubtless have taken a road which at a distance would again
+take them on to that by which Cuthbert would be now traveling. As,
+however, he rode fast, and made long marches each day, he hoped that he
+might succeed in distancing them. Unfortunately, upon the third day his
+horse cast his shoe, and no smith could be met with until the end of the
+day's journey. Consequently, but a short distance could be done and this
+at a slow pace. Upon the fifth day after their first start they arrived
+at a small town.
+
+The next morning Cuthbert on rising found that his guide did not present
+himself as usual. Making inquiries he found that the young man had gone
+out the evening before, and had not returned. Extremely uneasy at the
+circumstance, Cuthbert went to the city guard, thinking that perhaps his
+guide might have got drunk, and been shut up in the cells. No news,
+however, was to be obtained there, and after waiting some hours, feeling
+sure that some harm had befallen him, he gave notice to the authorities
+of his loss, and then mounting his horse, and leaving some money with
+the landlord of the hostelry to give to his guide in case the latter
+should return, he started at midday by the southern road.
+
+He felt sure now that he was overtaken, and determined to keep his eyes
+and faculties thoroughly on watch.
+
+The roads in those days were mere tracks. Here and there a little
+village was to be met with; but the country was sparsely cultivated, and
+traveling lonely work. Cuthbert rode fast, carefully avoiding all
+copses and small woods through which the road ran, by making a circuit
+round them and coming on to it again on the other side.
+
+His horse was an excellent one, the gift of the earl, and he had little
+fear, with his light weight, of being overtaken if he could once leave
+his enemies behind him.
+
+At length he approached an extensive forest, which stretched for miles
+on either side.
+
+Half a mile before he reached it the track divided.
+
+He had for some little time eased his horse down to a walk, as he felt
+that the wood would be the spot where he would in all probability be
+attacked, and he needed that his steed should be possessed of its utmost
+vigor.
+
+At the spot where the track branched a man in the guise of a mendicant
+was sitting. He begged for alms, and Cuthbert threw him a small coin.
+
+A sudden thought struck him as he heard a rustling in the bushes near.
+
+"Which is the nearest and best road to Avignon?" he said.
+
+"The right-hand road is the best and shortest," the beggar said. "The
+other makes a long circuit and leads through several marshes, which your
+honor will find it hard to pass."
+
+Cuthbert thanked him and moved forward, still at a walk, along the
+right-hand road.
+
+When he had gone about two hundred yards, and was hidden from the sight
+of the man he had left--the country being rough, and scattered with
+clumps of bushes--he halted, and, as he expected, heard the sound of
+horses' hoofs coming on at full gallop along the other road.
+
+"Your master must have thought me young indeed," he said, "to try and
+catch me with such a transparent trick as that. I do not suppose that
+accursed page has more than ten men with him, and doubtless has placed
+five on each road. This fellow was placed here to see which track I
+would follow, and has now gone to give the party on the left hand the
+news that I have taken this way. Had it not been for him I should have
+had to run the gantlet with four or five of my enemies. As it is, the
+path will doubtless be clear."
+
+So saying, he turned his horse, galloped back to the spot where the
+tracks separated, and then followed the left-hand route.
+
+As he had hoped, he passed through the wood without incident or
+interruption, and arrived safely that night at a small town, having seen
+no signs of his enemies.
+
+The next day he started again early, and rode on until midday, when he
+halted at a large village, at which was the only inn between the place
+from which he started and his destination. He declined the offer of the
+servant of the inn to take his horse round to the stable, telling the
+man to hold him outside the door and give him from a sieve a few
+handfuls of grain.
+
+Then he entered the inn and ate a hearty meal. As he appeared at the
+door he saw several men gathered near. With a single spring he threw
+himself into the saddle, just as a rush forward was made by those
+standing round. The man next to him sprang upon him, and endeavored to
+drag him from the saddle. Cuthbert drew the little dagger called a
+_misericorde_ from his belt, and plunged it into his throat. Then
+seizing the short mace which hung at the saddlebow, he hurled it with
+all his force full in the face of his enemy, the page of Sir Philip, who
+was rushing upon him sword in hand. The heavy weapon struck him fairly
+between the eyes, and with a cry he fell back, his face completely
+smashed in by the blow, the sword which he held uplifted to strike
+flying far through the air.
+
+Cuthbert struck his spurs into his horse, and the animal dashed forward
+with a bound, Cuthbert striking with his long sword at one or two men
+who made a snatch at the reins. In another minute he was cantering out
+of the village, convinced that he had killed the leader of his foes, and
+that he was safe now to pursue the rest of his journey on to Marseilles.
+
+So it turned out.
+
+Without further incident he traveled through the south of France, and
+arrived at the great seaport. He speedily discovered the quarters in
+which the Earl of Evesham's contingent were encamped, and made toward
+this without delay. As he entered a wild shout of joy was heard, and
+Cnut ran forward with many gestures of delight.
+
+"My dear Cuthbert, my dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "Can it be true that
+you have escaped? We all gave you up; and although I did my best, yet
+had you not survived it I should never have forgiven myself, believing
+that I might have somehow done better, and have saved you from the
+cutthroats who attacked us."
+
+"Thanks, thanks, my good Cnut," Cuthbert cried. "I have been through a
+time of peril, no doubt; but as you see, I am hale and well--better,
+methinks, than you are, for you look pale and ill; and I doubt not that
+the wound which I received was a mere scratch to that which bore you
+down. It sounded indeed like the blow of a smith's hammer upon an
+anvil."
+
+"Fortunately, my steel cap saved my head somewhat," Cnut said, "and the
+head itself is none of the thinnest; but it tried it sorely, I confess.
+However, now that you are back I shall, doubt not, soon be as strong as
+ever I was. I think that fretting for your absence has kept me back more
+than the inflammation from the wound itself--but there is the earl at
+the door of his tent."
+
+Through the foresters and retainers who had at Cnut's shout of joy
+crowded up, Cuthbert made his way, shaking hands right and left with the
+men, among whom he was greatly loved, for they regarded him as being in
+a great degree the cause of their having been freed from outlawry, and
+restored to civil life again. The earl was really affected. As Cuthbert
+rode up he held out both arms, and as his page alighted he embraced him
+as a father.
+
+"My dear Cuthbert!" he exclaimed. "What anxiety have we not suffered.
+Had you been my own son, I could not have felt more your loss. We did
+not doubt for an instant that you had fallen into the hands of some of
+the retainers of that villain count; and from all we could learn, and
+from the absence of any dead body by the side of that of Cnut, I
+imagined that you must have been carried off. It was clear that your
+chance of life, if you fell into the hands of that evil page, or his
+equally vile master, was small indeed. The very day that Cnut was
+brought in I visited the French camp, and accused him of having been the
+cause of your disappearance and Cnut's wounds. He affected the greatest
+astonishment at the charge. He had not, as he said, been out of the camp
+for two days. My accusation was unfounded and malicious, and I should
+answer this as well as the previous outrage, when the vow of the
+Crusaders to keep peace among themselves was at an end. Of course I had
+no means of proving what I said, or I would have gone direct to the king
+and charged him with the outrage. As it was I gained nothing by my
+pains. He has accompanied the French division to Genoa; but when we meet
+at Sicily, where the two armies are to rendezvous, I will bring the
+matter before the king, as the fact that his page was certainly
+concerned in it must be taken as showing that he was the instigator."
+
+"It would, my lord earl, be perhaps better," Cuthbert said, "if I might
+venture to advise, to leave the matter alone. No doubt the count would
+say that he had discharged his page after the tournament, and that the
+latter was only carrying out his private feud with me. We should not be
+able to disprove the story, and should gain no satisfaction by the
+matter."
+
+The earl admitted the justice of Cuthbert's reasoning, but reserved to
+himself the task of punishing the author of the outrage upon the first
+fitting opportunity.
+
+There was a weary delay at Marseilles before the expedition set sail.
+This was caused by the fact of the English fleet, which had been ordered
+to be there upon their arrival, failing to keep the agreement.
+
+The words English fleet badly describe the vessels which were to carry
+the English contingent to their destination. They were ships belonging
+to the maritime nations of Italy--the Venetians, Genoese, Pisans, etc.;
+for England at that time had but few of her own, and these scarcely
+fitted for the stormy navigation of the Bay of Biscay.
+
+King Richard, impatient as ever of delay, at last lost his temper, and
+embarked on board a ship with a few of his chosen knights, and set sail
+by himself for Sicily, the point at which the two armies of the
+expedition were to reunite. A few days after his departure the
+long-looked-for fleet arrived, and a portion of the English host
+embarked at once, and set sail for Sicily, where they were to be
+landed, and the ships were to return to fetch the remaining contingent.
+
+A sea voyage of this kind in those days was a serious matter. Long
+voyages were rare, and troops were carried very much upon the principle
+of herrings; that is, were packed as close as they could be, without any
+reference to their comfort. As the voyages seldom lasted more than
+twenty-four hours, this did not much matter, but during long voyages the
+discomforts, or as may be said sufferings, of the troops were
+considerable. So tightly packed were the galleys in which the English
+set sail from Marseilles that there was no walking about. Every man
+slept where he sat, and considered himself lucky indeed if he could
+obtain room sufficient to stretch himself at full length. Most slept
+sitting against bulwarks or other supports. In the cabins, where the
+knights, their pages and squires were placed, the crowding was of course
+less excessive, but even here the amount of space, which a subaltern
+traveling to India for the first time nowadays would grumble at, was
+considered amply sufficient for half a dozen knights of distinction. It
+was a week after sailing, when Cnut touched Cuthbert's arm as he came on
+deck one morning, and said:
+
+"Look, look, Cuthbert! that mountain standing up in the water has caught
+fire on the top. Did you ever see such a thing?"
+
+The soldiers crowded to the side of the vessel in intense astonishment
+and no little awe. From the top of a lofty and rugged hill, rising
+almost straight from the sea, flames were roaring up, smoke hung over
+the island, and stones were thrown into the air and rattled down the
+side of the hill, or fell into the sea with a splash.
+
+"That is a fearsome sight," Cnut said, crossing himself.
+
+"It looks as if it was the mouth of purgatory," exclaimed another,
+standing by.
+
+Cuthbert himself was amazed, for the instruction he had received from
+Father Francis was of too slight a nature to include the story of
+volcanoes. A priest, however, who accompanied the ship in the character
+of leech and confessor, explained the nature of the phenomenon to his
+astonished listeners, and told them that over on the mainland was a
+mountain which at times vomited forth such masses of stones and of
+liquid rock that it had swallowed up and covered many great cities.
+There was also, he told them, another mountain of the same sort, even
+more vast, on the island of Sicily itself; but that this had seldom, as
+far back as man could remember, done any great harm.
+
+Sailing on, in another day they arrived off the coast of Sicily itself,
+and sailing up the straits between it and the mainland they landed at
+Messina. Here a considerable portion of the French army had already
+arrived, having been brought down from Genoa.
+
+There was no news of the King of England; and, as often happens, the
+saying "The more haste the less speed," had been verified here.
+
+It was some days later before King Richard arrived, having been driven
+from his course by tempests, well-nigh cast ashore, and having besides
+gone through many adventures. Three weeks later the whole of the army of
+the Crusaders were gathered around Messina, where it was intended to
+remain some little time before starting. It was a gay time; and the
+kings vied with each other in entertainments, joustings, and
+tournaments. The Italian knights also made a brave show, and it might
+have been thought that this huge army of men were gathered there simply
+for amusement and feasting. In the tournaments every effort was made to
+prevent any feeling of national rivalry, and although parties of knights
+held their own against all comers, these were most carefully selected to
+represent several nationalities, and therefore victory, on whichsoever
+side it fell, excited no feelings of bitterness.
+
+Alone, King Richard was undoubtedly the strongest cavalier of the two
+armies. Against his ponderous strength no knight could keep his seat;
+and this was so palpable that after many victories King Richard was
+forced to retire from the lists from want of competitors, and to take
+his place on the dais with the more peace-loving King of France.
+
+The gayety of the camp was heightened by the arrival of many nobles and
+dames from Italy. Here, too, came the Queen of Navarre, bringing with
+her the beautiful Princess Berengaria.
+
+"Methinks," the Earl of Evesham said to Cuthbert a fortnight after the
+arrival of the queen "that unless my eyes deceive me the princess is
+likely to be a cause of trouble."
+
+"In what way?" asked Cuthbert with surprise, for he had been struck with
+her marvelous beauty, and wondered greatly what mischief so fair a being
+could do.
+
+"By the way in which our good lord, the king, gazes upon her, methinks
+that it were like enough that he broke off his engagement with the
+Prince of France for the sake of the fair eyes of this damsel."
+
+"That were indeed a misfortune," Cuthbert said gravely, for he saw at
+once the anger which such a course would excite in the minds of the
+French king and his knights, who would naturally be indignant in the
+extreme at the slight put upon their princess. As day after day passed
+it became evident to all that the King of England was infatuated by the
+princess. Again he entered the lists himself, and as some fresh Italian
+knights and others had arrived, he found fresh opponents, and
+conspicuously laid the spoils of victory at the feet of the princess,
+whom he selected as the Queen of Beauty.
+
+All sorts of rumors now became current in camp; violent quarrels between
+the kings, and bad feelings between the French and English knights broke
+out again in consequence, and this more violently than before.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+THE PRINCESS BERENGARIA.
+
+
+One night it chanced that Cuthbert was late in his return to camp, and
+his road took him through a portion of the French encampment; the night
+was dark, and Cuthbert presently completely lost all idea as to his
+bearings. Presently he nearly ran against a tent; he made his way to the
+entrance in order to crave directions as to his way--for it was a wet
+night; the rain was pouring in torrents, and few were about of whom he
+could demand the way--and, as he was about to draw aside the hangings,
+he heard words said in a passionate voice which caused him to withdraw
+his hand suddenly.
+
+"I tell you," said a voice, "I would rather drive a dagger myself into
+her heart than allow our own princess to be insulted by this hot-headed
+island dog."
+
+"It is sad indeed," said another, but in a calmer smoother tone, "that
+the success of a great expedition like this, which has for its object
+the recovery of the holy sepulcher from the infidels, should be wrecked
+by the headstrong fancies of one man. It is even, as is told by the old
+Grecian poet, as when Helen caused a great war between people of that
+nation."
+
+"I know nothing," another voice said, "either of Helen or the Greeks, or
+of their poets. They are a shifty race, and I can believe aught that is
+bad of them. But touching this princess of Navarre, I agree with our
+friend, it would be a righteous deed to poniard her, and so to remove
+the cause of dispute between the two kings, and, indeed, the two
+nations. This insult laid upon our princess is more than we, as French
+knights and gentlemen, can brook; and if the king says the word there is
+not a gentleman in the army but will be ready to turn his sword against
+the islanders."
+
+Then the smooth voice spoke again.
+
+"It would, my brethren, be wrong and useless to shed blood; but methinks
+that if this apple of discord could be removed a good work would be done
+not, as our friend the count has suggested, by a stab of the dagger;
+that indeed would be worse than useless. But surely there are scores of
+religious houses, where this bird might be placed in a cage without a
+soul knowing where she was, and where she might pass her life in prayer
+that she may be pardoned for having caused grave hazards of the failure
+of an enterprise in which all the Christian world is concerned."
+
+The voices of the speakers now fell, and Cuthbert was straining his ear
+to listen, when he heard footsteps approaching the tent, and he glided
+away into the darkness.
+
+With great difficulty be recovered the road to the camp, and when he
+reached his tent he confided to the Earl of Evesham what he had heard.
+
+"This is serious indeed," the earl said, "and bodes no little trouble
+and danger. It is true that the passion which King Richard has conceived
+for Berengaria bids fair to wreck the Crusade, by the anger which it has
+excited in the French king and his nobles; but the disappearance of the
+princess would no less fatally interfere with it, for the king would be
+like a raging lion deprived of his whelps, and would certainly move no
+foot eastward until he had exhausted all the means in his power of
+tracing his lost lady love. You could not, I suppose, Cuthbert, point
+out the tent where this conversation took place?"
+
+"I could not," Cuthbert answered; "in the darkness one tent is like
+another. I think I should recognize the voices of the speakers did I
+hear them again; indeed, one voice I did recognize; it was that of the
+Count of Brabant, with whom we had trouble before."
+
+"That is good," the earl said, "because we have at least an object to
+watch. It would never do to tell the king what you have heard. In the
+first place, his anger would be so great that it would burst all bounds,
+and would cause, likely enough, a battle at once between the two armies;
+nor would it have any good effect, for he of Brabant would of course
+deny the truth of your assertions, and would declare it was merely a
+got-up story to discredit him with the king, and so to wipe out the old
+score now standing between us. No, if we are to succeed, alike in
+preventing harm happening to the princess, and an open break between the
+two monarchs, it must be done by keeping a guard over the princess,
+unsuspected by all, and ourselves frustrating any attempt which may be
+made."
+
+Cuthbert expressed his willingness to carry out the instructions which
+the earl might give him; and, much disturbed by the events of the day,
+both earl and page retired to rest, to think over what plan had best be
+adopted.
+
+The princess was staying at the palace of the bishop of the town; this
+he, having another residence a short distance outside the walls, had
+placed at the disposal of the Queen of Navarre and her suite; and the
+first step of Cuthbert in the morning was to go into the town, to
+reconnoiter the position and appearance of the building. It was a large
+and irregular pile, and communicated with the two monasteries lying
+alongside of it. It would therefore clearly be a most difficult thing to
+keep up a complete watch on the exterior of so large a building. There
+were so many ways in which the princess might be captured and carried
+off by unscrupulous men that Cuthbert in vain thought over every plan by
+which it could be possible to safeguard her. She might be seized upon
+returning from a tournament or entertainment; but this was improbable,
+as the queen would always have an escort of knights with her, and no
+attempt could be successful except at the cost of a public fracas and
+much loss of blood. Cuthbert regarded as out of the question that an
+outrage of this kind would be attempted.
+
+The fact that one of the speakers in the tent had used the words "my
+sons," showed that one priest or monk, at least, was connected with the
+plot. It was possible that this man might have power in one of the
+monasteries, or he might be an agent of the bishop himself; and Cuthbert
+saw that it would be easy enough in the night for a party from one or
+other of the monasteries to enter by the door of communication with the
+palace, and carry off the princess without the slightest alarm being
+given. Once within the walls of the convent she could be either hidden
+in the dungeons or secret places, which buildings of that kind were sure
+to possess, or could be at once carried out by some quiet entrance, and
+taken into the country, or transferred to some other building in the
+town.
+
+When Cuthbert joined the earl he told him the observations that he had
+made, and Sir Walter praised the judgment which he had shown in his
+conclusions. The earl was of opinion that it would be absolutely
+necessary to get some clew as to the course which the abductors purposed
+to take; indeed it was possible that on after-consideration they might
+drop their plan altogether, for the words which Cuthbert had overheard
+scarcely betokened a plan completely formed and finally decided upon.
+
+The great point he considered, therefore, was that the tent of his old
+enemy should be carefully watched, and that an endeavor should be made
+to hear something of what passed within, which might give a clew to the
+plan fixed upon. They did not, of course, know whether the tent in which
+the conversation had been heard by Cuthbert was that of Sir de Jacquelin
+Barras, or of one of the other persons who had spoken; and Cuthbert
+suggested that the first thing would be to find out whether the count,
+after nightfall, was in the habit of going to some other tent, or
+whether, on the other hand, he remained within and was visited by
+others.
+
+It was easy, of course, to discover which was his tent; and Cuthbert
+soon got its position, and then took Cnut into his counsels.
+
+"The matter is difficult," Cnut said, "and I see no way by which a watch
+can be kept up by day; but after dark--I have several men in my band who
+can track a deer, and surely could manage to follow the steps of this
+baron without being observed. There is little Jack, who is no bigger
+than a boy of twelve, although he can shoot, and run, and play with the
+quarterstaff, or, if need be, with the bill, against the best man in the
+troop. I warrant me that if you show him the tent he will keep such
+sharp watch that no one shall enter or depart without his knowing where
+they go to. On a dark night he will be able to slip among the tents, and
+to move here and there without being seen. He can creep on his stomach
+without moving a leaf, and trust me the eyes of these French
+men-at-arms will look in vain for a glimpse of him."
+
+"You understand, Cnut, all that I want to know is whether the other
+conspirators in this matter visit his tent, or whether he goes to
+theirs."
+
+"I understand," Cnut said. "That is the first point to be arrived at."
+
+Three days later Cnut brought news that each night after dark a party of
+five men met in the tent that was watched; that one of the five always
+came out when all had assembled, and took his station before the
+entrance of the tent, so as to be sure that no eavesdropper was near.
+
+Cuthbert smiled.
+
+"It is a case of locking the door after the horse has gone."
+
+"What is to be done now?" Cnut asked.
+
+"I will talk with the earl before I tell you, Cnut. This matter is too
+serious for me to take a step without consulting Sir Walter."
+
+That night there was a long talk between the earl and his page as to the
+best course to be pursued. It was clear that their old enemy was the
+leading person in the plot, and that the only plan to baffle it with any
+fair chances of success was to keep a constant eye upon his movements,
+and also to have three or four of the sturdiest men of the band told off
+to watch, without being perceived, each time that the princess was in
+her palace.
+
+The Earl of Evesham left the arrangements entirely in the hands of his
+page, of whose good sense and sagacity he had a very high opinion.
+
+His own first impulse had been to go before the king and denounce the
+Count of Brabant. But the ill-will between them was already well known;
+for not only was there the original dispute at the banquet, but when the
+two armies had joined at Sicily, King Richard, who had heard from the
+earl of the attempt at the assassination of Cuthbert, had laid a
+complaint before King Philip of the conduct of his subject.
+
+Sir de Jacquelin Barras, however, had denied that he had any finger in
+the matter.
+
+"He had," he said, "discharged his page after the encounter with
+Cuthbert, and knew nothing further whatever of his movements."
+
+Although it was morally certain that the page could not have purchased
+the services of the men who assisted him, from his own purse, or gain
+them by any means of persuasion, but that they were either the followers
+of the Count of Brabant, or ruffians hired with his money, as no proof
+could be obtained the matter was allowed to drop.
+
+The earl felt, however, that an accusation against the count by him of
+an intention to commit a high crime, and this merely on the evidence of
+his page, would appear like an attempt to injure the fame of his rival.
+
+Feeling, therefore, that nothing could be done save to watch, he left
+the matter entirely in the hands of his page, telling him that he could
+take as many men-at-arms or archers as he might choose and use them in
+his name.
+
+Cnut entered warmly into Cuthbert's plans; and finally it was arranged
+between them that six of the archers should nightly keep watch opposite
+the various entrances of the bishop's palace and of the two monasteries
+joining. Of course, they could not patrol up and down without attracting
+attention, but they were to take up posts where they could closely
+observe the entrances, and were either to lie down and feign drunken
+sleep, or to conceal themselves within the shadow of an arch or other
+hiding-place.
+
+Down on the seashore Cuthbert made an arrangement with one of the owners
+of small craft lying there that ten of his men should sleep on board
+every night, together with some fishermen accustomed to the use of the
+oar.
+
+Cuthbert himself determined to be always with this party.
+
+Night after night passed, and so long a time went by that Cuthbert began
+to think the design must have been given up.
+
+However, he resolved to relax none of his watchfulness during the
+remaining time that the expedition might stop in Sicily.
+
+It was in January, three weeks after the first watch had been set, when
+one of the men who had been placed to watch the entrance to one of the
+monasteries leaped on board the craft and shook Cuthbert by the
+shoulder.
+
+"A party of some five men," he said, "have just issued out from the
+monastery. They are bearing a burden--what, I cannot see. They were
+making in the direction of the water. I whistled to Dion who was next to
+me in the lane. He is following them, and I came on to tell you to
+prepare."
+
+The night was pitch-dark, and it was difficult in the extreme to see any
+one moving at a short distance off.
+
+There were two or three streets that led from the monastery, which stood
+at the top of the town, toward the sea; and a party coming down might
+take any of these, according to the position in which the boat they were
+seeking was placed.
+
+Cuthbert now instantly sent five or six of his men with instructions to
+avoid all noise, along the line of the port, with orders to bring in
+word should anyone come down and take boat, or should they hear any
+noise in the town. He himself with the sailors loosed the ropes which
+fastened the boat to shore, got out the oars, and prepared to put off at
+a moment's notice.
+
+He was of course ignorant whether the abductor would try to carry the
+princess off by water, or would hide her in one of the convents of the
+town; but he was inclined to think that the former would be the course
+adopted; for the king in his wrath would be ready to lay the town in
+flames, and to search every convent from top to bottom for the princess.
+Besides, there would be too many aware of the secret.
+
+Cuthbert was not wrong in his supposition.
+
+Soon the man he had sent to the extreme right came running up with the
+news that a boat had embarked at the further end with a party of some
+ten men on board. As he came along he had warned the others, and in five
+minutes the whole party were collected in the craft, numbering in all
+twelve of Cuthbert's men and six sailors. They instantly put out, and
+rowed in the direction in which the boat would have gone, the boatmen
+expressing their opinion that probably the party would make for a vessel
+which was lying anchored at some little distance from shore. The
+bearings of the position of this ship was known to the boatmen, but the
+night was so dark that they were quite unable to find it. Orders had
+been given that no sound or whisper was to be heard on board the boat;
+and after rowing as far as they could the boatmen said they were in the
+direction of the ship.
+
+The boatmen all lay on their oars, and all listened intently. Presently
+the creaking of a pulley was heard in the still night, at a distance of
+a few hundred yards. This was enough. It was clear that the vessel was
+getting up sail. The boat's head was turned in that direction; the crew
+rowed steadily but noiselessly, and in a few minutes the tall mast of a
+vessel could be seen faintly against the sky. Just as they perceived the
+situation, a hail from on board showed that their approach was now
+observed.
+
+"Stretch to your oars," Cuthbert said, "we must make a dash for it now."
+
+The rowers bent to their work and in a minute the boat ran alongside the
+craft.
+
+As Cuthbert and his followers scrambled upon the deck they were attacked
+by those of the crew and passengers who were standing near; but it was
+evident at once that the chiefs of the expedition had not heard the
+hail, and that there was no general plan of defense against them.
+
+It was not until the last of them had gained a footing and were
+beginning to fight their way along the vessel that from below three or
+four men-at-arms ran up, and one in a tone of authority demanded what
+was the matter. When he heard the clash of swords and the shouts of the
+combatants he put himself at once at the head of the party and a fierce
+and obstinate fight now took place.
+
+The assailants had, however, the advantage.
+
+Cuthbert and his men were all lightly clad, and this on the deck of a
+ship lumbered with ropes and gear, and in the dark, was a great
+advantage, for the mailed men-at-arms frequently stumbled and fell. The
+fight lasted for several minutes. Cnut, who was armed with a heavy mace,
+did great service, for with each of his sweeping blows he broke down the
+guard of an opponent, and generally leveled him to the deck.
+
+The numbers at the beginning of the fight were not unequal, but the men
+to whom the vessel belonged made but a faint resistance when they
+perceived that the day was going against them. The men-at-arms, however,
+consisting of three, who appeared to be the leaders, and of eight
+pikemen fought stubbornly and well.
+
+Cuthbert was not long in detecting in the tones of the man who was
+clearly at the head of affairs the voice of Sir de Jacquelin Barras. To
+do him justice he fought with extreme bravery, and when almost all his
+followers were cut down or beaten overboard, he resisted stanchly and
+well. With a heavy two-handed sword he cleaved a space at the end of the
+boat, and kept the whole of Cuthbert's party at bay.
+
+At last Cnut, who had been engaged elsewhere, came to the front, and a
+tough fight ensued between them.
+
+It might have ended badly for the brave forester, for his lack of armor
+gave an enormous advantage to his opponent. Soon, however, the count's
+foot slipped on the boards of the deck, and before he could recover
+himself the mace of Cnut descended with tremendous force upon his head,
+which was unprotected, as he had taken off his casque on arriving at the
+ship. Without a word or a cry the count fell forward on the deck, killed
+as a bullock by a blow of a poleax.
+
+While this conflict had been going on, occasionally the loud screams of
+a woman had been heard below.
+
+Cuthbert, attended by Cnut and two of his followers, now descended.
+
+At the bottom of the steps they found a man-at-arms placed at the door
+of a cabin. He challenged as they approached, but being speedily
+convinced that the vessel was in their hands, and that his employer and
+party were all conquered, he made a virtue of necessity, and laid down
+his arms.
+
+"You had better go in alone," Cnut said, "Master Cuthbert. The lady is
+less likely to be frightened by your appearance than by us, for she must
+wonder indeed what is going on."
+
+On entering the cabin, which had evidently been fitted up for the use of
+a lady, Cuthbert saw standing at the other end the princess, whom of
+course he knew well by sight. A lamp was burning in the cabin, and by
+its light he could see that her face was deadly pale. Her robes were
+torn and disarranged, and she wore a look at once of grave alarm and
+surprise upon seeing a handsomely dressed page enter with a deep
+reverence.
+
+"What means this outrage, young sir? Whoever you be, I warn you that the
+King of England will revenge this indignity."
+
+"Your highness," Cuthbert said, "you have no further reason for alarm;
+the knaves who carried you off from the bishop's palace and conveyed you
+to this ship are all either killed or in our power. I am the page of the
+Earl of Evesham, a devoted follower of King Richard. Some of the designs
+of the bold men came to the ears of my lord, and he ordered me and a
+band of his followers to keep good guard over the palace and buildings
+adjoining. We were unable to gather our strength in time to prevent your
+being taken on board, but we lost no time in putting forth when we found
+that your abductors had taken boat, and by good fortune arrived here in
+time; a few minutes later, and the knaves would have succeeded in their
+object, for the sails were already being hoisted, and the vessel making
+way, when we arrived. Your abductors are all either killed or thrown
+overboard, and the vessel's head is now turned toward the shore, and I
+hope in a few minutes to have the honor of escorting you to the palace."
+
+The princess, with a sigh of much satisfaction and relief, sank on to a
+couch.
+
+"I am indeed indebted to you, young sir," she said. "Believe me, the
+Princess Berengaria is not ungrateful, and should it be ever in her
+power to do aught for your lord, or for yourself, or for those who have
+accompanied you to rescue her, believe me that she will do it."
+
+"May I be so bold as to ask a boon?" Cuthbert said, dropping on one knee
+before her.
+
+"It is granted at once, whatever it be, if in my power."
+
+"My boon is, lady," he said, "that you will do your best to assuage the
+natural anger which the King of England will feel at this bold and most
+violent attempt. That he should be told, is of course necessary; but,
+lady, much depends upon the telling, and I am sure that at your request
+the king would restrain his anger. Were it not for that, I fear that
+such quarrels and disputes might arise as would bring the two armies to
+blows, and destroy forever all hope of the successful termination of
+our joint enterprise."
+
+"You are a wise and good youth," the princess said, holding out her hand
+to Cuthbert, which, as duty bound, he placed to his lips. "Your request
+is wise and most thoughtful. I will use any poor influence which I may
+possess"--and Cuthbert could see that the blood came back now to the
+white face--"to induce King Richard to allow the matter to pass over.
+There is no reason why he should take up the case. I am no more under
+his protection than under that of the King of France, and it is to the
+latter I should appeal, for as I believe the men who abducted me were
+his subjects."
+
+"The leader of them, madam, was a certain Sir de Jacquelin Barras, a
+Count of Brabant, with whom my master has had an old feud, and who has
+been just killed by the leader of our men-at-arms. The others, who have
+had the most active hand in the matter, have also perished; and it
+would, I think be doubtful whether any clew could be obtained of those
+who were in league with them. The only man in the party who is alive was
+placed as a sentry at your door, and as he is but a man-at-arms we may
+be sure that he knows naught of the enterprise, but has merely carried
+out the orders of his master."
+
+The vessel had by this time brought up close to the port. The princess
+determined to wait on board until the first dawn was seen in the skies,
+and then under the escort of her deliverers to go back to the palace,
+before the town was moving. This plan was carried out, and soon after
+dawn the princess was safe in the palace from which she had been carried
+a few hours previously.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+PIRATES.
+
+
+It was not possible that a matter of this sort could be entirely hushed
+up. Not many hours passed before rumors were current of events which had
+taken place, though none knew what those events were.
+
+There were reports that the tire-woman of the Princess Berengaria had in
+the night discovered that her mistress' couch was unoccupied, that she
+had found signs of a struggle, and had picked up a dagger on the floor,
+where it had evidently fallen from the sheath; also it was said that the
+princess had returned at daylight escorted by an armed party, and that
+she was unable to obtain entrance to the palace until one of the ladies
+of the queen had been fetched down to order the sentries at the gate to
+allow her to enter.
+
+This was the news which rumor carried through the camp. Few, however,
+believed it, and none who could have enlightened them opened their lips
+upon the subject.
+
+It was known, however, that a messenger had come to King Richard early,
+and that he had at once mounted and ridden off to the bishop's palace.
+What had happened there none could say, but there were rumors that his
+voice had been heard in furious outbursts of passion. He remained there
+until the afternoon, when he sent for a number of his principal nobles.
+
+When these arrived they found him standing on a dais in the principal
+hall of the palace, and he there formally introduced to them the
+Princess Berengaria as his affianced wife. The ceremony of the marriage,
+he told them, would shortly take place.
+
+This announcement caused a tremendous stir in both armies. The English,
+who had never been favorable to the alliance with the French princess,
+were glad to hear that this was broken off, and were well content that
+the Princess Berengaria should be their future queen, for her beauty,
+high spirit, and kindness had won all hearts.
+
+On the part of the French, on the other hand, there was great
+indignation, and for some time it was feared that the armies would come
+to open blows.
+
+King Philip, however, although much angered, was politic enough to
+deprecate any open outbreak. He knew that a dispute now began would not
+only at once put a stop to the Crusade, but that it might lead to more
+serious consequences at home. The fiery bravery of the English king,
+backed as it would be by the whole strength of his subjects, might
+render him a very formidable opponent; and the king felt that private
+grievances must be laid aside where the good of France was concerned.
+
+Still the coldness between the armies increased, their camps were moved
+further apart, and during the time that they remained in Sicily there
+was but little commerce between the two forces.
+
+As soon as the winter had broken the French monarch broke up his camp,
+and in March sailed for the Holy Land.
+
+The English had expected that the marriage ceremony of the king and
+Princess Berengaria would be celebrated before they left Sicily, but
+this was not the case. There were high joustings and _fetes_ in honor of
+the princess, but the marriage was delayed. A fortnight after the French
+had sailed the English embarked in the two hundred ships which had been
+prepared, and sailed also on their way to Acre.
+
+It must not be supposed that the attempted abduction of the Princess
+Berengaria was unimportant in its results to Cuthbert.
+
+After returning from the palace the king, who had heard from her the
+details of what had taken place, and the names of her rescuers, sent for
+the Earl of Evesham. The latter had of course learned from Cuthbert all
+that had happened, and had expressed his high approval of his conduct,
+and his gratification at the result.
+
+"I learn, Sir Earl," said King Richard, "that it is to you that I am
+indebted for the rescue of the princess. She tells me that suspecting
+some plot you placed a guard around the bishop's palace, with a strong
+body on the shore ready to rescue her from the hands of any who might
+attempt to take her to sea."
+
+"It is as you say, sire," replied the earl; "but the whole merit of the
+affair rests upon my page, the lad whom you may remember as having
+fought with and conquered the French page, and of whose conduct you then
+approved highly. You may also remember that he escaped by some display
+of bravery and shrewdness the further attempts to assassinate him, and
+your majesty was good enough to make a complaint to King Philip of the
+conduct of one of his nobles on that head. It seems that some two months
+since the lad in coming through the French camp at night missed his way,
+and accidentally overheard a few words spoken in a voice which he
+recognized as that of his enemy. The name of your majesty being
+mentioned, he deemed it his duty to listen, and thus discovered that a
+plot was on foot for carrying off the princess. After consultation with
+me, we agreed upon the course to be adopted, namely, to place sentries
+round the bishop's place and the buildings adjoining, who should follow
+and bring word should she be taken to another place in town, while a
+band was placed on the shore in readiness to interfere at once to
+prevent her being carried away by sea. He undertook the management of
+all details, having with him a trusty squire who commands my Saxon
+bowmen."
+
+"For your own part I thank you, my lord," the king said, "and, believe
+me, you shall not find Richard ungrateful. As to your page, he appears
+brave and wise beyond his years. Were it not that I think that it would
+not be good for him, and might attract some envy upon the part of
+others, I would at once make him a knight. He already has my promise
+that I will do so on the first occasion when he can show his prowess
+upon the infidels. Bring him to me to-morrow, when the princess will be
+here with the Queen of Navarre at a banquet. I would fain thank him
+before her; and, although I have agreed--at the princess' earnest
+solicitation--to take no further notice of the matter, and to allow it
+to pass as if it had not been, yet I cannot forgive the treachery which
+has been used, and without letting all know exactly what has occurred
+would fain by my reception of your page let men see that something of
+great import has happened, of the nature of which I doubt not that rumor
+will give some notion."
+
+Upon the following day, therefore, Cuthbert to his confusion found
+himself the center of the royal circle. The king expressed himself to
+him in the most gracious manner, patting him on the shoulder, and said
+that he would be one day one of the best and bravest of his knights. The
+princess and the Queen of Navarre gave him their hands to kiss, and
+somewhat overwhelmed, he withdrew from the royal presence, the center of
+attention, and, in some minds, of envy.
+
+Cnut too did not pass unrewarded.
+
+His majesty, finding that Cnut was of gentle Saxon blood, gave him a
+gold chain in token of his favor, and distributed a heavy purse among
+the men who had followed him.
+
+When the British fleet, numbering two hundred ships, set sail from
+Sicily, it was a grand and martial sight. From the masts were the colors
+of England and those of the nobles who commanded; while the pennons of
+the knights, the bright plumes and mantles, the flash of armor and arms
+made the decks alive with light and color.
+
+The king's ship advanced in the van, and round him were the vessels
+containing his principal followers. The Queen of Navarre and the
+Princess Berengaria were with the fleet. Strains of music rose from the
+waters, and never were the circumstances of war exhibited in a more
+picturesque form.
+
+For two days the expedition sailed on, and then a change of a sudden and
+disastrous kind took place.
+
+"What is all this bustle about?" Cuthbert said to Cnut. "The sailors are
+running up the ladders, all seems confusion."
+
+"Methinks," said Cnut, "that we are about to have a storm. A few minutes
+ago scarce a cloud was to be seen; now that bank over there has risen
+halfway up the sky. The sailors are accustomed to these treacherous
+seas, and the warnings which we have not noticed have no doubt been
+clear enough to them."
+
+With great rapidity the sails of the fleet came down, and in five
+minutes its whole aspect was changed; but quickly as the sailors had
+done their work, the storm was even more rapid in its progress. Some of
+the ships whose crews were slower or less skillful than the others were
+caught by the gale before they could get their sails snug, and the great
+sheets of white canvas were blown from the bolt-ropes as if made of
+paper, and a blackness which could almost be felt covered the sea, the
+only light being that given by the frothing waters. There was no longer
+any thought of order. Each ship had to shift for herself; and each
+captain to do his best to save those under his charge, without thought
+of what might befall the others.
+
+In the ship which carried the Earl of Evesham's contingent, order and
+discipline prevailed. The earl's voice had been heard at the first puff
+of wind, shouting to the men to go below, save a few who might be of use
+to haul at ropes. His standard was lowered, the bright flags removed
+from the sides of the ship, the shields which were hanging over the
+bulwarks were hurriedly taken below, and when the gale smote them the
+ship was trim, and in readiness to receive it. A few square yards of
+sail alone were all that the captain had thought it prudent to keep
+spread, and in a minute from the time she was struck the lofty hulk was
+tearing along through the waters at a tremendous speed. Four of the best
+hands were placed at the helm; and here the captain took his post.
+
+The danger was now that in the darkness they might run against one of
+their consorts. Even in the war of the elements they could hear from
+time to time crashes as of vessels striking against each other, with
+shouts and cries. Once or twice from the darkness ships emerged, close
+on one hand or the other; but the steadiness of the captain in each case
+saved the ship from collision.
+
+As the storm continued these glimpses of other vessels became more and
+more rare, and the ship being a very fast sailer, the captain indulged
+the hope that he was now clear of the rest of the fleet.
+
+He now attempted to lie-to to the storm, but the wind was too strong.
+The ships in those days, too, were so high out of the water, and offered
+in themselves such a target to the wind, that it was useless to adopt
+any other maneuver than to run before it.
+
+For two days and nights the tempest raged.
+
+"What think you," the earl said to the captain, "of our position? Where
+are we, and where will the course upon which we are running take us?"
+
+"I cannot say with certainty," the captain said, "for the wind has
+shifted several times. I had hoped to gain the shelter of Rhodes, but a
+shift of wind bore us away from there, and I much fear that from the
+direction in which we have been running we must be very nigh on the
+coast of Africa."
+
+"_Peste!_" the earl said. "That would indeed be a speedy end to our
+Crusade. These Moors are pirates and cutthroats to a man; and even
+should we avoid the risk of being dashed to pieces, we should end our
+lives as slaves to one of these black infidels."
+
+Three hours later the captain's prophecies turned out right. Breakers
+were seen in various points in front, and with the greatest difficulty
+the vessel was steered through an opening between them; but in another
+few minutes she struck heavily, one of her masts went over the side, and
+she lay fast and immovable. Fortunately, the outside bank of sand acted
+as a sort of breakwater; had she struck upon this the good ship would
+have gone to pieces instantly; but although the waves still struck her
+with considerable force, the captain had good hope that she would not
+break up. Darkness came on; the tempest seemed to lull. As there was no
+immediate danger, and all were exhausted by the tossing which they had
+received during the last forty-eight hours, the crew of the Rose slept
+soundly.
+
+In the morning the sun rose brilliantly, and there was no sign of the
+great storm which had scattered the fleet of England. The shore was to
+be seen at a distance of some four miles. It was low and sandy, with
+lofty mountains in the distance. Far inland a white town with minaret
+and dome could be seen.
+
+"Know you where we are?" the earl asked.
+
+"As far as I can tell," the captain said, "we have been driven up the
+bay called the Little Syrtis--a place full of shoals and shallows, and
+abounding with pirates of the worst kind."
+
+"Think you that the ship has suffered injury?"
+
+"Whether she has done so or not," the captain said, "I fear greatly
+that she is fast in the sand, and even the lightening of all her cargo
+will scarce get her off; but we must try at least."
+
+"It is little time that we shall have to try, Master Captain," Cuthbert,
+who was standing close, said. "Me thinks those two long ships which are
+putting out from that town will have something to say to that."
+
+"It is too true," the captain said. "Those are the galleys of the
+Moorish corsairs. They are thirty or forty oars, draw but little water,
+and will be here like the wind."
+
+"What do you advise?" asked the earl. "The falconets which you have upon
+the poop can make but a poor resistance to boats that can row around us,
+and are no doubt furnished with heavy metal. They will quickly perceive
+that we are aground and defenseless, and will be able to plump their
+shot into us until they have knocked the good ship to pieces. However,
+we will fight to the last. It shall not be said that the Earl of Evesham
+was taken by infidel dogs and sold as a slave, without striking a blow
+in his defense."
+
+Cuthbert stood watching the corsairs, which were now rowing toward them
+at all speed.
+
+"Methinks, my lord," he said presently, "if I might venture to give an
+opinion, that we might yet trick the infidel."
+
+"As how, Cuthbert?" the earl said. "Speak out; you know that I have
+great faith in your sagacity."
+
+"I think, sir," the page said, "that did we send all your men below,
+leaving only the crew of the vessel on deck, they would take us for a
+merchant ship which has been wrecked here, and exercise but little care
+how they approach us. The men on deck might make a show of firing once
+or twice with the falconets. The pirates, disdaining such a foe, would
+row alongside. Once there, we might fasten one or both to our side with
+grapnels, and then, methinks, that English bill and bow will render us
+more than a match for Moorish pirates, and one of these craft can
+scarcely carry more men than we have. I should propose to take one of
+them by force, and drive the pirates overboard; take possession of, if
+possible, or beat off her consort; and then take the most valuable
+stores from the ship and make our way as best we can to the north."
+
+"Well thought of!" exclaimed the earl cordially. "You have indeed
+imagined a plan which promises well. What think you, captain?"
+
+"I think, my lord," the Genoese said, "that the plan is an excellent
+one, and promises every success. If your men will all go below, holding
+their arms in readiness for the signal, mine shall prepare grapnels and
+ropes, and the first of these craft which comes alongside they will lash
+so securely to the Rose that I warrant me she gets not away."
+
+These preparations were soon made.
+
+The soldiers, who at first had been filled with apprehension at the
+thought of slavery among the infidels, were now delighted at the
+prospect of a struggle ending in escape.
+
+The archers prepared their bows and arrows, and stood behind the
+portholes in readiness to pour a volley into the enemy; the men-at-arms
+grasped their pikes and swords; while above, the sailors moved hither
+and thither as if making preparations for defense, but in reality
+preparing the grapnels and ropes.
+
+One of the pirates was faster than the other, and soon coming within
+reach, opened fire upon the Rose with a heavy cannon, which she carried
+in her bow.
+
+The crew of the Rose replied with their falconets and sakers from the
+poop.
+
+The corsair at first did not keep her course direct for the ship, but
+rowed once or twice round her, firing as she did so. Then, apparently
+satisfied that no great precaution need be observed with a feebly-manned
+ship in so great a strait as the Rose, they set up a wild cry of
+"Allah!" and rowed toward her.
+
+In two minutes the corsair was alongside of the Rose, and the fierce
+crew were climbing up her sides. As she came alongside the sailors cast
+grapnels into her rigging, and fastened her to the Rose; and then a loud
+shout of "Hurrah for England!" was heard; the ports opened, and a volley
+of arrows was poured upon the astonished corsair; and from the deck
+above the assailants were thrown back into the galley, and a swarm of
+heavily armed men leaped down from the ship upon them.
+
+Taken by surprise, and indeed outnumbered, the resistance of the
+corsairs was but slight. In a close fierce _melee_ like this the
+light-armed Moors had but little chance with the mail-clad English,
+whose heavy swords and axes clove their defenses at a blow. The fight
+lasted but three minutes, and then the last of the corsairs was
+overboard.
+
+The men who rowed the galley had uttered the most piercing cries while
+this conflict had been raging. They were unable to take any part in it,
+had they been disposed to do so, for they were all slaves chained to the
+oars.
+
+Scarcely had the conflict ended when the other galley arrived upon the
+scene; but seeing what had happened, and that her consort had fallen
+into the hands of the English, she at once turned her head, and rowed
+back rapidly to the town from which she had come.
+
+Among the slaves who rowed the galley were many white men, and their
+cries of joy at their liberation greatly affected those who had thus
+unexpectedly rescued them. Hammers were soon brought into requisition,
+the shackles struck off them, and a scene of affecting joy took place.
+The slaves were of all nationalities, but Italians and Spaniards, French
+and Greeks formed the principal part. There was no time, however, to be
+lost; the arms and munitions of war were hastily removed from the Rose,
+together with the most valuable of the stores.
+
+The galley-slaves again took their places, and this time willingly, at
+the oars, the places of the weakest being supplied by the English,
+whose want of skill was made up by the alacrity with which they threw
+their strength into the work; and in an hour from the time that the
+galley had arrived alongside of the Rose, her head was turned north, and
+with sixty oars she was rowing at all speed for the mouth of the bay.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+IN THE HOLY LAND.
+
+
+As soon as the galley which had escaped reached the town from which it
+had started, it with three others at once set out in pursuit; while from
+a narrow creek two other galleys made their appearance.
+
+There were a few words of question among the English whether to stop and
+give battle to these opponents, or to make their way with all speed. The
+latter counsel prevailed; the earl pointing out that their lives were
+now scarcely their own, and that they had no right on their way to the
+holy sepulcher to risk them unnecessarily.
+
+Fortunately they had it in their hands to fight or escape, as they
+chose; for doubly banked as the oars now were there was little chance of
+the enemy's galleys overtaking them. Gradually as they rowed to sea the
+pursuing vessels became smaller and smaller to view, until at last they
+were seen to turn about and make again for land.
+
+After some consultation between the earl and the captain of the lost
+ship it was determined to make for Rhodes. This had been settled as a
+halting point for the fleet, and the earl thought it probable that the
+greater portion of those scattered by the storm would rendezvous there.
+
+So it proved; after a voyage, which although not very long was tedious,
+owing to the number of men cramped up in so small a craft, they came
+within sight of the port of Rhodes, and were greatly pleased at seeing a
+perfect forest of masts there, showing that at least the greater portion
+of the fleet had survived the storm.
+
+This was indeed the fact, and a number of other single ships dropped in
+during the next day or two.
+
+There was great astonishment on the part of the fleet when the long,
+swift galley was seen approaching, and numerous conjectures were offered
+as to what message the pirates could be bringing--for there was no
+mistaking the appearance of the long, dangerous-looking craft.
+
+When, upon her approach, the standard of the Earl of Evesham was seen
+flying on the bow, a great shout of welcome arose from the fleet; and
+King Richard himself, who happened to be on the deck of the royal ship,
+shouted to the earl to come on board and tell him what masquerading he
+was doing there. The earl of course obeyed the order, anchoring near the
+royal vessel, and going on board in a small boat, taking with him his
+page and squire.
+
+The king heard with great interest the tale of the adventures of the
+Rose; and when the Earl of Evesham said that it was to Cuthbert that was
+due the thought of the stratagem by which the galley was captured, and
+its crew saved from being carried away into hopeless slavery, the king
+patted the boy on the shoulder with such hearty force as nearly to throw
+Cuthbert off his feet.
+
+"By St. George!" said the monarch, "you are fated to be a very pink of
+knights. You seem as thoughtful as you are brave; and whatever your age
+may be, I declare that the next time your name is brought before me I
+will call a chapter of knights, and they shall agree that exception
+shall be made in your favor, and that you shall at once be admitted to
+the honorable post. You will miss your page, Sir Walter; but I am sure
+you will not grudge him that."
+
+"No, no, sire," said the earl. "The lad, as I have told your majesty, is
+a connection of mine--distant it is true, but one of the nearest I
+have--and it will give me the greatest pleasure to see him rising so
+rapidly, and on a fair way to distinguish himself so highly. I feel
+already as proud of him as if he were my own son."
+
+The fleet remained some two or three weeks at Rhodes, for many of the
+vessels were sorely buffeted and injured, masts were carried away as
+well as bulwarks battered in, and the efforts of the crews and of those
+of the whole of the artificers of Rhodes were called into requisition.
+Light sailing craft were sent off in all directions, for the king was in
+a fever of anxiety. Among the vessels still missing was that which bore
+the Queen of Navarre and the fair Berengaria.
+
+One day a solitary vessel was seen approaching. "Another of our lost
+sheep," the earl said, looking out over the poop.
+
+She proved, however, to be a merchant ship of Greece, and newly come
+from Cyprus.
+
+Her captain went on board the royal ship, and delivered a message to the
+king, to the effect that two of the vessels had been cast upon the coast
+of Cyprus, that they had been plundered by the people, the crews
+ill-treated and made prisoners by the king, and that the Queen of
+Navarre and the princess were in their hands.
+
+This roused King Richard into one of his furies. "Before I move a step
+toward the Holy Land," he said, "I will avenge these injuries upon this
+faithless and insolent king. I swear that I will make him pay dearly for
+having laid a hand upon these ladies."
+
+At once the signal was hoisted for all the vessels in a condition to
+sail to take on board water and provisions, and to prepare to sail for
+Cyprus; and the next morning at daybreak the fleet sailed out, and made
+their way toward that island, casting anchor off the harbor of
+Famagosta.
+
+King Richard sent a messenger on shore to the king, ordering him at once
+to release the prisoners; to make the most ample compensation to them;
+to place ships at their service equal to those which had been destroyed;
+and to pay a handsome sum of money as indemnity.
+
+The King of Cyprus, however, an insolent and haughty despot, sent back
+a message of defiance. King Richard at once ordered the anchors to be
+raised, and all to follow the royal ship.
+
+The fleet entered the harbor of Famagosta; the English archers began the
+fight by sending a flight of arrows into the town. This was answered
+from the walls by a shower of stones and darts from the machines.
+
+There was no time wasted. The vessels were headed toward the shore, and
+as the water was deep, many of them were able to run close alongside the
+rocky wharves. In an instant, regardless of the storm of weapons poured
+down by the defenders, the English leaped ashore.
+
+The archers kept up so terrible a rain of missiles against the
+battlements that the defenders could scarcely show themselves for an
+instant there, and the men-at-arms, placing ladders against them,
+speedily mounted, and putting aside all opposition, poured into the
+town. The effeminate Greek soldiers of the monarch could offer no
+effectual resistance whatever, and he himself fled from the palace and
+gained the open country, followed by a few adherents. The English gained
+a considerable booty, for in those days a town taken by assault was
+always looked upon as the property of the captors. The Queen of Navarre
+and the princess were rescued.
+
+King Richard, however, was not satisfied with the success he had gained,
+and was determined to punish this insolent little king. Accordingly the
+English were set in motion into the interior, and town after town
+speedily fell, or opened their gate to him. The king, deserted by his
+troops, and detested by his people for having brought so terrible a
+scourge upon them by his reckless conduct, now sued for peace; but King
+Richard would give him no terms except dethronement, and this he was
+forced to accept. He was deprived of his crown, and banished from the
+island.
+
+The king now, to the surprise of his barons, announced his intention of
+at once marrying the Princess Berengaria.
+
+Popular as he was, there was yet some quiet grumbling among his troops;
+as they said, with justice, they had been waiting nearly six months in
+the island of Sicily, and the king might well have married there,
+instead of a fresh delay being caused when so near their place of
+destination.
+
+However, the king as usual had his own way, and the marriage was
+solemnized amid great rejoicing and solemnity.
+
+It was a brilliant scene indeed in the cathedral of Limasol. There were
+assembled all the principal barons of England, together with a great
+number of the nobles of Cyprus.
+
+Certainly no better matched pair ever stood at the altar together, for
+as King Richard was one of the strongest and bravest men of his own or
+any other time, so Berengaria is admitted to have been one of the
+loveliest maidens.
+
+The air was rent with the acclamations of the assembled English host
+and of the numerous inhabitants of Limasol as they emerged from the
+cathedral. For a fortnight the town was given up to festivity;
+tournaments, joustings, banquets succeeded each other day after day, and
+the islanders, who were fond of pleasure, and indeed very wealthy, vied
+with the English in the entertainments which they gave in honor of the
+occasion.
+
+The festivities over, the king gave the welcome order to proceed on
+their voyage. They had now been joined by all the vessels left behind at
+Rhodes, and it was found that only a few were missing, and that the
+great storm, terrible as it had been, had inflicted less damage upon the
+fleet than was at first feared.
+
+Two days' sail brought them within sight of the white walls of Acre, and
+it was on June 8, 1191, that the fleet sailed into the port of that
+town. Tremendous acclamations greeted the arrival of the English army by
+the host assembled on the shores.
+
+Acre had been besieged for two years, but in vain; and even the arrival
+of the French army under Philip Augustus had failed to turn the scale.
+The inhabitants defended themselves with desperate bravery; every
+assault upon the walls had been repulsed with immense slaughter; and at
+no great distance off the Sultan Saladin, with a large army, was
+watching the progress of the siege.
+
+The fame of King Richard and the English was so great, however, that the
+besiegers had little doubt that his arrival would change the position of
+things; and even the French, in spite of the bad feeling which had
+existed in Sicily, joined with the knights and army of the King of
+Jerusalem in acclaiming the arrival of the English.
+
+Philip Augustus, the French king, was of a somewhat weak and wavering
+disposition. It would have been thought that after his dispute with King
+Richard he would have gladly done all in his power to carry Acre before
+the arrival of his great rival. To the great disappointment of the
+French, however, he declared that he would take no step in the general
+assault until the arrival of Richard; and although the French had given
+some assistance to the besiegers, the army had really remained passive
+for many weeks.
+
+Now, however, that the English had arrived, little time was lost; for
+the moment the dissensions and jealousies between the monarchs were
+patched up, the two hosts naturally imitated the example of their
+sovereigns, and French and English worked side by side in throwing up
+trenches against the walls, in building movable towers for the attack,
+and in preparing for the great onslaught.
+
+The French were the first to finish their preparations, and they
+delivered a tremendous assault upon the walls. The besieged, however,
+did not lose heart, and with the greatest bravery repulsed every
+attempt. The scaling ladders were hurled backward, the towers were
+destroyed by Greek fire; boiling oil was hurled down upon the men who
+advanced under the shelter of machines to undermine the walls; and
+after desperate fighting the French fell back, baffled and beaten.
+
+There was some quiet exultation in the English lines at the defeat of
+the French, for they believed that a better fortune would crown their
+own efforts. Such, however, to their surprise and mortification, was not
+the case. When their preparations were completed they attacked with
+splendid bravery. They were fighting under the eyes of their king and in
+sight of the French army, who had a few days before been baffled; and if
+bravery and devotion could have carried the walls of Acre, assuredly
+King Richard's army would have accomplished the task.
+
+It was, however, too great for them, and with vast loss the army fell
+back to its camp, King Richard raging like a wounded lion. Many of his
+barons had been killed in the assault, and the pikemen and men-at-arms
+had suffered heavily. The Earl of Evesham had been wounded; Cuthbert had
+taken no part in the assault, for the earl, knowing his bravery, had
+forbidden his doing so, as he foresaw the struggle would be of the most
+desperate character; and as it was not usual for pages to accompany
+their lords on the battlefield, Cuthbert could not complain of his being
+forbidden to take part in the fight.
+
+The earl, however, permitted him to accompany Cnut and the bowmen, who
+did great service by the accuracy of their aim, preventing by their
+storm of arrows the men on the battlements from taking steady aim and
+working their machines, and so saved the Earl of Evesham's troop and
+those fighting near him from suffering nearly as heavy loss as some of
+those engaged in other quarters.
+
+But while successful in beating off all assaults, the defenders of Acre
+were now nearly at the end of their resources. The Emperor Saladin,
+although he had collected an army of two hundred thousand men, yet
+feared to advance and give battle to the Crusaders in their own
+lines--for they had thrown up round their camp strong intrenchments to
+prevent the progress of the siege being disturbed by forces from
+without.
+
+The people of Acre seeing the time pass and no sign of a rescuing force,
+their provisions being utterly exhausted, and pestilence and fever
+making frightful ravages in the city, at last determined to surrender.
+
+For over two years they had made a resistance of the most valiant
+description, and now, despairing of success or rescue, and seeing the
+hosts of their besiegers increasing day by day, they hoisted a flag upon
+the walls and sent a deputation to the kings, asking for terms if they
+submitted. They would have done well had they submitted upon the arrival
+of the French and English reinforcements. For the monarchs, annoyed by
+the defeat of their forces and by the heavy losses they had sustained,
+and knowing that the besieged were now at their last crust, were not
+disposed to be merciful.
+
+However, the horrors which then attended the capture of cities in a war
+in which so little quarter was given on either side were avoided. The
+city was to be surrendered; the much-prized relic contained within its
+walls--said to be a piece of the true cross which had been captured by
+the Saracens at the battle of Tiberias, in which they had almost
+annihilated the Christian armies a few years before--was to be
+surrendered; the Christian prisoners in their hands were to be given up
+unharmed; and the inhabitants undertook to pay two hundred thousand
+pieces of gold to the kings within forty days, under the condition that
+the fighting men now taken prisoners were to be put to death should this
+ransom not be paid.
+
+The conquest of Acre was hailed throughout Christendom as a triumph of
+the highest importance. It opened again the gates of the Holy Land; and
+so tremendous was the strength of the fortress that it was deemed that
+if this stronghold were unable to resist effectually the arms of the
+Crusaders, and that if Saladin with so great an army did not dare to
+advance to its rescue, then the rest of the Holy Land would speedily
+fall under the hands of the invading army.
+
+With the fall of Acre, however, the dissensions between the two kings,
+which had for awhile been allowed to rest while the common work was to
+be done, broke out again with renewed intensity. The jealousy of Philip
+Augustus was raised to the highest point by the general enthusiasm of
+the combined armies for the valiant King of England, and by the
+authority which that monarch exercised in the councils. He therefore
+suddenly announced his intention of returning to France.
+
+This decision at first occasioned the greatest consternation in the
+ranks of the Crusaders; but this feeling was lessened when the king
+announced that he should leave a large portion of the French army
+behind, under the command of the Duke of Burgundy. The wiser councilors
+were satisfied with the change. Although there was a reduction of the
+total fighting force, yet the fact that it was now centered under one
+head, and that King Richard would now be in supreme command, was deemed
+to more than counterbalance the loss of a portion of the French army.
+
+Before starting on the march for Jerusalem King Richard sullied his
+reputation by causing all the defenders of Acre to be put to death,
+their ransom not having arrived at the stipulated time.
+
+Then the allied army set out upon their journey. The fleet cruised along
+near them, and from it they obtained all that was requisite for their
+wants, and yet, notwithstanding these advantages, the toil and fatigue
+were terrible. Roads scarcely existed, and the army marched across the
+rough and broken country. There was no straggling, but each kept his
+place; and if unable to do so, fell and died. The blazing sun poured
+down upon them with an appalling force; the dust which rose when they
+left the rocks and came upon flat, sandy ground almost smothered them.
+Water was only obtainable at the halts, and then was frequently
+altogether insufficient for the wants of the army; while in front, on
+flank, and in rear hovered clouds of the cavalry of Saladin.
+
+At times King Richard would allow parties of his knights to detach
+themselves from the force to drive off these enemies. But it was the
+chase of a lion after a hare. The knights in their heavy armor and
+powerful steeds were left behind as if standing still, by the fleet
+Bedouins on their desert coursers; and the pursuers, exhausted and worn
+out, were always glad to regain the ranks of the army.
+
+These clouds of cavalry belonging to the enemy did not content
+themselves with merely menacing and cutting off stragglers. At times,
+when they thought they saw an opening, they would dash in and attack the
+column desperately, sometimes gaining temporary advantages, killing and
+wounding many, then fleeing away again into the desert.
+
+Finding that it was impossible to catch these wary horsemen, King
+Richard ordered his bowmen to march outside his cavalry, so that when
+the enemy's horse approached within bowshot they should open upon them
+with arrows; then, should the horsemen persist in charging, the archers
+were at once to take refuge behind the lines of the knights.
+
+Day after day passed in harassing conflicts. The distance passed over
+each day was very small, and the sufferings of the men from thirst,
+heat, and fatigue enormous. Cuthbert could well understand now what he
+had heard of great armies melting away, for already men began to succumb
+in large numbers to the terrible heat, and the path traversed by the
+army was scattered with corpses of those who had fallen victims to
+sunstroke. Not even at night did the attacks of the enemy cease, and a
+portion of the harassed force was obliged to keep under arms to repel
+assaults.
+
+So passed the time until the army arrived at Azotus, and there, to the
+delight of the Crusaders, who only longed to get at their foes, they
+beheld the whole force of Saladin, two hundred thousand strong, barring
+their way. Had it not been for the stern discipline enforced by King
+Richard the knights of England and France would have repeated the
+mistake which had caused the extermination of the Christian force at
+Tiberias, and would have leveled their lances and charged recklessly
+into the mass of their enemies. But the king, riding round the flanks
+and front of the force, gave his orders in the sternest way, with the
+threat that any man who moved from the ranks should die by his hand.
+
+The army was halted, the leaders gathered round the king, and a hasty
+consultation was held. Richard insisted upon the fight being conducted
+upon the same principles as the march--that the line of archers should
+stand outside the knights, and should gall the advancing force with
+arrows till the last moment, and then retire among the cavalry, only to
+sally out again as the Bedouins fell back from the steel wall of
+horsemen.
+
+Cuthbert had now for the first time donned full armor, and rode behind
+the Earl of Evesham as his esquire, for the former esquire had been left
+behind, ill with fever at Acre.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+THE ACCOLADE.
+
+
+It was now a year since they had left England, and Cuthbert had much
+grown and widened out in the interval, and had never neglected an
+opportunity of practicing with arms; and the earl was well aware that he
+should obtain as efficient assistance from him in time of need as he
+could desire.
+
+This was the first time that Cuthbert, and indeed the great proportion
+of those present in the Christian host, had seen the enemy in force, and
+they eagerly watched the vast array. It was picturesque in the extreme,
+with a variety and brightness of color rivaling that of the Christian
+host. In banners and pennons the latter made a braver show; but the
+floating robes of the infidel showed a far brighter mass of color than
+the steel armor of the Christians.
+
+Here were people drawn from widely separated parts of Saladin's
+dominions. Here were Nubians from the Nile, tall and powerful men, jet
+black in skin, with lines of red and white paint on their faces, giving
+a ghastly and wild appearance to them. On their shoulders were skins of
+lions and other wild animals. They carried short bows, and heavy clubs
+studded with iron. By them were the Bedouin cavalry, light, sinewy men,
+brown as berries, with white turbans and garments. Near these were the
+cavalry from Syria and the plains of Assyria--wild horsemen with
+semi-barbarous armor and scarlet trappings. Here were the solid lines of
+the Egyptian infantry, steady troops, upon whom Saladin much relied.
+Here were other tribes, gathered from afar, each distinguished by its
+own particular marks. In silence did this vast array view awhile the
+solid mass of the Christians. Suddenly a strange din of discordant music
+from thousands of musical instruments--conches and horns, cymbals and
+drums, arose in wild confusion. Shouts of defiance in a dozen tongues
+and from two hundred thousand throats rose wild and shrill upon the air,
+while clear above all the din were heard the strange vibratory cries of
+the warriors from the Egyptian highlands.
+
+"One would think," said Cnut grimly to Cuthbert, "that the infidels
+imagine we are a flock of antelopes to be frightened by an outcry. They
+would do far better to save their wind for future use. They will want
+it, methinks, when we get fairly among them. Who would have thought that
+a number of men, heathen and infidel though they be, could have made so
+foul an outcry?"
+
+Cuthbert laughed.
+
+"Every one fights according to his own method, Cnut; and I am not sure
+that there is not some thing to be said for this outcry, for it is
+really so wild and fearful that it makes my blood almost curdle in my
+veins; and were it not that I know the proved valor of our knights and
+footmen, I should feel shaken by this terrible introduction to the
+fight."
+
+"I heed it no more," said Cnut, "than the outcry of wild fowl, when one
+comes upon them suddenly on a lake in winter. It means no more than
+that; and I reckon that they are trying to encourage themselves fully as
+much as to frighten us. However, we shall soon see. If they can fight as
+well as they can scream, they certainly will get no answering shouts
+from us. The English bulldog fights silently, and bite as hard as he
+will, you will hear little beyond a low growl. Now, my men," he said,
+turning to his archers, "methinks the heathen are about to begin in
+earnest. Keep steady; do not fire until you are sure that they are
+within range. Draw your bows well to your ears, and straightly and
+steadily let fly. Never heed the outcry or the rush, keep steady to the
+last moment. There is shelter behind you, and fierce as the attack may
+be, you can find a sure refuge behind the line of the knights."
+
+Cnut with his archers formed part of the line outside the array of
+English knights, and the arrows of the English bowmen fell fast as bands
+of the Bedouin horse circled round them in the endeavor to draw the
+Christians on to the attack. For some time Saladin persisted in these
+tactics. With his immense superiority of force he reckoned that if the
+Christian chivalry would but charge him, the victory of Tiberias would
+be repeated. Hemmed in by numbers, borne down by the weight of armor and
+the effects of the blazing sun, the knights would succumb as much to
+fatigue as to the force of their foes. King Richard's orders, however,
+were well obeyed, and at last the Moslem chief, urged by the entreaties
+of his leading emirs, who felt ashamed that so large a force should
+hesitate to attack one so vastly inferior in numbers, determined upon
+taking the initiative, and forming his troops in a semicircle round the
+Christian army, launched his horsemen to the attack. The instant they
+came within range a cloud of arrows from the English archers fell among
+them, but the speed at which the desert horses covered the ground
+rendered it impossible for the archers to discharge more than one or two
+shafts before the enemy were upon them. Quickly as they now slipped back
+and sought refuge under the lances of the knights, many of them were
+unable to get back in time, and were cut down by the Saracens. The rest
+crept between the horses or under their bellies into the rear, and there
+prepared to sally out again as soon as the enemy retired. The Christian
+knights sat like a wall of steel upon their horses, their lances were
+leveled, and brave as the Bedouin horsemen were, they felt to break this
+massive line was impossible. The front line, however, charged well up to
+the points of the lances, against which they hewed with their sharp
+scimiters, frequently severing the steel top from the ashpole, and then
+breaking through and engaging in hand-to-hand conflict with the knights.
+Behind the latter sat their squires, with extra spears and arms ready to
+hand to their masters; and in close combat, the heavy maces with their
+spike ends were weapons before which the light-clad horsemen went down
+like reeds before a storm.
+
+Hour after hour the Arab horsemen persisted in their attack, suffering
+heavily, but determined to conquer if possible. Then Saladin suddenly
+ordered a retreat, and at seeing their enemy fly, the impetuosity of the
+Crusaders at last broke out. With a shout they dashed after the foe.
+King Richard, knowing that his followers had already shown a patience
+far beyond what he could have expected, now headed the onslaught,
+performing prodigies of valor with his single arm, and riding from point
+to point to see that all was well.
+
+The early resistance of the infidel host was comparatively slight. The
+heavy mass of the Christian cavalry, with their leveled lances, swept
+through the ranks of the light horsemen, and trampled them down like
+grass beneath their feet; but every moment the resistance became more
+stubborn.
+
+Saladin, knowing the Christians would sooner or later assume the
+offensive, had gathered his troops line in line behind the front ranks,
+and as the force of the Crusaders' charge abated, so did the number of
+foes in their front multiply. Not only this, but upon either side chosen
+bands swept down, and ere long the Christians were brought to a stand,
+and all were fighting hand to hand with their enemies. The lances were
+thrown away now, and with ax and mace each fought for himself.
+
+The Earl of Evesham was one of a group of knights whom King Richard had
+that day ordered to keep close to his person, and around this group the
+fight raged most furiously.
+
+Saladin, aware of the extreme personal valor and warlike qualities of
+King Richard, set the greatest value upon his death or capture, and had
+ordered a large number of his best troops to devote their whole
+attention to attacking the King of England.
+
+The royal standard carried behind the king was a guide to their
+onslaught, and great as was the strength and valor of King Richard, he
+with difficulty was able to keep at bay the hosts that swept around him.
+
+Now that the lance had been abandoned for battle-ax, Cuthbert was able
+to take an active part in the struggle, his duties consisting mainly in
+guarding the rear of his master, and preventing his being overthrown by
+any sudden attack on the flank or from behind.
+
+King Richard was bent not only on defending himself from the attacks of
+his foes, but on directing the general course of the battle; and from
+time to time he burst, with his own trusty knights, through the ring of
+foes, and rode from point to point of the field, calling the knights
+together, exhorting them to steadiness, and restoring the fight where
+its fortunes seemed doubtful. At one time the impetuosity of the king
+led him into extreme danger. He had burst through the enemy surrounding
+him, and these, by order of their captain, allowed him to pass through
+their ranks, and then threw themselves together in his rear, to cut him
+off from the knights who rode behind. The maneuver was successful. The
+rush of horsemen fairly carried away the Christian knights, and one or
+two alone were able to make their way through.
+
+Amid the wild confusion that raged, where each man was fighting for his
+own life, and but little view of what was passing could be obtained
+through the barred visor, the fact that the king was separated from them
+was known to but few. Sir Walter himself was engaged fiercely in a
+hand-to-hand fight with four Bedouins who surrounded him, when Cuthbert
+shouted:
+
+"The king, Sir Walter! the king! He is cut off and surrounded! For
+heaven's sake ride to him. See! the royal standard is down."
+
+With a shout the earl turned, brained one of his foes with a sweep of
+his heavy ax, and, followed by Cuthbert, dashed to the assistance of the
+king. The weight of his horse and armor cleft through the crowd, and in
+a brief space he penetrated to the side of King Richard, who was borne
+upon by a host of foes. Just as they reached them a Bedouin who had been
+struck from his horse crawled beneath the noble charger of King Richard,
+and drove his scimiter deep into its bowels. The animal reared high in
+its sudden pain, and then fell on the ground, carrying the king, who was
+unable to disengage himself quickly enough.
+
+[Illustration: WITH A SHOUT THE EARL TURNED, FOLLOWED BY CUTHBERT, AND
+DASHED TO THE ASSISTANCE OF THE KING.]
+
+In an instant the Earl of Evesham had leaped from his horse and with his
+broad triangular shield extended, sought to cover him from the press of
+enemies. Cuthbert imitated his lord, and strove to defend the latter
+from attacks from the rear. For a moment or two the sweep of the earl's
+heavy ax and Cuthbert's circling sword kept back the foe, but this could
+not last. King Richard in vain strove to extricate his leg from beneath
+his fallen steed. Cuthbert saw at a glance that the horse still lived,
+and with a sudden slash of his sword he struck it on the hind quarter.
+Goaded by the pain the noble animal made a last effort to rise, but only
+to fall back dead. The momentary action was, however, sufficient for
+King Richard, who drew his leg from under it, and with his heavy
+battle-ax in hand, rose with a shout, and stood by the side of the earl.
+
+In vain did the Bedouins strive to cut down and overpower the two
+champions; in vain did they urge their horses to ride over them. With
+each sweep of his ax the king either dismounted a foe or clove in the
+head of his steed, and a wall of slain around them testified to the
+tremendous power of their arms. Still, even such warriors as these could
+not long sustain the conflict. The earl had already received several
+desperate wounds, and the king himself was bleeding from some severe
+gashes with the keen-edged scimiters. Cuthbert was already down, when a
+shout of "St. George!" was heard, and a body of English knights clove
+through the throng of Saracens and reached the side of King Richard.
+Close behind these in a mass pressed the British footmen with bill and
+pike, the enemy giving way foot by foot before their steady discipline.
+
+The king was soon on horseback again, and rallying his troops on, led
+them for one more great and final charge upon the enemy.
+
+The effect was irresistible. Appalled by the slaughter which they had
+suffered, and by the tremendous strength and energy of the Christian
+knights, the Saracens broke and fled; and the last reserves of Saladin
+gave way as the king, shouting his war-cry of "God help the holy
+sepulcher!" fell upon them. Once, indeed, the battle still seemed
+doubtful, for a fresh band of the enemy at that moment arrived and
+joined in the fray. The Crusaders were now, however, inspired with such
+courage and confidence that they readily obeyed the king's war-cry,
+gathered in a firm body, and hurled themselves upon this new foe. Then
+the Saracens finally turned and fled, and the Christian victory was
+complete.
+
+It was one of the features of this war that however thorough the
+victories of the Christians, the Saracens very speedily recovered from
+their effects. A Christian defeat was crushing and entire; the knights
+died as they stood, and defeat meant annihilation. Upon the other hand,
+the Saracens and Bedouins, when they felt that their efforts to win the
+battle were unsuccessful, felt no shame or humiliation in scattering
+like sheep. On their fleet horses and in their light attire they could
+easily distance the Christians, who never, indeed, dreamed of pursuing
+them. The day after the fight the enemy would collect again under their
+chiefs, and be as ready as before to renew their harassing warfare.
+
+On his return from the field the king assembled many of his principal
+knights and leaders, and summoned the Earl of Evesham, with the message
+that he was to bring his esquire with him. When they reached the tent
+the king said:
+
+"My lords, as some of you may be aware, I have this day had a narrow
+escape from death. Separated from you in the battle, and attended only
+by my standard-bearer, I was surrounded by the Saracens. I should
+doubtless have cleft my way through the infidel dogs, but a foul peasant
+stabbed my charger from below, and the poor brute fell with me. My
+standard-bearer was killed, and in another moment my nephew Arthur would
+have been your king, had it not been that my good lord here, attended by
+this brave lad, appeared. I have seen a good deal of fighting, but never
+did I see a braver stand than they made above my body. The Earl of
+Evesham, as you all know, is one of my bravest knights, and to him I can
+simply say, 'Thanks; King Richard does not forget a benefit like this.'
+But such aid as I might well look for from so stout a knight as the Earl
+of Evesham I could hardly have expected on the part of a mere boy like
+this. It is not the first time that I have been under a debt of
+gratitude to him; for it was his watchfulness and bravery which saved
+Queen Berengaria from being carried off by the French in Sicily. I
+deemed him too young then for the order of knighthood--although, indeed,
+bravery has no age; still for a private benefit, and that performed
+against allies, in name at least, I did not wish so far to fly in the
+face of usage as to make him a knight. I promised him then, however,
+that the first time he distinguished himself against the infidel he
+should win his spurs. I think that you will agree with me, my lords,
+that he has done so. Not only did he stand over me, and with great
+bravery defend Sir Walter from attacks from behind, but his ready wit
+saved me when even his sword and that of Sir Walter would have failed to
+do so. Penned down under poor Robin I was powerless to move until our
+young esquire, in an interval of slashing at his assailants, found time
+to give a sharp blow together with a shout to Robin. The poor beast
+tried to rise, and the movement, short as it was, enabled me to draw my
+leg from under him, and then with my mace I was enabled to make a stand
+until you arrived at my side. I think, my lords, that you will agree
+with me that Cuthbert, the son of Sir William de Lance, is fit for the
+honor of knighthood."
+
+A general chorus of approval arose from the assembly, and the king,
+bidding Cuthbert kneel before him, drew his sword and laid it across his
+shoulders, dubbing him Sir Cuthbert de Lance. When he had risen the
+great barons of England pressed round to shake his hand, and Cuthbert,
+who was a modest young fellow, felt almost ashamed at the honors which
+were bestowed upon him. The usual ceremonies and penances which young
+knights had to undergo before admission into the body--and which in
+those days were extremely punctilious, and indeed severe, consisting,
+among other things, in fasting, in watching the armor at night, in
+seclusion and religious services--were omitted when the accolade was
+bestowed for bravery in the field.
+
+The king ordered his armorer at once to make for Cuthbert a suit of the
+finest armor, and authorized him to carry on his shield a sword raising
+a royal crown from the ground, in token of the deed for which the honor
+of knighthood had been bestowed upon him.
+
+Upon his return to the earl's camp the news of his new dignity spread at
+once among the followers of Sir Walter, and many and hearty were the
+cheers that went up from the throats of the Saxon foresters, led by
+Cnut. These humble friends were indeed delighted at his success, for
+they felt that to him they owed very much; and his kindness of manner
+and the gayety of heart which he had shown during the hardships they had
+undergone since their start had greatly endeared him to them.
+
+Cuthbert was now to take rank among the knights who followed the banner
+of the earl. A tent was erected for him, an esquire assigned to him, and
+the lad as he entered his new abode felt almost bewildered at the
+change which had taken place in one short day--that he, at the age of
+sixteen, should have earned the honor of knighthood, and the approval of
+the King of England, expressed before all the great barons of the realm,
+was indeed an honor such as he could never have hoped for; and the
+thought of what his mother would say should the news reach her in her
+quiet Saxon home brought the tears into his eyes. He had not gone
+through the usual religious ceremonies, but he knelt in his tent alone,
+and prayed that he might be made worthy of the honors bestowed upon him;
+that he might fulfill the duties of a Christian knight fearlessly and
+honorably; that his sword might never be raised but for the right; that
+he might devote himself to the protection of the oppressed, and the
+honor of God; that his heart might be kept from evil; and that he might
+carry through life unstained his new escutcheon.
+
+If the English had thought that their victory would have gained them
+immunity from the Saracen attacks they were speedily undeceived. The
+host, indeed, which had barred their way had broken up; but its
+fragments were around them, and the harassing attacks began again with a
+violence and persistency even greater than before. The Crusaders,
+indeed, occupied only the ground upon which they stood. It was death to
+venture one hundred yards from the camp unless in a strong body; and the
+smallest efforts to bring in food from the country round were instantly
+met and repelled. Only in very strong bodies could the knights venture
+from camp even to forage for their horses, and the fatigues and
+sufferings of all were in no way relieved by the great victory of
+Azotus.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+IN THE HANDS OF THE SARACENS.
+
+
+The English had hoped that after one pitched battle they should be able
+to advance upon Jerusalem, but they had reckoned without the climate and
+illness.
+
+Although unconquered in the fray, the Christian army was weakened by its
+sufferings to such an extent that it was virtually brought to a
+standstill. Even King Richard, with all his impetuosity, dared not
+venture to cut adrift from the seashore and to march direct upon
+Jerusalem; that city was certainly not to be taken without a long siege,
+and this could only be undertaken by an army strong enough, not only to
+carry out so great a task, but to meet and defeat the armies which
+Saladin would bring up to the rescue, and to keep open the line down to
+Joppa, by which alone provisions and the engines necessary for the siege
+could be brought up. Hence the war resolved itself into a series of
+expeditions and detached fights.
+
+The British camp was thoroughly fortified, and thence parties of the
+knights sallied out and engaged in conflicts with the Saracens, with
+varying success. On several of these expeditions Cuthbert attended the
+earl, and behaved with a bravery which showed him well worthy of the
+honors which he had received.
+
+Upon one occasion the news reached camp that a party of knights, who had
+gone out to guard a number of footmen cutting forage and bringing it
+into camp, had been surrounded and had taken refuge in a small town,
+whose gates they had battered in when they saw the approach of an
+overwhelming host of the enemy. King Richard himself headed a strong
+force and advanced to their assistance. Their approach was not seen
+until within a short distance of the enemy, upon whom the Crusaders fell
+with the force of a thunderbolt, and cleft their way through their
+lines. After a short pause in the little town they prepared to again cut
+their way through, joined by the party who had there been besieged. The
+task was now, however, far more difficult; for the footmen would be
+unable to keep up with the rapid charge of the knights, and it was
+necessary not only to clear the way, but to keep it open for their exit.
+King Richard himself and the greater portion of his knights were to lead
+the charge; another party were to follow behind the footmen, who were
+ordered to advance at the greatest speed of which they were capable,
+while their rearguard by charges upon the enemy kept them at bay. To
+this latter party Cuthbert was attached.
+
+The Saracens followed their usual tactics, and this time with great
+success. Dividing as the king with his knights charged them, they
+suffered these to pass through with but slight resistance, and then
+closed in upon their track, while another and still more numerous body
+fell upon the footmen and their guard. Again and again did the knights
+charge through the ranks of the Moslems, while the billmen stoutly kept
+together and resisted the onslaughts of the enemy's cavalry. In spite of
+their bravery, however, the storm of arrows shot by the desert horsemen
+thinned their ranks with terrible rapidity. Charging up to the very
+point of the spears, these wild horsemen fired their arrows into the
+faces of their foe, and although numbers of them fell beneath the more
+formidable missiles sent by the English archers, their numbers were so
+overwhelming that the little band melted away. The small party of
+knights, too, were rapidly thinned, although performing prodigious deeds
+of valor. The Saracens when dismounted or wounded still fought on foot,
+their object being always to stab or hough the horses, and so dismount
+the riders. King Richard and his force, though making the most desperate
+efforts to return to the assistance of the rearguard, were baffled by
+the sturdy resistance of the Saracens, and the position of those in the
+rear was fast becoming hopeless.
+
+One by one the gallant little band of knights fell, and a sea of turbans
+closed over the fluttering plumes. Cuthbert, after defending himself
+with extreme bravery for a long time, was at last separated from the
+small remainder of his comrades by a rush of the enemy's horse, and when
+fighting desperately he received a heavy blow at the back of the head
+from the mace of a huge Nubian soldier, and fell senseless to the
+ground.
+
+When he recovered his consciousness the first impression upon his mind
+was the stillness which had succeeded to the din of battle; the shouts
+and war-cries of the Crusaders, the wild yells of the Moslems were
+hushed, and in their place was a quiet chatter in many unknown tongues,
+and the sound of laughter and feasting. Raising his head and looking
+round, Cuthbert saw that he and some ten of his comrades were lying
+together in the midst of a Saracen camp, and that he was a prisoner to
+the infidels. The sun streamed down with tremendous force upon them;
+there was no shelter; and though all were wounded and parched with
+thirst, the Saracens of whom they besought water, pointing to their
+mouths and making signs of their extreme thirst, laughed in their faces,
+and signified by a gesture that it was scarcely worth the trouble to
+drink when they were likely so soon to be put to death.
+
+It was late in the afternoon before any change was manifest. Then
+Cuthbert observed a stir in the camp; the men ran to their horses,
+leaped on their backs, and with wild cries of "Welcome!" started off at
+full speed. Evidently some personage was about to arrive, and the fate
+of the prisoners would be solved. A few words were from time to time
+exchanged between these, each urging the other to keep up his heart and
+defy the infidel. One or two had succumbed to their wounds during the
+afternoon, and only six were able to stand erect when summoned to do so
+by some of their guard, who made signs to them that a great personage
+was coming. Soon the shouts of the horsemen and other sounds announced
+that the great chief was near at hand, and the captives gathered from
+the swelling shouts of the Arabs that the new arrival was Sultan
+Suleiman--or Saladin, for he was called by both names--surrounded by a
+bodyguard of splendidly-dressed attendants. The emir, who was himself
+plainly attired, reined up his horse in front of the captives.
+
+"You are English," he said, in the _lingua-franca_, which was the medium
+of communication between the Eastern and Western peoples in those days.
+"You are brave warriors, and I hear that before you were taken you
+slaughtered numbers of my people. They did wrong to capture you and
+bring you here to be killed. Your cruel king gives no mercy to those who
+fall into his hands. You must not expect it here, you who without a
+pretense of right invade my country, slaughter my people, and defeat my
+armies. The murder of the prisoners of Acre has closed my heart to all
+mercy. There, your king put ten thousand prisoners to death in cold
+blood, a month after the capture of the place, because the money at
+which he had placed their ransom had not arrived. We Arabs do not carry
+huge masses of gold about with us; and although I could have had it
+brought from Egypt, I did not think that so brave a monarch as Richard
+of England could have committed so cruel an action in cold blood. When
+we are fresh from battle, and our wounds are warm, and our hearts are
+full of rage and fury, we kill our prisoners; but to do so weeks after a
+battle is contrary to the laws alike of your religion and of ours.
+However, it is King Richard who has sealed your doom, not I. You are
+knights, and I do not insult you with the offer of turning from your
+religion and joining me. Should one of you wish to save his life on
+these conditions, I will, however, promise him a place of position and
+authority among us."
+
+None of the knights moved to accept the offer, but each, as the eye of
+the emir ran along the line, answered with an imprecation of contempt
+and hatred. Saladin waved his hand, and one by one the captives were led
+aside, walking as proudly to their doom as if they had been going to a
+feast. Each wrung the hand of the one next to him as he turned, and then
+without a word followed his captors. There was a dull sound heard, and
+one by one the heads of the knights rolled in the sand.
+
+Cuthbert happened to be last in the line, and as the executioners laid
+hands upon him and removed his helmet, the eye of the sultan fell upon
+him, and he almost started at perceiving the extreme youth of his
+captive. He held his hand aloft to arrest the movements of the
+executioners, and signaled for Cuthbert to be brought before him again.
+
+"You are but a boy," he said. "All the knights who have hitherto fallen
+into my hands have been men of strength and power; how is it that I see
+a mere youth among their ranks, and wearing the golden spurs of
+knighthood?"
+
+"King Richard himself made me a knight," Cuthbert said proudly, "after
+having stood across him when his steed had been foully stabbed at the
+battle of Azotus, and the whole Moslem host were around him."
+
+"Ah!" said the emir, "were you one of the two who, as I have heard,
+defended the king for some time against all assaults? It were hard
+indeed to kill so brave a youth. I doubt me not that at present you are
+as firmly determined to die a Christian knight as those who have gone
+before you? But time may change you. At any rate for the present your
+doom is postponed."
+
+He turned to a gorgeously dressed noble next to him, and said:
+
+"Your brother, Ben Abin, is Governor of Jerusalem, and the gardens of
+the palace are fair. Take this youth to him as a present, and set him to
+work in his gardens. His life I have spared, in all else Ben Abin will
+be his master."
+
+Cuthbert heard without emotion the words which changed his fate from
+death to slavery. Many, he knew, who were captured in these wars were
+carried away as slaves to different parts of Asia, and it did not seem
+to him that the change was in any way a boon. However, life is dear, and
+it was but natural that a thought should leap into his heart that soon
+either the Crusaders might force a way into Jerusalem and there rescue
+him, or that he himself might in some way escape.
+
+The sultan having thus concluded the subject, turned away, and galloped
+off surrounded by his bodyguard.
+
+Those who had captured the Christians now stripped off the armor of
+Cuthbert; then he was mounted on a barebacked steed, and with four
+Bedouins, with their long lances, riding beside him, started for
+Jerusalem. After a day of long and rapid riding the Arabs stopped
+suddenly on the crest of a hill, with a shout of joy, and throwing
+themselves from their horses bent with their foreheads to the earth at
+the sight of their holy city.
+
+Cuthbert, as he gazed at the stately walls of Jerusalem, and the noble
+buildings within, felt bitterly that it was not thus that he had hoped
+to see the holy city. He had dreamed of arriving before it with his
+comrades, proud and delighted at their success so far, and confident in
+their power soon to wrest the town before them from the hands of the
+Moslems. Instead of this he was a slave--a slave to the infidel, perhaps
+never more to see a white face, save that of some other unfortunate like
+himself.
+
+Even now in its fallen state no city is so impressive at first sight as
+Jerusalem; the walls, magnificent in height and strength, and
+picturesque in their deep embattlements, rising on the edge of a deep
+valley. Every building has its name and history. Here is the church
+built by the first Crusaders; there the mighty mosque of Suleiman on the
+site of the Temple; far away on a projecting ridge the great building
+known as the Tomb of Moses; on the right beyond the houses rise the
+towers on the Roman walls; the Pool of Bethsaida lies in the hollow; in
+the center are the cupolas of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Among
+all the fairest cities of the world, there are none which can compare in
+stately beauty with Jerusalem. Doubtless it was a fairer city in those
+days, for long centuries of Turkish possession have reduced many of the
+former stately palaces to ruins. Then, as now, the banner of the Prophet
+floated over the high places; but whereas at present the population is
+poor and squalid, the city in those days contained a far larger number
+of inhabitants, irrespective of the great garrison collected for its
+defense.
+
+The place from which Cuthbert had his first sight of Jerusalem is that
+from which the best view is to be obtained--the crest of the Mount of
+Olives. After a minute or two spent in looking at the city the Arabs
+with a shout continued their way down into the valley. Crossing this
+they ascended the steep road to the walls, brandishing their lances and
+giving yells of triumph; then riding two upon each side of their
+prisoner, to protect him from any fanatic who might lay a hand upon him,
+they passed under the gate known as the Gate of Suleiman into the city.
+
+The populace thronged the streets; and the news brought by the horsemen
+that a considerable portion of the Christian host had been defeated and
+slain passed from mouth to mouth, and was received with yells of
+exultation. Execrations were heaped upon Cuthbert, who rode along with
+an air as quiet and composed as if he were the center of an ovation
+instead of that of an outburst of hatred.
+
+He would, indeed, speedily have been torn from his guards, had not these
+shouted that he was placed in their hands by Saladin himself for conduct
+to the governor. As the emir was as sharp and as ruthless with his own
+people as with the prisoners who fell into his hands, the name acted as
+a talisman, and Cuthbert and his escort rode forward without molestation
+until they reached the entrance to the palace.
+
+Dismounting, Cuthbert was now led before the governor himself, a stern
+and grave-looking man, sitting cross-legged on a divan surrounded by
+officers and attendants. He heard in silence the account given him by
+the escort, bowed his head at the commands of Suleiman, and, without
+addressing a word to Cuthbert, indicated to two attendants that he was
+to be removed into the interior of the house. Here the young knight was
+led to a small dungeon-like room; bread and dates with a cruse of water,
+were placed before him; the door was then closed and locked without, and
+he found himself alone with his thoughts.
+
+No one came near him that night, and he slept as soundly as he would
+have done in his tent in the midst of the Christian host. He was
+resolved to give no cause for ill-treatment or complaint to his captors,
+to work as willingly, as cheerfully, as was in his power, and to seize
+the first opportunity to make his escape, regardless of any risk of his
+life which he might incur in doing so.
+
+In the morning the door opened, and a black slave led him into the
+garden, which was surrounded by a very high and lofty wall. It was
+large, and full of trees and flowers, and far more beautiful than any
+garden that Cuthbert had seen in his native land. There were various
+other slaves at work; and an Arab, who appeared to be the head of the
+gardeners, at once appointed to Cuthbert the work assigned to him. A
+guard of Arabs with bow and spear watched the doings of the slaves.
+
+With one glance round, Cuthbert was assured that escape from this
+garden, at least, was not to be thought of, and that for the present
+patience alone was possible. Dismissing all ideas of that kind from his
+mind, he set to work with a steady attention to his task. He was very
+fond of flowers, and soon he became so absorbed in his work as almost to
+forget that he was a slave. It was not laborious--digging, planting,
+pruning and training the flowers, and giving them copious draughts of
+water from a large fountain in the center of the garden.
+
+The slaves were not permitted to exchange a word with each other. At the
+end of the day's work they were marched off to separate chambers, or,
+as they might be called, dungeons. Their food consisted of water, dried
+dates, and bread, and they had little to complain of in this respect;
+indeed, the slaves in the gardens of the governor's house at Jerusalem
+enjoyed an exceptionally favored existence. The governor himself was
+absorbed in the cares of the city. The head gardener happened to be a
+man of unusual humanity, and it was really in his hands that the comfort
+of the prisoners was placed.
+
+Sometimes in the course of the day veiled ladies would issue in groups
+from the palace, attended by black slaves with drawn scimiters. They
+passed without unveiling across the point where the slaves were at work,
+and all were forbidden on pain of death to look up, or even to approach
+the konak or pavilion, where the ladies threw aside their veils, and
+enjoyed the scent and sight of the flowers, the splash of murmuring
+waters, and the strains of music touched by skillful hands.
+
+Although Cuthbert wondered in his heart what these strange wrapped-up
+figures might look like when the veils were thrown back, he certainly
+did not care enough about the matter to run any risk of drawing the
+anger of his guards upon himself by raising his eyes toward them; nor
+did he ever glance up at the palace, which was also interdicted to the
+slaves. From the lattice casements during the day the strains of music
+and merry laughter often came down to the captives; but this, if
+anything, only added to the bitterness of their position, by reminding
+them that they were shut off for life from ever hearing the laughter of
+the loved ones they had left behind.
+
+For upward of a month Cuthbert remained steadily at work, and during
+that time no possible plan of escape had occurred to him, and he had
+indeed resigned himself to wait, either until, as he hoped, the city
+would be taken by the Christians, or until he himself might be removed
+from his present post and sent into the country, where, although his lot
+would doubtless be far harder, some chance of escape might open before
+him.
+
+One night, long after slumber had fallen upon the city, Cuthbert was
+startled by hearing his door open. Rising to his feet, he saw a black
+slave, and an old woman beside him. The latter spoke first in the
+_lingua-franca_:
+
+"My mistress, the wife of the governor, has sent me to ask your story.
+How is it that, although but a youth, you are already a knight? How is
+it that you come to be a slave to our people? The sultan himself sent
+you to her lord. She would fain hear through me how it has happened. She
+is the kindest of ladies, and the sight of your youth has touched her
+heart."
+
+With thanks to the unknown lady who had felt an interest in him,
+Cuthbert briefly related the events which had led to his captivity. The
+old woman placed on the ground a basket containing some choice fruit and
+white bread, and then departed with the negro as quietly as she had
+come, leaving Cuthbert greatly pleased at what had taken place.
+
+"Doubtless," he said to himself, "I shall hear again; and it may be that
+through the pity of this lady some means of escape may open to me."
+
+Although for some little time no such prospect appeared, yet the visits
+of the old woman, which were frequently repeated, were of interest to
+him, and seemed to form a link between him and the world.
+
+After coming regularly every night for a week she bade the young knight
+follow her, holding her finger to her lips in sign that caution must be
+observed. Passing through several passages, he was at length led into a
+room where a lady of some forty years of age, surrounded by several
+slaves and younger women, was sitting. Cuthbert felt no scruple in
+making a deep obeisance to her; the respect shown to women in the days
+of chivalry was very great, and Cuthbert, in bowing almost to the ground
+before the lady who was really his mistress, did not feel that he was
+humiliating himself.
+
+"Young slave," she said, "your story has interested us. We have
+frequently watched from the windows, and have seen how willingly and
+patiently you have worked; and it seems strange indeed that one so young
+should have performed such feats of bravery as to win the honor of
+knighthood from the hand of that greatest of warriors, Richard of
+England. What is it, we would fain learn from your lips, that stirs up
+the heart of the Christian world that they should launch their armies
+against us, who wish but to be left alone, and who have no grudge
+against them? This city is as holy to us as it is to you; and as we
+live around it, and all the country for thousands of miles is ours, is
+it likely that we should allow it to be wrested from us by strangers
+from a distance?"
+
+This was spoken in some Eastern language of which Cuthbert understood no
+word, but its purport was translated to him by the old woman who had
+hitherto acted as his mistress' messenger.
+
+Cuthbert reported the circumstances of the fight at Azotus, and
+endeavored to explain the feelings which had given rise to the Crusade.
+He then, at the orders of the lady, related the incidents of his voyage
+out, and something of his life at home, which was more interesting even
+than the tale of his adventures to his hearers, as to them the home-life
+of these fierce Christian warriors was entirely unknown.
+
+After an audience of two hours Cuthbert was conducted back to his cell,
+his mistress assuring him of her good-will, and promising to do all in
+her power to make his captivity as light as possible.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+AN EFFORT FOR FREEDOM.
+
+
+Two or three nights afterward the old woman again came to Cuthbert, and
+asked him, in her mistress' name, if in any way he could suggest a
+method of lightening his captivity, as his extreme youth and bravery of
+demeanor had greatly pleased her.
+
+Cuthbert replied that nothing but freedom could satisfy his longings;
+that he was comfortable and not over-worked, but that he pined to be
+back again with his friends.
+
+The old woman brought him on the following night a message to the effect
+that his mistress would willingly grant him his liberty, but as he was
+sent to her husband by the sultan, it would be impossible to free him
+openly.
+
+"From what she said," the old woman continued, "if you could see some
+plan of making your escape, she would in no way throw difficulties in
+your path; but it must not be known that the harem in any way connived
+at your escape, for my lord's wrath would be terrible, and he is not a
+man to be trifled with."
+
+Looking round at the high walls that surrounded the garden, Cuthbert
+said that he could think of no plan whatever for escaping from such a
+place; that he had often thought it over, but that it appeared to him to
+be hopeless. Even should he manage to scale these walls, he would only
+find himself in the town beyond, and his escape from that would be
+altogether hopeless. "Only," he said, "if I were transported to some
+country palace of the governor could I ever hope to make my escape." The
+next night the messenger brought him the news that his mistress was
+disposed to favor his escape in the way he had pointed out, and that she
+would in two or three days ask the governor for permission to pay a
+visit to their palace beyond the walls, and that with her she would take
+a number of gardeners--among them Cuthbert--to beautify the place.
+Cuthbert returned the most lively and hearty thanks to his patroness for
+her kind intentions, and hope began to rise rapidly in his heart.
+
+It is probable, however, that the black guards of the harem heard
+something of the intentions of their mistress, and that they feared the
+anger of the governor should Cuthbert make his escape, and should it be
+discovered that this was the result of her connivance. Either through
+this or through some other source the governor obtained an inkling that
+the white slave sent by the sultan was receiving unusual kindness from
+the ladies of the harem.
+
+Two nights after Cuthbert had begun to entertain bright hopes of his
+liberty, the door of the cell was softly opened. He was seized by four
+slaves, gagged, tied hand and foot, covered with a thick burnous, and
+carried out from his cell. By the sound of their feet he heard that they
+were passing into the open air, and guessed that he was being carried
+through the garden; then a door opened and was closed after them; he was
+flung across a horse like a bale of goods, a rope or two were placed
+around him to keep him in that position, and then he felt the animal put
+in motion, and heard by the trampling of feet that a considerable number
+of horsemen were around him. For some time they passed over the rough,
+uneven streets of the city; then there was a pause and exchange of
+watchword and countersign, a creaking of doors, and a lowering of a
+drawbridge, and the party issued out into the open country. Not for very
+long did they continue their way; a halt was called, and Cuthbert was
+taken off his horse.
+
+On looking round, he found that he was in the middle of a considerable
+group of men. Those who had brought him were a party of the governor's
+guards; but he was now delivered over to a large band of Arabs, all of
+whom were mounted on camels. One of these creatures he was ordered to
+mount, the bonds being loosed from his arms and feet. An Arab driver,
+with lance, bows, and arrows, and other weapons, took his seat on the
+neck of the animal, and then with scarcely a word the caravan marched
+off with noiseless step, and with their faces turned southward.
+
+It seemed to Cuthbert almost as a dream. A few hours before he had been
+exalted with the hope of freedom; now he was being taken away to a
+slavery which would probably end but with his life. Although he could
+not understand any of his captors, the repetition of a name led him to
+believe that he was being sent to Egypt as a present to some man in high
+authority there; and he doubted not that the Governor of Jerusalem,
+fearing that he might escape, and dreading the wrath of the sultan
+should he do so, had determined to transfer the troublesome captive to a
+more secure position and to safer hands.
+
+For three days the journey continued; they had now left the fertile
+lowlands of Palestine, and their faces were turned west. They were
+entering upon that sandy waste which stretches between the southern
+corner of Palestine and the land of Egypt, a distance which can be
+traveled by camels in three days, but which occupied the children of
+Israel forty years.
+
+At first the watch had been very sharply kept over the captive; but now
+that they had entered the desert the Arabs appeared to consider that
+there was no chance of an attempt to escape. Cuthbert had in every way
+endeavored to ingratiate himself with his guard. He had most willingly
+obeyed their smallest orders, had shown himself pleased and grateful for
+the dates which formed the staple of their repasts. He had assumed so
+innocent and quiet an appearance that the Arabs had marveled much among
+themselves, and had concluded that there must have been some mistake in
+the assertion of the governor's guard who had handed the prisoner over
+to them, that he was one of the terrible knights of King Richard's army.
+
+Cuthbert's heart had not fallen for a moment. He knew well that if he
+once reached Cairo all hope of escape was at an end; and it was before
+reaching that point that he determined if possible to make an effort for
+freedom. He had noticed particularly the camel which appeared to be the
+fleetest of the band; it was of lighter build than the rest, and it was
+with difficulty that its rider had compelled it to accommodate itself to
+the pace of the others. It was clear from the pains he took with it, by
+the constant patting and the care bestowed upon its watering and
+feeding, that its rider was extremely proud of it; and Cuthbert
+concluded that if an escape was to be made, this was the animal on which
+he must accomplish it.
+
+Upon arriving at the end of each day's journey the camels were allowed
+to browse at will, a short cord being tied between one of their hind and
+one of their fore-feet. The Arabs then set to work to collect sticks and
+to make a fire--not for cooking, for their only food was dried dates and
+some black bread, which they brought with them--but for warmth, as the
+nights were damp and somewhat chilly, as they sat round the fire,
+talked, and told stories. Before finally going off to rest each went out
+into the bushes and brought in his camel; these were then arranged in a
+circle around the Arabs, one of the latter being mounted as sentry to
+prevent any sudden surprise--not indeed that they had the smallest fear
+of the Christians, who were far distant; but then, as now, the Arabs of
+the desert were a plundering race, and were ever ready to drive off each
+other's camels or horses. Cuthbert determined that if flight was
+possible, it must be undertaken during the interval after the arrival at
+the halting-place and before the bringing in of the camels. Therefore,
+each day upon the halt he had pretended great fatigue from the rough
+motion of the camel, and had, after hastily eating the dates handed to
+him, thrown himself down, covered himself with his Arab robe, and
+feigned instant sleep. Thus they had in the three days from starting
+come to look upon his presence sleeping close to them as a matter of
+course.
+
+The second day after entering the desert, however, Cuthbert threw
+himself down by the side of an uprooted shrub of small size and about
+his own length. He covered himself as usual with his long, dark-blue
+robe, and pretended to go to sleep. He kept his eyes, however, on the
+alert through an aperture beneath his cloth, and observed particularly
+the direction in which the camel upon which he had set his mind wandered
+into the bushes. The darkness came on a very few minutes after they had
+halted, and when the Arabs had once settled round their fire Cuthbert
+very quietly shifted the robe from himself to the long low bush near
+him, and then crawled stealthily off into the darkness.
+
+He had no fear of his footfall being heard upon the soft sand, and was
+soon on his feet, looking for the camels. He was not long in finding
+them, or in picking out the one which he had selected. The bushes were
+succulent, and close to the camping-ground; indeed, it was for this that
+the halting-places were always chosen. It was not so easy, however, to
+climb into the high wooden saddle, and Cuthbert tried several times in
+vain. Then he repeated in a sharp tone the words which he had heard the
+Arabs use to order their camels to kneel, striking the animal at the
+same moment behind the fore-legs with a small switch. The camel
+immediately obeyed the order to which he was accustomed, and knelt down,
+making, however, as he did so, the angry grumble which those creatures
+appear to consider it indispensable to raise when ordered to do
+anything. Fortunately this noise is so frequently made, and the camels
+are so given to quarrel among themselves that although in the still air
+it might have been heard by the Arabs sitting a short hundred yards
+away, it attracted no notice, and Cuthbert, climbing into the seat,
+shook the cord that served as a rein, and the animal, rising, set off at
+a smooth, steady swing in the direction in which his head was
+turned--that from which they had that day arrived.
+
+Once fairly away from the camping-ground, Cuthbert, with blows of his
+stick, increased the speed of the camel to a long shuffling trot, and
+the fire in the distance soon faded out into the darkness.
+
+Cuthbert trusted to the stars as guides. He was not unarmed, for as he
+crawled away from his resting-place he had picked up one of the Arabs'
+spears and bow and arrows, and a large bag of dates from the spot where
+they had been placed when their owner dismounted. He was already clad in
+Eastern garb, and was so sunburnt and tanned that he had no fear
+whatever of any one at a distance detecting that he was a white man.
+
+Steering his course by the stars, he rode all night without stopping. He
+doubted not that he would have at least three hours' start, for the
+Arabs were sure to have sat that time round the fires before going out
+to bring in their camels. Even then they would suppose for some time
+that the animal upon which he was seated had strayed, and no pursuit
+would be attempted until it was discovered that he himself had made his
+escape, which might not be for a long time, as the Arabs would not think
+of looking under the cloth to see if he were there. He hoped, therefore,
+that he would reach the cultivated land long before he was overtaken. He
+had little fear but that he should then be able to journey onward
+without attracting attention.
+
+A solitary Arab when traveling rides straight, and his communications to
+those whom he meets are confined to the set form of two or three words,
+"May Allah protect you!" the regular greeting of Moslems when they meet.
+
+When morning broke Cuthbert, even when ascending to the top of a
+somewhat lofty mound, could see no signs of pursuers in the vast stretch
+of desert behind him. In front the ground was already becoming dotted
+here and there with vegetation, and he doubted not that after a few
+hours' ride he should be fairly in the confines of cultivated country.
+He gave his camel a meal of dates, and having eaten some himself, again
+set the creature in motion. These camels, especially those of good
+breed, will go on for three or four days with scarcely a halt; and there
+was no fear of that on which he rode breaking down from fatigue, for the
+journeys hitherto had been comparatively short.
+
+By midday Cuthbert had reached the cultivated lands of Palestine. Here
+and there over the plain villages were dotted, and parties of men and
+camels were to be seen. Cuthbert now arranged his robes carefully in
+Arab fashion, slung the long spear across his shoulders, and went boldly
+forward at a slinging trot, having little fear that a passer-by would
+have any suspicion whatever as to his being other than an Arab bent upon
+some rapid journey. He soon found that his hopes were justified. Several
+times he came upon parties of men whom he passed with the salute, and
+who scarcely raised their eyes as he trotted by them. The plain was an
+open one, and though cultivated here and there, there were large tracts
+lying unworked. There was no occasion therefore to keep to the road; so
+riding across country, and avoiding the villages as far as possible,
+stopping only at a stream to give his camel water, Cuthbert rode without
+ceasing until nightfall. Then he halted his camel near a wood, turned it
+in to feed on the young foliage, and wrapping himself in his burnous was
+soon asleep, for he ached from head to foot with the jolting motion
+which had now been continued for so many hours without an interval. He
+had little fear of being overtaken by the party he had left behind; they
+would, he was convinced, be many hours behind, and it was extremely
+improbable that they would hit upon the exact line which he had
+followed, so that even if they succeeded in coming up to him, they would
+probably pass him a few miles either to the right or left.
+
+So fatigued was he with his long journey that the next day he slept
+until after the sun had risen. He was awakened suddenly by being seized
+by a party of Arabs, who, roughly shaking him, questioned him as to
+where he came from, and what he was doing there. He saw at a glance that
+they were not with the party from which he had escaped, and he pointed
+to his lips to make signs that he was dumb. The Arabs evidently
+suspected that something was wrong. They examined the camel, and then
+the person of their captive. The whiteness of his skin at once showed
+them that he was a Frank in disguise, and without more ado or
+questioning, they tied him hand and foot, flung him across the camel,
+and, mounting their own animals, rode rapidly away.
+
+From the position of the sun Cuthbert saw that they were making their
+course nearly due east, and therefore that it could not be their
+intention to take him to Jerusalem, which was to the north of the line
+they were following. A long day's journey, which to Cuthbert seemed
+interminable, found them on the low spit of sand which runs along by the
+side of the Dead Sea. Behind, lofty rocks rose almost precipitously, but
+through a cleft in these the Arabs had made their way. Cuthbert saw at
+once that they belonged to some desert tribe over whom the authority of
+Suleiman was but nominal. When summoned for any great effort, these
+children of the desert would rally to his armies and fight for a short
+time; but at the first disaster, or whenever they became tired of the
+discipline and regularity of the army, they would mount their camels and
+return to the desert, generally managing on the way to abstract from the
+farms of those on their route either a horse, cattle, or some other
+objects which would pay them for the labors they had undergone.
+
+They were now near the confines of their own country, and apparently had
+no fear whatever of pursuit. They soon gathered some of the dead wood
+cast on the shores of the sea, and with these a fire was speedily
+lighted, and an earthenware pot was taken down from among their baggage:
+it was filled with water from a skin, and then grain having been placed
+in it, it was put among the wood ashes. Cuthbert, who was weary and
+aching in every limb from the position in which he had been placed on
+the camel, asked them by signs for permission to bathe in the lake. This
+was given principally apparently from curiosity, for but very few Arabs
+were able to swim; indeed, as a people they object so utterly to water
+that the idea of any one bathing for his amusement was to them a matter
+of ridicule.
+
+Cuthbert, who had never heard of the properties of the Dead Sea, was
+perfectly astonished upon entering the water to find that instead of
+wading in it up to the neck before starting to swim, as he was
+accustomed to do at home, the water soon after he got waist-deep took
+him off his feet, and a cry of astonishment burst from him as he found
+himself on rather than in the fluid. The position was so strange and
+unnatural that with a cry of alarm he scrambled over on to his feet, and
+made the best of his way to shore, the Arabs indulging in shouts of
+laughter at his astonishment and alarm. Cuthbert was utterly unable to
+account for the strange sensations he had experienced; he perceived that
+the water was horribly salt, and that which had got into his mouth
+almost choked him. He was, however, unaware that saltness adds to the
+weight of water, and so to the buoyancy of objects cast into it. The
+saltness of the fluid he was moreover painfully conscious of by the
+smarting of the places on his wrists and ankles where the cords had been
+bound that fastened him to the camel. Goaded, however, by the laughter
+of the Arabs, he determined once more to try the experiment of entering
+this strange sheet of water, which from some unaccountable cause
+appeared to him to refuse to allow anybody to sink in it. This time he
+swam about for some time, and felt a little refreshed. When he returned
+to the shore he soon re-attired himself in his Bedouin dress, and seated
+himself a little distance from his captors, who were now engaged in
+discussing the materials prepared by themselves. They made signs to
+Cuthbert that he might partake of their leavings, for which he was not a
+little grateful, for he felt utterly exhausted and worn out with his
+cruel ride and prolonged fasting.
+
+The Arabs soon wrapped themselves in their burnouses, and feeling
+confident that their captive would not attempt to escape from them in a
+place where subsistence would be impossible, paid no further attention
+to him beyond motioning to him to lie down at their side.
+
+Cuthbert, however, determined to make another effort to escape; for
+although he was utterly ignorant of the place in which he found himself,
+or of the way back, he thought that anything would be better than to be
+carried into helpless slavery into the savage country beyond the Jordan.
+An hour, therefore, after his captors were asleep he stole to his feet,
+and fearing to arouse them by exciting the wrath of one of the camels by
+attempting to mount him, he struck up into the hills on foot. All night
+he wandered, and in the morning found himself at the edge of a strange
+precipice falling abruptly down to a river, which, some fifty feet wide,
+ran at its foot. Upon the opposite side the bank rose with equal
+rapidity, and to Cuthbert's astonishment he saw that the cliffs were
+honeycombed by caves.
+
+Keeping along the edge for a considerable distance, he came to a spot
+where it was passable, and made his way down to the river bank. Here he
+indulged in a long drink of fresh water, and then began to examine the
+caves which perforated the rocks. These caves Cuthbert knew had formerly
+been the abode of hermits. It was supposed to be an essentially sacred
+locality, and between the third and fourth centuries of Christianity
+some twenty thousand monks had lived solitary lives on the banks of that
+river. Far away he saw the ruins of a great monastery, called Mar Saba,
+which had for a long time been the abode of a religious community, and
+which at the present day is still tenanted by a body of monks. Cuthbert
+made up his mind at once to take refuge in these caves. He speedily
+picked out one some fifty feet up the face of the rock, and
+approachable only with the greatest difficulty and by a sure foot. First
+he made the ascent to discover the size of the grotto, and found that
+although the entrance was but four feet high and two feet wide, it
+opened into an area of considerable dimensions. Far in the corner, when
+his eyes became accustomed to the light, he discovered a circle of
+ashes, and his conjectures that these caves had been the abode of men
+were therefore verified. He again descended, and collected a large
+bundle of grass and rushes for his bed. He discovered growing among the
+rocks many edible plants, whose seeds were probably sown there centuries
+before, and gathering some of these he made his way back to the cavern.
+The grass furnished him with an excellent bed, and he was soon asleep.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+A HERMIT'S TALE.
+
+
+The next day he discovered on his excursions plenty of eatable berries
+on the bushes; and now that he had no longer fear of hunger he resolved
+to stay for some little time, until his wounds, which had festered
+badly, had recovered, before making an attempt to rejoin the Christian
+army.
+
+One day when employed in gathering berries he was surprised by meeting a
+wild-looking figure, who appeared suddenly from one of the caves. It was
+that of a very old man, with an extremely long white beard flowing to
+his waist; his hair, which was utterly unkempt, fell to the same point.
+He was thin to an extraordinary extent, and Cuthbert wondered how a man
+could have been reduced to such a state of starvation, with so plentiful
+a supply of fruit and berries at hand.
+
+The old man looked at Cuthbert attentively, and then made the sign of
+the cross. Cuthbert gave a cry of joy, and repeated the sign. The old
+man at once came down from his cavern, and looked at him with surprise
+and astonishment, and then addressed him in the French language.
+
+"Are you a Christian truly; and if so, whence do you come?"
+
+Cuthbert at once explained that he had been taken prisoner when with
+King Richard's army, and had effected his escape. He also told the old
+man that he had been remaining for the last four days in a cave higher
+up the stream. The hermit--for he was one--beckoned him to follow him,
+and Cuthbert found himself in a cave precisely similar to that which he
+himself inhabited. There were no signs of comfort of any kind; a
+bed-place made of great stones stood in one corner, and Cuthbert,
+remembering the comforts of his own grassy couch, shuddered at the
+thought of the intense discomfort of such a sleeping-place. In another
+corner was an altar, upon which stood a rough crucifix, before which the
+hermit knelt at once in prayer, Cuthbert following his example. Rising
+again, the hermit motioned to him to sit down, and then began a
+conversation with him.
+
+It was so long since the hermit had spoken to any living being that he
+had almost lost the use of his tongue, and his sentences were slow and
+ill-formed. However, Cuthbert was able to understand him, and he to
+gather the drift of what Cuthbert told him. The old man then showed him
+that by touching a stone in the corner of his cave the apparently solid
+rock opened, and revealed an entrance into an inner cave, which was lit
+by a ray of light which penetrated from above.
+
+"This," he said, "was made centuries ago, and was intended as a refuge
+from the persecutors of that day. The caves were then almost all
+inhabited by hermits, and although many recked not of their lives, and
+were quite ready to meet death through the knife of the infidel, others
+clung to existence, and preferred to pass many years of penance on earth
+for the sake of atoning for their sins before called upon to appear
+before their Maker. If you are pursued it will be safer for you to take
+up your abode here. I am known to all the inhabitants of this country,
+who look upon me as mad, and respect me accordingly. None ever interfere
+with me, or with the two or three other hermits, the remains of what was
+once almost an army, who now alone survive. I can offer you no
+hospitality beyond that of a refuge; but there is water in the river
+below, fruits and berries in abundance on the shrubs. What would you
+have more?"
+
+Cuthbert accepted the invitation with thanks; for he thought that even
+at the worst the presence of this holy man would be a protection to him
+from any Arabs who might discover him.
+
+For three or four days he resided with the hermit, who, although he
+stretched his long lean body upon the hard stones of his bed, and passed
+many hours of the night kneeling on the stone floor in front of his
+altar, yet had no objection to Cuthbert making himself as comfortable as
+he could under the circumstances.
+
+At the end of the fourth day Cuthbert asked him how long he had been
+there, and how he came to take up his abode in so desolate and fearsome
+a place. The hermit was silent for a time, and then said:
+
+"It is long indeed since my thoughts have gone back to the day when I
+was of the world. I know not whether it would not be a sin to recall
+them; but I will think the matter over to-night, and if it appears to me
+that you may derive good from my narrative, I will relate it to you
+to-morrow."
+
+The next day Cuthbert did not renew the request, leaving it to the
+hermit to speak should he think fit. It was not until the evening that
+he alluded to the subject; and then taking his seat on a bank near the
+edge of the river, he motioned to Cuthbert to sit beside him, and began:
+
+"My father was a peer of France, and I was brought up at the court.
+Although it may seem strange to you, looking upon this withered frame,
+sixty-five years back I was as bold and comely a knight as rode in the
+train of the king, for I am now past ninety, and for sixty years I have
+resided here. I was a favorite of the king's, and he loaded me with
+wealth and honor. He, too, was young, and I joined with him in the mad
+carousals and feastings of the court. My father resided for the most
+part at one of his castles in the country, and I, an only son, was left
+much to myself. I need not tell you that I was as wild and as wicked as
+all those around me; that I thought little of God, and feared neither
+Him nor man.
+
+"It chanced that one of the nobles--I need not mention his name--whose
+castle lay in the same province as that of my father, had a lovely
+daughter, who, being an only child, would be his heiress. She was
+considered one of the best matches in France, and reports of her
+exceeding beauty had reached the court. Although my allowance from my
+father, and from the estates which the king had given me personally,
+should have been more than enough for my utmost wants, gambling and
+riotous living swallowed up my revenue faster than it came in, and I was
+constantly harassed by debt.
+
+"Talking one night at supper with a number of bold companions as to the
+means we should take for restoring our wasted fortunes, some said in
+jest that the best plan would be for one of us to marry the beauty of
+Dauphiny. I at once said that I would be the man to do it; the idea was
+a wild one, and a roar of laughter greeted my words. Her father was
+known to be a stern and rigid man, and it was certain that he would not
+consent to give his daughter to a spendthrift young noble like myself.
+When the laughter had subsided I repeated my intention gravely, and
+offered to wager large sums with all around the table that I would
+succeed.
+
+"On the morrow I packed up a few of my belongings, put in my valise the
+dress of a wandering troubadour, and taking with me only a trusty
+servant, started for Dauphiny. It would be tedious to tell you the
+means I resorted to to obtain the affections of the heiress. I had been
+well instructed in music and could play on the lute, and knew by heart
+large numbers of ballads, and could myself, in case of necessity, string
+verses together with tolerable ease. As a troubadour I arrived at the
+castle gate, and craved permission to enter to amuse its occupants.
+Troubadours then, as now, were in high esteem in the south, and I was at
+once made a welcome guest.
+
+"Days passed, and weeks; still I lingered at the castle, my heart being
+now as much interested as my pride in the wager which I had undertaken.
+Suffice it to say that my songs, and perhaps my appearance--for I cannot
+be accused of vanity now in saying nature had been bountiful to me--won
+my way to her heart. Troubadours were licensed folk, and even in her
+father's presence there was naught unseemly in my singing songs of love.
+While he took them as the mere compliments of a troubadour, the lady, I
+saw, read them as serious effusions of my heart.
+
+"It was only occasionally that we met alone; but ere long she confessed
+that she loved me. Without telling her my real name, I disclosed to her
+that I was of her own rank and that I had entered upon the disguise I
+wore in order to win her love. She was romantic, and was flattered by my
+devotion. I owned to her that hitherto I had been wild and reckless; and
+she told me at once that her father destined her for the son of an old
+friend of his, to whom it appeared she had been affianced while still a
+baby. She was positive that nothing would move her father. For the man
+she was to marry she entertained no kind of affection, and indeed had
+never seen him, as she had been brought up in a convent to the age of
+fifteen; and just before she had returned thence he had gone to finish
+his education at Padua.
+
+"She trembled when I proposed flight; but I assured her that I was
+certain of the protection of the king, and that he would, I was sure,
+when the marriage was once celebrated, use his influence with her father
+to obtain his forgiveness.
+
+"The preparations for her flight were not long in making. I purchased a
+fleet horse in addition to my own, and ordered my servant to bring it to
+a point a short distance from the castle gate. I had procured a long
+rope with which to lower her down from her lattice to the moat below,
+which was at present dry, intending myself to slide after her. The night
+chosen was one when I knew that the count was to have guests, and I
+thought that they would probably, as is the custom, drink heavily, and
+that there would be less fear of any watch being kept.
+
+"The guests arrived just at nightfall. I had feigned illness, and kept
+my room. From time to time I heard through the windows of the banqueting
+hall bursts of laughter. These gradually ceased; and at last when all
+was still I, after waiting some time, stole from my room with a rope in
+my hand to the apartment occupied by her. A slight tap at the door, as
+arranged, was at once answered, and I found her ready cloaked and
+prepared for the enterprise. She trembled from head to foot, but I
+cheered her to the best of my power, and at last she was in readiness to
+be lowered. The window was at a considerable height from the ground; but
+the rope was a long one, and I had no fear of its reaching the bottom.
+Fastening it round her waist, I began to lower her from the window.
+
+"The night was a windy one, and she swung backward and forward as she
+went down. By what chance it was I know not--for I had examined the rope
+and found it secure--but methinks in swaying backward and forward it
+may have caught a sharp stone, maybe it was a punishment from Heaven
+upon me for robbing a father of his child--but suddenly I felt there was
+no longer a weight on my arms. A fearful shriek rang through the air,
+and, looking out, I saw far below a white figure stretched senseless in
+the mud!
+
+"For a minute I stood paralyzed. But the cry had aroused others, and,
+turning round, I saw a man at the door with a drawn sword. Wild with
+grief and despair, and thinking, not of making my escape, or of
+concealing my part in what had happened, but rushing without an
+instant's delay to the body of her I loved so well, I drew my sword, and
+like a madman rushed upon him who barred the door. The combat was brief
+but furious, and nerved by the madness of despair I broke down his guard
+and ran him through the body. As he fell back, his face came in the full
+light of the moon, which streamed through the open door of the passage,
+and to my utter horror and bewilderment I saw that I had slain my
+father.
+
+"What happened after that night I know not. I believe that I made my
+escape from the castle and rushed round to the body of her whose life I
+had destroyed, and that there finding her dead, I ran wildly across the
+country. When I came to my senses months had passed, and I was the
+inmate of an asylum for men bereaved of their senses, kept by noble
+monks. Here for two years I remained, the world believing that I was
+dead. None knew that the troubadour whose love had cost the lady her
+life, who had slain the guest of her father, and had then disappeared,
+was the unhappy son of that guest. My friends in Paris when they heard
+of the tragedy of course associated it with me, but they all kept
+silent. The monks, to whom I confessed the whole story, were shocked
+indeed, but consoled me in my grief and despair by the assurance that
+however greatly I had sinned, the death of the lady had been accidental,
+and that if I were a parricide it was at least unintentionally.
+
+"My repentance was deep and sincere; and after awhile, under another
+name, I joined the army of the Crusaders, to expiate my sin by warring
+for the holy sepulcher. I fought as men fight who have no wish to live;
+but while all around me fell by sword and disease, death kept aloof from
+me. When the Crusade had failed I determined to turn forever from the
+world, and to devote my life to prayer and penance; and so casting aside
+my armor I made my way here, and took up my abode in a cave in this
+valley, where at that time were many thousands of other hermits--for the
+Saracens, while they gained much money from fines and exactions from
+pilgrims who came to Jerusalem, and fought stoutly against those who
+sought to capture that city, were in the main tolerant, and offered no
+hindrance to the community of men whom they looked upon as mad.
+
+"Here, my son, for more than sixty years have I prayed, with much
+fasting and penance. I trust now that the end is nearly at hand, and
+that my long life of mortification may be deemed to have obliterated the
+evil deeds which I did in my youth. Let my fate be a warning to you.
+Walk steadily in the right way; indulge not in feasting and evil
+companionship; and above all, do not enter upon evil deeds, the end of
+which no man can see."
+
+The hermit was silent, and Cuthbert, seeing that his thoughts had again
+referred to the past, wandered away, and left him sitting by the river
+side. Some hours later he returned and found the hermit kneeling before
+the altar; and the next morning the latter said:
+
+"I presume, my son, you do not wish to remain here as a hermit, as I
+have done? Methinks it were well that we made our arrangements for your
+return to the Christian host, who will, I hope, ere long be at the gates
+of Jerusalem."
+
+"I should like nothing better," Cuthbert said. "But ignorant as I am of
+the nature of the country, it seems to be nigh impossible to penetrate
+through the hosts of the Saracens to reach the camp of King Richard."
+
+"The matter is difficult and not without danger," the hermit said. "As
+to the nature of the country, I myself know but little, for my dealings
+with the natives have been few and simple. There are, however, several
+Christian communities dwelling among the heathen. They are poor, and are
+forced to live in little-frequented localities. Their Christianity may
+be suspected by their neighbors, but as they do no man harm, and carry
+on their worship in secret, they are little interfered with. There is
+one community among the hills between this and Jerusalem, and I can give
+you instructions for reaching this, together with a token which will
+secure you hospitality there, and they will no doubt do their best to
+forward you to another station. When you approach the flat country where
+the armies are maneuvering you must doubtless trust to yourself; but as
+far as the slopes extend, methinks that our friends will be able to pass
+you without great difficulty."
+
+Cuthbert's heart rose greatly at the prospect of once again entering
+upon an active life, and the next evening, with many thanks for his
+kindness, he knelt before the aged hermit to receive his blessing.
+
+With the instructions given him he had no difficulty in making his way
+through the mountains, until after some five hours' walk he found
+himself at a little village situated in a narrow valley.
+
+Going to the door of the principal hut he knocked, and upon entering
+showed the owner--who opened the door--a rosette of peculiar beads and
+repeated the name of Father Anselm. The peasant at once recognized it
+and bade Cuthbert welcome. He knew but a few words of French, although
+doubtless his ancestors had been of European extraction. In the morning
+he furnished Cuthbert with the sheepskin and short tunic which formed
+the dress of a shepherd, and dyeing his limbs and face a deep brown he
+himself started with Cuthbert on his journey to the next Christian
+community.
+
+This was a small one consisting of two huts only, built almost on the
+summit of a mountain, the inhabitants living partly on the milk and
+cheese of their goats and partly upon the scanty vegetables which grew
+around the huts.
+
+His welcome was as cordial as that of the night before; and the next
+morning, his former guide taking leave of him, the peasant in whose
+house he had slept again conducted him forward to another community.
+This was the last station and stood in a narrow gorge on the face of the
+hills looking down over the plain, beyond which in the far distance a
+faint line of blue sea was visible.
+
+This community was far more prosperous and well-to-do than those at
+which the previous nights had been passed. The head of the village
+appeared to be a personage of some importance; and although clinging in
+secret to his Christian faith, he and his belongings had so far adopted
+the usages of the Mussulmen that apparently no thought of their
+Christianity entered into the minds of the authorities. He was the owner
+of two or three horses and of some extensive vineyards and olive
+grounds. He was also able to speak French with some degree of fluency.
+
+At considerable length he explained to Cuthbert the exact position of
+the Christian army, which had moved some distance along the coast since
+Cuthbert had left it. It was, he said, exposed to constant attacks by
+the Saracens, who harassed it in every way, and permitted it no repose.
+He said that the high hopes which had been raised by the defeat of the
+Saracens at Azotus had now fallen, and that it was feared the Christians
+would not be able to force their way forward to Jerusalem. The great
+portion of their animals had died, and the country was so eaten up by
+the Saracen hosts that an advance upon Jerusalem without a large baggage
+train was next to impossible; and indeed if the Christians were to
+arrive before that city, they could effect nothing without the aid of
+the heavy machines necessary for battering the walls or effecting an
+escalade.
+
+Cuthbert was vastly grieved when he heard of the probable failure of the
+expedition, and he burned with eagerness to take his part again in the
+dangers and difficulties which beset the Christian army. His host
+pointed out to him the extreme difficulty and danger of his crossing the
+enemy's lines, but at the same time offered to do all in his power to
+assist him. After two days' stay at the village, and discussing the pros
+and cons of all possible plans, it was decided that the best chance lay
+in a bold effort. The host placed at his disposal one of his horses,
+together with such clothes as would enable him to ride as an Arab chief
+of rank and station; a long lance was furnished him, a short and heavy
+mace, and scimitar; a bag of dates was hung at the saddlebow; and with
+the sincerest thanks to his protector, and with a promise that should
+the Christian host win their way to Jerusalem the steed should be
+returned with ample payment, Cuthbert started on his journey.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+A FIGHT OF HEROES.
+
+
+The horse was a good and spirited one, and when he had once descended to
+the plains, Cuthbert rode gayly along, exulting in his freedom, and in
+once again possessing arms to defend himself should it be needed. His
+appearance was so exactly that of the horsemen who were continually
+passing and repassing that no observation whatever was attracted by it.
+Through villages, and even through camps, Cuthbert rode fearlessly, and
+arrived, without having once been accosted, near the main camp of the
+Saracens, which extended for miles parallel to the sea. But at a
+distance of some three leagues beyond could be seen the white tents of
+the Christian host, and Cuthbert felt that the time of trial was now at
+hand.
+
+He dismounted for an hour to allow his steed to rest itself, fed it with
+dates from his wallet, and gave it a drink of water at the stream. Then,
+when he felt that it had thoroughly recovered its strength and
+freshness, he remounted, and rode briskly on as before. He passed
+unchallenged, attracting no more notice than a person nowadays would do
+in walking along a crowded street. Without hesitation he passed through
+the tents and started across the open country. Bands of horsemen were
+seen here and there, some going, and some coming from the direction of
+the Christian camp. As it was doubtless supposed that he was on his way
+to join some band that had gone on in advance, the passage of the
+solitary horseman excited no comment until he approached within about
+two miles of the Christian camp. There were now, so far as he could see,
+no enemies between him and the point he so longed to gain. But at this
+minute a group of Arab horsemen, gathered, apparently on the lookout
+against any movement of the Christians, shouted to him "Halt!" demanding
+whither he was going.
+
+Up to this point Cuthbert had ridden at a gentle canter; but at the
+challenge he put spurs into his steed and made across the plain at full
+speed. With a wild yell the Arabs started in pursuit. They lay at first
+some two hundred yards on his right, and he had therefore a considerable
+start of them. His horse was fairly fresh, for the journey that he had
+made had only been about fifteen miles--an inconsiderable distance to an
+Arab steed. For half a mile he did not think that his pursuers gained
+much upon him, riding as they had done sideways. They had now gathered
+in his rear, and the nearest was some one hundred and fifty yards behind
+him. A quarter of a mile further he again looked around, and found that
+two of the Arabs, far better mounted than the others, had come within
+half the distance which separated them from him when he last glanced
+back. His horse was straining to the utmost, and he felt that it could
+do no more; he therefore prepared himself for a desperate fight should
+his pursuers overtake him. In another quarter of a mile they were but a
+short distance behind, and an arrow whizzing by Cuthbert's ear told him
+they had betaken themselves to their bows.
+
+Half a mile ahead he saw riding toward him a group of Christian knights;
+but he felt that it was too late for him to hope to reach them, and that
+his only chance now was to boldly encounter his pursuers. The main body
+of the Arabs was fully two hundred yards behind--a short distance when
+going at a gallop--which left him but little time to shake off the
+pursuit of the two immediately behind him.
+
+A sharp stinging pain in his leg told him that it was time to make his
+effort; and checking his horse, he wheeled suddenly round. The two Arabs
+with a yell rode at him with pointed lance. With his right hand Cuthbert
+grasped the short heavy mace which hung at his saddlebow, and being well
+practiced in the hurling of this weapon--which formed part of the
+education of a good knight--he cast it with all his force at the chest
+of the Arab approaching on that side. The point of the spear was within
+a few yards of his breast as he flung the mace; but his aim was true,
+for it smote the Saracen full on the chest, and hurled him from his
+horse as if struck with a thunderbolt. At the same instant Cuthbert
+threw himself flat on the neck of his steed and the lance of the Arab
+who came up on the other side passed harmlessly between his shoulders,
+tearing his clothes as it went. In an instant Cuthbert had wheeled his
+horse, and before the Arab could turn his steed Cuthbert, coming up from
+behind, had run him through the body.
+
+Short as the delay had been, the main body of the pursuers were scarcely
+fifty yards away; but Cuthbert now continued his flight toward the
+knights, who were galloping forward at full speed; and a moment
+afterward glancing back, he saw that his pursuers had turned and were in
+full flight.
+
+With a shout of joy he rode forward to the party who had viewed with
+astonishment this conflict between what appeared to be three of the
+infidels. Even louder than his first shout of exultation was the cry of
+joy which he raised at seeing among the party to whom he rode up the
+Earl of Evesham, who reined in his horse in astonishment, and drew his
+sword as the supposed enemy galloped toward him.
+
+"My lord, my lord!" Cuthbert said. "Thank Heaven I am safe with you
+again."
+
+The earl lowered his sword in astonishment.
+
+"Am I mad," he said, "or dreaming, or is this really Sir Cuthbert?"
+
+"It is I, sure enough," Cuthbert exclaimed, "although truly I look more
+like a Bedouin soldier than a Christian knight."
+
+"My dear boy!" exclaimed the earl, galloping forward and throwing his
+arms around Cuthbert's neck, "we thought you were dead. But by what
+wonderful fortune have you succeeded in escaping?"
+
+In a few words Cuthbert related the principal incidents of his
+adventures, and he was heartily congratulated by the assembled knights.
+
+There was, however, no time for long explanations. Large bodies of the
+Saracen horse were already sweeping down to capture, if possible, this
+small band of knights who had ventured so far from the camp; and as King
+Richard's orders were that none should venture upon conflicts except by
+his orders, the party reluctantly turned their horses and galloped back
+to the camp.
+
+Great as had been the earl's joy, it was, if possible, exceeded by that
+of Cnut on discovering in the Arab chief who rode up alongside the earl
+the lad he loved so well. Loud and hearty were the cheers which rang out
+from the earl's camp as the news spread, and Cuthbert was compelled to
+shake hands with the whole party before entering the earl's tent, to
+refresh himself and give the narrative of what had happened.
+
+Cuthbert, retiring to his tent with the Earl of Evesham, inquired of him
+what had taken place during his absence.
+
+"For," he said, "although but a short three days' march from here, I
+have been as one of the dead, and have heard nothing whatever of what
+has taken place."
+
+"Nothing could have gone worse," the earl said. "We have had nothing but
+dissensions and quarrels. First, the king fell out with the Archduke of
+Austria."
+
+"On what ground did this happen?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"For once," the earl said, "the king our master was wholly in the wrong,
+which is not generally the case. We had just taken Ascalon, and were
+hard at work fortifying the place. King Richard with his usual zeal, in
+order to encourage the army, seized heavy stones and himself bore them
+into their place. The archduke stood near with some of his knights: and
+it may be that the haughty Austrian looked somewhat superciliously at
+our king thus laboring.
+
+"'Why do you not make a show of helping?' King Richard said, going up to
+him. 'It would encourage the men, and show that the labor upon which we
+are engaged can be undertaken by all without derogation.'
+
+"To this the archduke replied:
+
+"'I am not the son of a mason!'
+
+"Whereupon Richard, whose blood no doubt had been excited by the air of
+the Austrian, struck him with his hand a fierce blow across the face. We
+nearly betook ourselves to our swords on both sides; but King Richard
+himself could have scattered half the Austrians, and these, knowing that
+against his impetuous valor they could do nothing, simply withdrew from
+our camp, and sailed the next day for home. Then the king, in order to
+conciliate some at least of his allies, conferred the crown of Jerusalem
+upon Conrad of Montferat. No sooner had he done this than Conrad was
+mysteriously wounded. By whom it was done none knew. Some say that it
+was by emissaries of the Old Man of the Mountain. Others affirm that it
+was the jealousy of some of the knights of the holy orders. But be that
+as it may, he died. Some of the French, ever jealous of the valor of our
+king, ascribed it to his orders. This monstrous accusation coming to the
+ears of King Richard, he had hot words with the Duke of Burgundy. In
+this I blame him not, for it is beyond all reason that a man like the
+king, whose faults, such as they are, arise from too much openness, and
+from the want of concealment of such dislikes as he may have, should
+resort to poison to free himself of a man whom he himself had but a day
+or two before appointed King of Jerusalem. However it be, the
+consequences were most unfortunate, for the result of the quarrel was
+that the Duke of Burgundy and his Frenchmen followed the example of the
+Austrians, and we were left alone. Before this we had marched upon
+Jerusalem. But the weather had been so bad, and our train was so
+insufficient to carry the engines of war, that we had been forced to
+fall back again. King Richard again advanced, and with much toil we went
+as far as the village of Bethany."
+
+"Why," Cuthbert exclaimed, "I passed through that village, and it is but
+three miles from the holy city."
+
+"That is so," the earl said; "and many of us, ascending the hill in
+front, saw Jerusalem. But even then it was certain that we must again
+retrace our steps; and when we asked King Richard to come to the crest
+of the hill to see the holy city, he refused to do so, saying, 'No;
+those who are not worthy of conquering Jerusalem should not look at it!'
+This was but a short time since, and we are now retracing our steps to
+Acre, and are treating with Saladin for a peace."
+
+"Then," Cuthbert said sadly, "all our hopes and efforts are thrown away;
+all this blood has been shed for nothing; and after the three great
+powers of Europe have engaged themselves solemnly in the war, we are
+baffled, and have to fall back before the hordes of the infidels."
+
+"Partly before them," the earl said, "partly as the result of our own
+jealousies and passions. Had King Richard been a lesser man than he is,
+we might have conquered Jerusalem. But he is so extraordinary a warrior
+that his glory throws all others into the shade. He is a good general,
+perhaps the best in Europe; and had he done nothing but lead, assuredly
+we should have carried out our purpose. See how ably he maneuvered the
+army at the fight of Azotus. Never was a more complete defeat than that
+which he inflicted there upon the Saracens; and although the fact that
+his generalship achieved this, might have caused some jealousy to the
+other commanders, this might have died away could he between the battles
+have been a general, and nothing more. But, alas! he is in addition a
+knight-errant--and such a knight-errant as Europe has never seen before.
+Wherever there is danger, Richard will plunge into the midst. There are
+brave men in all the three armies; but the strongest and bravest are as
+children to King Richard. Alone he can dart into ranks of the infidels,
+and cut a lane for himself by the strength of his right arm. More than
+this, when danger has threatened he has snatched up his battle-ax and
+dashed into the fray without helm or cuirass, performing such prodigies
+of valor and strength that it has been to his prowess alone that victory
+was to be ascribed. Hence he is the idol of all the soldiers, whatever
+their nationality; for he is as ready to rush to the rescue of a French
+or Austrian knight when pressed as to that of his own men. But the
+devotion which the whole army felt for him was as gall and wormwood to
+the haughty Austrian and the indolent Frenchman; and the retirement of
+the King of France, which left Richard in supreme command, was in every
+way unfortunate."
+
+Upon the following day the army again marched, and Cuthbert could not
+but notice the difference, not only in number but in demeanor, from the
+splendid array which had left Acre a few months before. There was little
+now of the glory of pennon and banner; the bright helms and cuirasses
+were rusted and dinted, and none seemed to care aught for bravery of
+show. The knights and men-at-arms were sunburnt and thin, and seemed but
+half the weight that they had been when they landed. Fatigue, hardship,
+and the heat had done their work; disease had swept off vast numbers.
+But the remains of the army were so formidable in their fighting powers
+that the Saracens, although following them at a distance in vast
+numbers, did not venture an attack upon them.
+
+A few days after their arrival at Acre, the king gave orders for the
+embarkation of the troops. Just as they were preparing to enter the
+ships a small vessel was seen entering the harbor. It drew up to the
+shore, and a knight leaped from it, and, inquiring where King Richard
+was to be found, made his way to the king, who was standing
+superintending the embarkation of some of the horses.
+
+"The Saracens, sire!" he exclaimed. "The Saracens are besieging Jaffa,
+and the place must be lost unless assistance arrives in a day or two."
+
+The king leaped on board the nearest ship, shouted to his leading
+officers to follow him, and gave orders to others to bring down the
+troops with all possible speed, to waste not a moment, and to see that
+all was done, and then, in five minutes after the receipt of the news he
+started for Jaffa. The Earl of Evesham and Cuthbert had been standing
+near the king when the order was given, and followed him at once on
+board the bark which he had chosen.
+
+"Ah, my gallant young knight," the king exclaimed, "I am right glad to
+see you with me. We shall have more fighting before we have done, and I
+know that that suits your mood as well as my own."
+
+The king's vessel was far in advance of any of the others, when early
+the following morning it arrived at Jaffa.
+
+"Your eyes are better than mine," the king said to Cuthbert. "Tell me
+what is that flag flying on the top of the town."
+
+Cuthbert looked at it earnestly.
+
+"I fear, sire, that it is the crescent. We have arrived too late."
+
+"By the holy cross," said King Richard, "that shall not be so; for if
+the place be taken, we will retake it."
+
+As the vessel neared the shore a monk ran out into the water up to his
+shoulders, and said to the king that the citadel still held out, and
+that even now the Saracens might be driven back. Without delay the king
+leaped into the water, followed by the knights and men-at-arms, and
+entering the gate, threw himself upon the infidels within, who, busy
+plundering, had not noticed the arrival of the ship.
+
+The war cry of "St. George! St. George!" which the king always shouted
+in battle, struck panic among the infidels; and although the king was
+followed but by five knights and a few men-at-arms, the Saracens, to the
+number of three thousand, fled before him, and all who tarried were
+smitten down. The king followed them out upon the plain, driving them
+before him as a lion would drive a flock of sheep, and then returned
+triumphant into the city.
+
+The next day, some more ships having arrived, King Richard found that in
+all, including the garrison, he could muster two thousand combatants.
+The enemy renewed the attack in great numbers, and the assaults upon
+the walls were continuous and desperate. King Richard, who loved
+fighting in the plain rather than behind walls, was impatient at this,
+and at one time so fierce was the attack that he resolved to sally out.
+Only ten horses remained in the town, and King Richard, mounting one,
+called upon nine of the knights to mount and sally out with him. The
+little band of ten warriors charged down upon the host of the Saracens
+and swept them before them. It was a marvelous sight indeed to see so
+small a group of horsemen dashing through a crowd of Saracen warriors.
+These, although at first beaten back, yet rallied, and the ten knights
+had great difficulty in fighting their way back to the town. When near
+the walls the Christians again made a stand, and a few knights sallied
+out from the town on foot and joined them. Among these was Cuthbert, the
+Earl of Evesham having accompanied King Richard in his charge. In all,
+seventeen knights were now rallied round the king. So fierce was the
+charge of the Saracens that the king ordered those on horseback to
+dismount, and with their horses in the center, the little body knelt
+with their lances opposed to the Saracens. Again and again the wild
+cavalry swept down upon this little force, but in vain did they attempt
+to break their ranks. The scene was indeed an extraordinary one. At last
+the king, seeing that the enemy were losing heart, again ordered the
+knights to mount, and these dashing among the enemy, completed their
+defeat.
+
+While this had been going on news came to the king that the Saracens
+from another side had made their way into Jaffa, and were massacring the
+Christians. Without, an instant's delay he flew to their succor,
+followed only by two knights and a few archers, the rest being so worn
+by their exertions as to be unable to move. The Mamelukes, the chosen
+guard of Saladin, had headed the attack; but even these were driven out
+from the town, and Richard dashed out from the city in their pursuit.
+One Saracen emir, distinguished for his stature and strength, ventured
+to match himself against the king, and rode boldly at him. But with one
+blow Richard severed his head, and his right shoulder and arm, from his
+body. Then having, by his single arm, put to rout the Saracens at this
+point, he dashed through them to the aid of the little band of knights
+who had remained on the defensive when he left them at the alarm of the
+city being entered. These were almost sinking with fatigue and wounds;
+but King Richard opened a way around them by slaying numbers of the
+enemy, and then charged again alone into the midst of the Mussulman
+host, and was lost to the sight of his companions. All thought that they
+would never see him again. But he soon reappeared, his horse covered
+with blood, but himself unwounded; and the attack of the enemy ceased.
+
+From the hour of daybreak, it is said, Richard had not ceased for a
+moment to deal out his blows, and the skin of his hand adhered to the
+handle of his battle-ax. This narration would appear almost fabulous,
+were it not that it is attested in the chronicles of several
+eye-witnesses, and for centuries afterward the Saracen women hushed
+their babes when fractious by threatening them with Malek-Rik, the name
+which they gave to King Richard.
+
+Glorious as was the success, it was a sad one, for several of the most
+devoted of the followers of King Richard were wounded badly, some few to
+death. Among these last, to the terrible grief of Cuthbert, was his
+friend and patron, the Earl of Evesham. The king, on taking off his
+armor, hurried to his tent.
+
+"The glory of this day is marred indeed," he said to the wounded knight,
+"if I am to lose you, Sir Walter."
+
+"I fear that it must even be so, my lord," the dying earl said. "I am
+glad that I have seen this day, for never did I think to witness such
+feats as those which your majesty has performed; and though the Crusade
+has failed, and the holy city remains in the hands of the infidel, yet
+assuredly no shadow of disgrace has fallen upon the English arms, and,
+indeed, great glory has accrued to us. Whatever may be said of the Great
+Crusade, it will at least be allowed by all men, and for all time, that
+had the princes and soldiers of other nations done as your majesty and
+your followers have done, the holy city would have fallen into our hands
+within a month of our putting foot upon the soil. Your majesty, I have a
+boon to ask."
+
+"You have but to name it, Sir Walter, and it is yours."
+
+"Sir Cuthbert, here," he said, pointing to the young knight, who was
+sorrowfully kneeling by his bedside, "is as a son to me. The
+relationship by blood is but slight, but by affection it is as close as
+though he were mine own. I have, as your majesty knows, no male heirs,
+and my daughter is but young, and will now be a royal ward. I beseech
+your majesty to bestow her in marriage, when the time comes, upon Sir
+Cuthbert. They have known each other as children, and the union will
+bring happiness, methinks, to both, as well as strength and protection
+to her; and further, if it might be, I would fain that you should bestow
+upon him my title and dignity."
+
+"It shall be so," the king said. "When your eyes are closed, Sir Walter,
+Sir Cuthbert shall be Earl of Evesham, and, when the time comes, the
+husband of your daughter."
+
+Cuthbert was too overwhelmed with grief to feel a shadow of exaltation
+at the gracious intimation of the king; although, even then, a thought
+of future happiness in the care of the fair young lady Marguerite passed
+before his mind. For the last time the king gave his hand to his
+faithful servant, who pressed it to his lips, and a few minutes
+afterward breathed his last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+AN ALPINE STORM.
+
+
+The tremendous exertions which King Richard had made told upon him, and
+attacks of fever succeeded each other at short intervals. This, however,
+mattered the less, since negotiations were now proceeding between him
+and Saladin. It was impossible, with the slight means at his disposal,
+for Richard further to carry on the Crusade alone. Moreover, pressing
+news had arrived from his mother in England, urging him to return, as
+his brother John was intriguing against him, and had already assumed all
+but the kingly title. Saladin was equally desirous of peace. His wild
+troops were, for the most part, eager to return to their homes, and the
+defeats which they had suffered, and the, to them, miraculous power of
+King Richard's arm, had lowered their spirit and made them eager to be
+away. Therefore he consented without difficulty to the terms proposed.
+By these, the Christians were to surrender Ascalon, but were to keep
+Jaffa, Tyre, and the fortresses along the coast. All hostilities were to
+be suspended on both sides for the space of three years, three months,
+three weeks, three days, and three hours, when Richard hoped to return
+again and to recommence the struggle.
+
+Between the sultan and King Richard a feeling approaching that of
+friendship had sprung up during the campaign. Saladin was himself brave
+in the extreme, and exposed his life as fearlessly as did his Christian
+rival, and the two valiant leaders recognized the great qualities of
+each other. Several times during the campaign when Richard had been ill,
+the emir had sent him presents of fruit and other matters, to which
+Richard had responded in the same spirit. An interview had taken place
+between them which further cemented their friendship; and when Richard
+promised to return again at the end of the truce with a far larger army,
+and to accomplish the rescue of the holy city, the sultan smiled, and
+said that it appeared that valor alone was not sufficient to conquer in
+the Holy Land, but that if Jerusalem were to fall into the hands of the
+Christians, it could fall into no worthier hands than those of
+Malek-Rik.
+
+So, with many mutual courtesies, the great rivals separated, and soon
+after King Richard and the little remnant of his army embarked on board
+ship, and set sail for England.
+
+It was on October 11, 1192, that Richard Coeur de Lion left Palestine.
+Soon after they started a storm suddenly burst upon them, and dispersed
+them in various directions. The ship in which Queen Berengaria was
+carried arrived safely in Sicily; but that in which King Richard was
+borne was missing, and none of his fellow-voyagers knew what had become
+of him. Sir Cuthbert was in the same vessel as the king, and the bark
+was driven upon the Island of Corfu. All reached shore in safety, and
+King Richard then hired three small vessels, in which he sailed to the
+port of Zara, whence he hoped to reach the domains of his nephew, Otho
+of Saxony, the son of his sister Matilda. The king had with him now but
+two of his knights, Baldwin of Bethune, and Cuthbert of Evesham. Cnut
+was with his feudal chief--for such Cuthbert had now, by his accession
+to the rank of Earl of Evesham, become--and three or four English
+archers.
+
+"I fear, my lords," the king said to his knights as he sat in a little
+room in an inn at Zara, "that my plight is a bad one. I am surrounded by
+enemies, and, alas! I can no longer mount my steed and ride out as at
+Jaffa to do battle with them. My brother, John Lackland, is scheming to
+take my place upon the throne of England. Philip of France, whose mind
+is far better at such matters than at setting armies in the field, is in
+league with him. The Emperor Henry has laid claim to the throne of
+Sicily. Leopold of Austria has not forgiven me the blow I struck him in
+the face at Ascalon, and the friends of Conrad of Montferat are
+spreading far and wide the lie that I was the instigator of his murder.
+Sure never had a poor king so many enemies, and few have ever had so
+small a following as I have now. What think you, my lords? What course
+would you advise that I should adopt? If I can reach Saxony doubtless
+Otho will aid me. But hence to Dresden is a long journey indeed. I have
+neither credit nor funds to hire a ship to take us by sea. Nor would
+such a voyage be a safe one, when so many of my enemies' ships are on
+the main. I must needs, I think, go in disguise, for my way lies wholly
+through the country of my enemies."
+
+"Surely," Cuthbert said, "no potentate could for very shame venture to
+detain your majesty on your way from the Holy Land, where you have
+wrought such great deeds. Were I in your place, I would at once proclaim
+myself, mount my horse, have my banner carried before me, and ride
+openly on. You have, too, another claim, namely, that of being
+shipwrecked, and even in war-time nations respect those whom the force
+of God has thrown upon their shores."
+
+"I fear me, Sir Cuthbert," Sir Baldwin said, "that you overrate the
+chivalry of our master's enemies. Had we been thrown on the shores of
+France, Philip perhaps would hesitate to lay hands upon the king; but
+these petty German princelings have no idea of the observances of true
+chivalry. They are coarse and brutal in their ways; and though in
+outward form following the usage of knighthood, they have never been
+penetrated with its spirit. If the friends of Conrad of Montferat lay
+hands upon King Richard I fear that no scruples will prevent them from
+using their advantage to the utmost. Even their emperor I would not
+trust. The course which you advise would no doubt be in accordance with
+the spirit of King Richard; but it would be madness for him to judge
+other people's spirit by his own, and it would be rushing into the
+lion's den to proclaim himself here. I should recommend, if I might
+venture to do so, that his majesty should assume a false name, and that
+we should travel in small parties so as to attract no attention, each
+making his way to Saxony as best he may."
+
+There was silence for a minute or two, and then the king with a sigh
+said:
+
+"I fear that you are right, Sir Baldwin, and that there is no chivalry
+among these swinish German lords. You shall accompany me. Not, Sir
+Cuthbert," he observed kindly, noticing a look of disappointment upon
+the face of the young knight, "that I estimate your fidelity one whit
+lower than that of my brave friend; but he is the elder and the more
+versed in European travel, and may manage to bring matters through
+better than you would do. You will have dangers enough to encounter
+yourself, more even than I shall, for your brave follower, Cnut, can
+speak no language but his own, and your archers will be hard to pass as
+any other than what they are. You must be my messenger to England,
+should you arrive there without me. Tell my mother and wife where you
+left me, and that, if I do not come home I have fallen into the hands
+of one or other of my bitter foes. Bid them bestir themselves to hold
+England for me against my brother John, and, if needs be, to move the
+sovereigns of Europe to free me from the hands of my enemies. Should a
+ransom be needed, I think that my people of England will not grudge
+their goods for their king."
+
+The following day the king bade farewell to his faithful followers,
+giving his hand to kiss, not only to Sir Cuthbert, but to Cnut and his
+archers.
+
+"You have done me brave service," he said, "and I trust may yet have
+occasion to do it again. These are bad times when Richard of England has
+naught wherewith to reward his friends. But," he said, taking a gold
+chain from his neck and breaking it with his strong fingers into five
+fragments, "that is for you, Cnut, and for your four archers, in
+remembrance of King Richard."
+
+The men, albeit hardened by many scenes of warfare, yet shed tears
+plenteously at parting with the king.
+
+"We had better," Cuthbert said to them when they were alone, "delay here
+for a few days. If we are taken, the news that some Englishmen have been
+captured making their way north from Zara will spread rapidly, and may
+cause the enemies of Richard to be on the lookout for him, suspecting
+that the ship which bore us may also have carried him; for the news that
+he is missing will spread rapidly through Europe, and will set all his
+enemies on the alert."
+
+In accordance with this plan they delayed for another ten days at Zara,
+and then, hiring a small boat, were landed some thirty miles further
+along the coast. Cuthbert had obtained for Cnut the dress of a palmer,
+as in this he would pass almost unquestioned, and his silence might be
+accounted for on the ground that he had taken a vow of silence. He
+himself had placed on his coat armor a red cross, instead of the white
+cross borne by the English knights, and would now pass as a French
+knight. Similar changes were made in the dress of his followers, and he
+determined to pass as a French noble who had been wrecked on his way
+home, and who was returning through Germany to France. The difficulties
+in his own case would not be serious, as his French would pass muster
+anywhere in Germany. The greatest difficulty would be with his
+attendants; but he saw no way of avoiding this.
+
+Cuthbert's object, when with his little party he separated from King
+Richard, was to make his way to Verona, thence cross by Trent into
+Bavaria, and so to journey to Saxony. Fortunately he had at the storming
+of Acre become possessed of a valuable jewel, and this he now sold, and
+purchased a charger for himself. He had little fear of any trouble in
+passing through the north of Italy, for this was neutral ground, where
+knights of all nations met, and where, neither as an English nor a
+French Crusader, would he attract either comment or attention.
+
+It was a slow journey across the northern plains, as of course he had to
+accommodate his pace to that of his men. Cnut and the archers had
+grumbled much at the change of the color of the cross upon their
+jerkins; and, as Cnut said, would have been willing to run greater
+perils under their true colors than to affect to belong to any other
+nationality. On their way they passed through Padua, and there stopped a
+few days. Cuthbert could but feel, in looking at the splendor of this
+Italian city, the courteous manner of its people, and the university,
+which was even then famous, how far in advance were those stately cities
+of Italy to Western Europe. His followers were as much surprised as
+himself at the splendors of the city. Here they experienced no trouble
+or annoyance whatever, for to the cities of Italy knights of all
+nations resorted, learned men came to study, philosophers to dispute,
+and as these brought their attendants with them, you might in the
+streets of Padua and its sister cities hear every language in Europe
+spoken.
+
+From Padua they journeyed to Verona, marveling greatly at the richness
+of the country. The footmen, however, grumbled at the flatness of the
+plain, and said that it was as bad as marching in the Holy Land. On
+their right, however, the slopes of the Alps, thickly clad with forests,
+reached down nearly to the road, and Cuthbert assured them that they
+would have plenty of climbing before they had done. At Verona they
+tarried again, and wondered much at the great amphitheater, then almost
+perfect. Cuthbert related to Cnut and the archers how men had there been
+set to fight while the great stone benches round were thronged with men
+and women looking on at their death struggles, and said that not
+unfrequently British captives were brought hither and made to contend in
+the arena. The honest fellows were full of indignation and horror at the
+thought of men killing themselves to give sport to others. They were
+used to hard knocks, and thought but little of their life, and would
+have betaken themselves to their bows and bills without hesitation in
+case of a quarrel. But to fight in cold blood for amusement seemed to
+them very terrible.
+
+Cuthbert would then have traveled on to Milan, at that time next to Rome
+the richest city in Europe, but he longed to be back in England, and was
+the more anxious as he knew that King Richard would be passing through
+great dangers, and he hoped to meet him at the court of Saxony. His
+money, too, was fast running out, and he found that it would be beyond
+his slender means to extend his journey so far. At Verona, then, they
+turned their back on the broad plains of Lombardy, and entered the
+valley of the Trent.
+
+So far no observation whatever had been excited by the passage of the
+English knight. So many Crusaders were upon their way home, many in
+grievous plight, that the somewhat shabby retinue passed unnoticed. But
+they were now leaving Italy, and entering a country where German was
+spoken. Trent, in those days an important city, was then, and is still,
+the meeting place of Italy and Germany. Both tongues are here spoken;
+but while the Italian perhaps preponderates, the customs, manners, and
+mode of thought of the people belong to those of the mountaineers of the
+Tyrol rather than of the dwellers on the plains.
+
+"You are choosing a stormy time," the landlord of the hostelry where
+they put up said to Cuthbert. "The winter is now at hand, and storms
+sweep across the passes with terrible violence. You had better, at the
+last village you come to in the valley, obtain the services of a guide,
+for should a snowstorm come on when you are crossing, the path will be
+lost, and nothing will remain but a miserable death. By daylight the
+road is good. It has been cut with much trouble, and loaded mules can
+pass over without difficulty. Poles have been erected at short distances
+to mark the way when the snow covers it. But when the snowstorms sweep
+across the mountains it is impossible to see ten paces before you, and
+if the traveler leaves the path he is lost."
+
+"But I suppose," Cuthbert said, "that even in winter travelers pass
+over?"
+
+"They do," the host said. "The road is as open in winter as in summer,
+although, of course, the dangers are greater. Still, there is nothing to
+prevent vigorous men from crossing over when the storms come on. Now,
+too, with the snow already lying in the upper forests, the wolves are
+abroad, and should you be attacked by one of those herds, you will find
+it hard work to defend your lives. Much has been done to render the
+road safe. At the distance of every league stone houses have been
+erected, where travelers can find shelter either from the storm or from
+the attacks of wolves or bears, for these, too, abound in the forests,
+and in summer there is fine hunting among them. You are, as I see,
+returning from the Holy Land, an are therefore used to heat rather than
+cold, so I should advise you before you leave this city to buy some
+rough cloaks to shield you from the cold. You can obtain them for your
+followers very cheaply, made of the mountain goat or of sheepskins, and
+even those of bearskin well dressed are by no means dear."
+
+Obtaining the address of a merchant who kept these things, Cuthbert
+proceeded thither; and purchased five cloaks of goatskin with hoods to
+pull over their heads for his followers while for himself he obtained
+one of rather finer material.
+
+Another two days' journey brought them to the foot of the steep ascent,
+and here they hired the services of a guide. The ascent was long and
+difficult, and in spite of the praises which the host had bestowed upon
+the road, it was so steep that Cuthbert was, for the most part, obliged
+to walk, leading his steed, whose feet slipped on the smooth rock, and
+as in many places a false step would have thrown them down many hundreds
+of feet into the valley below, Cuthbert judged it safer to trust himself
+to his own feet. He disincumbered himself of his helmet and gorget, and
+placed these upon the horse's back. At nightfall they had attained a
+very considerable height, and stopped at one of the small refuges of
+which the landlord had spoken.
+
+"I like not the look of the weather," the guide said in the morning--at
+least that was what Cuthbert judged him to say, for he could speak no
+word of the man's language. His actions, however, as he looked toward
+the sky, and shook his head, spoke for themselves, and Cuthbert, feeling
+his own powerlessness in a situation so novel to him, felt serious
+misgivings at the prospect.
+
+The scenery was now very wild. On all sides crags and mountain tops
+covered with snow glistened in the sun. The woods near the path were
+free of snow; but higher up they rose black above the white ground. The
+wind blew keenly, and all rejoiced in the warm cloaks which they had
+obtained; for even with the protection of these they had found the cold
+bitter during the night.
+
+"I like not this country," Cnut said. "We grumbled at the heat of
+Palestine, but I had rather march across the sand there than in this
+inhospitable frozen region. The woods look as if they might contain
+specters. There is a silence which seems to be unnatural, and my
+courage, like the warmth of my body, is methinks oozing out from my
+fingers."
+
+Cuthbert laughed.
+
+"I have no doubt that your courage would come again much quicker than
+the warmth, Cnut, if there were any occasion for it. A brisk walk will
+set you all right again, and banish these uneasy fancies. To-night we
+shall be at the highest point, and to-morrow begin to descend toward
+Germany."
+
+All day the men kept steadily on. The guide from time to time looked
+apprehensively at the sky; and although in the earlier part of the day
+Cuthbert's inexperienced eye saw nothing to cause the slightest
+uneasiness, toward the afternoon the scene changed. Light clouds began
+to gather on the top of all the hills and to shut the mountain peaks
+entirely from view. The wind moaned between the gorges and occasionally
+swept along in such sudden gusts that they could with difficulty retain
+their feet. The sky became gradually overcast, and frequently light
+specks of snow, so small as to be scarcely perceptible, were driven
+along on the blast, making their faces smart by the force with which
+they struck them.
+
+"It scarcely needs our guide's face," Cuthbert said, "to tell us that a
+storm is at hand, and that our position is a dangerous one. As for me, I
+own that I feel better pleased now that the wind is blowing, and the
+silence is broken, than at the dead stillness which prevailed this
+morning. After all, methinks that a snowstorm cannot be more dreaded
+than a sandstorm, and we have faced those before now."
+
+Faster and faster the snow came down, until at last the whole air seemed
+full of it, and it was with difficulty that they could stagger forward.
+Where the path led across open places the wind swept away the snow as
+fast as it fell, but in the hollows the track was already covered; and
+feeling the difficulty of facing the blinding gale, Cuthbert now
+understood the urgency with which his host had insisted upon the danger
+of losing the track. Not a word was spoken among the party as they
+plodded along. The guide kept ahead, using the greatest caution wherever
+the path was obliterated by the snow, sometimes even sounding with his
+iron-shod staff to be sure that they were upon the level rock. In spite
+of his warm cloak Cuthbert felt that he was becoming chilled to the
+bone. His horse could with difficulty keep his feet; and Cnut and the
+archers lagged behind.
+
+"You must keep together, lads," he shouted. "I have heard that in these
+mountains when sleepiness overpowers the traveler, death is at hand.
+Therefore, come what may, we must struggle on."
+
+Many times the gale was so violent that they were obliged to pause and
+take shelter under the side of a rock or precipice until the fury of the
+blast had passed; and Cuthbert eagerly looked out for the next refuge.
+At last they reached it, and the guide at once entered. It was not that
+in which he had intended to pass the night, for this lay still higher;
+but it would have been madness to attempt to go further in the face of
+such a gale. He signed to Cuthbert that it was necessary at once to
+collect firewood, and he himself proceeded to light some brands which
+had been left by previous travelers. Cuthbert gave directions to Cnut
+and the archers; and these, feeling that life depended upon a good fire
+being kept up, set to with a will, cutting down shrubs and branches
+growing in the vicinity of the hut. In half an hour a huge fire blazed
+in the refuge; and as the warmth thawed their limbs, their tongues were
+unloosened, and a feeling of comfort again prevailed.
+
+"If this be mountaineering, my lord," Cnut said, "I trust that never
+again may it be my fortune to venture among the hills. How long, I
+wonder, do the storms last here? I was grumbling all the way up the hill
+at the load of provisions which the guide insisted that each of us
+should bring with him. As it was to be but a three days' journey before
+we reached a village on the other side, I wondered why he insisted upon
+our taking food enough to last us at least for a week. But I understand
+now, and thank him for his foresight; for if this storm goes on we are
+assuredly prisoners here for so long as it may continue."
+
+The horse had to be brought into the hut, for it would have been death
+for it to have remained outside.
+
+"What is that?" Cnut said presently, as a distant howl was heard between
+the lulls of the storm. The guide muttered some word which Cuthbert did
+not understand. But he said to Cnut, "I doubt not that it is wolves.
+Thank God that we are safe within this refuge, for here not even the
+most ravenous beasts could make their way."
+
+"Pooh!" Cnut said contemptuously. "Wolves are no bigger than dogs. I
+have heard my grandfather say that he shot one in the forest, and that
+it was no bigger than a hound. We should make short work of them."
+
+"I know not," Cuthbert said. "I have heard tales of these animals which
+show that they must be formidable opponents. They hunt in great packs,
+and are so furious that they will attack parties of travelers; many of
+these have perished miserably, horses and men, and nothing but their
+swords and portions of their saddles have remained to tell where the
+battle was fought."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+SENTENCED TO DEATH.
+
+
+Just before arriving at the refuge they had passed along a very steep
+and dangerous path. On one side the rock rose precipitously, ten feet
+above their heads. On the other was a fall into the valley below. The
+road at this point was far wider than usual.
+
+Presently the howl of a wolf was heard near, and soon the solitary call
+was succeeded by the howling of great numbers of animals. These speedily
+surrounded the hut, and so fierce were their cries that Cnut changed his
+opinion as to the ease with which they could be defeated, and allowed
+that he would rather face an army of Saracens than a troop of these
+ill-conditioned animals. The horse trembled in every limb at the sound
+of the howling of the wolves; and cold as was the night, in spite of the
+great fire that blazed on the hearth, his coat became covered with the
+lather of fear. Even upon the roof above the trampling of the animals
+could be heard; and through the open slits of the windows which some
+travelers before them had stuffed with straw, they could hear the fierce
+breathing and snorting of the savage beasts, who scratched and tore to
+make an entrance.
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that we might launch a few arrows through
+these loopholes. The roof appears not to be over strong; and should some
+of them force an entrance, the whole pack might follow."
+
+Dark as was the night, the black bodies were visible against the white
+snow, and the archers shot several arrows forth, each stretching a wolf
+dead on the ground. Those killed were at once pounced upon by their
+comrades and torn to pieces; and this mark of savageness added to the
+horror which those within felt of the ferocious animals. Suddenly there
+was a pause in the howling around the hut, and then Cnut, looking forth
+from the loophole, declared that the whole body had gone off at full
+speed along the path by which they had reached the refuge. Almost
+immediately afterward a loud shout for help was heard, followed by the
+renewed howling and yelping of the wolves.
+
+"Good heavens!" Cuthbert exclaimed. "Some traveler coming after us is
+attacked by these horrible beasts. Let us sally out, Cnut. We cannot
+hear a Christian torn to pieces by these beasts, without lending him a
+hand."
+
+In spite of the angry shouts and entreaties of the guide, the door was
+thrust open, and the party, armed with their axes and bows, at once
+rushed out into the night. The storm had for the moment abated and they
+had no difficulty in making their way along the track. In fifty yards
+they came to a bend of the path, and saw, a little distance before them,
+a black mass of animals covering the road, and congregated round a
+figure who stood with his back to the rock. With a shout of
+encouragement they sprang forward, and in a few moments were in the
+midst of the savage animals, who turned their rage against them at once.
+They had fired two or three arrows apiece, as they approached, into
+them; and now throwing down their bows, the archers betook themselves to
+their swords, while Cuthbert with his heavy battle-axe hewed and cut at
+the wolves as they sprang toward him. In a minute they had cleared their
+way to the figure, which was that of a knight in complete armor. He
+leaned against the rock completely exhausted, could only mutter a word
+of thanks through his closed visor. At a short distance off a number of
+the wolves were gathered, rending and tearing the horse of the knight;
+but the rest, soon recovering from their surprise, attacked with fury
+the little party. The thick cloaks of the archers stood them in good
+stead against the animal's teeth, and standing in a group with their
+backs to the rock, they hewed and cut vigorously at their assailants.
+The numbers of these, however, appeared almost innumerable, and fresh
+stragglers continued to come along the road, and swell their body. As
+fast as those in front fell, their heads cleft with the axes of the
+party, fresh ones sprang forward; and Cuthbert saw that in spite of the
+valor and strength of his men, the situation was well-nigh desperate. He
+himself had been saved from injury by his harness, for he still had on
+his greaves and leg pieces.
+
+"Keep together," he shouted to his men, "and each lend aid to the other
+if he sees him pulled down. Strike lustily for life, and hurry not your
+blows, but let each toll." This latter order he gave perceiving that
+some of the archers, terrified by this furious army of assailants with
+gaping mouths and glistening teeth, were striking wildly, and losing
+their presence of mind.
+
+The combat, although it might have been prolonged, could yet have had
+but one termination, and the whole party would have fallen. At this
+moment, however, a gust of wind, more furious than any which they had
+before experienced, swept along the gorge, and the very wolves had to
+crouch on their stomachs to prevent themselves being hurled by its fury
+into the ravine below. Then even above the storm a deep roar was heard.
+It grew louder and louder. The wolves, as if struck with terror, leaped
+to their feet, and scattered on either way along the path at full
+speed.
+
+"What sound can this be?" Cnut exclaimed in an awe-struck voice. "It
+sounds like thunder; but it is regular and unbroken; and, my lord,
+surely the earth quakes under our feet!"
+
+Louder and louder grew the roar.
+
+"Throw yourselves down against the wall of rock," Cuthbert shouted,
+himself setting the example.
+
+A moment afterward, from above a mighty mass of rock and snow poured
+over like a cascade, with a roar and sound which nigh stunned them. For
+minutes--it seemed for hours to them--the deluge of snow and rock
+continued. Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it ceased, and a silence
+as of death reigned over the place.
+
+"Arise," Cuthbert said; "the danger, methinks, is past. It was what men
+call an avalanche--a torrent of snow slipping down from the higher
+peaks. We have had a narrow escape indeed."
+
+By this time the knight whom they had rescued was able to speak, and
+raising his visor, he returned his deepest thanks to those who had come
+so opportunely to his aid.
+
+"I was well-nigh exhausted," he said, "and it was only my armor which
+saved me from being torn to pieces. A score of them had hold of me; but
+fortunately my mail was of Milan proof, and even the jaws and teeth of
+these enormous beasts were unable to pierce it."
+
+"The refuge is near at hand," Cuthbert said. "It is but a few yards
+round yonder point. It is well that we heard your voice. I fear that
+your horse has fallen a victim."
+
+Assisting the knight, who in spite of his armor was sorely bruised and
+exhausted, they made their way back to the refuge. Cnut and the archers
+were all bleeding freely from various wounds inflicted upon them in the
+struggle, breathless and exhausted from their exertions, and thoroughly
+awe-struck by the tremendous phenomenon of which they had been
+witnesses, and which they had only escaped from their good fortune in
+happening to be in a place so formed that the force of the avalanche had
+swept over their heads. The whole of the road, with the exception of a
+narrow piece four feet in width, had been carried away. Looking upward,
+they saw that the forest had been swept clear, not a tree remaining in a
+wide track as far as they could see up the hill. The great bowlders
+which had strewn the hillside, and many of which were as large as
+houses, had been swept away like straws before the rush of snow, and for
+a moment they feared that the refuge had also been carried away. Turning
+the corner, however, they saw to their delight that the limits of the
+avalanche had not extended so far, the refuges, as they afterward
+learned, being so placed as to be sheltered by overhanging cliffs from
+any catastrophe of this kind.
+
+They found the guide upon his knees, muttering his prayers before a
+cross, which he had formed of two sticks laid crosswise on the ground
+before him; and he could scarce believe his eyes when they entered, so
+certain had he considered it that they were lost. There were no longer
+any signs of the wolves. The greater portion, indeed, of the pack had
+been overwhelmed by the avalanche, and the rest, frightened and scared,
+had fled to their fastnesses in the woods.
+
+The knight now removed his helmet, and discovered a handsome young man
+of some twenty-four or twenty-five years old.
+
+"I am," he said, "Baron Ernest of Kornstein. To whom do I owe my life?"
+
+"In spite of my red cross," Cuthbert said, "I am English. My name is Sir
+Cuthbert, and I am Earl of Evesham. I am on my return from the Holy Land
+with my followers; and as we are passing through countries where many
+of the people are hostile to England, we have thought it as well for a
+time to drop our nationality. But to you I do not hesitate to tell the
+truth."
+
+"You do well," the young knight said, "for, truth to say, the people of
+these parts bear but little love to your countrymen. You have saved my
+life when I was in the sorest danger. I had given myself up for lost,
+for even my armor could not have saved me long from these wretches; and
+my sword and life are at your disposal. You are young indeed," he said,
+looking with surprise at Cuthbert, who had now thrown back the hood of
+his cloak, "to have gained the honor of knighthood. You scarce look
+eighteen years of age, although, doubtless, you are older."
+
+"I am scarce seventeen," Cuthbert said; "but I have had the good fortune
+to attract the notice of King Richard, and to have received the
+knighthood from his sword."
+
+"None more worthy," said the young knight, "for although King Richard
+may be fierce and proud, he is the worthiest knight in Christendom, and
+resembles the heroes of romance rather than a Christian king."
+
+"He is my lord and master," Cuthbert said, "and I love him beyond all
+men, and would give my life for his. He is the kindest and best of
+masters; and although it be true that he brooks no opposition, yet is it
+only because his own bravery and eagerness render hateful to him the
+indolence and cowardice of others."
+
+They now took their seats round the fire. The archers, by the advice of
+the guide, rubbed their wounds with snow, and then applied bandages to
+them. The wallets were opened, and a hearty supper eaten; and all,
+wrapping themselves in their fur cloaks, were soon asleep.
+
+For four days the gale continued, keeping the party prisoners in the
+hut. On the fifth the force of the wind abated, and the snow ceased to
+fall. They were forced to take the door off its hinges to open it, for
+the snow had piled up so high that the chimney alone of the hut remained
+above its surface. With great difficulty and labor they cleared a way
+out, and then the guide again placing himself at their head, they
+proceeded on their way. The air was still and cold, and the sky of a
+deep, dark blue, which seemed even darker in contrast with the whiteness
+of the snow. At times they had great difficulty in struggling through
+the deep drifts; but for the most part the wind had swept the path
+clear. Where it was deepest, the tops of the posts still showed above
+the snow, and enabled the guide to direct their footsteps. They were,
+however, obliged to travel slowly, and it was three days before they
+gained the village on the northern slope of the mountains, having slept
+at refuges by the road.
+
+"What are your plans?" the knight asked Sir Cuthbert that night, as they
+sat by the fire of the hostelry. "I would warn you that the town which
+you will first arrive at is specially hostile to your people, for the
+baron, its master, is a relation of Conrad of Montferat, who is said to
+have been killed by order of your king."
+
+"It is false," Cuthbert said. "King Richard had appointed him King of
+Jerusalem; and, though he liked him not, thought him the fittest of
+those there to exercise sovereignty. He was the last man who would have
+had an enemy assassinated; for so open is he of disposition that he
+would have fought hand to hand with the meanest soldier of his army had
+he desired to kill him."
+
+"I doubt not that it is so, since you tell me," the knight said
+courteously. "But the people here have taken that idea into their minds,
+and it will be hard to disabuse them. You must therefore keep up your
+disguise as a French knight while passing through this neighborhood.
+Another week's journeying, and you will reach the confines of Saxony,
+and there you will, as you anticipate, be safe. But I would not answer
+for your life were you discovered here to be of English birth. And now
+tell me if there is aught that I can do for you. I will myself accompany
+you into the town, and will introduce you as a French knight, so that no
+suspicion is likely to lie upon you, and will, further, ride with you to
+the borders of Saxony. I am well known, and trust that my company will
+avert all suspicion from you. You have told me that your purse is
+ill-supplied; you must suffer me to replenish it. One knight need not
+fear to borrow of another; and I know that when you have returned to
+your home you will bestow the sum which I now give you upon some holy
+shrine in my name, and thus settle matters between us."
+
+Cuthbert without hesitation accepted the offer, and was well pleased at
+finding his purse replenished, for its emptiness had caused him serious
+trouble. Cuthbert's steed was led by one of the archers, and he himself
+walked gayly alongside of Sir Ernest, followed by his retainers. Another
+long day's march brought them down to Innsbruck, where they remained
+quietly for a week. Then they journeyed on until they emerged from the
+mountains, crossed the Bavarian frontier, and arrived at Fussen, a
+strong city, with well-built walls and defenses.
+
+They at once proceeded to the principal hostelry, where the young baron
+was well known, and where great interest was excited by the news of the
+narrow escape which he had had from the attack of the wolves. A journey
+across the Alps was in those days regarded as a very perilous enterprise
+in the winter season, and the fact that he should have been rescued from
+such a strait appeared almost miraculous. They stayed for two days
+quietly in the city, Cuthbert declining the invitation of the young
+noble to accompany him to the houses of his friends, as he did not wish
+that any suspicion should be excited as to his nationality, and
+preferred remaining quiet to having forced upon him the necessity of
+making false statements. As to his followers, there was no fear of the
+people among whom they mixed detecting that they were English. To the
+Bavarian inhabitants, all languages, save their native German, were
+alike unintelligible; and even had French been commonly spoken, the
+dialects of that tongue, such as would naturally be spoken by archers
+and men-at-arms, would have been a Greek to those accustomed only to
+Norman French.
+
+Upon the third day, however, an incident occurred which upset Cuthbert's
+calculations, and nearly involved the whole party in ruin. The town was,
+as the young baron had said, governed by a noble who was a near relation
+of Conrad of Montferat, and who was the bitter enemy of the English. A
+great _fete_ had been given in honor of the marriage of his daughter,
+and upon this day the young pair were to ride in triumph through the
+city. Great preparations had been made; masks and pageants of various
+kinds manufactured; and the whole townspeople, dressed in their holiday
+attire, were gathered in the streets. Cuthbert had gone out, followed by
+his little band of retainers, and taken their station to see the passing
+show. First came a large body of knights and men-at-arms, with gay
+banners and trappings. Then rode the bridegroom, with the bride carried
+in a litter by his side. After this came several allegorical
+representations. Among these was the figure of a knight bearing the arms
+of Austria. Underneath his feet, on the car, lay a figure clad in a
+royal robe, across whom was thrown a banner with the leopards of
+England. The knight stood with his foot on this figure.
+
+This representation of the dishonor of England at the hands of Austria
+elicited great acclamations from the crowd. Cuthbert clinched his teeth
+and grasped his sword angrily, but had the sense to see the folly of
+taking any notice of the insult. Not so with Cnut. Furious it the insult
+offered to the standard of his royal master, Cnut, with a bound, burst
+through the ranks of the crowd, leaped on to the car, and with a buffet
+smote the figure representing Austria into the road, and lifted the flag
+of England from the ground. A yell of indignation and rage was heard.
+The infuriated crowd rushed forward. Cnut, with a bound, sprang from the
+car, and, joining his comrades, burst through those who attempted to
+impede them, and darted down a by-street.
+
+Cuthbert, for the moment amazed at the action of his follower, had on
+the instant drawn his sword and joined the archers. In the crowd,
+however, he was for a second separated from them; and before he could
+tear himself from the hands of the citizens who had seized him, the
+men-at-arms accompanying the procession surrounded him, and he was led
+away by them to the castle, the guards with difficulty protecting him
+from the enraged populace. Even at this moment Cuthbert experienced a
+deep sense of satisfaction at the thought that his followers had
+escaped. But he feared that alone, and unacquainted with the language of
+the country, they would find it difficult indeed to escape the search
+which would be made for them, and to manage to find their way back to
+their country. For himself, he had little hopes of liberty, and scarcely
+more of life. The hatred of the baron toward the English would now be
+heightened by the daring act of insult to the arms of Austria, and this
+would give a pretext for any deed of violence which might be wrought.
+
+Cuthbert was, after a short confinement, brought before the lord baron
+of the place, in the great hall of the castle.
+
+"Who art thou, sir," the noble exclaimed, "who darest to disturb the
+marriage procession of my daughter, and to insult the standard of the
+emperor my master?"
+
+"I am Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, a baron of England," Cuthbert said
+fearlessly, "and am traveling homeward from the Holy Land. My garb as a
+Crusader should protect me from all interruption; and the heedless
+conduct of my retainer was amply justified by the insult offered to the
+arms of England. There is not one of the knights assembled round you who
+would not in like manner have avenged an insult offered to those of
+Austria; and I am ready to do battle in the lists with any who choose to
+say that the deed was a foul or improper one. In the Holy Land Austrians
+and English fought side by side; and it is strange indeed to me that on
+my return, journeying through the country of the emperor, I should find
+myself treated as an enemy, and see the arms of King Richard exposed to
+insult and derision by the burghers of this city."
+
+As Cuthbert had spoken he threw down his mailed glove, and several of
+the knights present stepped forward to pick it up. The baron, however,
+waved them back.
+
+"It is no question," he said, "of honorable fight. This is a follower of
+the murderer of my good cousin of Montferat, who died under the hands of
+assassins set upon him by Richard of England."
+
+"It is false!" Cuthbert shouted. "I denounce it as a foul lie, and will
+maintain it with my life."
+
+"Your life is already forfeited," the baron said, "both by your past
+connection with Richard of England and as the insulter of the arms of
+Austria. You die, and to-morrow at noon your head shall be struck off in
+the great square before my castle."
+
+Without another word Cuthbert was hurried off to his cell, and there
+remained, thinking moodily over the events of the day, until nightfall.
+He had no doubt that his sentence would be carried out, and his anxiety
+was rather for his followers than for himself. He feared that they would
+make some effort on his behalf, and would sacrifice their own lives in
+doing so, without the possibility of assisting him.
+
+The next morning he was led out to the square before the castle. It was
+a large flagged courtyard. Upon one side was the entrance to the castle,
+one of whose wings also formed a second side to the square. The side
+facing this was formed by the wall of the city, and the fourth opened
+upon a street of the town. This side of the square was densely filled
+with citizens, while the men-at-arms of the baron and a large number of
+knights were gathered behind a scaffold erected in the center. Upon this
+was a block, and by the side stood a headsman. As Cuthbert was led
+forward a thrill of pleasure ran through him at perceiving no signs of
+his followers, who he greatly feared might have been captured in the
+night, and brought there to share his fate.
+
+As he was led forward the young noble whose life he had saved advanced
+to the baron, and dropping on one knee before him, craved the life of
+Cuthbert, relating the event by which he had saved his life in the
+passage of the mountains. The baron frowned heavily.
+
+"Though he had saved the life of every noble in Bavaria," he said, "he
+should die. I have sworn an oath that every Englishman who fell into my
+hands should expiate the murder of my kinsman; and this fellow is,
+moreover, guilty of an outrage to the arms of Austria."
+
+The young Sir Ernest drew himself up haughtily.
+
+"My lord baron," he said, "henceforth I renounce all allegiance to you,
+and I will lay the case before the emperor, our common master, and will
+cry before him at the outrage which has thus been passed upon a noble
+gentleman. He has thrown down the glove, and challenged any of your
+knights, and I myself am equally ready to do battle in his cause."
+
+The baron grew red with passion, and he would have ordered the instant
+arrest of the young man, but as Sir Ernest was connected by blood with
+many present, and was indeed one of the most popular among the nobles of
+the province, the baron simply waved him aside, and ordered Cuthbert to
+be led to the block. The young Englishman was by the executioner
+divested of his armor and helmet, and stood in the simple attire worn by
+men of rank at that time. He looked around, and holding up his hand,
+conveying alike a farewell and a command to his followers to remain in
+concealment, he gazed round the crowd, thinking that he might see among
+them in some disguise or other the features of Cnut, whose tall figure
+would have rendered him conspicuous in a crowd. He failed, however, to
+see any signs of him, and turning to the executioner, signified by a
+gesture that he was ready.
+
+At this instant an arrow from the wall above pierced the brain of the
+man, and he fell dead in his tracks. A roar of astonishment burst from
+the crowd. Upon the city wall at this point was a small turret, and on
+this were five figures. The wall around was deserted, and for the moment
+these men were masters of the position.
+
+"Seize those insolent varlets!" the baron shouted, shaking his sword
+with a gesture of fury at them.
+
+His words, however, were arrested, for at the moment another arrow
+struck him in the throat, and he fell back into the arms of those around
+him.
+
+Quickly now the arrows of the English archers flew into the courtyard.
+The confusion which reigned there was indescribable. The citizens with
+shouts of alarm took to their heels. The men-at-arms were powerless
+against this rain of missiles, and the knights, hastily closing their
+visors, shouted contradictory orders, which no one obeyed.
+
+In the confusion no one noticed the prisoner. Seizing a moment when the
+attention of all was fixed upon the wall, he leaped from the platform,
+and making his way unnoticed through the excited crowd of men-at-arms,
+darted down a narrow lane that divided the castle from the wall. He ran
+along until, one hundred yards further, he came to a staircase by which
+access to the battlements was obtained. Running lightly up this, he kept
+along the wall until he reached the turret.
+
+"Thanks, my noble Cnut!" he exclaimed, "and you, my brave fellows. But I
+fear you have forfeited your lives. There is no escape. In a minute the
+whole force of the place will recover from their confusion, and be down
+upon us from both sides."
+
+"We have prepared for that," Cnut said. "Here is a rope hanging down
+into the moat."
+
+Glancing over, Cuthbert saw that the moat was dry; and after a final
+discharge of arrows into the crowd, the six men slid one after another
+down the rope and made their way at full speed across the country.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+DRESDEN.
+
+
+It was some ten minutes before the men-at-arms rallied sufficiently from
+their surprise to obey orders. Two bodies were then drawn up, and
+proceeded at a rapid pace toward the staircases leading to the wall, one
+on each side of the turret in which they believed that the little body
+of audacious assailants were still lying. Having reached the wall, the
+soldiers advanced, covering themselves with their shields, for they had
+learned the force with which an English clothyard shaft drawn by a
+strong hand flies. Many had been killed by these missiles passing
+through and through the cuirass and backpiece. No reply being obtained
+to the summons to surrender, they proceeded to break in with their
+battle-axes the door of the little turret. Rushing in with ax and pike,
+they were astonished to find the place empty. A glance over the wall
+showed the rope still hanging, and the manner of the escape became
+manifest. The fugitives were already out of sight, and the knights,
+furious at the escape of the men who had bearded them in the heart of
+the city with such audacity, and had slain the lord baron and several of
+his knights, gave orders that an instant pursuit should be organized. It
+was, however, a full half hour before the city gates were thrown open,
+and a strong troop of knights and mounted men issued out.
+
+Cuthbert had been certain that an instant pursuit would be set on foot,
+and the moment that he was out of sight of the battlements he changed
+the direction in which he had started, and turning at right angles,
+swept round the city, still keeping at a distance, until he reached the
+side next the mountains, and then plunged into the woods on the lower
+slopes of the hills.
+
+"They will," he said, as they halted breathless from their run, "follow
+the road toward the south, and scour the country for awhile before it
+occurs to their thick German skulls that we have doubled back on our
+tracks. Why, what is it, Cnut?"
+
+This exclamation was provoked by the forester throwing himself on his
+knees before Sir Cuthbert, and imploring his pardon for the dire strait
+into which his imprudence had drawn him.
+
+"It was a dire strait, certainly, Cnut. But if you got me into it, at
+least you have extricated me; and never say more about it, for I myself
+was near committing the imprudence to which you gave way, and I can well
+understand that your English blood boiled at the sight of the outrage to
+the flag of England. Now, let us waste no time in talk, but, keeping to
+the foot of this mountain, make along as far as we can to the west. We
+must cling to the hills for many days' march before we venture again to
+try to cross the plains. If possible, we will keep on this way until we
+reach the confines of the country of the Swiss, who will assuredly give
+us hospitality, and who will care little for any threats of these German
+barons, should they hear that we have reached their asylum."
+
+By nightfall they had already traveled many leagues, and making a fire
+in the wood, Cuthbert asked Cnut for an account of what had taken place
+on the previous day.
+
+"We ran for life, Sir Cuthbert, and had not noticed that you had been
+drawn into the fray. Had we done so, we would have remained, and sold
+our lives with yours; but hoping that you had passed unnoticed in the
+crowd, and that you would find some means to rejoin us we kept upon our
+way. After running down three streets we passed a place where a
+courtyard with stables ranged round it was open. There were none about,
+and we entered, and taking refuge in a loft hid ourselves beneath some
+provender. There we remained all night, and then borrowing some apparel
+which some of the stablemen had hung upon the walls, we issued into the
+town. As we neared the great square we saw some men employed in erecting
+a platform in the midst, and a suspicion that all might not be right,
+and that you might have fallen into the hands of these German dogs,
+beset our minds. After much consultation we determined to see what the
+affair meant, and making our way on to the walls which, indeed, were
+entirely deserted, we took refuge in that turret where you saw us.
+Seeing the crowd gather, and being still more convinced that some
+misfortune was about to occur, I again went back to the stables, where I
+had noticed a long rope used by the carters for fastening their loads to
+the wagons. With this I returned, for it was clear that if we had to
+mingle in this business it would be necessary to have a mode of escape.
+Of the rest you are aware. We saw the knights coming out of the castle,
+with that portly baron, their lord, at their head. We saw the block and
+the headsman upon the platform, and were scarcely surprised when you
+were led out, a prisoner, from the gates. We judged that what did happen
+would ensue. Seeing that the confusion wrought by a sudden attack from
+men perched up aloft as we were, commanding the courtyard, and being
+each of us able to hit a silver mark at the distance of one hundred
+yards, would be great indeed, we judged that you might be able to slip
+away unobserved, and were sure that your quick wit would seize any
+opportunity which might offer. Had you not been able to join us, we
+should have remained in the turret and sold our lives to the last, as,
+putting aside the question that we could never return to our homes,
+having let our dear lord die here, we should not, in our ignorance of
+the language and customs of the country, have ever been able to make our
+way across it. We knew, however, that before this turret was carried we
+could show these Germans how five Englishmen, when brought to bay, can
+sell their lives."
+
+They had not much difficulty in obtaining food in the forest, for game
+abounded, and they could kill as many deer as seemed fit to them. As
+Cnut said, it was difficult to believe that they were not back again in
+the forest near Evesham, so similar was their life to that which they
+had led three years before. To Cnut and the archers, indeed, it was a
+pleasanter time than any which they had passed since they had left the
+shores of England, and they blithely marched along, fearing little any
+pursuit which might be set on foot, and, indeed, hearing nothing of
+their enemies. After six days' travel they came upon a rude village, and
+here Cuthbert learned from the people--with much difficulty, however,
+and pantomime, for neither could understand a word spoken by the
+other--that they were now in one of the Swiss cantons, and therefore
+secure from all pursuit by the Germans. Without much difficulty Cuthbert
+engaged one of the young men of the village to act as their guide to
+Basle, and here, after four days' traveling, they arrived safely. Asking
+for the residence of the burgomaster, Cuthbert at once proceeded
+thither, and stated that he was an English knight on the return from the
+Crusades; that he had been foully entreated by the Lord of Fussen, who
+had been killed in a fray by his followers; and that he besought
+hospitality and refuge from the authorities of Basle.
+
+"We care little," the burgomaster said, "what quarrel you may have had
+with your neighbors. All who come hither are free to come and go as they
+list, and you, as a knight on the return from the Holy Land, have a
+claim beyond that of an ordinary traveler."
+
+The burgomaster was himself able to speak French, and summoning several
+of the councilors of the town, he requested Cuthbert to give a narrative
+of his adventures; which he did. The councilors agreed with the
+burgomaster that Cuthbert must be received hospitably; but the latter
+saw that there was among many of them considerable doubt as to the
+expediency of quarreling with a powerful neighbor. He therefore said to
+the burgomaster:
+
+"I have no intention, honorable sir, of taking up any prolonged
+residence here. I only ask to be furnished with a charger and arms, and
+in payment of these I will leave this gold chain, the gift of King
+Richard himself, as a gage, and will on my return to my country forward
+to you the value of the arms and horse, trusting that you will return
+the chain to me."
+
+The burgomaster, however, said that the city of Basle was not so poor
+that it need take the gage of an honorable knight, but that the arms and
+charger he required should be given him in a few hours, and that he
+might pay the value in London to a Jew merchant there who had relations
+with one at Basle. Full instructions were given to him, and he resolved
+to travel down upon the left bank of the Rhine, until he reached
+Lorraine, and thence to cross into Saxony. The same afternoon the
+promised horse and arms were provided, and Cuthbert, delighted again to
+be in harness, and thanking courteously the burgomaster and council for
+their kindness, started with his followers on his journey north. These
+latter had been provided with doublets and other garments suitable to
+the retinue of a knight, and made a better show than they had done since
+they first left England.
+
+Leaving Basle, they traveled along the left side of the Rhine by easy
+stages. The country was much disturbed, owing to the return and
+disbandment of so many of the troops employed in the Crusades. These,
+their occupation being gone, scattered over the country, and France and
+Germany alike were harassed by bands of military robbers. The wild
+country between the borders of Switzerland and Lorraine was specially
+vexed, as the mountains of the Vosges afforded shelter, into which the
+freebooters could not be followed by the troops of the duke.
+
+Upon the evening of the third day they reached a small inn standing in a
+lonely position near the foot of the mountains.
+
+"I like not the look of this place," Cuthbert said; "but as we hear that
+there is no other within a distance of another ten miles, we must e'en
+make the best of it."
+
+The host received them with extreme and even fawning civility, which by
+no means raised him in the estimation of Cuthbert or Cnut. A rough meal
+was taken, and they then ascended to the rude accommodation which had
+been provided. It was one large room barely furnished. Upon one side
+straw was thickly littered down--for in those days beds among the common
+people were unknown. In a sort of alcove at the end was a couch with a
+rough mattress and coverlet. This Cuthbert took possession of, while his
+followers stretched themselves upon the straw.
+
+"Methinks," Cnut said, "that it were well that one should keep watch at
+the door. I like not the look of our host, and we are near the spot
+where the bands of the robbers are said to be busy."
+
+Toward morning the archer on guard reported that he could hear the sound
+of many approaching footsteps. All at once sprang to their feet, and
+betook themselves to their arms. Looking from the window they saw a
+large party of rough men, whose appearance at once betokened that they
+were disbanded soldiers--a title almost synonymous in those days with
+that of robber. With the united strength of the party the truckle bed
+was carried from the alcove and placed against the door. Cuthbert then
+threw open the window, and asked in French what they wanted. One of the
+party, who appeared to be the leader, said that the party had better
+surrender immediately. He promised them good treatment, and said that
+the knight would be put to ransom, should it be found that the valuables
+upon his person were not sufficient to pay the worshipful company
+present for the trouble which they had taken in waiting upon him. This
+sally was received with shouts of laughter. Cuthbert replied quietly
+that he had no valuables upon his person; that if they took him there
+were none would pay as much as a silver mark for the ransom of them all;
+and that the only things that they had to give were sharp arrows and
+heavy blows.
+
+"You talk bravely, young sir," the man said. "But you have to do with
+men versed in fight, and caring but little either for knocks or for
+arrows. We have gone through the Crusades, and are therefore held to be
+absolved from all sin, even that so great as would be incurred in the
+cutting of your knightly throat."
+
+"But we have gone through the Crusades also," Cuthbert said, "and our
+persons are sacred. The sin of slitting our weazands, which you speak
+of, would therefore be so great that even the absolution on which you
+rely would barely extend to it."
+
+"We know most of those who have served in the Holy Land," the man said
+more respectfully than he had yet spoken, "and would fain know with whom
+we speak."
+
+"I am an Englishman, and a follower of King Richard," Cuthbert said,
+"and am known as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham. As I was the youngest among
+the knights who fought for the holy sepulcher, it may be that my
+appearance is known to you?"
+
+"Ah," the other said, "you are he whom they called the Boy Knight, and
+who was often in the thick of the fray, near to Richard himself. How
+comes it, Sir Cuthbert, that you are here?"
+
+"The fleet was scattered on its return," Cuthbert replied, "and I landed
+with my followers, well-nigh penniless, at Zara, and have since made my
+way across the Tyrol. I have, then, as you may well suppose, neither
+silver nor gold about my person; and assuredly neither Philip of France
+nor John of Austria would give a noble for my ransom; and it would be
+long, methinks, to wait ere John of England would care to ransom one of
+King Richard's followers."
+
+The brigands spoke for awhile among themselves, and then the leader
+said:
+
+"You speak frankly and fairly, Sir Knight, and as you have proved
+yourself indeed a doughty giver of hard blows, and as I doubt not that
+the archers with you can shoot as straight and as fast as the rest of
+the Saxon breed, we will e'en let you go on your way, for your position
+is but little better than ours, and dog should not rob dog."
+
+"Thanks, good fellow," Cuthbert said. "We trust that in any case we
+might have made a strong defense against you; but it would be hard if
+those who have fought together in the Holy Land should slay each other
+in this lonely corner of Lorraine."
+
+"Are you seeking adventures or employment, Sir Knight? For if so,
+myself and comrades here would gladly take service with you; and it may
+be that with a clump of spears you might obtain engagement, either under
+the Duke of Lorraine or he of Cleves."
+
+"Thanks for your offer," Cuthbert replied; "but at present my face is
+turned toward England. King Richard needs all his friends; and there is
+so little chance of sack or spoil, even should we have--which God
+forfend--civil war, that I fear I could ill reward the services which
+you offer me."
+
+The leader and his men shouted an adieu to Cuthbert and departed for the
+mountains, leaving the latter well pleased with his escape from a fight
+of which the result was doubtful.
+
+Journeying on without further adventure, they came to Nancy, and were
+there kindly received by the duke, who was not at that time upon good
+terms with Philip of France, and was therefore well disposed toward the
+English. Cuthbert inquired from him whether any news had been heard of
+King Richard? but received as a reply that the duke had heard nothing of
+him since he sailed from Palestine.
+
+"This is strange," Cuthbert said, "for I myself have journeyed but
+slowly, and have met with many delays. King Richard should long ere this
+have reached Saxony; and I fear much that some foul treatment has
+befallen him. On our way we found how bitter was the feeling among those
+related to Conrad of Montferat against him; and the Archduke John is
+still smarting from the blow which King Richard struck him at Ascalon.
+But surely they would not be so unknightly as to hinder so great a
+champion of Christendom as King Richard on his homeward way?"
+
+"The Archduke John is crafty and treacherous," the duke said; "and the
+emperor himself would, I think, be not sorry to lay hand upon the King
+of England, were it only to do pleasure to Philip of France. Assuredly,
+however the anger and indignation of all Christendom will be aroused
+should the king's passage be interrupted, for it were indeed a gross
+breach of hospitality to seize upon a man who has the double claim of
+being a champion of Christendom and a shipwrecked man. However, it is
+early yet to be uneasy, and it may be that in a few days we may have
+news of the arrival of the king in Saxony. He may have encountered
+difficulties similar to those which you yourself have met with. The
+country is everywhere disturbed, and it is not only in my forests that
+bands of outlawed men are to be met with. At present there is peace in
+Europe. It may last indeed but a short time. But so long as it
+continues, so long must the mountains and woods be full of desperate
+men. Were war declared between any two princes these would flock to the
+banners of him who would pay them highest, and a war which could end in
+the entire destruction of the armies of both combatants would be a
+blessing to Europe."
+
+After entertaining Cuthbert courteously for three days, the Duke of
+Lorraine bade him adieu, and gave him an escort of men-at-arms to the
+borders of the Rhine, where he would find the way open to the domains of
+the Duke of Saxony. Without adventure Cuthbert and his followers arrived
+at Dresden, and he immediately presented himself at the castle of the
+duke. The instant that he sent in his name as Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, a
+knight of King Richard, he was conducted to the presence of the duke and
+of his wife, the sister of King Richard.
+
+"Are you bearer of news of my brother Richard?" the duke said, advancing
+a step to meet the young knight as he entered the hall.
+
+"Alas! my lord duke, I am not," Cuthbert said; "but had hoped to gain
+tidings from you."
+
+"From me?" the duke said in surprise. "What should lead you to believe
+that I have any news of King Richard later than that which others have
+received? The last I heard of him was upon the day of his departure from
+the Holy Land, before the storm arose which scattered his fleet, and I
+am ignorant whether he has foundered at sea, or whether, as some
+suppose, his vessel may have been taken captive by the Moors."
+
+"I bear you later tidings," Cuthbert said, "than those you have
+received. I was on board the ship with King Richard. We were wrecked
+upon the Island of Corfu and there hiring a small ship, we proceeded to
+Zara. King Richard determined to make his way across the Tyrol to this
+place; but he thought that it would attract attention to him were he
+accompanied by so large a party. Therefore he, with Sir Baldwin of
+Bethune, and a few followers, started north, while I with my men kept
+west through the north of Italy, and then crossed by the pass over
+Trent."
+
+"How long is it since you left my brother?" the duchess asked anxiously.
+
+"It is now over a month since I bade him adieu," Cuthbert answered.
+
+"Then he should have been heard of long since," the duchess said. "What
+fate can have befallen him?"
+
+"Judging from my own experience," Cuthbert said, "I fear that he may
+have come to harm at the hands of the friends of Conrad of Montferat,
+who falsely allege that the death of their kinsman was caused by King
+Richard. The Archduke John, too, owes him no good-will; and even the
+emperor is evilly disposed toward him. The king traveled under an
+assumed name; but it might well be that he would be recognized upon the
+way. His face was known to all who fought in the East; and his lordly
+manner and majestic stature could ill be concealed beneath a merchant's
+garb. Still, lady, as I have been so long in making my way across, it
+may be that King Richard has been similarly delayed without danger
+befalling him, and it could hardly be that so important a man as the
+King of England would be detained, or come to any misfortune, without
+the news being bruited abroad."
+
+In spite of Cuthbert's reassuring words, the duke and duchess were
+greatly alarmed at the news of King Richard's disappearance, although
+indeed consoled to find that their previous fears, that he had been
+drowned in the storm or captured by the Moorish corsairs, were
+unfounded.
+
+They now requested from Cuthbert the story of what had befallen him
+since he left the king; and this he related at some length. The duke was
+greatly interested, and begged Cuthbert at least to remain at his court
+until some news might arrive of King Richard.
+
+For a month Cuthbert tarried at the castle of the Duke of Saxony, where
+he was nobly entertained, and treated as a guest of much honor. Cnut and
+the archers were delighted at the treatment they received, for never in
+their lives had they been so royally entertained. Their Saxon tongue was
+nigh enough akin to the language spoken here to be understood; and their
+tales of adventure in the Holy Land rendered them as popular among the
+retainers of the duke as their master became with the duke and duchess.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+UNDER THE GREENWOOD.
+
+
+At the end of a month, news came from England that Sir Baldwin of
+Bethune had returned there, bearing the news that the king had been
+arrested at Gortz, only two days' journey north of the Adriatic--that he
+had been recognized, and at once captured. He had offered no resistance,
+finding indeed that it would be hopeless so to do. Sir Baldwin had been
+permitted to depart without molestation. He believed that the folk into
+whose hands he had fallen were retainers of the Archduke John. This
+news, although sad in itself, was yet in some degree reassuring to the
+duke and his wife; for they felt that while the followers of Conrad of
+Montferat would not hesitate to put King Richard to death should he fall
+into their hands, the Archduke John would not dare to bring upon himself
+the indignation of Europe by such treatment of his royal captive.
+Cuthbert at once determined to return to England to see Sir Baldwin, and
+to ascertain what steps were being taken for the discovery of the prison
+in which King Richard was confined, and for his release therefrom; and
+also to establish himself in his new dignity as Earl of Evesham.
+Therefore, bidding adieu to the duke and duchess, he started north. The
+duke furnished him with letters of introduction to the princes through
+whose countries he would travel; and again crossing the Rhine, he
+journeyed through the territories of the Dukes of Cleves and Brabant,
+and reached the mouth of Scheldt without interruption. There taking
+ship, he sailed for London.
+
+It was a long and stormy passage between the mouth of the Scheldt and
+London. The vessel in which Cuthbert had shipped was old and somewhat
+unseaworthy, and several times in the force of the gale all on board
+gave up hope for their lives. At last, however, they reached the mouth
+of the Thames, and dropping up with the tide, reached London eight days
+after their embarkation. The noble charger which the King of Saxony had
+presented to Cuthbert had suffered greatly, and he feared at one time
+that the poor animal would succumb to the effects of the tempest.
+However, after entering into smooth water it recovered itself, and on
+landing near the Tower he found that it was able to support his weight.
+Cnut and the archers were, like Cuthbert, delighted to have their feet
+again upon English soil; and although London did not now strike them
+with the same wonder which it would have done had they first visited it
+before starting on their journey--for in many respects it was greatly
+behind some of the continental cities--yet the feeling of home, and the
+pleasure of being able to understand the conversation of those around
+them, made the poor fellows almost beside themselves with joy. Beyond
+the main political incidents Cuthbert had heard little of what had
+passed in England since his departure; and putting up at a hostelry, he
+inquired of the host whether Sir Baldwin of Bethune was in London, or
+whether he was away on his estates. The landlord did not know. There
+were, he said, but few nobles at court, and London was never so dull as
+at present. As Cuthbert did not wish his coming home to be known to John
+until he had learned something of the position of affairs, he dispatched
+Cnut to the Tower to inquire privately of some of the officials about
+the place whether Sir Baldwin was there. Cnut soon returned with the
+news that he had not been at the court since his return from the Holy
+Land, and that he was living at his castle down in Dorsetshire. After
+some hesitation Cuthbert resolved to set out to see his friend, and
+after six days' travel he arrived at the castle of the knight.
+
+Sir Baldwin received him with immense joy. He had not heard of him since
+they parted at Zara, and he feared that a fate similar to that which had
+befallen King Richard had overtaken Cuthbert, even if he were still
+alive.
+
+"Have you seen aught of the king, our master?" the good knight inquired.
+
+"Nothing," Cuthbert said. "I know no more than yourself. Indeed, I hoped
+to have learned something from you as to the king."
+
+"I was separated from him at Gortz, and while he was taken a prisoner to
+the archduke, I was allowed to pursue my way. I had many difficulties
+and dangers, and was some weeks in finding my way back. Nothing was
+known of the king when I returned. Indeed, I was the first bearer of any
+definite news concerning him since the day when he sailed from Acre.
+Three weeks ago, as you may have learned, the news came that he is now
+detained in captivity by the emperor, who demanded his delivery by the
+Archduke John, into whose hands he first fell. But where he is no one
+exactly knows. The news has created an immense excitement in the
+kingdom, and all are resolved to sacrifice any of their treasures which
+may be demanded in order to satisfy the ransom which the recreant
+emperor has placed upon the king. Shame is it indeed that a Christian
+sovereign should hold another in captivity. Still more, when that other
+was returning through his dominions as a Crusader coming from the Holy
+Land, when his person should be safe, even to his deadliest enemy. It
+has long been suspected that he was in the hands either of the emperor
+or of the archduke, and throughout Europe the feeling of indignation has
+been strong; and I doubt not, now that the truth is known, this feeling
+will be stronger than ever."
+
+"But now that it is known," Cuthbert said, "I suppose there will be no
+delay in ransoming the king."
+
+"There will be no delay in raising the ransom," Sir Baldwin said. "But
+the kingdom is very impoverished by war, by the exactions of Prince
+John, and by those of Langley, who held it for King Richard. He was a
+loyal servant of the king, but an exacting and rapacious prelate.
+However, I doubt not that the rents of the English nobles will soon be
+charged with sums sufficient for the ransom; and if this avail not, not
+one of them will grudge their silver flagons and vessels to melt down to
+make the total required. But we must not flatter ourselves that he will
+obtain his liberty so soon as the money is raised. Prince John has long
+been yearning for sovereignty. He has long exercised the real, if not
+the nominal, power, and he has been intriguing with the pope and Philip
+of France for their support for his seizing the crown. He will throw
+every obstacle in the way, as, we may be sure, will Philip of France,
+Richard's deadly enemy. And now about yourself, Sir Cuthbert; tell me
+what has befallen you since we last met."
+
+Cuthbert related the adventures which had befallen him, and heard those
+of Sir Baldwin.
+
+"You have not, I suppose," the latter remarked, "as yet seen Prince
+John?"
+
+"No," Cuthbert replied, "I thought it better to come down to ask you to
+advise me on the position of affairs before I attempted to see him."
+
+"You did well," Sir Baldwin said. "When I arrived, I found that the
+proper officials had, according to King Richard's instructions, draw up
+the patent conferring upon you the lands and title of Earl of Evesham,
+before leaving Acre, and had received the king's signature to it. This
+was attested by several of the nobles who were with us and who returned
+safely to England. Prince John, however, declared that he should not
+give any heed to the document; that King Richard's power over this realm
+had ceased before he made it; and that he should bestow the earldom upon
+whomsoever he chose. As a matter of fact, it has been given to Sir
+Rudolph Fleming, a Norman knight and a creature of the prince. The king
+has also, I hear, promised to him the hand of the young Lady Margaret,
+when she shall become of marriageable age. At present she is placed in a
+convent in Worcester. The abbess is, I believe, a friend of the late
+earl, and the girl had been with her for some time previously. Indeed
+she went there, I think, when her father left England. This lady was
+ordered to give up her charge to the guardianship of Sir Rudolph; but
+she refused to do so, saying that it would not be convenable for a young
+lady to be under the guardianship of a bachelor knight having no lady at
+the head of his establishment, and that therefore she should retain her,
+in spite of the orders of the prince. Prince John, I hear, flew into a
+fury at this; but he did not dare to provoke the anger of the whole of
+the clergy by ordering the convent to be violated. And indeed, not only
+would the clergy have been indignant, but many of the great nobles would
+also have taken their part, for there can be no doubt that the
+contention of the abbess was reasonable; and there is among all the
+friends of King Richard a very strong feeling of anger at your having
+been deprived of the earldom. This, however, has so far not found much
+vent in words, for as it was uncertain whether you would ever return to
+claim your rights, it was worth no one's while to embroil himself
+unnecessarily with the prince on such a subject. God knows that there
+are subjects enough of dispute between John Lackland and the English
+barons without any fresh ones arising. The kingdom is in a state of
+disturbance. There have been several risings against Prince John's
+authority; but those have been, so far, suppressed. Now that we know
+where King Richard is, and hope for his return ere very long, it is
+probable that peace will be maintained; but should treachery prevail,
+and King Richard's return be prevented, you may be sure that John will
+not be permitted to mount the throne without the determined resistance
+of a large number of the nobles."
+
+"But," Cuthbert said, "John is not the successor to the throne. Prince
+Arthur of Brittany was named by King Richard from the first as his
+successor. He is so by blood and by right, and John can have no pretense
+to the throne so long as he lives."
+
+"That is so," Sir Baldwin said. "But unhappily in England at present
+might makes right, and you may be sure that at King Richard's death, be
+it when it may, Prince John will make a bold throw for the throne, and,
+aided as he will be by the pope and by Philip of France, methinks that
+his chances are better than those of the young prince. A man's power, in
+warlike times, is more than a boy's. He can intrigue and promise and
+threaten, while a boy must be in the hands of partisans. I fear that
+Prince Arthur will have troubled times indeed before he mounts the
+throne of England. Should Richard survive until he becomes of age to
+take the field himself and head armies, he may succeed, for all speak
+well of him as a boy of singular sweetness of disposition, while Prince
+John is detested by all save those who flatter and live by him. But
+enough for the present of politics, Cuthbert; let us now to table. It is
+long since we two feasted together; and, indeed, such meals as we took
+in the Holy Land could scarcely have been called feasts. A boar's head
+and a good roasted capon are worthy all the strange dishes that we had
+there. I always misdoubted the meat, which seemed to me to smack in
+flavor of the Saracens, and I never could bring myself to inquire whence
+that strange food was obtained. A stoup of English ale, too, is worth
+all the Cyprus wines, especially when the Cyprus wines are half-full of
+the sand of the desert. Pah! it makes my throat dry to think of those
+horrible meals. So you have brought Cnut and your four archers safely
+back with you?"
+
+"Yes," Cuthbert said, smiling. "But they were, I can assure you, a heavy
+weight on me, in spite of their faithfulness and fidelity. Their
+ignorance of the language brought most of my troubles upon me, and Cnut
+had something of the nature of a bull in him. There are certain things
+which he cannot stomach, and when he seeth them he rageth like a wild
+beast, regardless altogether of safety or convenience."
+
+In the evening the two knights again talked over the course which
+Cuthbert should adopt. The elder knight's opinion was that his young
+friend had best formally claim the title by writing to the king-at-arms,
+and should also announce his return to Prince John, signing himself "Sir
+Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham;" but that, in the present state of things, it
+would be unwise for him to attempt to regain his position, should, as
+was certain to be the case, Prince John refuse to recognize him.
+
+"You are very young yet," Sir Baldwin said, "not eighteen, I think, and
+can afford to wait, at any rate, to see whether King Richard returns.
+Should he come back, he will see all these wrongs are righted; and one
+of his first cares would assuredly be to cast this usurper out of his
+stolen dignities. How old is the Lady Margaret?"
+
+"She is fifteen," Cuthbert said. "She was three years younger than I."
+
+"I wish she had been younger," Sir Baldwin said. "At fifteen she is not
+by custom fairly marriageable; but men can strain these points when they
+choose; and I fear that the news of your coming will hasten both the
+prince and Sir Rudolph in their determination to strengthen the claim of
+this usurper by marriage with the heiress of Evesham. The Lady Margaret
+and her friends can of course claim that she is a royal ward, and that
+as such the king alone can dispose of her person and estates. But
+unfortunately force overrides argument."
+
+"But surely," Cuthbert said, "they will never venture to take her by
+force from the convent?"
+
+"They venture a great many strange things in England now," Sir Baldwin
+said; "and Worcester is perilously near to Evesham. With a clump of
+twenty spears, Sir Rudolph might break into the convent and carry off
+the young lady, and marry her by force; and although the Church might
+cry out, crying would be of little avail when the deed was done; and a
+handsome present on the part of Sir Rudolph might go far to shut the
+mouths of many of the complainants, especially as he will be able to say
+that he has the king's sanction for what he did."
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that if such be the case it would be
+perilous indeed to wait for King Richard's return. Assuredly Sir Rudolph
+would not tarry until she attained the age of seventeen, and it may well
+be that two years may yet pass before King Richard comes back. It seems
+to me the wiser part will be that I should give Prince John no notice
+that I am in England. As you say, such notice would be of no avail in
+recovering my lands and title, but it would put the prince upon his
+guard; and assuredly he and his minions would press forward their
+measures to obtain possession of the person of the Lady Margaret;
+while, on the other hand, no harm can come of my maintaining silence."
+
+"I think that you are right, Sir Cuthbert. It were indeed best that your
+enemies should suppose you either dead or in some dungeon in the Tyrol.
+What would you then do?"
+
+"I would return to my old home," Cuthbert said. "My lady mother is, I
+trust, still alive. But I will not appear at her house, but will take
+refuge in the forest there. Cnut, and the archers with him, were all at
+one time outlaws living there, and I doubt not that there are many good
+men and true still to be found in the woods. Others will assuredly join
+when they learn that Cnut is there, and that they are wanted to strike a
+blow for my rights. I shall then bide my time. I will keep a strict
+watch over the castle and over the convent. As the abbess is a friend
+and relative of Lady Margaret's, I may obtain an interview with her, and
+warn her of the dangers that await her, and ask if she be willing to
+fulfill the promise of her father and King Richard's will, in accepting
+me as her husband when due time shall arrive, and whether she will be
+willing that I should take such steps as I may to deliver her from the
+persecution of Sir Rudolph. If, as I trust, she assents to this, I will
+keep a watch over the convent as well as the castle, and can then either
+attack the latter or carry her off from the former, as the occasion may
+appear to warrant. There are plenty of snug cottages round the forest,
+where she can remain in concealment in the care of some good farmer's
+wife for months, and we shall be close at hand to watch over her. With
+the aid of the forest men, Sir Walter took the castle of Sir John of
+Wortham; and although Evesham is a far grander pile than that, yet
+methinks it could be carried by a sudden assault; and we know more of
+war now than we did then. Prince John may deny me the right of being
+the Earl of Evesham; but methinks before many months I can, if I choose,
+become its master."
+
+"Be not too hasty in that matter," Sir Baldwin said. "You might capture
+the castle with the aid of your outlaws; but you could scarcely hold it.
+The prince has, ere now, with the aid of those faithful to him and his
+foreign mercenaries, captured stronger holds than that of Evesham; and
+if you turn his favorite out, you would have a swarm of hornets around
+you such as the walls of Evesham could not keep out. It would therefore
+be worse than useless for you to attempt what would be something like an
+act of rebellion against Prince John's authority, and would give him
+what now he has no excuse for, a ground for putting a price upon your
+head--and cutting it off if he got the opportunity. You might now
+present yourself boldly at court, and although he might refuse to
+recognize your title of earl, yet, as a knight and a Crusader who has
+distinguished himself greatly in the Holy Land, he dare not interfere
+with your person, for this would be resented by the whole of the
+chivalry of England. Still, I agree with you that your best course is to
+keep your return a secret. You will then be unwatched and unnoticed, and
+your enemies will take their time in carrying their designs into
+effect."
+
+Two days later Cuthbert, attended by his faithful retainers, left Sir
+Baldwin's castle, and traveled by easy stages through Wiltshire and the
+confines of Gloucestershire up to Worcester. He had been supplied by Sir
+Baldwin with suitable attire for himself and his followers, and now rode
+as a simple knight, without arms or cognizance, journeying from one part
+to another. All the crosses and other crusading signs were laid aside,
+and there was nothing to attract any attention to him upon his passage.
+Cuthbert had at first thought of going direct to the convent of
+Worcester, and asking for an interview with Lady Margaret; but he
+reflected that it might be possible that some of the myrmidons of Sir
+Rudolph might be keeping a watch over that building to see that Lady
+Margaret was not secretly removed to some other place of refuge, and
+that the appearance of a knight before its doors would excite comment
+and suspicion. He therefore avoided the town, and journeyed straight to
+the forest, where he had so often roamed with Cnut and the outlaws.
+
+Here he found that matters had but little changed since he was last
+there. Many of those who had fought with him in the Holy Land, and who
+had returned by sea, had again taken to the forest, joined by many new
+men whom the exactions of Sir Rudolph had already goaded into revolt.
+Cnut was received with enthusiasm, and when he presented Cuthbert to
+them as the rightful heir of Evesham and the well-known friend of the
+foresters, their enthusiasm knew no bounds. They at once accepted him as
+their lord and master, and promised to obey his orders, and to lay down
+their lives, if necessary, in his cause, as they knew that it was he who
+had formerly obtained the pardon of the forest band, and who had fought
+with them in their attack on Wortham Castle.
+
+To Cuthbert's great delight he heard that his mother was in good health,
+although she had for some months been grievously fretting over his
+disappearance and supposed death. Cuthbert hesitated whether he should
+proceed at once to see her; but he feared that the shock of his
+appearance might be too much for her, and that her expressions of joy
+might make the retainers and others aware of his arrival, and the news
+might in some way reach the ears of those at the castle. He therefore
+dispatched Cnut to see her, and break the news to her cautiously, and to
+request her to arrange for a time when she would either see Cuthbert at
+some place at a distance from the house, or would so arrange that the
+domestics should be absent and that he would have an interview with her
+there unobserved.
+
+Cnut was absent some hours, and on his return told Cuthbert that he had
+seen Dame Editha, and that her joy on hearing of her son's safe arrival
+had caused her no harm, but rather the reverse. The news that King
+Richard had bestowed upon him the title and lands of Evesham was new to
+her, and she was astonished indeed to hear of his elevation. Having
+heard much of the character of the pretending earl, she had great fears
+for the safety of Cuthbert, should his residence in the neighborhood get
+to his ears; and although sure of the fidelity of all her retainers, she
+feared that in their joy at their young master's return they might let
+slip some incautious word which would come to the ears of some of those
+at the castle. She therefore determined to meet him at a distance. She
+had arranged that upon the following day she would give out that she
+intended to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Dunstan, which lay at
+the edge of the forest, to thank him for her recovery from illness, and
+to pray for the safety of her son. She would be carried thither in a
+litter, and her journey would excite no comment whatever. She would take
+with her four of her most trusted retainers, and would on her arrival at
+the shrine send them to a distance, in order to pay her devotions
+undisturbed. Cuthbert was to be near, and the moment he saw them depart,
+to enter.
+
+This arrangement was carried out, and the joy of Dame Editha at again
+meeting her son was deep indeed. He had left her a lad of fifteen. He
+now returned a youth of nearly eighteen, stout and strong beyond his
+age, and looking far older than he was, from the effect of the hot sun
+of Syria and of the hardships through which he had gone. That he should
+win his spurs upon the first opportunity the earl had promised her, and
+she doubted not that he would soon attain the rank which his father had
+held. But that he should return to her a belted earl was beyond her
+wildest thoughts. This, however, was but little in her mind then. It was
+her son, and not the Earl of Evesham, whom she clasped in her arms.
+
+As the interview must necessarily be a short one, Cuthbert gave her but
+a slight outline of what had happened since they parted, and the
+conversation then turned upon the present position, and upon the steps
+which had best be taken.
+
+"Your peril is, I fear, as great here as when you were fighting the
+infidels in the Holy Land," she said. "Sir Rudolph has not been here
+long; but he has proved himself a cruel and ruthless master. He has
+driven forth many of the old tenants and bestowed their lands upon his
+own servants and retainers. The forest laws he carries out to the
+fullest severity, and has hung several men who were caught infringing
+them. He has laid such heavy burdens on all the tenants that remain that
+they are fairly ruined, and if he stay here long he will rule over a
+desert. Did he dream of your presence here, he would carry fire and
+sword through the forest. It is sad indeed to think that so worthless a
+knave as this should be a favorite of the ruler of England. But all men
+say that he is so. Thus were you to attack him, even did you conquer and
+kill him, you would have the enmity of Prince John to contend with; and
+he spareth none, man or woman, who stand in his way. It will be a bad
+day indeed for England should our good King Richard not return. I will,
+as you wish me, write to my good cousin, the Lady Abbess of St. Anne's,
+and will ask that you may have an interview with the Lady Margaret, to
+hear her wishes and opinions concerning the future, and will pray her to
+do all that she can to aid your suit with the fair young lady, and to
+keep her at all events safe from the clutches of the tyrant of Evesham."
+
+Three days later a boy employed as a messenger by Dame Editha brought a
+note to Cuthbert, saying that she had heard from the Abbess of St.
+Anne's, who would be glad to receive a visit from Cuthbert. The abbess
+had asked his mother to accompany him; but this she left for him to
+decide. Cuthbert sent back a message in reply that he thought it would
+be dangerous for her to accompany him, as any spy watching would report
+her appearance, and inquiries were sure to be set on foot as to her
+companion. He said that he himself would call at the convent on the
+following evening after nightfall, and begged her to send word to the
+abbess to that effect, in order that he might, when he presented
+himself, be admitted at once.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+THE ATTEMPT ON THE CONVENT.
+
+
+Upon the following evening Cuthbert proceeded to Worcester. He left his
+horse some little distance outside the town, and entered on foot. Having
+no apprehension of an attack, he had left all his pieces of armor
+behind, and was in the quiet garb of a citizen. Cnut attended him--for
+that worthy follower considered himself as responsible that no harm of
+any sort should befall his young master. The consequences of his own
+imprudence in the Tyrol were ever before his mind, and he determined
+that from henceforth there should be no want of care on his part. He
+accompanied Cuthbert to within a short distance of the convent, and took
+up his position in the shade of a house, whence he could watch should
+any one appear to be observing Cuthbert's entrance.
+
+Upon ringing the bell Cuthbert told the porteress, as had been arranged,
+that he had called on a message from Dame Editha, and he was immediately
+ushered into the parlor of the convent, where, a minute or two later, he
+was joined by the lady abbess. He had when young been frequently to the
+convent, and had always been kindly received.
+
+"I am indeed glad to see you, Sir Cuthbert," she said, "though I
+certainly should not have recognized the lad who used to come here with
+my cousin in the stalwart young knight I see before me. You are indeed
+changed and improved. Who would think that my gossip Editha's son would
+come to be the Earl of Evesham! The Lady Margaret is eager to see you;
+but I think that you exaggerate the dangers of her residence here. I
+cannot think that even a minion of Prince John would dare to violate the
+sanctity of a convent."
+
+"I fear, good mother," Cuthbert said, "that when ambition and greed are
+in one scale, reverence for the holy church will not weigh much in the
+other. Had King Richard been killed upon his way home, or so long as
+nothing was heard of him, Sir Rudolph might have been content to allow
+matters to remain as they were, until at least Lady Margaret attained an
+age which would justify him in demanding that the espousal should be
+carried out. But the news which has now positively been ascertained,
+that the king is in the hands of the emperor, and the knowledge that
+sooner or later his freedom will be obtained, will hasten the friends of
+the usurper to make the most of their advantage. He knows that the king
+would at once upon his return annul the nomination of Sir Rudolph to the
+earldom which had previously been bestowed upon me. But he may well
+think that if before that time he can secure in marriage the person of
+the late earl's daughter, no small share of the domains may be allotted
+to him as her dowry, even if he be obliged to lay by his borrowed
+honors. You will, unless I am greatly mistaken, hear from him before
+long."
+
+The abbess looked grave.
+
+"There is much in what you say, Sir Cuthbert; and indeed a certain
+confirmation is given to it by the fact that only yesterday I received a
+letter from Sir Rudolph, urging that now the Lady Margaret is past the
+age of fifteen, and may therefore be considered marriageable, the will
+of the prince should be carried into effect, and that she should for the
+present be committed to the charge of the Lady Clara Boulger, who is
+the wife of a friend and associate of Sir Rudolph. He says that he
+should not wish to press the marriage until she attains the age of
+sixteen, but that it were well that his future wife should become
+accustomed to the outside world, so as to take her place as Castellan of
+Evesham with a dignity befitting the position. I wrote at once to him
+saying that in another year it would, in my poor judgment, be quite time
+to think about such worldly matters; that at the present the Lady
+Margaret was receiving an education suitable to her rank; that she was
+happy here; and that unless constrained by force--of which, I said, I
+could not suppose that any possibility existed--I should not surrender
+the Lady Margaret into any hands whatsoever, unless, indeed, I received
+the commands of her lawful guardian, King Richard."
+
+"You said well, holy mother," Sir Cuthbert said. "But you see the hawks
+scent the danger from afar, and are moving uneasily already. Whether
+they consider it so pressing that they will dare to profane the convent,
+I know not. But I am sure that should they do so, they will not hesitate
+a moment at the thought of the anger of the church. Prince John has
+already shown that he is ready, if need be, to oppose the authority of
+the holy father, and he may well, therefore, despise any local wrath
+that might be excited by an action which he can himself disavow, and for
+which, even at the worst, he need only inflict some nominal punishment
+upon his vassal. Bethink thee, lady, whether it would not be safer to
+send the Lady Margaret to the care of some person, where she may be
+concealed from the search of Sir Rudolph."
+
+"I would gladly do so," the abbess said, "did I know of such a person or
+such a place. But it is difficult indeed, for a young lady of rank to be
+concealed from such sharp searchers as Sir Rudolph would be certain to
+place upon her track. Your proposal that she should take refuge in the
+house of some small franklin near the forest, I cannot agree to. In the
+first place, it would demean her to be so placed; and in the second, we
+could never be sure that the report of her residence there might not
+reach the ears of Sir Rudolph. As a last resource, of course, such a
+step would be justifiable, but not until at least overt outrages have
+been attempted. Now I will call Lady Margaret in."
+
+The young girl entered with an air of frank gladness, but was startled
+at the alteration which had taken place in her former playfellow, and
+paused and looked at the abbess, as if inquiring whether this could be
+really the Cuthbert she had known. Lady Margaret was fifteen in years;
+but she looked much younger. The quiet seclusion in which she had lived
+in the convent had kept her from approaching that maturity which as an
+earl's daughter, brought up in the stir and bustle of a castle, she
+would doubtless have attained.
+
+"This is indeed Sir Cuthbert," the abbess said, "your old playfellow,
+and the husband destined for you by your father and by the will of the
+king."
+
+Struck with a new timidity, the girl advanced, and, according to the
+custom of the times, held up her cheek to be kissed. Cuthbert was almost
+as timid as herself.
+
+"I feel, Lady Margaret," he said, "a deep sense of my own unworthiness
+of the kindness and honor which the dear lord your father bestowed upon
+me; and were it not that many dangers threaten, and that it were
+difficult under the circumstances to find one more worthy of you, I
+would gladly resign you into the hands of such a one were it for your
+happiness. But believe me that the recollection of your face has
+animated me in many of the scenes of danger in which I have been placed;
+and although even in fancy my thoughts scarcely ventured to rise so
+high, yet I felt as a true knight might feel for the lady of his love."
+
+"I always liked you, Sir Cuthbert," the girl said frankly, "better than
+any one else next to my father, and gladly submit myself to his will. My
+own inclinations indeed, so far as is maidenly, go with his. These are
+troubled times," she said anxiously, "and our holy mother tells me that
+you fear some danger is overhanging me."
+
+"I trust that the danger may not be imminent," Cuthbert answered. "But
+knowing the unscrupulous nature of the false Earl of Evesham, I fear
+that the news that King Richard is found will bestir him to early
+action. But you can rely, dear lady, on a careful watch being kept over
+you night and day; and should any attempt be made to carry you away, or
+to put force upon you, be assured that assistance will be at hand. Even
+should any attempt succeed, do not lose heart, for rescue will certainly
+be attempted; and I must be dead, and my faithful followers crushed,
+before you can become the bride of Sir Rudolph."
+
+Then turning to other subjects, he talked to her of the life he had led
+since he last saw her. He told her of the last moments of her father,
+and of the gallant deeds he had done in the Holy Land.
+
+After waiting for two hours, the abbess judged that the time for
+separation had arrived; and Cuthbert, taking a respectful adieu of his
+young mistress, and receiving the benediction of the abbess, departed.
+
+He found Cnut on guard at the point where he had left him.
+
+"Have you seen aught to give rise to suspicion?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Yes," Cnut said, "the place is undoubtedly watched. Just after you had
+entered a man came from that house yonder and went up to the gate, as if
+he would fain learn by staring at its iron adornments the nature of him
+who had passed in. Then he re-entered his house, and if I mistake not is
+still on the watch at that casement. If we stand here for a minute or
+two, perchance he may come out to see what delays you in this dark
+corner, in which case I may well give him a clout with my ax which will
+settle his prying."
+
+"Better not," Cuthbert said. "We can retire round this corner and so
+avoid his observation; and were his body found slain here, suspicion
+would be at once excited in the mind of his employer. At present he can
+have no ground for any report which may make the knight uneasy, for he
+can but know that a gentleman has entered, and remained for two hours at
+the convent, and he will in no way connect my visit with the Lady
+Margaret."
+
+They had just turned the corner which Cuthbert indicated, when a man
+came up rapidly behind them and almost brushed them as he passed,
+half-turning round and trying to gaze into their faces. Cnut at once
+assumed the aspect of an intoxicated person, and stretching forth his
+foot, with a dexterous shove pushed the stranger into the gutter. The
+latter rose with a fierce cry of anger; but Cnut with a blow of his
+heavy fist again stretched him on the ground, this time to remain quiet
+until they had walked on and passed out of sight.
+
+"A meddling fool," Cnut grumbled. "He will not, methinks, have much to
+report to Sir Rudolph this time. Had I thought that he had seen your
+face, I would have cleft his skull with no more hesitation than I send
+an arrow into the brain of a stag in the forest."
+
+As they journeyed along Cuthbert informed Cnut of what the abbess had
+told him; and the latter agreed that a watch must be placed on the
+convent, and that a force must be kept as near as possible at hand so
+as to defeat any attempt which might be made.
+
+The next day one of the forest men who had been a peaceable citizen, but
+who had been charged with using false weights and had been condemned to
+lose his ears, repaired to Worcester. His person was unknown there, as
+he had before lived at Gloucester. He hired a house in the square in
+which the convent was situated, giving out that he desired to open a
+house of business for the sale of silks, and for articles from the Low
+Countries. As he paid down earnest-money for the rent no suspicion
+whatever was excited. He at once took up his abode there, having with
+him two stout serving-men, and a 'prentice boy; and from that time two
+sets of watchers observed without ceasing what passed at the Convent of
+St. Anne.
+
+At a distance of half a mile from the road leading between Worcester and
+Evesham stood a grange, which had for some time been disused, the ground
+belonging to it having been sequestrated and given to the lord of an
+adjoining estate, who did not care to have the grange occupied. In this
+ten men, headed by Cnut, took up their residence, blocking up the window
+of the hall with hangings, so that the light of the fire kindled within
+would not be observed.
+
+Two months passed on without any incident of importance. The feeling
+between the outlaws in the forest and the retainers of the false Earl of
+Evesham was becoming much imbittered. Several times the foresters of the
+latter, attempting pursuit of men charged with breaking the game laws,
+were roughly handled. These on making their report were sent back again,
+supported by a force of footmen; but these, too, were driven back, and
+the authority of Sir Rudolph was openly defied.
+
+Gradually it came to his ears that the outlaws were commanded by a man
+who had been their leader in times gone by, but who had been pardoned,
+and had, with a large number of his band, taken service in the army of
+the Crusaders; also, that there was present a stranger, whose manner and
+the deference paid to him by Cnut proclaimed him to be of gentle blood.
+This news awakened grave uneasiness on the part of Sir Rudolph. The
+knight caused inquiries to be made, and ascertained that Cnut had been
+especially attached to the young Cuthbert, and that he had fought under
+the Earl of Evesham's banner. It seemed possible then that with him had
+returned the claimant for the earldom; and in that case Sir Rudolph felt
+that danger menaced him, for the bravery of the Earl of Evesham's
+adopted son had been widely spoken of by those who had returned from the
+Holy Land.
+
+Sir Rudolph was a man of forty, tall and dark, with Norman features. He
+held the Saxons in utter contempt, and treated them as beings solely
+created to till the land for the benefit of their Norman lords. He was
+brave and fearless, and altogether free from the superstition of the
+times. Even the threats of the pope, which although Prince John defied
+them yet terrified him at heart, were derided by his follower, who
+feared no one thing in the world, save, perhaps, the return of King
+Richard from captivity.
+
+No sooner had the suspicion that his rival was in the neighborhood
+possessed him than he determined that one of two things must be carried
+out: either Sir Cuthbert must be killed, or the Lady Margaret must be
+carried off and forced to accept him as her husband. First he endeavored
+to force Sir Cuthbert to declare himself and to trust to his own arm to
+put an end to his rival. To that end he caused a proclamation to be
+written, and to be affixed to the door of the village church at the fair
+of Evesham.
+
+Cnut and several of his followers were there, all quietly dressed as
+yeomen. Seeing a crowd round the door of the church, he pressed forward.
+Being himself unable to read writing, he asked one of the burgesses what
+was written upon the paper which caused such excitement.
+
+"It is," the burgess said, "in the nature of a cartel or challenge from
+our present lord, Sir Rudolph. He says that it having come to his ears
+that a Saxon serf, calling himself Sir Cuthbert, Earl of Evesham, is
+lurking in the woods and consorting with outlaws and robbers, he
+challenges him to appear, saying that he will himself, grievously
+although he would demean himself by so doing, yet condescend to meet him
+in the lists with sword and battle-ax, and to prove upon his body the
+falseness of his averments. Men marvel much," the burgess continued, "at
+this condescension on the earl's part. We have heard indeed that King
+Richard, before he sailed for England, did, at the death of the late
+good earl, bestow his rank and the domains of Evesham upon Sir Cuthbert,
+the son of the Dame Editha. Whether it be true or not, we cannot say;
+but it seems strange that such honor should have been bestowed upon one
+so young. In birth indeed he might aspire to the rank, since his father,
+Sir Walter, was a brave knight, and the mother, Dame Editha, was of good
+Saxon blood, and descended from those who held Evesham before the
+arrival of the Normans."
+
+Cnut's first impulse was to stride forward and to tear down the
+proclamation. But the remembrance of his solemn determination not in
+future to act rashly came across him, and he decided to take no steps
+until he had reported the facts to his master, and taken his counsel
+thereon.
+
+Cuthbert received the news with much indignation.
+
+"There is naught that I should like better," he said, "than to try my
+strength against that of this false traitor. But although I have proved
+my arm against the Saracens, I think not that it is yet strong enough to
+cope against a man who, whatsoever be his faults, is said to be a
+valiant knight. But that would not deter me from attempting the task. It
+is craftily done on the part of Sir Rudolph. He reckons that if I appear
+he will kill me; that if I do not appear, I shall be branded as a
+coward, and my claims brought into disrepute. It may be, too, that it is
+a mere ruse to discover if I be in the neighborhood. Some rumors thereof
+may have reached him, and he has taken this course to determine upon
+their truth. He has gone too far, and honest men will see in the cartel
+itself a sign that he misdoubts him that my claims are just; for were I,
+as he says, a Saxon serf, be sure that he would not condescend to meet
+me in the lists as he proposes. I trust that the time will come when I
+may do so. But at present I will submit to his insult rather than
+imperil the success of our plans, and, what is of far greater
+importance, the safety and happiness of the Lady Margaret, who, did
+aught befall me, would assuredly fall into his hands."
+
+After some thought, however, Cuthbert drew up an answer to the knight's
+proclamation. He did not in this speak in his own name, but wrote as if
+the document were the work of Cnut. It was worded as follows: "I, Cnut,
+a free Saxon and a leader of bowmen under King Richard in the Holy Land,
+do hereby pronounce and declare the statements of Sir Rudolph, miscalled
+the Earl of Evesham, to be false and calumnious. The earldom was, as
+Rudolph well knows, and as can be proved by many nobles and gentlemen of
+repute who were present with King Richard, granted to Sir Cuthbert, King
+Richard's true and faithful follower. When the time shall come Sir
+Cuthbert will doubtless be ready to prove his rights. But at present
+right has no force in England, and until the coming of our good King
+Richard must remain in abeyance. Until then, I support the title of Sir
+Cuthbert, and do hereby declare Sir Rudolph a false and perjured knight;
+and warn him that if he falls into my hands it will fare but badly with
+him, as I know it will fare but badly with me should I come into his."
+
+At nightfall the cartel of Sir Rudolph was torn down from the church and
+that of Cnut affixed in its place. The reading thereof caused great
+astonishment in Evesham, and the rage of Sir Rudolph, when the news came
+to his ears, was very great. Cuthbert was sure that this affair would
+quicken the intentions of Sir Rudolph with regard to the Lady Margaret,
+and he received confirmation of this in a letter which the abbess sent
+him, saying that she had received another missive from Sir Rudolph,
+authoritatively demanding in the king's name the instant surrender of
+Lady Margaret to him. That night forty archers stole, one by one,
+quietly into Worcester, entering the town before the gates were shut,
+and so mingling with the citizens that they were unobserved. When it was
+quite dark they quietly took their way, one by one, to the square in
+which stood the convent, and were admitted into the shop of Master
+Nicholas, the silk mercer.
+
+The house was a large one, with its floors overhanging each the one
+beneath it, as was the custom of the time, and with large casements
+running the whole width of the house.
+
+The mercer had laid by a goodly store of provisions, and for three days
+the troop, large as it was, was accommodated there. Cuthbert himself was
+with them, Cnut remaining at the grange with the ten men originally sent
+there.
+
+On the third day Sir Rudolph, with a number of knights and men-at-arms,
+arrived in the town, giving out that he was passing northward, but he
+would abide that night at the hostelry. A great many of his men-at-arms
+did, as those on the watch observed, enter one by one into the town. The
+people of Worcester were somewhat surprised at this large accompaniment
+of the earl, but thought no harm. The Abbess of St. Anne's, however, was
+greatly terrified, as she feared that some evil design might be intended
+against her. She was, however, reassured in the evening by a message
+brought by a boy, to the effect that succor would be near, whatsoever
+happened.
+
+At midnight a sudden uproar was heard in the streets of Worcester.
+
+A party of men fell upon the burgesses guarding the gate of the town,
+disarmed them, and took possession of it. At the same time those who had
+put up at the hostelry with Sir Rudolph suddenly mounted their horses,
+and with a great clatter rode down the streets to the convent of St.
+Anne. Numbers of men on foot also joined, and some sixty in all suddenly
+appeared before the great gate of the convent. With a thundering noise
+they knocked at the door, and upon the grating being opened Sir Rudolph
+himself told the porteress who looked through it that she was to go at
+once to the abbess and order her to surrender the body of the Lady
+Margaret to him, in accordance with the order of Prince John; adding,
+that if within the space of five minutes the order was not complied
+with, he would burst in the gates of the convent and take her for
+himself. In another minute a casement opened above, and the abbess
+herself appeared.
+
+"Rash man," she said to Sir Rudolph, "I warn you against committing the
+sin of sacrilege. Neither the orders of Prince John nor of any other
+potentate can override the rights of the holy church; and should you
+venture to lay the hand of force upon this convent you will be placed
+under the anathema of the church, and its spiritual terrors will be
+directed against you."
+
+"I am prepared to risk that, holy mother," Sir Rudolph said, with a
+laugh. "So long as I am obeying the orders of my prince, I care naught
+for those of any foreign potentate, be he pope or be he emperor. Three
+minutes of the time I gave you have elapsed, and unless within two more
+the Lady Margaret appears at the gate I will batter it down; and you may
+think yourself lucky if I do not order my men to set light to it and to
+smoke you out of your hole."
+
+The abbess closed the window, and as she did so the long row of
+casements in the house of Master Nicholas were opened from top to
+bottom, and a volley of sixty clothyard arrows was poured into the group
+closely standing round the gate. Many fell, killed outright, and shouts
+of rage and pain were heard arising.
+
+Furious at this unexpected attack, Sir Rudolph turned and commanded
+those with him to attack the house whence this volley of missiles had
+come. But even while he spoke another flight of arrows, even more deadly
+than the last, was poured forth. One of the knights standing by the side
+of Sir Rudolph fell, shot through the brain. Very many of the common
+men, undefended by harness, fell shot through and through; and an arrow
+piercing the joint of the armor of Sir Rudolph wounded him in the
+shoulder. In vain the knight stormed and raged and ordered his men to
+advance. The suddenness of the attack seemed to his superstitious
+followers a direct answer from heaven to the words of the abbess. Their
+number was already seriously lessened, and those who were in case to do
+so at once took flight and scattered through the city, making for the
+gate, which had already been seized by Sir Rudolph's men.
+
+Finding himself alone with only a few of his knights and principal
+men-at-arms remaining, while the storm of arrows continued unabated, Sir
+Rudolph was forced to order his men to retreat with many fierce threats
+of the vengeance which he would hereafter take.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+A DASTARDLY STRATAGEM.
+
+
+The return of Sir Rudolph's party to Evesham was not unmarked by
+incident, for as they passed along the road, from an ambush in a wood
+other archers, whose numbers they could not discover, shot hard upon
+them, and many fell there who had escaped from the square at Worcester.
+When the list was called upon the arrival at the castle, it was found
+that no less than thirty of those who had set out were missing, while
+many others were grievously wounded.
+
+The noise of the tumult in the square of the convent aroused the whole
+town of Worcester. Alarm bells were rung; and the burgesses, hastily
+arming themselves, poured into the streets. Directed by the sound, they
+made their way to the square, and were astonished at finding it entirely
+deserted, save for some twenty men, lying dead or dying in front of the
+gate of the convent, pierced with long arrows. They speedily found that
+Sir Rudolph and his troop had departed; and further inquiry revealed the
+fact that the burgher guard at one of the gates had been overpowered and
+were prisoners in the watchroom. These could only say that they were
+suddenly seized, all being asleep save the one absolutely on guard. They
+knew nothing more than that a few minutes later there was a great
+clatter of horsemen and men on foot leaving the city. Unable to find any
+solution to this singular circumstance, but satisfied that Sir Rudolph
+had departed, and that no more disturbance was likely to arise that
+night, the burgesses again betook themselves to their beds, having
+closed the gates and placed a strong guard over them, determining next
+morning to sift the affair to the bottom.
+
+In the morning the leading burgesses met in council, and finding none
+who could give them any information, the mayor and two of the councilors
+repaired to the convent, where they asked for an interview with the lady
+abbess. Mightily indignant were they at hearing that Sir Rudolph had
+attempted to break into the convent, and to carry off a boarder residing
+there. But the abbess herself could give them no further news. She said
+that after she retired from the window she heard great shouts and cries,
+and that almost immediately afterward the whole of the party in front
+hastily retired.
+
+That Sir Rudolph had been attacked by a party of archers was evident;
+but whence they had shot, or how they had come upon the spot at the
+time, or whither they had gone, were mysteries that could not be solved.
+In the search which the authorities made, however, it was discovered
+that the house of the draper, Master Nicholas, was closed. Finding that
+summonses to open were unanswered, the door was broken in, and the
+premises were found in confusion. No goods of any kind were discovered
+there, but many bales filled with dried leaves, bark of trees, and other
+worthless matters. Such goods as had been displayed in the window had
+clearly been carried away. Searching the house, they found signs that a
+considerable number of men had been concealed there, and although not
+knowing whence the body of archers could have come, they concluded that
+those who defeated the attempt of Sir Rudolph must have been hidden in
+the draper's house. The singularity of this incident gave rise to great
+excitement; but the indignation against Sir Rudolph was in no way
+lessened by the fact that his attempt had been defeated, not by the
+townsmen themselves, but by some unknown force.
+
+After much consultation on the part of the council, it was resolved that
+a deputation, consisting of the mayor and the five senior councilors,
+should resort to London, and there demand from the prince redress for
+the injury put upon their town by Sir Rudolph. These worthy merchants
+betook themselves to London by easy stages, and upon their arrival there
+were kept for some days before they could obtain an interview with King
+John. When they appeared before him and commenced telling their story
+the prince fell into sudden rage.
+
+"I have heard of this matter before," he said, "and am mightily angry
+with the people of Worcester, inasmuch as they have dared to interfere
+to prevent the carrying out of my commands. The Earl of Evesham has
+written to me, that thinking to scare the abbess of St. Anne's into a
+compliance with the commands which I had laid upon her, and to secure
+the delivery of a contumacious ward of the crown, he had pretended to
+use force, having, however, no idea of carrying his threats into effect.
+When, as he doubted not, the abbess was on the point of yielding up the
+ward, the good knight was suddenly set upon by the rascals of the town,
+who slew some of his companions and followers, and did grievously
+ill-treat the remainder. This," said the prince, "you now pretend was
+done by a party of men of whose presence in the town you had no
+cognizance. Your good sense must be small, if you think that I should
+believe such a tale as this. It is your rascaldom at Worcester which
+interfered to prevent my will being carried out, and I have a goodly
+mind to order the troop of Sir Charles Everest, which is now marching
+toward Evesham, to sack the town, as a punishment for its rebellion. As,
+however, I am willing to believe that you and the better class of
+burgesses were in ignorance of the doings of the rougher kind, I will
+extend mercy toward the city, and will merely inflict a fine of three
+thousand golden marks upon it."
+
+The mayor attempted humbly to explain and to entreat; but the prince was
+seized with a sudden passion, and threatened if he said more he would at
+once cast him and his fellows into durance. Therefore, sadly crestfallen
+at the result of their mission, the mayor and councilors returned to
+Worcester, where their report caused great consternation. This was
+heightened by the fact that upon the following day Sir Charles Everest,
+with five hundred mercenaries of the prince, together with Sir Rudolph
+and his following, and several other barons favorable to the cause of
+the prince, were heard to be approaching the town.
+
+Worcester was capable of making a stout defense, but seeing that no help
+was likely to be forthcoming, and fearing the utter ruin of the town
+should it be taken by storm, the council, after sitting many hours in
+deliberation, determined to raise the money required to pay the fine
+inflicted by the prince. The bolder sort were greatly averse to this
+decision, especially as a letter had been received, signed "Cuthbert,
+Earl of Evesham," offering, should the townspeople decide to resist the
+unjust demands of Prince John, to enter the town with one hundred and
+fifty archers to take part in its defense. With this force, as the more
+ardent spirits urged, the defeat of any attempt to carry it by storm
+would be assured. But the graver men argued that even if defeated for
+the first time further attempts would be made, and as it was likely that
+King Richard would not return for a long time, and that Prince John
+might become sovereign of England, sooner or later the town must be
+taken, and, in any case, its trade would for a long time be destroyed,
+and great suffering inflicted upon all; therefore, that it was better to
+pay the fine now than to risk all these evils, and perhaps the
+infliction of a heavier impost upon them.
+
+The abbess was kept informed by friends in the council of the course of
+the proceedings. She had in the meantime had another interview with Sir
+Cuthbert and had determined, seeing that Prince John openly supported
+the doings of his minion, it would be better to remove the Lady Margaret
+to some other place, as no one could say how the affair might terminate;
+and with five hundred mercenaries at his back, Sir Rudolph would be so
+completely master of the city that he would be able in broad daylight,
+did he choose, to force the gates of the convent and carry off the
+king's ward.
+
+Accordingly, two days before the arrival of the force before the walls
+of Worcester, Lady Margaret left the convent by a postern gate in the
+rear, late in the evening. She was attended by two of the sisters, both
+of whom, as well as herself, were dressed as country women. Mules were
+in readiness outside the city gates, and here Sir Cuthbert, with an
+escort of archers, was ready to attend them. They traveled all night,
+and arrived in the morning at a small convent situated five miles from
+the city of Hereford. The abbess here was a cousin of the Superior of
+St. Anne's, and had already consented to receive Lady Margaret. Leaving
+her at the door, and promising that, as far as possible, he would keep
+watch over her, and that even in the worst she need never despair, Sir
+Cuthbert left her and returned to the forest.
+
+The band there assembled varied considerably in numbers, for provisions
+could not be found continually for a large body of men. The forest was
+indeed very extensive, and the number of deer therein large. Still, for
+the feeding of one hundred and fifty men many animals are required, and
+other food. The franklins in the neighborhood were all hostile to Sir
+Rudolph, whom they regarded as a cruel tyrant, and did their utmost in
+the way of supplies for those in the forest. Their resources, however,
+were limited, and it was found necessary to scatter the force, and for a
+number of them to take up their residence in places a short distance
+away, forty only remaining permanently on guard.
+
+Sir Rudolph and his friends entered Worcester, and there received with
+great hauteur the apologies of the mayor and council, and the assurance
+that the townspeople were in nowise concerned in the attack made upon
+him. To this he pretended disbelief. The fine demanded was paid, the
+principal portion in gold, the rest in bills signed by the leading
+merchants of the place; for after every effort it had been found
+impossible to collect such a sum within the city.
+
+The day after he arrived he again renewed his demand to the abbess for
+the surrender of the Lady Margaret; this time, however, coming to her
+attended only by two squires, and by a pursuivant bearing the king's
+order for the delivery of the damsel. The abbess met him at the gate,
+and informed him that the Lady Margaret was no longer in her charge.
+
+"Finding," she said in a fearless tone, "that the holy walls of this
+convent were insufficient to restrain lawless men, and fearing that
+these might be tempted to acts of sacrilege, which might bring down upon
+them the wrath of the church and the destruction of their souls, I have
+sent her away."
+
+"Whither has she gone?" Sir Rudolph demanded, half-mad with passion.
+
+"That I decline to say," the lady abbess replied. "She is in good hands;
+and when King Richard returns his ward shall be delivered to him at
+once."
+
+"Will you take oath upon the Bible that she is not within these walls?"
+Sir Rudolph exclaimed.
+
+"My word is sufficient," the lady abbess replied calmly. "But should it
+be necessary, I should be ready to swear upon the relics that she is not
+here."
+
+A few hours later Sir Rudolph, attended by his own party and by one
+hundred of Sir Charles Everest's mercenaries, returned to his castle.
+
+Three days afterward, as Cuthbert was sitting at a rude but hearty meal
+in the forest, surrounded by Cnut and his followers, a hind entered
+breathless. Cuthbert at once recognized him as one of the servitors of
+his mother.
+
+"What is it?" he exclaimed, leaping to his feet.
+
+"Terrible news, Master Cuthbert, terrible news!" exclaimed the man. "The
+wicked earl came down this morning, with fifty of his men, set fire to
+the house, and all its buildings and stacks, and has carried off the
+lady, your mother, a prisoner to the castle, on a charge, as he said, of
+harboring traitors."
+
+A cry of fury broke from Cnut and his men.
+
+"The false traitor shall bitterly regret this outrage," Cuthbert
+exclaimed.
+
+He had in the first excitement seized his arms, and his followers
+snatched up their bows, as if for instant warfare. A few moments'
+reflection, however, showed to Cuthbert the impossibility of his
+attacking a fortress like Evesham, garrisoned by a strong body of
+well-armed men, with only the archers of the forest, without implements
+necessary for such an assault.
+
+"Send at once, Cnut," he said, "and call in all the band. We cannot take
+the castle; but we will carry fire and sword round its walls. We will
+cut off all communication from within or from without. If attacked by
+large forces, we will retire upon the wood, returning to our posts
+without the walls as soon as the force is withdrawn. These heavily armed
+men can move but slowly, while we can run at full speed. There cannot be
+more than some twenty horsemen in the castle; and methinks with our
+arrows and pikes we can drive these back if they attempt to fall upon
+us."
+
+Cnut at once sent off swift-footed messengers to carry out Cuthbert's
+orders, and on the following day the whole of the band were again
+assembled in the woods. Just as Cuthbert was setting them in motion a
+distant blast of a horn was heard.
+
+"It is," Cuthbert exclaimed, "the note calling for a parley. Do you,
+Cnut, go forward, and see what is demanded. It is probably a messenger
+from Sir Rudolph."
+
+After half an hour's absence Cnut returned, bringing with him a
+pursuivant or herald. The latter advanced at once toward Cuthbert, who,
+now in his full knightly armor, was evidently the leader of the party.
+
+"I bear to you, Sir Cuthbert, falsely calling yourself Earl of Evesham,
+a message from Sir Rudolph. He bids me tell you that the traitress, Dame
+Editha, your mother, is in his hands, and that she has been found guilty
+of aiding and abetting you in your war against Prince John, the regent
+of this kingdom. For that offense she has been condemned to die."
+
+Here he was interrupted by a cry of rage which broke from the assembled
+foresters. Continuing unmoved, he said:
+
+"Sir Rudolph, being unwilling to take the life of a woman, however
+justly forfeited by the law, commands me to say that if you will deliver
+yourself up to him by to-morrow at twelve the Dame Editha shall be
+allowed to go free. But that if by the time the dial points to noon you
+have not delivered yourself up, he will hang her over the battlements of
+the castle."
+
+Cuthbert was very pale, and he waved his hand to restrain the fury which
+animated the outlaws.
+
+"This man," he said to them, "is a herald, and, as such, is protected by
+all the laws of chivalry. Whatsoever his message, it is none of his. He
+is merely the mouthpiece of him who sent him." Then, turning to the
+herald, he said, "Tell the false knight, your master, on my part, that
+he is a foul ruffian, perjured to all the vows of knighthood; that this
+act of visiting upon a woman the enmity he bears her son will bring upon
+him the execration of all men; and that the offer which he makes me is
+as foul and villainous as himself. Nevertheless, knowing his character,
+and believing that he is capable of keeping his word, tell him that by
+to-morrow at noon I will be there; that the lady, my mother, is to leave
+the castle gates as I enter them; and that though by his foul device he
+may encompass my death, yet that the curse of every good man will light
+upon him, that he will be shunned as the dog he is, and that assuredly
+Heaven will not suffer that deeds so foul should bring with them the
+prize he seeks to gain."
+
+The herald bowed, and, escorted by two archers to the edge of the
+forest, returned to Evesham Castle.
+
+After his departure an animated council took place. Cnut and the
+outlaws, burning with indignation, were ready to attempt anything. They
+would, had Cuthbert given the word, have attacked the castle that very
+night. But Cuthbert pointed out the absolute impossibility of their
+carrying so strong a place by such an assault, unprovided with engines
+for battering down the gates. He said that surprise would be impossible,
+as the knight would be sure to take every precaution against it; and
+that in the event of such an attack being attempted, he would possibly
+carry his threat into execution, and murder Dame Editha before their
+eyes. Cnut was like a madman, so transported with fury was he; and the
+archers were also beside themselves. Cuthbert alone retained his
+calmness. Retiring apart from the others, he paced slowly backward and
+forward among the trees, deliberating upon the best course to be
+pursued. The archers gathered round the fire and passed the night in
+long and angry talk, each man agreeing that in the event of their
+beloved leader being sacrificed by Sir Rudolph, they would one and all
+give their lives to avenge him by slaying the oppressor whensoever he
+ventured beyond the castle gates.
+
+After a time, Cuthbert called Cnut to him, and the two talked long and
+earnestly. Cnut returned to his comrades with a face less despairing
+than that he had before worn, and sent off at once a messenger with all
+speed to a franklin near the forest to borrow a stout rope some fifty
+feet in length, and without telling his comrades what the plans of Sir
+Cuthbert were, bade them cheer up, for that desperate as the position
+was, all hope was not yet lost.
+
+"Sir Cuthbert," he said, "has been in grievous straits before now, and
+has gone through them. Sir Rudolph does not know the nature of the man
+with whom he has to deal, and we may trick him yet."
+
+At eleven o'clock the next day from the walls of Evesham Castle a body
+of archers one hundred and fifty strong were seen advancing in solid
+array.
+
+"Think you, Sir Rudolph," one of his friends, Sir Hubert of Gloucester,
+said to him, "that these varlets think of attacking the castle?"
+
+"They might as well think of scaling heaven," Sir Rudolph said. "Evesham
+could resist a month's siege by a force well equipped for the purpose;
+and were it not that good men are wanted for the king's service, and
+that these villains shoot straight and hard, I would open the gates of
+the castle and launch our force against them. We are two to one as
+strong as they, and our knights and mounted men-at-arms could alone
+scatter that rabble."
+
+Conspicuous upon the battlements a gallows had been erected.
+
+The archers stopped at a distance of a few hundred yards from the
+castle, and Sir Cuthbert advanced alone to the edge of the moat.
+
+"Sir Rudolph of Eresby, false knight and perjured gentleman," he shouted
+in a loud voice, "I, Sir Cuthbert of Evesham, do denounce you as
+foresworn and dishonored, and do challenge you to meet me here before
+the castle in sight of your men and mine, and decide our quarrel as
+Heaven may judge with sword and battle-ax."
+
+Sir Rudolph leaned over the battlements, and said: "It is too late,
+varlet. I condescended to challenge you before, and you refused. You
+cannot now claim what you then feared to accept. The sun on the dial
+approaches noon, and unless you surrender yourself before it reaches the
+mark, I will keep my word, and the traitress, your mother, shall swing
+from that beam."
+
+Making a sign to two men-at-arms, these brought forward Dame Editha and
+so placed her on the battlements that she could be seen from below. Dame
+Editha was still a very fair woman, although nigh forty years had rolled
+over her head. No sign of fear appeared upon her face, and in a firm
+voice she cried to her son:
+
+"Cuthbert, I beg--nay, I order you to retire. If this unknightly lord
+venture to carry out his foul threats against me, let him do so. England
+will ring with the dastardly deed, and he will never dare show his face
+again where Englishmen congregate. Let him do his worst. I am prepared
+to die."
+
+A murmur rose from the knights and men-at-arms standing round Sir
+Rudolph. Several of his companions had from the first, wild and
+reckless as they were, protested against Sir Rudolph's course, and it
+was only upon his solemn assurance that he intended but to frighten Sir
+Cuthbert into surrender, and had no intention of carrying his threats
+against the lady into effect, that they had consented to take part in
+the transaction. Even now, at the fearless words of the Saxon lady
+several of them hesitated, and Sir Hubert of Gloucester stepped forward
+to Sir Rudolph.
+
+"Sir knight," he said, "you know that I am your true comrade and the
+faithful servant of Prince John. Yet in faith would I not that my name
+should be mixed up in so foul a deed. I repent me that I have for a
+moment consented to it. But the shame shall not hang upon the escutcheon
+of Hubert of Gloucester that he stood still when such foul means were
+tried. I pray you, by our long friendship, and for the sake of your own
+honor as a knight, to desist from this endeavor. If this lady be guilty,
+as she well may be of aiding her son in his assaults upon the soldiers
+of Prince John, then let her be tried, and doubtless the court will
+confiscate her estates. But let her son be told that her life is in no
+danger, and that he is free to go, being assured that harm will not come
+to her."
+
+"And if I refuse to consent to allow my enemy, who is now almost within
+my hand, to escape," Sir Rudolph said, "what then?"
+
+"Then," said the knight, "I and my following will at once leave your
+walls, and will clear ourselves to the brave young knight yonder of all
+hand in this foul business."
+
+A murmur of agreement from several of those standing round showed that
+their sentiments were in accordance with those of Sir Hubert.
+
+"I refuse," said Rudolph passionately. "Go, if you will. I am master of
+my actions, and of this castle."
+
+Without a word, Sir Hubert and two others of the knights present turned,
+and briefly ordering their men-at-arms to follow them, descended the
+staircase to the courtyard below. Their horses were brought out, the men
+fell into rank, and the gates of the castle were thrown open.
+
+"Stand to arms!" Sir Cuthbert shouted to the archers. "They are going to
+attempt a sortie." And hastily he retired to the main body of his men.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+THE FALSE AND PERJURED KNIGHT.
+
+
+As the band of knights and their retainers issued from the gate a
+trumpeter blew a parley, and the three knights advanced alone toward the
+group of archers.
+
+"Sir Cuthbert de Lance," Sir Hubert said, "in the name of myself and my
+two friends here we ask your pardon for having so far taken part in this
+foul action. We did so believing only that Sir Rudolph intended the
+capture of your lady mother as a threat. Now that we see he was in
+earnest, we wash our hands of the business; and could we in any way
+atone for our conduct in having joined him, we would gladly do so
+consistently only with our allegiance to the prince regent."
+
+Cuthbert bowed courteously.
+
+"Thanks for your words, Sir Hubert. I had always heard yourself and the
+knights here spoken of as brave and gallant gentlemen, whose sole fault
+was that they chose to take part with a rebel prince rather than with
+the King of England. I rejoice that you have cleared your name of so
+foul a blot as this would have placed upon it, and I acknowledge that
+your conduct now is knightly and courteous. But I can no more parley.
+The sun is within a few minutes of twelve, and I must surrender, to meet
+such fate as may befall me."
+
+So saying, with a bow he left them, and again advanced to the castle
+gate.
+
+"Sir Rudolph," he shouted, "the hour is at hand. I call upon you to
+deliver, outside the gate, the lady, my mother. Whether she wills it or
+not, I call upon you to place her beyond the gate, and I give you my
+knightly word that as she leaves it I enter it."
+
+Dame Editha would then have attempted resistance; but she saw that it
+would be useless. With a pale face she descended the steps, accompanied
+by the men-at-arms. She knew that any entreaty to Sir Rudolph would be
+vain, and with the courage of her race she mentally vowed to devote the
+rest of her life to vengeance for her son.
+
+As the gate opened and she was thrust forth, for a moment she found
+herself in the arms of her son.
+
+"Courage, mother!" he whispered; "all may yet be well."
+
+Cnut was waiting a few paces behind, and offering his hand to Dame
+Editha, he led her to the group of archers, while Cuthbert, alone,
+crossed the drawbridge and entered the portal, the heavy portcullis
+falling after him.
+
+Cnut, immediately ordering four of his men to escort Dame Editha to the
+wood with all speed, advanced with his men toward the walls. All had
+strung their bows and placed their arrows on the ground in front of them
+in readiness for instant use. Cnut himself, with two others carrying the
+rope, advanced to the edge of the moat. None observed their doings, for
+all within the castle were intent upon the proceedings there.
+
+In the courtyard Sir Rudolph had taken his post, with the captain of the
+mercenaries beside him, and the men-at-arms drawn up in order. He smiled
+sardonically as Cuthbert entered.
+
+"So, at last," he said, "this farce is drawing to an end. You are in my
+power, and for the means which I have taken to capture you, I will
+account to the prince. You are a traitor to him; you have attacked and
+slaughtered many of my friends; you are an outlaw defying the law; and
+for each of these offenses your head is forfeited."
+
+"I deny," Cuthbert said, standing before him, "your right to be my
+judge. By my peers only can I be tried. As a knight of England and as
+rightful lord of this castle, I demand to be brought before a jury of my
+equals."
+
+"I care nothing for rights or for juries," said Sir Rudolph. "I have the
+royal order for your execution, and that order I shall put into effect,
+although all the knights and barons in England objected."
+
+Cuthbert looked round to observe the exact position in which he was
+standing. He knew, of course, every foot of the castle, and saw that but
+a short distance behind a single row of armed men was the staircase
+leading to the battlements.
+
+"False and perjured knight," he said, taking a step forward, "I may die;
+but I would rather a thousand deaths than such a life as yours will be
+when this deed is known in England. But I am not yet dead. For myself, I
+could pardon you; but for the outrage to my mother--" and with a sudden
+movement he struck Sir Rudolph in the face with all his strength with
+his mailed hand.
+
+With the blood gushing from his nostrils, the knight fell backward, and
+Sir Cuthbert, with a bound, before the assembly could recover from their
+astonishment at the deed, burst through the line of men-at-arms, and
+sprang up the narrow staircase. A score of men-at-arms started in
+pursuit; but Sir Cuthbert gained the battlements first, and without a
+moment's hesitation sprang upon them and plunged forward, falling into
+the moat fifty feet below. Here he would have perished miserably, for in
+his heavy armor he was of course unable to swim a stroke, and his
+weight took him at once into the mud of the moat. At its margin,
+however, Cnut stood awaiting him, with one end of the rope in his hand.
+In an instant he plunged in, and diving to the bottom grasped Cuthbert
+by the body, and twisted the rope round him. The two archers on the bank
+at once hauled upon it, and in a minute Sir Cuthbert was dragged to the
+bank.
+
+By this time a crowd of men-at-arms appeared upon the battlements. But
+as they did so the archers opened a storm of arrows upon them, and
+quickly compelled them to find shelter. Carried by Cnut and the men with
+him--for he was insensible--Sir Cuthbert was quickly conveyed to the
+center of the outlaws, and these at once in a compact body began their
+retreat to the wood. Cuthbert quickly recovered consciousness, and was
+soon able to walk. As he did so the gates of the castle were thrown
+open, and a crowd of men-at-arms, consisting of the retainers of the
+castle and the mercenaries of Prince John, sallied forth. So soon as
+Cuthbert was able to move the archers started at a brisk run, several of
+them carrying Cuthbert's casque and sword, and others assisting him to
+hurry along. The rear ranks turned as they ran and discharged flights of
+arrows at the enemy, who, more heavily armed and weighted, gained but
+slowly upon them.
+
+Had not Sir Rudolph been stunned by the blow dealt him by Cuthbert he
+would himself have headed the pursuit, and in that case the foresters
+would have had to fight hard to make their retreat to their fastness.
+The officer in command of the mercenaries, however, had no great stomach
+for the matter. Men were hard to get, and Prince John would not have
+been pleased to hear that a number of the men whom he had brought with
+such expense from foreign parts had been killed in a petty fray.
+Therefore after following for a short time he called them off, and the
+archers fell back into the forest.
+
+Here they found Dame Editha, and for three days she abode among them,
+living in a small hut in the center of the forest. Then she left, to
+take up her abode until the troubles were past with some kin who lived
+in the south of Gloucestershire.
+
+Although the lady abbess had assured Cuthbert that the retreat of Lady
+Margaret was not likely to be found out, he himself, knowing how great a
+stake Sir Rudolph had in the matter, was still far from being easy. It
+would not be difficult for the latter to learn through his agents that
+the lady superior of the little convent near Hereford was of kin to her
+of St. Anne's, and, close as a convent is, yet the gossiping of the
+servants who go to market was certain to let out an affair so important
+as the arrival of a young lady to reside under the charge of the
+superior. Cuthbert was not mistaken as to the acuteness of his enemy.
+The relationship between the two lady superiors was no secret, and after
+having searched all the farmhouses and granges near the forest, and
+being convinced that the lady abbess would have sent her charge rather
+to a religious house than to that of a franklin, Sir Rudolph sought
+which of those within the circuit of a few miles would be likely to be
+the one selected. It was not long before he was enabled to fix upon that
+near Hereford, and spies going to the spot soon found out from the
+country people that it was a matter of talk that a young lady of rank
+had been admitted by the superior. Sir Rudolph hesitated whether to go
+himself at the head of a strong body of men and openly to take her, or
+to employ some sort of device. It was not that he himself feared the
+anathema of the church; but he knew Prince John to be weak and
+vacillating, at one time ready to defy the thunder of the pope, the next
+cringing before the spiritual authority. He therefore determined to
+employ some of his men to burst into the convent and carry off the
+heiress, arranging that he himself, with some of his men-at-arms, should
+come upon them in the road, and make a feigned rescue of her, so that,
+if the lady superior laid her complaint before the pope's legate he
+could deny that he had any hand in the matter, and could even take
+credit for having rescued her from the men who had profaned the convent.
+That his story would be believed mattered but little. It would be
+impossible to prove its falsity, and this was all that he cared for.
+
+This course was followed out. Late one evening the lady superior was
+alarmed by a violent knocking at the door. In reply to questions asked
+through the grill, the answer was given, "We are men of the forest, and
+we are come to carry the Lady Margaret of Evesham off to a secure
+hiding-place. The Lord of Evesham has discovered her whereabouts, and
+will be here shortly, and we would fain remove her before he arrives."
+
+"From whom have you warrant?" the lady superior said. "I surrender her
+to no one, save to the lady abbess of St. Anne's. But if you have a
+written warrant from Sir Cuthbert, the rightful Lord of Evesham, I will
+lay the matter before the Lady Margaret, and will act as it may seem fit
+to her."
+
+"We have no time for parleying," a rough voice said. "Throw open the
+gate at once, or we will break it down."
+
+"Ye be no outlaws," the lady superior said, "for the outlaws are men who
+fear God and respect the church. Were ye what ye say, ye would be
+provided with the warrants that I mention. I warn you, therefore, that
+if you use force, you will be excommunicated, and placed under the ban
+of the church."
+
+The only answer was a thundering assault upon the gate, which soon
+yielded to the blows. The sisters and novices ran shrieking through the
+corridors at this rude uproar. The lady superior, however, stood calmly
+awaiting the giving way of the gate.
+
+"Where is the Lady Margaret?" the leader of the party, who were dressed
+in rough garb, and had the seeming of a band of outlaws, demanded.
+
+"I will say nothing," she said, "nor do I own that she is here."
+
+"We will soon take means to find out," the man exclaimed. "Unless in
+five minutes she is delivered to us, we will burn your place to the
+ground."
+
+The lady abbess was insensible to the threat; but the men rushing in,
+seized some sisters, who, terrified out of their wits by this irruption,
+at once gave the information demanded, and the men made their way to the
+cell where the Lady Margaret slept.
+
+The girl had at once risen when the tumult commenced, doubting not in
+her mind that this was another attempt upon the part of her enemy to
+carry her off. When, therefore, she heard heavy footsteps approaching
+along the gallery--having already hastily attired herself--she opened
+the door and presented herself.
+
+"If you seek the Lady Margaret of Evesham," she said calmly, "I am she.
+Do not harm any of the sisters here. I am in your power, and will go
+with you at once. But I beseech you add not to your other sins that of
+violence against holy women."
+
+The men, abashed by the calm dignity of this young girl, abstained from
+laying hands upon her, but merely motioned to her to accompany them.
+Upon their way they met the man who appeared to be their leader, and he,
+well pleased that the affair was over, led the way to the courtyard.
+
+"Farewell, my child," the abbess exclaimed. "God will deliver you from
+the power of these wicked men. Trust in Him, and keep up your courage.
+Wickedness will not be permitted to triumph upon the earth; and be
+assured that the matter shall be brought to the ears of the pope's
+legate, and of Prince John himself."
+
+She could say no more, for the men, closing round the weeping girl,
+hurried her out from the convent. A litter awaited them without, and in
+this the young lady was placed, and, borne upon the shoulders of four
+stout men, she started at a fast pace, surrounded closely by the rest of
+the band.
+
+It was a dark night, and the girl could not see the direction in which
+she was being taken; but she judged from the turn taken upon leaving the
+convent that it was toward Evesham. They had proceeded some miles, when
+a trampling of horses was heard, and a body of armed men rode up. For a
+moment Lady Margaret's heart gave a leap, for she thought that she had
+been rescued by her friends. There was a loud and angry altercation, a
+clashing of swords, and a sound of shouting and cries outside the
+litter. Then it was placed roughly on the ground, and she heard the
+sound of the footsteps of her first captors hurrying away. Then the
+horsemen closed round the litter, and the leader dismounted.
+
+"I am happy indeed, Lady Margaret," he said, approaching the litter, "to
+have been able to save you from the power of these villains.
+Fortunately, word came to me that the outlaws in the forest were about
+to carry you off, and that they would not hesitate even to desecrate the
+walls of the convent. Assembling my men-at-arms, I at once rode to your
+rescue, and am doubly happy to have saved you, first, as a gentleman,
+secondly, as being the man to whom our gracious prince has assigned you
+as a wife. I am Sir Rudolph, Earl of Evesham."
+
+As from the first the girl had been convinced that she had fallen into
+the power of her lawless suitor, this came upon her as no surprise.
+
+"Whether your story is true, Sir Rudolph," she said, "or not, God knows,
+and I, a poor weak girl, will not pretend to venture to say. It is
+between you and your conscience. If, as you say, you have saved me from
+the power of the outlaws, I demand that, as a knight and a gentleman,
+you return with me at once to the convent from which I was taken by
+force."
+
+"I cannot do that," Sir Rudolph said. "Fortune has placed you in my
+hands, and has enabled me to carry out the commands of the prince.
+Therefore, though I would fain yield to your wishes and so earn your
+good-will, which above all things I wish to obtain, yet my duty toward
+the prince commands me to utilize the advantage which fate has thrown in
+my hands."
+
+"You must do as you will, Sir Rudolph," the girl said with dignity. "I
+believe not your tale. You sought before, in person, to carry me off,
+but failed, and you have now employed other means to do so. The tale of
+your conduct to Dame Editha has reached my ears, and I hold you a
+foresworn knight and a dishonored man, and as such I would rather die
+than become your wife, although as yet I am but a child, and have no
+need to talk of weddings for years to come."
+
+"We need not parley here," the knight said coldly. "We shall have plenty
+of time when at my castle."
+
+The litter was now lifted, placed between two horses, and proceeded
+rapidly on its journey. Although the hope was but faint, yet until the
+gates of the castle closed upon them the Lady Margaret still hoped that
+rescue might reach her. But the secret had been too well kept, and it
+was not until the following day that the man who had been placed in a
+cottage near the convent arrived in all haste in the forest, to say that
+it was only in the morning that he had learned that the convent had been
+broken open by men disguised as archers, and the Lady Margaret carried
+off.
+
+Four days elapsed before Sir Rudolph presented himself before the girl
+he had captured. So fearfully was his face bruised and disfigured by the
+blow from the mailed hand of Cuthbert three weeks before, that he did
+not wish to appear before her under such unfavorable circumstances, and
+the captive passed the day gazing from her casement in one of the rooms
+in the upper part of the keep, toward the forest whence she hoped rescue
+would come.
+
+Within the forest hot discussions were going on as to the best course to
+pursue. An open attack was out of the question, especially as upon the
+day following the arrival there of Lady Margaret three hundred more
+mercenaries had marched in from Worcester, so that the garrison was now
+raised to five hundred men.
+
+"Is there no way," Cnut exclaimed furiously, "by which we might creep
+into this den, since we cannot burst into it openly?"
+
+"There is a way from the castle," Cuthbert said, "for my dear lord told
+me of it one day when we were riding together in the Holy Land. He said
+then that it might be that he should never return, and that it were well
+that I should know of the existence of this passage, which few besides
+the earl himself knew of. It is approached by a very heavy slab of stone
+in the great hall. This is bolted down, and as it stands under the great
+table passes unnoticed, and appears part of the ordinary floor. He told
+me the method in which, by touching a spring, the bolts were withdrawn
+and the stone could be raised. Thence a passage a quarter of a mile
+long leads to the little chapel standing in the hollow, and which, being
+hidden among the trees, would be unobserved by any party besieging the
+castle. This of course was contrived in order that the garrison, or any
+messenger thereof, might make an exit in case of siege."
+
+"But if we could escape," Cnut asked, "why not enter by this way?"
+
+"The stone is of immense weight and strength," Cuthbert replied, "and
+could not be loosed from below save with great labor and noise. There
+are, moreover, several massive doors in the passage, all of which are
+secured by heavy bolts within. It is therefore out of the question that
+we could enter the castle by that way. But were we once in, we could
+easily carry off the lady through this passage."
+
+The large force which Sir Rudolph had collected was not intended merely
+for the defense of the castle, for the knight considered that with his
+own garrison he could hold it against a force tenfold that which his
+rival could collect. But he was determined if possible to crush out the
+outlaws of the forest, for he felt that so long as this formidable body
+remained under an enterprising leader like Sir Cuthbert, he would never
+be safe for a moment, and would be a prisoner in his own castle.
+
+Cuthbert had foreseen that the attack was likely to be made, and had
+strengthened his band to the utmost. He felt, however, that against so
+large a force of regularly armed men, although he might oppose a stout
+resistance and kill many, yet that in the end he must be conquered.
+Cnut, however, suggested to him a happy idea, which he eagerly grasped.
+
+"It would be a rare sport," Cnut said, "when this armed force comes out
+to attack us, if we could turn the tables by slipping in, and taking
+their castle."
+
+"The very thing," Cuthbert exclaimed. "It is likely that he will use the
+greater portion of his forces, and that he will not keep above fifty or
+sixty men, at the outside, in the castle. When they sally out we will at
+first oppose a stout resistance to them in the wood, gradually falling
+back. Then, at a given signal, all save twenty men shall retire hastily,
+and sweeping round make for the castle. Their absence will not be
+noticed, for in this thick wood it is difficult to tell whether twenty
+men or two hundred are opposing you among the bushes; and the twenty who
+remain must shoot thick and fast to make believe that their numbers are
+great, retiring sometimes, and leading the enemy on into the heart of
+the wood."
+
+"But supposing, Sir Cuthbert, that they should have closed the gates and
+lifted the drawbridge? We could not gain entrance by storming, even if
+only twenty men held the walls, until long after the main body would
+have returned."
+
+Cuthbert thought for some time, and then said, "Cnut, you shall
+undertake this enterprise. You shall fill a cart high with faggots, and
+in it shall conceal a dozen of your best men. You, dressed as a serf,
+shall drive the oxen, and when you reach the castle shall say, in answer
+to the hail of the sentry, that you are bringing in the tribute of wood
+of your master the franklin of Hopeburn. They will then lower the
+drawbridge and open the gates; and when you have crossed the bridge and
+are under the portcullis, spring out suddenly, cut loose the oxen so
+that they will not draw the cart further in, cut the chains of the
+drawbridge so that it cannot be drawn off, and hold the gate for a
+minute or two until we arrive."
+
+"The plan is capital," Cnut exclaimed. "We will do the proud Norman yet.
+How he will storm when he finds us masters of his castle! What then
+will you do, Sir Cuthbert?"
+
+"We can hold the castle for weeks," Cuthbert said, "and every day is in
+our favor. If we find ourselves forced to yield to superior numbers, we
+can at last retire through the passage I have spoken of, and must then
+scatter and each shift for himself until these bad days be past."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+THE SIEGE OF EVESHAM CASTLE.
+
+
+Upon the day before starting out to head the expedition against the
+outlaws, Sir Rudolph sent word to the Lady Margaret that she must
+prepare to become his wife at the end of the week. He had provided two
+tiring maids for her by ordering two of the franklins to send in their
+daughters for that purpose, and these mingled their tears with
+Margaret's at the situation in which they were placed. She replied
+firmly to the messenger of the knight that no power on earth could
+oblige her to marry him. He might drive her to the altar; but though he
+killed her there, her lips should refuse to say the words which would
+unite them.
+
+The following morning, early, the castle rang with the din of
+preparation. The great portion of the mercenaries were encamped in tents
+outside the walls, for, spacious as it was, Evesham could hardly contain
+four hundred men in addition to its usual garrison. The men-at-arms were
+provided with heavy axes to cut their way through the bushes. Some
+carried bundles of straw, to fire the wood should it be found
+practicable to do so; and as it was now summer and the wind was blowing
+high, Sir Rudolph hoped that the dry grass and bushes would catch, and
+would do more even than his men-at-arms in clearing the forest of those
+whom he designated the villains infesting it. They had, too, with them
+several fierce dogs trained to hunting the deer, and these, the knight
+hoped, would do good service in tracking the outlaws. He and the knights
+and the men-at-arms with him were all dismounted, for he felt that
+horses would in the forest be an incumbrance, and he was determined
+himself to lead the way to the men-at-arms.
+
+When they reached the forest they were saluted by a shower of arrows;
+but as all were clad in mail, these at a distance effected but little
+harm. As they came closer, however, the clothyard arrows began to pierce
+the coarse and ill-made armor of the foot soldiers, although the finer
+armor of the knights kept out the shafts which struck against it. Sir
+Rudolph and his knights leading the way, they entered the forest and
+gradually pressed their invisible foe backward through the trees. The
+dogs did good service, going on ahead and attacking the archers; but,
+one by one, they were soon shot, and the assailants left to their own
+devices. Several attempts were made to fire the wood. But these failed,
+the fire burning but a short time and then dying out of itself. In
+addition to the fighting men, Sir Rudolph had impressed into the service
+all the serfs of his domain, and these, armed with axes, were directed
+to cut down the trees as the force proceeded, Sir Rudolph declaring that
+he would not cease until he had leveled the whole forest, though it
+might take him months to do so.
+
+The assailants gained ground steadily, the resistance being less severe
+than Sir Rudolph had anticipated. Several small huts and clearings in
+the forest which had been used by the outlaws, and round which small
+crops had been planted, were destroyed, and all seemed to promise well
+for the success of the enterprise.
+
+It was about two hours after they had left the castle, when a heavy cart
+filled with fagots was seen approaching its gates. The garrison, who had
+not the least fear of any attack, paid no attention to it until it
+reached the edge of the moat. Then the warder, seeing that it contained
+fagots, lowered the drawbridge without question, raised the portcullis,
+and opened the gates.
+
+"From whom do you bring this wood?" he asked as the man driving the oxen
+began to cross the bridge.
+
+"From the franklin of Hopeburn."
+
+"It is well," said the warder, "for he is in arrear now, and should have
+sent in the firewood two months since. Take it to the woodhouse at the
+other end of the court."
+
+The heavy wagon crossed the drawbridge, but as it was entering the gate
+it came suddenly to a stop. With a blow of his ox goad Cnut leveled the
+warder to the ground, and cutting the cords of the bullocks, drove them
+into the yard ahead. As he did so the pile of fagots fell asunder, and
+twelve men armed with bow and pike leaped out. The men-at-arms standing
+near, lounging in the courtyard, gave a shout of alarm, and the
+garrison, surprised at this sudden cry, ran to their arms. At first they
+were completely panic-stricken. But seeing after a time how small was
+the number of their assailants, they took heart and advanced against
+them. The passage was narrow, and the twelve men formed a wall across
+it. Six of them with their pikes advanced, the other six with bent bows
+standing behind them and delivering their arrows between their heads.
+The garrison fought stoutly, and although losing many, were pressing the
+little band backward. In vain the assistant-warder tried to lower the
+portcullis, or to close the gates. The former fell on to the top of the
+wagon, and was there retained. The gates also were barred by the
+obstacle. The chains of the drawbridge had at once been cut. Cnut
+encouraged his followers by his shouts, and armed with a heavy ax, did
+good service upon the assailants. But four of his party had fallen, and
+the rest were giving way, when a shout was heard, and over the
+drawbridge poured Cuthbert and one hundred and fifty of the outlaws of
+the forest. Struck with terror at this attack, the garrison drew back,
+and the foresters poured into the yard. For a few minutes there was a
+fierce fight; but the defenders of the castle, disheartened and taken by
+surprise, were either cut down or, throwing down their arms, cried for
+quarter.
+
+Ten minutes after the wagon had crossed the drawbridge the castle was
+safely in possession of Sir Cuthbert. The bridge was raised, the wagon
+removed, the portcullis lowered, and to the external eye all remained as
+before.
+
+Cuthbert at once made his way to the chamber where the Lady Margaret was
+confined, and her joy at her deliverance was great indeed. So unlimited
+was her faith in Sir Cuthbert that she had never lost confidence; and
+although it did not seem possible that in the face of such disparity of
+numbers he could rescue her from the power of Sir Rudolph, yet she had
+not given up hope. The joy of the farmers' daughters who had been
+carried off to act as her attendants was little inferior to her own; for
+once in the power of this reckless baron, the girls had small hopes of
+ever being allowed to return again to their parents.
+
+The flag of Sir Rudolph was thrown down from the keep, and that of the
+late earl hoisted in its stead; for Cuthbert himself, although he had
+assumed the cognizance which King Richard had granted him, had not yet
+any flag or pennon emblazoned with it.
+
+No words can portray the stupefaction and rage of Sir Rudolph when a man
+who had managed to slip unobserved from the castle at the time of its
+capture bore the news to him in the forest. All opposition there had
+ceased, and the whole of the troops were engaged in aiding the peasants
+in cutting wide roads through the trees across the forest, so as to make
+it penetrable by horsemen in every direction. It was supposed that the
+outlaws had gradually stolen away through the thickets and taken to the
+open country, intending to scatter to their homes, or other distant
+hiding-places; and the news that they had by a ruse captured the castle
+came as a thunder-clap.
+
+Sir Rudolph's first impulse was to call his men together and to march
+toward the castle. The drawbridge was up and the walls bristled with
+armed men. It was useless to attempt a parley; still more useless to
+think of attacking the stronghold without the proper machines and
+appliances. Foaming with rage, Sir Rudolph took possession of a cottage
+near, camped his men around and prepared for a siege.
+
+There were among the mercenaries many men accustomed to the use of
+engines of war. Many, too, had aided in making them; and these were at
+once set to work to construct the various machines in use at that time.
+Before the invention of gunpowder, castles such as those of the English
+barons were able to defy any attack by an armed force for a long period.
+Their walls were so thick that even the balistas, casting huge stones,
+were unable to breach them except after a very long time. The moats
+which surrounded them were wide and deep, and any attempt at storming by
+ladders was therefore extremely difficult; and these buildings were
+consequently more often captured by famine than by other means. Of
+provisions, as Sir Rudolph knew, there was a considerable supply at
+present in the castle, for he had collected a large number of bullocks
+in order to feed the strong body who had been added to the garrison. The
+granaries, too, were well stored; and with a groan Sir Rudolph thought
+of the rich stores of French wines which he had collected in his
+cellars.
+
+After much deliberation with the knights with him and the captain of the
+mercenaries, it was agreed in the first instance to attempt to attack
+the place by filling up a portion of the moat and ascending by scaling
+ladders. Huge screens of wood were made, and these were placed on
+wagons; the wagons themselves were filled with bags of earth, and a
+large number of men getting beneath them shoved the ponderous machines
+forward to the edge of the moat. The bags of stones and earth were then
+thrown in, and the wagons pushed backward to obtain a fresh supply. This
+operation was of course an exceedingly slow one, a whole day being
+occupied with each trip of the wagons. They were not unmolested in their
+advance, for, from the walls, mangonels and other machines hurled great
+stones down upon the wooden screens, succeeding sometimes, in spite of
+their thickness, in crashing through them, killing many of the men
+beneath. The experiment was also tried of throwing balls of Greek fire
+down upon the wood; but as this was green and freshly felled it would
+not take fire, but the flames dropping through, with much boiling pitch
+and other materials, did grievously burn and scald the soldiers working
+below it. Upon both sides every device was tried. The crossbowmen among
+the mercenaries kept up a fire upon the walls to hinder the defenders
+from interfering with the operations, while the archers above shot
+steadily, and killed many of those who ventured within range of their
+bows.
+
+After ten days' labor a portion of the moat some twenty yards in length
+was filled with bags of earth, and all was ready for the assault. The
+besiegers had prepared great numbers of strong ladders, and these were
+brought up under shelter of the screens. Then, all being ready, the
+trumpets sounded for the assault, and the troops moved forward in a
+close body, covering themselves with their shields so that no man's head
+or body was visible, each protecting the one before him with his shield
+held over him. Thus the body presented the appearance of a great
+scale-covered animal. In many respects, indeed, the warfare of those
+days was changed in no way from that of the time of the Romans. In the
+twelve hundred years which had elapsed between the siege of Jerusalem
+and the days of the Crusades there had been but little change in arms or
+armor, and the operations which Titus undertook for the reduction of the
+Jewish stronghold differed but little from those which a Norman baron
+employed in besieging his neighbor's castle.
+
+Within Evesham Castle all was contentment and merriment during these
+days. The garrison had no fear whatever of being unable to repel the
+assault when it should be delivered. Huge stones had been collected in
+numbers on the walls, caldrons of pitch, beneath which fires kept
+simmering, stood there in readiness. Long poles with hooks with which to
+seize the ladders and cut them down were laid there; and all that
+precaution and science could do was prepared.
+
+Cuthbert passed much of the day, when not required upon the walls,
+chatting with the Lady Margaret, who, attended by her maidens, sat
+working in her bower. She had learned to read from the good nuns of the
+convent--an accomplishment which was by no means general, even among the
+daughters of nobles; but books were rare, and Evesham boasted but few
+manuscripts. Here Margaret learned in full all the details of Cuthbert's
+adventures since leaving England, and the fondness with which as a child
+she had regarded the lad grew gradually into the affection of a woman.
+
+The courage of the garrison was high, for although they believed that
+sooner or later the castle might be carried by the besiegers, they had
+already been told by Cnut that there was a means of egress unknown to
+the besiegers, and that when the time came they would be able to escape
+unharmed. This, while it in no way detracted from their determination to
+defend the castle to the last, yet rendered their task a far lighter and
+more agreeable one than it would have been had they seen the gallows
+standing before them as the end of the siege.
+
+As the testudo, as it was called in those days, advanced toward the
+castle, the machines upon the walls--catapults, mangonels and
+arbalasts--poured forth showers of stones and darts upon it, breaking up
+the array of shields and killing many; and as these openings were made,
+the archers, seizing their time, poured in volleys of arrows. The
+mercenaries, however, accustomed to war, advanced steadily, and made
+good their footing beneath the castle wall, and proceeded to rear their
+ladders. Here, although free from the action of the machines, they were
+exposed to the hand missiles, which were scarcely less destructive. In
+good order, and with firmness, however, they reared the ladders, and
+mounted to the assault, covering themselves as well as they could with
+their shields. In vain, however, did they mount. The defenders poured
+down showers of boiling pitch and oil, which penetrated the crevices of
+their armor and caused intolerable torment. Great stones were toppled
+over from the battlements upon them; and sometimes the ladders, seized
+by the poles with hooks, were cast backward, with all upon them, on the
+throng below. For half an hour, encouraged by the shouts of Sir Rudolph
+and their leaders, the soldiers strove gallantly; but were at last
+compelled to draw off, having lost nigh one hundred men, without one
+gaining a footing upon the walls.
+
+That evening another council of war was held without. Already some large
+machines for which Sir Rudolph had sent had arrived. In anticipation of
+the possibility of failure, two castles upon wheels had been prepared,
+and between these a huge beam with an iron head was hung. This was upon
+the following day pushed forward on the newly-formed ground across the
+moat. Upon the upper part of each tower were armed men who worked
+machines casting sheaves of arrows and other missiles. Below were those
+who worked the ram. To each side of the beam were attached numerous
+cords, and with these it was swung backward and forward, giving heavy
+blows each stroke upon the wall. The machines for casting stones, which
+had arrived, were also brought in play, and day and night these
+thundered against the walls; while the ram repeated its ceaseless blows
+upon the same spot, until the stone crumbled before it.
+
+Very valiantly did the garrison oppose themselves to these efforts. But
+each day showed the progress made by the besiegers. Their forces had
+been increased, Prince John having ordered his captain at Gloucester to
+send another one hundred men to the assistance of Sir Rudolph. Other
+towers had now been prepared. These were larger than the first, and
+overtopped the castle walls. From the upper story were drawbridges, so
+formed as to drop from the structures upon the walls, and thus enable
+the besiegers to rush upon them. The process was facilitated by the fact
+that the battlements had been shot away by the great stones, and there
+was a clear space on which the drawbridges could fall. The attack was
+made with great vigor; but for a long time the besieged maintained their
+post, and drove back the assailants as they poured out across the
+drawbridges on to the wall. At last Cuthbert saw that the forces opposed
+to him were too numerous to be resisted, and gave orders to his men to
+fall back upon the inner keep.
+
+Making one rush, and clearing the wall of those who had gained a
+footing, the garrison fell back hastily, and were safely within the
+massive keep before the enemy had mustered in sufficient numbers upon
+the wall to interfere with them. The drawbridge was now lowered, and the
+whole of the assailants gained footing within the castle. They were
+still far from having achieved a victory. The walls of the keep were
+massive and strong, and its top far higher than the walls, so that from
+above a storm of arrows poured down upon all who ventured to show
+themselves. The keep had no windows low enough down for access to be
+gained; and those on the floors above were so narrow, and protected by
+bars, that it seemed by scaling the walls alone could an entry be
+effected. This was far too desperate an enterprise to be attempted, for
+the keep rose eighty feet above the courtyard. It was upon the door,
+solid and studded with iron, that the attempt had to be made.
+
+Several efforts were made by Sir Rudolph, who fought with a bravery
+worthy of a better cause, to assault and batter down the door. Protected
+by wooden shields from the rain of missiles from above, he and his
+knights hacked at the door with their battle-axes. But in vain. It had
+been strengthened by beams behind, and by stones piled up against it.
+Then fire was tried. Fagots were collected in the forest, and brought;
+and a huge pile having been heaped against the door, it was lighted. "We
+could doubtless prolong the siege for some days, Lady Margaret," said
+Cuthbert, "but the castle is ours; and we wish not, when the time comes
+that we shall again be masters of it, that it should be a mere heap of
+ruins. Methinks we have done enough. With but small losses on our side,
+we have killed great numbers of the enemy, and have held them at bay for
+a month. Therefore, I think that to-night it will be well for us to
+leave the place."
+
+Lady Margaret was rejoiced at the news that the time for escape had
+come, for the perpetual clash of war, the rattling of arrows, the
+ponderous thud of heavy stones caused a din very alarming to a young
+girl; and although the room in which she sat, looking into the inner
+court of the castle, was not exposed to missiles, she trembled at the
+thought that brave men were being killed, and that at any moment a shot
+might strike Cuthbert, and so leave her without a friend or protector.
+
+Content with having destroyed the door, the assailants made no further
+effort that evening, but prepared in the morning to attack it, pull down
+the stones filled behind it, and force their way into the keep. There
+was, with the exception of the main entrance, but one means of exit, a
+small postern door behind the castle, and throughout the siege a strong
+body of troops had been posted here, to prevent the garrison making a
+sortie. Feeling secure therefore that upon the following day his enemies
+would fall into his power, Sir Rudolph retired to rest.
+
+An hour before midnight the garrison assembled in the hall. The table
+was removed, and Cuthbert having pressed the spring, which was at a
+distance from the stone and could not be discovered without a knowledge
+of its existence, the stone turned aside by means of a counterpoise, and
+a flight of steps was seen. Torches had been prepared. Cnut and a chosen
+band went first; Cuthbert followed, with Lady Margaret and her
+attendants; and the rest of the archers brought up the rear, a trusty
+man being left in charge at last with orders to swing back the stone
+into its place, having first hauled the table over the spot, so that
+their means of escape should be unknown.
+
+The passage was long and dreary, the walls were damp with wet, and the
+massive doors so swollen by moisture that it was with the greatest
+difficulty they could be opened. At last, however, they emerged into
+the little friary in the wood. It was deserted, the priest who usually
+dwelt there having fled when the siege began. The stone which there, as
+in the castle, concealed the exit, was carefully closed, and the party
+then emerged into the open air. Here Cuthbert bade adieu to his
+comrades. Cnut had very anxiously begged to be allowed to accompany him
+and share his fortunes, and Cuthbert had promised him that if at any
+time he should again take up arms in England, he would summon him to his
+side, but that at present as he knew not whither his steps would be
+turned, it would be better that he should be unattended. The archers had
+all agreed to scatter far and wide through the country, many of them
+proceeding to Nottingham and joining the bands in the forest of
+Sherwood.
+
+Cuthbert himself had determined to make his way to the castle of his
+friend, Sir Baldwin, and to leave the Lady Margaret in his charge. Cnut
+hurried on at full speed to the house of a franklin, some three miles
+distant. Here horses were obtained and saddled, and dresses prepared;
+and when Cuthbert with Lady Margaret arrived there, no time was lost.
+Dressed as a yeoman, with the Lady Margaret as his sister, he mounted a
+horse, with her behind him on a pillion. The other damsels also mounted,
+as it would not have been safe for them to remain near Evesham. They
+therefore purposed taking refuge in a convent near Gloucester for the
+present. Bidding a hearty adieu to Cnut, and with thanks to the franklin
+who had aided them, they set forward on their journey. By morning they
+had reached the convent, and here the two girls were left, and Cuthbert
+continued his journey. He left his charge at a convent a day's ride
+distant from the castle of Sir Baldwin, as he wished to consult the
+knight first as to the best way of her entering the castle without
+exciting talk or suspicion.
+
+Sir Baldwin received him with joy. He had heard something of his doings,
+and the news of the siege of Evesham had been noised abroad. He told him
+that he was in communication with many other barons, and that ere long
+they hoped to rise against the tyranny of Prince John, but that at
+present they were powerless, as many, hoping that King Richard would
+return ere long, shrank from involving the country in a civil war. When
+Cuthbert told him that the daughter of his old friend was at a convent
+but a day's ride distant, and that he sought protection for her, Sir
+Baldwin instantly offered her hospitality.
+
+"I will," he said, "send my good wife to fetch her. Some here know your
+presence, and it would be better therefore that she did not arrive for
+some days, as her coming will then seem to be unconnected with yourself.
+My wife and I will, a week hence, give out that we are going to fetch a
+cousin of my wife's to stay here with her; and when we return no
+suspicion will be excited that she is other than she seems. Should it be
+otherwise, I need not say that Sir Baldwin of Bethune will defend his
+castle against any of the minions of Prince John. But I have no fear
+that her presence here will be discovered. What think you of doing in
+the meantime?"
+
+"I am thinking," Cuthbert said, "of going east. No news has been
+obtained of our lord the king save that he is a prisoner in the hands of
+the emperor; but where confined, or how, we know not. It is my intent to
+travel to the Tyrol, and to trace his steps from the time that he was
+captured. Then, when I obtain knowledge of the place where he is kept, I
+will return, and consult upon the best steps to be taken. My presence in
+England is now useless. Did the barons raise the standard of King
+Richard against the prince, I should at once return and join them. But
+without land or vassals, I can do nothing here, and shall be indeed like
+a hunted hare, for I know that the false earl will move heaven and earth
+to capture me."
+
+Sir Baldwin approved of the resolution; but recommended Cuthbert to take
+every precaution not to fall himself into the hands of the emperor;
+"for," he said, "if we cannot discover the prison of King Richard, I
+fear that it would be hopeless indeed ever to attempt to find that in
+which a simple knight is confined."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+IN SEARCH OF THE KING.
+
+
+The following day, with many thanks, Cuthbert started from the castle,
+and in the first place visited the convent, and told Lady Margaret that
+she would be fetched in a few days by Sir Baldwin and his wife. He took
+a tender adieu of her, not without many forebodings and tears upon her
+part; but promising blithely that he would return and lead her back in
+triumph to her castle, he bade adieu and rode for London.
+
+He had attired himself as a merchant, and took up his abode at a
+hostelry near Cheapside. Here he remained quietly for some days, and,
+mixing among the people, learned that in London as elsewhere the
+rapacity of Prince John had rendered him hateful to the people, and that
+they would gladly embrace any opportunity of freeing themselves from his
+yoke. He was preparing to leave for France, when the news came to him
+that Prince John had summoned all the barons faithful to him to meet him
+near London, and had recalled all his mercenaries from different parts
+of the country, and was gathering a large army; also, that the barons
+faithful to King Richard, alarmed by the prospect, had raised the royal
+standard, and that true men were hurrying to their support. This
+entirely destroyed the plans that he had formed. Taking horse again, and
+avoiding the main road, by which he might meet the hostile barons on
+their way to London, he journeyed down to Nottingham. Thence riding
+boldly into the forest, he sought the outlaws, and was not long ere he
+found them. At his request he was at once taken before their leader, a
+man of great renown both for courage and bowmanship, one Robin Hood.
+This bold outlaw had long held at defiance the sheriff of Nottingham,
+and had routed him and all bodies of troops who had been sent against
+him. With him Cuthbert found many of his own men; and upon hearing that
+the royal standard had been raised, Robin Hood at once agreed to march
+with all his men to join the royal force. Messengers were dispatched to
+summon the rest of the forest band from their hiding-places, and a week
+later Cuthbert, accompanied by Robin Hood and three hundred archers, set
+out for the rendezvous. When they arrived there they found that Sir
+Baldwin had already joined with his retainers, and was by him most
+warmly received, and introduced to the other barons in the camp, by whom
+Cuthbert was welcomed as a brother. The news that Prince John's army was
+approaching was brought in a fortnight after Cuthbert had joined the
+camp, and the army in good order moved out to meet the enemy.
+
+The forces were about equal. The battle began by a discharge of arrows;
+but Robin Hood and his men shot so true and fast that they greatly
+discomfited the enemy; and King John's mercenaries having but little
+stomach for the fight, and knowing how unpopular they were in England,
+and that if defeated small mercy was likely to be shown to them, refused
+to advance against the ranks of the loyal barons, and falling back
+declined to join in the fray. Seeing their numbers so weakened by this
+defection, the barons on the prince's side hesitated, and surrounding
+the prince advised him to make terms with the barons while there was yet
+time. Prince John saw that the present was not a favorable time for him,
+and concealing his fury under a mask of courtesy, he at once acceded to
+the advice of his followers, and dispatched a messenger to the barons
+with an inquiry as to what they wanted of him. A council was held, and
+it was determined to demand the dismissal of the mercenaries and their
+dispatch back to their own country; also that John would govern only as
+his brother's representative; that the laws of the country should be
+respected; that no taxes should be raised without the assent of the
+barons; that all men who had taken up arms against his authority should
+be held free; and that the barons on Prince John's side should return
+peaceably home and disband their forces. Seeing, under the
+circumstances, that there was no way before him but to yield to these
+demands, Prince John accepted the terms. The mercenaries were ordered to
+march direct to London, and orders were given that ships should be at
+once prepared to take them across to Normandy, and the barons marched
+for their homes.
+
+Satisfied, now that the mercenaries were gone, that they could
+henceforth hold their ground against Prince John, the royal barons also
+broke up their forces. Robin Hood with his foresters returned to
+Sherwood; and Cuthbert, bidding adieu to Sir Baldwin, rode back to
+London, determined to carry out the plan which he had formed. He was the
+more strengthened in this resolution, inasmuch as in the royal camp he
+had met a friend from whom he parted last in the Holy Land. This was
+Blondel, the minstrel of King Richard, whose songs and joyous music had
+often lightened the evening after days of fighting and toil in
+Palestine. To him Cuthbert confided his intention, and the minstrel
+instantly offered to accompany him.
+
+"I shall," he said, "be of assistance to you. Minstrels are like
+heralds. They are of no nationality, and can pass free where a
+man-at-arms would be closely watched and hindered. Moreover, it may be
+that I might aid you greatly in discovering the prison of the king. So
+great is the secrecy with which this has been surrounded that I question
+if any inquiries you could make would enable you to trace him. My voice,
+however, can penetrate into places where we cannot enter. I will take
+with me my lute, and as we journey I will sing outside the walls of each
+prison we come to one of the songs which I sang in Palestine. King
+Richard is himself a singer and knows my songs as well as myself. If I
+sing a verse of some song which I wrote there and which, therefore,
+would be known only to him, if he hears it he may follow with the next
+verse, and so enable us to know of his hiding-place."
+
+Cuthbert at once saw the advantages which such companionship would bring
+him, and joyfully accepted the minstrel's offer, agreeing himself to go
+as serving man to Blondel. The latter accompanied him to London. Here
+their preparations were soon made, and taking ship in a merchantman
+bound for the Netherlands, they started without delay upon their
+adventure.
+
+The minstrels and troubadours were at that time a privileged race in
+Europe, belonging generally to the south of France, although produced in
+all lands. They traveled over Europe singing the lays which they
+themselves had composed, and were treated with all honor at the castles
+where they chose to alight. It would have been considered as foul a deed
+to use discourtesy to a minstrel as to insult a herald. Their persons
+were, indeed, regarded as sacred, and the knights and barons strove to
+gain their good-will by hospitality and presents, as a large proportion
+of their ballads related to deeds of war; and while they would write
+lays in honor of those who courteously entertained them, they did not
+hesitate to heap obloquy upon those who received them discourteously,
+holding them up to the gibes and scoffs of their fellows. In no way,
+therefore, would success be so likely to attend the mission of those who
+set out to discover the hiding-place of King Richard as under the guise
+of a minstrel and his attendant. No questions would be asked them; they
+could halt where they would, in castle or town, secure of hospitality
+and welcome. Blondel was himself a native of the south of France,
+singing his songs in the soft language of Languedoc. Cuthbert's Norman
+French would pass muster anywhere as being that of a native of France;
+and although when dressed as a servitor attention might be attracted by
+his bearing, his youth might render it probable that he was of noble
+family, but that he had entered the service of the minstrel in order to
+qualify himself some day for following that career. He carried a long
+staff, a short sword, and at his back the lute or small harp played upon
+by the troubadour. Blondel's attire was rich, and suitable to a person
+of high rank.
+
+They crossed to the Scheldt, and thence traveled by the right bank of
+the Rhine as far as Mannheim, sometimes journeying by boat, sometimes on
+foot. They were also hospitably entertained, and were considered to more
+than repay their hosts by the songs which Blondel sang.
+
+At Mannheim they purchased two horses, and then struck east for Vienna.
+
+The journey was not without danger, for a large portion of this part of
+Europe was under no settled government, each petty baron living in his
+own castle, and holding but slight allegiance to any feudal lord, making
+war upon his neighbor on his own account, levying blackmail from
+travelers, and perpetually at variance with the burghers of the towns.
+
+The hills were covered with immense forests, which stretched for many
+leagues in all directions, and these were infested by wolves, bears, and
+robbers.
+
+The latter, however, although men without pity or religion, yet held the
+troubadours in high esteem, and the travelers without fear entered the
+gloomy shades of the forest.
+
+They had not gone far when their way was barred by a number of armed
+men.
+
+"I am a minstrel," Blondel said; "and as such doubt not that your
+courtesy will be extended to me."
+
+"Of a surety," the leader said; "the gay science is as much loved and
+respected in the greenwood as in the castle; and moreover, the purses of
+those who follow it are too light to offer any temptation to us. We
+would pray you, however, to accompany us to our leader, who will
+mightily rejoice to see you, for he loves music, and will gladly be your
+host so long as you will stay with him."
+
+Blondel, without objection, turned his horse's head and accompanied the
+men, followed by Cuthbert. After half an hour's traveling they came to a
+building which had formerly been a shrine, but which was now converted
+to the robbers' headquarters. The robber chief, on hearing from his
+followers the news that a minstrel had arrived, came forward to meet
+him, and courteously bade him welcome.
+
+"I am Sir Adelbert, of Rotherheim," he said, "although you see me in so
+poor a plight. My castle and lands have been taken by my neighbor, with
+whom for generations my family have been at feud. I was in the Holy Land
+with the emperor, and on my return found that the baron had taken the
+opportunity of my absence, storming my castle and seizing my lands. In
+vain I petitioned the emperor to dispossess this traitorous baron of my
+lands, which by all the laws of Christendom should have been respected
+during my absence. The emperor did indeed send a letter to the baron to
+deliver them up to me; but his power here is but nominal, and the baron
+contemptuously threw the royal proclamation into the fire and told the
+messenger that what he had taken by the sword he would hold by the
+sword; and the emperor having weightier matters on hand than to set
+troops in motion to redress the grievances of a simple knight, gave the
+matter no further thought. I have therefore been driven to the forest,
+where I live as best I may with my followers, most of whom were
+retainers upon my estate, and some my comrades in the Holy Land. I make
+war upon the rich and powerful, and beyond that do harm to no man. But,
+methinks," he continued, "I know your face, gentle sir."
+
+"It may well be so, Sir Adelbert," the minstrel said, "for I too was in
+the Holy Land. I followed the train of King Richard, and mayhap at some
+of the entertainments given by him you have seen my face. My name is
+Blondel."
+
+"I remember now," the knight said. "It was at Acre that I first saw you,
+and if I remember rightly you can wield the sword as well as the lute."
+
+"One cannot always be playing and singing," Blondel said, "and in lack
+of amusement I was forced to do my best against the infidel, who indeed
+would have but little respected my art had I fallen into his hands. The
+followers of the prophet hold minstrels but in slight reverence."
+
+"What is the news of King Richard?" the knight said. "I have heard that
+he was lost on the voyage homeward."
+
+"It is not so," Blondel said. "He landed safely on the coast, and was
+journeying north with a view of joining his sister at the court of
+Saxony, when he was foully seized and imprisoned by the Archduke John."
+
+"That were gross shame indeed," the knight said, "and black treachery on
+the part of Duke John. And where is the noble king imprisoned?"
+
+"That," said Blondel, "no man knows. On my journey hither I have
+gathered that the emperor claimed him from the hand of the archduke, and
+that he is imprisoned in one of the royal fortresses, but which I know
+not. And indeed, sir knight, since you are well disposed toward him, I
+may tell you that the purport of my journey is to discover if I can the
+place of his confinement. He was a kind and noble master, and however
+long my search may be, I will yet obtain news of him."
+
+The knight warmly applauded the troubadour's resolution, and was turning
+to lead him into his abode, when his eye fell upon Cuthbert.
+
+"Methinks I know the face of your attendant as well as your own; though
+where I can have seen him I know not. Was he with you in the Holy Land?"
+
+"Yes," Blondel said, "the youth was also there; and doubtless you may
+have noticed him, for he is indeed of distinguished and of good family."
+
+"Then let him share our repast," the knight said, "if it seems good to
+you. In these woods there is no rank, and I myself have long dropped my
+knightly title, and shall not reassume it until I can pay off my score
+to the Baron of Rotherheim, and take my place again in my castle."
+
+The minstrel and Cuthbert were soon seated at the table with the knight
+and one or two of his principal companions. A huge venison pasty formed
+the staple of the repast, but hares and other small game were also upon
+the table. Nor was the generous wine of the country wanting.
+
+The knight had several times glanced at Cuthbert, and at last exclaimed,
+"I have it now. This is no attendant, sir minstrel, but that valiant
+young knight who so often rode near King Richard in battle. He is, as I
+guess, your companion in this quest; is it not so?"
+
+"It is," Cuthbert replied frankly. "I am, like yourself, a disinherited
+knight, and my history resembles yours. Upon my return to England I
+found another in possession of the land and titles that belonged to the
+noble I followed, and which King Richard bestowed upon me. The Earl of
+Evesham was doubtless known to you, and before his death King Richard,
+at his request, bestowed upon me as his adopted son--although but a
+distant connection--his title and lands and the hand of his daughter.
+Prince John, who now rules in England, had however granted these things
+to one of his favorites, and he having taken possession of the land and
+title, though not, happily, of the lady, closed his door somewhat
+roughly in my face. I found means, however, to make my mark upon him;
+but as our quarrel could not be fought out to the end, and as the false
+knight had the aid of Prince John, I am forced for awhile to postpone
+our settlement, and meeting my good friend the minstrel, agreed to join
+him in his enterprise to discover our lord the king."
+
+The knight warmly grasped Cuthbert's hand.
+
+"I am glad," he said, "to meet so true and valiant a knight. I have
+often wondered at the valor with which you, although so young, bore
+yourself; and there were tales afloat of strange adventures which you
+had undergone in captivity for a time among the infidels."
+
+At Sir Adelbert's request Cuthbert related the story of his adventures
+among the Saracens; and then Blondel, tuning his lute, sang several
+canzonets which he had composed in the Holy Land, of feats of arms and
+adventure.
+
+"How far are you," Cuthbert asked presently, when Blondel laid his lute
+aside, "from the estates which were wrongfully wrested from you?"
+
+"But twenty leagues," the knight said. "My castle was on the Rhine,
+between Coblentz and Mannheim."
+
+"Does the baron know that you are so near?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Methinks that he does not," the knight replied, "but that he deems me
+to have gone to the court of the emperor to seek for redress--which, he
+guesses, I shall certainly fail to obtain."
+
+"How many men have you with you?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"Fifty men, all good and true," the knight said.
+
+"Has it never entered your thoughts to attempt a surprise upon his
+castle?" Cuthbert said.
+
+The knight was silent for a minute.
+
+"At times," he said at length, "thoughts of so doing have occurred to
+me; but the castle is strong, and a surprise would be difficult indeed."
+
+"If the baron is lulled in security at present," Cuthbert said, "and
+deems you afar off, the watch is likely to be relaxed, and with a sudden
+onslaught you might surely obtain possession. Blondel and myself are not
+pressed for time, and the delay of a few days can make but little
+difference. If, therefore, you think we could be of assistance to you in
+such an attempt, my sword, and I am sure that of my friend, would be at
+your disposal."
+
+The knight sat for some time in silence.
+
+"Thanks, generous knight," he said at last, "I am sorely tempted to
+avail myself of your offer; but I fear that the enterprise is hopeless.
+The aid, however, of your arm and knowledge of war would greatly add to
+my chances, and if it pleases you we will ride to-morrow to a point
+where we can obtain a sight of the baron's castle. When you see it you
+shall judge yourself how far such an enterprise as you propose is
+possible."
+
+"Is your own castle intact?" Cuthbert asked.
+
+"The walls are standing," he said; "but a breach has been made in them,
+and at present it is wholly deserted."
+
+"Do you think," Cuthbert asked, "that if you succeeded in surprising and
+defeating the garrison of the castle that you could then regain your
+own, and hold it against your enemy?"
+
+"I think that I could," Sir Adelbert said. "The baron's domains are but
+little larger than my own. Many of my retainers still live upon the
+estate, and would, I am sure, gladly join me, if I were to raise my
+flag. The baron, too, is hated by his neighbors, and could I inflict a
+crushing blow upon him, methinks it would be so long a time before he
+could assemble a force, that I might regain my castle and put it in an
+attitude of defense before he could take the field against me."
+
+"If," Cuthbert said, "we could surprise the castle, it might well be
+that the baron would fall into your hands, and in that case you might be
+able to make your own terms with him. How strong a force is he likely to
+have in his castle?"
+
+"Some fifty or sixty men," the knight replied; "for with such a force he
+could hold the castle against an attack of ten times their number, and
+he could in twelve hours call in his retainers, and raise the garrison
+to three hundred or four hundred men."
+
+Blondel warmly assented to Cuthbert's scheme, and it was settled that at
+daybreak they should start to view the Castle of Rotherheim. At early
+dawn they were in the saddle, and the three rode all day, until toward
+sunset they stood on the crest of a hill looking down into the valley of
+the Rhine.
+
+The present aspect of that valley affords but a slight idea of its
+beauty in those days. The slopes are now clad with vineyards, which,
+although picturesque in idea, are really, to look at from a distance, no
+better than so many turnip fields. The vines are planted in rows and
+trained to short sticks, and as these rows follow the declivities of the
+hillside, they are run in all directions, and the whole mountain side,
+from the river far up, is cut up into little patches of green lines. In
+those days the mountains were clad with forests, which descended nearly
+to the riverside. Here and there, upon craggy points, were situate the
+fortalices of the barons. Little villages nestled in the woods, or stood
+by the river bank, and a fairer scene could not be witnessed in Europe.
+
+"That is Rotherheim," the knight said, pointing to a fortress standing
+on a crag, which rose high above the woods around it; "and that," he
+said, pointing to another some four miles away, similarly placed, "is my
+own."
+
+Cuthbert examined closely the fortress of Rotherheim. It was a large
+building, with towers at the angles, and seemed to rise almost abruptly
+from the edge of the rock. Inside rose the gables and round turrets of
+the dwelling-place of the baron, and the only access was by a steep
+winding path on the riverside.
+
+"It is indeed a strong place," Cuthbert said, "and difficult to take by
+surprise. A watch no doubt is always kept over the entrance, and there
+we can hope for no success. The only plan will be to scale the wall by
+means of a ladder; but how the ladder is to be got to so great a height,
+I own at present passes my comprehension." After much thought, Cuthbert
+went on, "It might, methinks, be practicable for an archer to approach
+the walls, and to shoot an arrow over the angle of the castle so that it
+would pass inside the turret there, and fall in the forest beyond. If to
+this arrow were attached a light cord, it could be gained by one on the
+other side, and a stronger cord hauled over. To this could be attached a
+rope ladder, and so this could be raised to the top of the wall. If a
+sentinel were anywhere near he might hear the rope pulled across the
+battlements; but if, as we may hope, a watch is kept only over the
+entrance, the operation might be performed without attracting notice."
+
+The knight was delighted with the project, which seemed perfectly
+feasible, and it was agreed that the attempt should be made.
+
+"It will need," Sir Adelbert said, "an archer with a strong arm indeed
+to shoot an arrow with a cord attached to it, however light, over the
+corner of the castle."
+
+"Methinks," Cuthbert said, "that I can do that, for as a lad I was used
+to the strong bows of my country. The first thing, however, will be to
+obtain such a bow; but doubtless one can be purchased in one of the
+towns, which, if not so strong as those to which I was accustomed, will
+at any rate suffice for us."
+
+The party bivouacked in the woods for the night, for the horses had
+already done a very long journey, and needed rest before starting back
+for the Black Forest. At daybreak, however, they started, and at
+nightfall rejoined their band. These were delighted when they heard the
+scheme that had been set on foot, and all avowed their eagerness to join
+in the attempt to restore their lord to his rights.
+
+Two days later they set out, having already procured from the nearest
+town a strong bow, some arrows, a very light rope, and a stronger one
+from a portion of which they manufactured a rope ladder capable of
+reaching from the top of the wall to the rock below. The journey this
+time occupied two days, as the men on foot were unable to march at the
+pace at which the mounted party had traversed the ground. The evening
+of the second day, however, saw them in sight of the castle. By
+Cuthbert's advice, Sir Adelbert determined to give them twenty-four
+hours of rest, in order that they might have their full strength for
+undertaking the task before them. During the day Cuthbert, guided by the
+knight, made his way through the woods to the foot of the rocks on which
+the castle stood. They were extremely steep, but could be mounted by
+active men if unopposed from above. Cuthbert measured the height with
+his eye from the top of the castle wall to the place which he selected
+as most fitting from which to shoot the arrow, and announced to the
+knight that he thought there would be no difficulty in discharging an
+arrow over the angle.
+
+At nightfall the whole party made their way silently through the woods.
+Three men were sent round to the side of the castle opposite that from
+which Cuthbert was to shoot. The length of light string was carefully
+coiled on the ground, so as to unwind with the greatest facility, and so
+offer as little resistance to the flight of the arrow as might be. Then,
+all being in readiness, Cuthbert attached the end to an arrow, and
+drawing the bow to its full compass, let fly the arrow. All held their
+breath; but no sound followed the discharge. They were sure, therefore,
+that the arrow had not struck the wall, but that it must have passed
+clear over it. Half an hour elapsed before they felt that the cord was
+pulled, and knew that the men upon the other side had succeeded in
+finding the arrow and string attached. The stronger cord was now
+fastened to that which the arrow had carried, and this gradually
+disappeared in the darkness. A party now stole up the rock, and posted
+themselves at the foot of the castle wall. They took with them the coil
+of rope-ladder and the end of the rope. At length the rope tightened,
+and to the end they attached the ladder. This again ascended until the
+end only remained upon the ground, and they knew that it must have
+reached the top of the wall. They now held fast, and knew that those on
+the other side, following the instructions given them, would have
+fastened the rope to a tree upon the opposite side. They were now joined
+by the rest of the party, and Sir Adelbert leading the way, and followed
+by Cuthbert and Blondel, began cautiously to ascend the rope ladder.
+
+All this time no sound from the castle proclaimed that their intention
+was suspected, or that any alarm had been given, and in silence they
+gained the top of the wall. Here they remained quiet until the whole
+band were gathered there, and then made their way along until they
+reached the stairs leading to the courtyard. These they descended, and
+then, raising his war-cry, Sir Adelbert sprang upon the men who, round a
+fire, were sitting by the gate. These were cut down before they could
+leap to their feet, and the party then rushed at the entrance to the
+dwelling-house. The retainers of the castle, aroused by the sudden din,
+rushed from their sleeping places, but taken completely by surprise,
+were unable to offer any resistance whatever to the strong force which
+had, as if by magic, taken possession of the castle. The surprise was
+complete, and with scarce a blow struck they found themselves in
+possession. The baron himself was seized as he rose from his bed, and
+his rage at finding himself in the power of his enemy was so great as
+for some time to render him speechless. Sir Adelbert briefly dictated to
+him the conditions upon which only he should desist from using his power
+to hang him over his own gate. The baron was instantly to issue orders
+to all his own retainers and tenantry to lend their aid to those of Sir
+Adelbert in putting the castle of the latter into a state of defense and
+mending the breach which existed. A sum of money, equal to the revenues
+of which he had possessed himself, was to be paid at once, and the
+knight was to retain possession of Rotherheim and of the baron's person
+until these conditions were all faithfully carried out. The baron had no
+resource but to assent to these terms, and upon the following day
+Cuthbert and Blondel departed upon their way, overwhelmed with thanks by
+Sir Adelbert, and confident that he would now be able to regain and hold
+the possession of his estate.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+KING RICHARD'S RETURN TO ENGLAND.
+
+
+Journeying onward, Blondel and his companion stopped at many castles,
+and were everywhere hospitably entertained. Arriving at Vienna they
+lingered for some time, hoping there to be able to obtain some
+information of the whereabouts of King Richard. Blondel in his songs
+artfully introduced allusions to the captive monarch and to the mourning
+of all Christendom at the imprisonment of its champion. These allusions
+were always well received, and he found that the great bulk of the
+nobles of the empire were indignant and ashamed at the conduct of the
+emperor in imprisoning his illustrious rival. The secret of his prison
+place, however, appeared to have been so well kept that no information
+whatever was obtainable.
+
+"We must carry out our original plan," he said at length, "and journey
+into the Tyrol. In one of the fortresses there he is most likely to be
+confined."
+
+Leaving the capital they wandered up into the mountains for weeks,
+visiting one castle after another. It was no easy matter in all cases to
+get so near to these prisons as to give a hope that their voice might be
+heard within, or an answer received without. More than once crossbow
+bolts were shot at them from the walls when they did not obey the
+sentinel's challenge and move further away. Generally, however, it was
+in the daytime that they sang. Wandering carelessly up, they would sit
+down within earshot of the castle, open their wallets, and take out
+provisions from their store, and then, having eaten and drunk, Blondel
+would produce his lute and sing, as if for his own pleasure. It needed,
+however, four visits to each castle before they could be sure that the
+captive was not there; for the song had to be sung on each side.
+Sometimes they would cheat themselves with the thought that they heard
+an answering voice; but it was not until the end of the fourth week,
+when singing outside the castle of Diernstein, that a full rich voice,
+when Blondel ceased, sang out the second stanza of the poem. With
+difficulty Blondel and Cuthbert restrained themselves from an
+extravagant exhibition of joy. They knew, however, that men on the
+prison wall were watching them as they sat singing, and Blondel, with a
+final strain taken from a ballad of a knight who, having discovered the
+hiding-place of his lady love, prepared to free her from her oppressors,
+shouldered his lute, and they started on their homeward journey.
+
+There was no delay now. At times they sang indeed at castles; but only
+when their store was exhausted, for upon these occasions Blondel would
+be presented with a handsome goblet or other solid token of the owner's
+approval, and the sale of this at the next city would take them far on
+their way. They thought it better not to pass through France, as Philip,
+they knew, was on the watch to prevent any news of King Richard reaching
+England. They therefore again passed through Brabant, and so by ship to
+England.
+
+Hearing that Longchamp, Bishop of Ely, one of Richard's vicegerents, was
+over in Normandy, and rightly deeming him the most earnest of his
+adherents, they at once recrossed the sea, and found the warlike prelate
+at Rouen. Greatly delighted was he at hearing that Richard's
+hiding-place had been discovered. He at once sent across the news to
+England, and ordered it to be published far and wide, and himself
+announced it to the barons of Normandy. Then with a gorgeous retinue,
+including Cuthbert and Blondel, he started for Vienna, and arriving
+there demanded an interview with the emperor.
+
+The news that it was now certain that Richard was imprisoned in a castle
+of the emperor had already spread through Europe, and the bishop had
+been received everywhere with tokens of sympathy; and so great was the
+feeling shown by the counts and barons of the empire that the Emperor
+Henry felt that he could no longer refuse to treat for the surrender of
+his captive. Therefore he granted the interview which Longchamp
+demanded. The English envoy was received by the emperor surrounded by
+his nobles. The prelate advanced with great dignity.
+
+"I come," he said, "in the name of the people of England to demand the
+restoration of King Richard, most unjustly and unknightly detained a
+prisoner in his passage through your dominions."
+
+"King Richard was my foe," the emperor said, "open and secret, and I was
+justified in detaining one who is alike my enemy and a scourge to Europe
+as a prisoner, when fortune threw him in my hands. I am, however,
+willing to put him to a ransom, and will upon the payment of one hundred
+and fifty thousand marks allow him to go free."
+
+"I deny your right to detain him or to put him to ransom," the bishop
+said. "But as you have the power, so my denial is useless. England is
+poor, impoverished with war and by the efforts which she made in the
+service of our holy religion. Nevertheless, poor as she is, she will
+raise the sum you demand. There is not an Englishman who will not
+furnish all he can afford for the rescue of our king. But once again, in
+the presence of your nobles, I denounce your conduct as base and
+unkingly."
+
+The emperor could with difficulty restrain his passion; but the sight of
+the somber visages of his nobles showed that they shared in no slight
+degree the feelings which the English envoy had so boldly announced.
+
+"Before, however," the emperor said, "I surrender King Richard, he must
+be tried by my peers of many and various crimes of which he is accused.
+Should he be found guilty of these, no gold can purchase his release.
+Should he, however, be acquitted, then as my word is given so shall it
+be."
+
+"Although," the prelate said, "I deny your right to try our king, and
+believe that he himself will refuse to accept your jurisdiction, yet I
+fear not the result if our lord be left in the hands of the nobles of
+the empire and not in yours. I can trust their honor and courtesy."
+
+And turning upon his heel, without another word he quitted the
+apartment.
+
+An hour later the bishop and his following took horse and rode with all
+speed to the north coast, and thence sailed for England. The news of the
+amount of ransom filled the people with consternation; but preparations
+were at once made for collecting the sum demanded. Queen Eleanor was
+unceasing in her efforts to raise the money for the release of her
+favorite son. The nobles contributed their jewels and silver; the people
+gave contributions of goods, for money was so scarce in England that few
+had the wherewithal to pay in coin. Prince John placed every obstacle in
+the way of the collection; but the barons had since their successful
+stand obtained the upper hand, and it was by intrigue only that he could
+hinder the collection.
+
+In the meantime, popular opinion throughout Europe was strong upon the
+side of King Richard. The pope himself wrote to the emperor on his
+behalf. The barons of the empire were indignant at the shame placed upon
+their country; and the emperor, although he would fain have thrown
+further delays in the way, was obliged at last to order the first step
+to be taken.
+
+A solemn diet was ordered to assemble at Worms. Here were collected all
+the nobles of the empire, and before them King Richard was brought. It
+was a grand assembly. Upon a raised throne on the dais sat the emperor
+himself, and beside him and near him were the great feudatories of the
+empire, and along the sides of the walls were ranged in long rows the
+lesser barons. When the doors were opened and King Richard entered, the
+whole assembly, save the emperor, rose in respect to the captive
+monarch. Although pale from his long confinement, the proud air of
+Richard was in no way abated, and the eyes that had flashed so
+fearlessly upon the Saracens looked as sternly down the long lines of
+the barons of Germany. Of splendid stature and physique, King Richard
+was unquestionably the finest man of his time. He was handsome, with a
+frank face, but with a fierce and passionate eye. He wore his mustache
+with a short beard and closely-cut whisker. His short curly hair was
+cropped closely to his head, upon which he wore a velvet cap with gold
+coronet, while a scarlet robe lined with fur fell over his coat of mail,
+for the emperor had deemed it imprudent to excite the feeling of the
+assembly in favor of the prisoner by depriving him of the symbols of his
+rank.
+
+King Richard strode to the place prepared for him, and then turning to
+the assembly he said, in a voice which rang through the hall:
+
+"Counts and lords of the Empire of Germany, I, Richard, King of
+England, do deny your right to try me. I am a king, and can only be
+tried by my peers and by the pope, who is the head of Christendom. I
+might refuse to plead, refuse to take any part in this assembly, and
+appeal to the pope, who alone has power to punish kings. But I will
+waive my rights. I rely upon the honor and probity of the barons of
+Germany. I have done no man wrong, and would appear as fearlessly before
+an assembly of peasants as before a gathering of barons. Such faults as
+I may have, and none are without them, are not such as those with which
+I am charged. I have slain many men in anger, but none by treachery.
+When Richard of England strikes he strikes in the light of day. He
+leaves poison and treachery to his enemies, and I hurl back with
+indignation and scorn in the teeth of him who makes them the charges
+brought against me."
+
+So saying King Richard took his seat amid a murmur of applause from the
+crowded hall.
+
+The trial then commenced. The accusations against Richard were of many
+kinds. Chief among them was the murder of Conrad of Montferat; but there
+were charges of having brought the Crusade to naught by thwarting the
+general plans, by his arrogance in refusing to be bound by the decision
+of the other leaders, and by having made a peace contrary to the
+interests of the Crusaders. The list was a long one; but the evidence
+produced was pitiably weak. Beyond the breath of suspicion, no word of
+real evidence connecting him with the murder of Conrad of Montferat was
+adduced, and the other charges were supported by no better evidence.
+Many of the German barons who had been at the Crusades themselves came
+forward to testify to the falsity of these charges, and the fact that
+Richard had himself placed Conrad of Montferat upon the throne, and had
+no possible interest in his death, was alone more than sufficient to
+nullify the vague rumors brought against him. Richard himself in a few a
+scornful words disposed of this accusation. The accusation that he,
+Richard of England, would stoop to poison a man whom he could have
+crushed in an instant was too absurd to be seriously treated.
+
+"I am sure," the king said, "that not one person here believes this idle
+tale. That I did not always agree with the other leaders is true; but I
+call upon every one here to say whether, had they listened to me and
+followed my advice, the Crusade would not have had another ending. Even
+after Philip of France had withdrawn; even after I had been deserted by
+John of Austria, I led the troops of the Crusaders from every danger and
+every difficulty to within sight of the walls of Jerusalem. Had I been
+supported with zeal, the holy city would have been ours; but the apathy,
+the folly, and the weakness of the leaders brought ruin upon the army.
+They thought not of conquering Jerusalem, but of thwarting me; and I
+retort upon them the charge of having sacrificed the success of the
+Crusade. As to the terms of peace, how were they made? I, with some
+fifty knights and one thousand followers, alone remained in the Holy
+Land. Who else, I ask, so circumstanced, could have obtained any terms
+whatever from Saladin? It was the weight of my arm alone which saved
+Jaffa and Acre, and the line of seacoast, to the Cross. And had I
+followed the example set me by him of Austria and the Frenchman, not one
+foot of the Holy Land would now remain in Christian hands."
+
+The trial was soon over, and without a single dissentient the King of
+England was acquitted of all the charges brought against him. But the
+money was not yet raised, and King Richard was taken back into the
+heart of Germany. At length, by prodigious exertions, half the amount
+claimed was collected, and upon the solicitations of the pope and of the
+counts of his own empire, the emperor consented to release Richard upon
+receipt of this sum, and his royal promise that the remainder should be
+made up.
+
+Not as yet, however, were the intrigues at an end. Prince John and King
+Philip alike implored the emperor to retain his captive, and offered to
+him a larger sum than the ransom if he would still hold him in his
+hands. Popular opinion, was, however, too strong. When the news of these
+negotiations became bruited abroad the counts of the empire, filled with
+indignation, protested against this shame and dishonor being brought
+upon the country. The pope threatened him with excommunication; and at
+last the emperor, feeling that he would risk his throne did he further
+insist, was forced to open the prison gates and let the king free.
+Cuthbert, Blondel, and a few other trusty friends were at hand, and
+their joy at receiving their long-lost sovereign was indeed intense.
+Horses had been provided in readiness, and without a moment's delay the
+king started, for even at the last moment it was feared that the emperor
+might change his mind. This indeed was the case. The king had not
+started many hours, when the arrival of fresh messengers from Philip and
+John induced the emperor once more to change his intentions, and a body
+of men were sent in pursuit of the king. The latter fortunately made no
+stay on the way, but changing horses frequently--for everywhere he was
+received with honor and attention--he pushed forward for the coast of
+the North Sea, and arrived there two or three hours only before his
+oppressors. Fortunately it was night, and taking a boat he embarked
+without a moment's delay; and when the emissaries of the emperor arrived
+the boat was already out of sight, and in the darkness pursuit was
+hopeless.
+
+On landing at Dover, the first to present himself before him was Prince
+John, who, in the most abject terms besought pardon for the injuries he
+had inflicted. King Richard waved him contemptuously aside.
+
+"Go," he said, "and may I forget your injuries as speedily as you will
+forget my pardon."
+
+Then taking horse, he rode on to London, where he was received with the
+most lively acclamation by his subjects.
+
+The first step of King Richard was to dispossess all the minions of John
+from the castles and lands which had been taken from his faithful
+adherents. Some of these resisted; but their fortresses were speedily
+stormed. Sir Rudolph was not one of these. Immediately the news of King
+Richard's arrival in England reached him, feeling that all was now lost,
+he rode to the seacoast, took ship, and passed into France, and
+Cuthbert, on his arrival at Evesham, found himself undisputed lord of
+the place. He found that the hiding-place of his mother had not been
+discovered, and, after a short delay to put matters in train, he,
+attended by a gallant retinue, rode into Wiltshire to the castle of Sir
+Baldwin of Bethune. Here he found the Lady Margaret safe and sound, and
+mightily pleased to see him. She was now seventeen, and offered no
+objections whatever to the commands of King Richard that she should at
+once bestow her hand upon the Earl of Evesham. By the king's order, the
+wedding took place at London, the king himself bestowing the bride upon
+his faithful follower, whom we may now leave to the enjoyment of the
+fortune and wife he had so valiantly won.
+
+
+
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Boy Knight, by G.A. Henty
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