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diff --git a/25502-0.txt b/25502-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5e6a249 --- /dev/null +++ b/25502-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,14825 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Hero-Myths & Legends of the British Race, by +Maud Isabel Ebbutt + +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: Hero-Myths & Legends of the British Race + +Author: Maud Isabel Ebbutt + +Release Date: May 17, 2008 [EBook #25502] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HERO-MYTHS *** + + + + +Produced by Ted Garvin, Sam W. and the Online Distributed +Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + + +Transcriber's Note + +The Glossary and Index includes a pronunciation of the Anglo-Saxon +names in the text. These include some characters with a macron (straight +line) above, and some with a breve (u-shaped symbol) above. Also used +is the accute accent (´). If these do not display properly, you may need +to adjust your font settings. + + + + + HERO-MYTHS & LEGENDS + OF THE BRITISH RACE + + BY + M. I. EBBUTT M. A. + + + WITH FIFTY-ONE FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS BY + + J. H. F. BACON A.R.A. BYAM SHAW + W. H. MARGETSON R.I. GERTRUDE + DEMAIN HAMMOND AND OTHERS + + + [Illustration] + + + GEORGE G. HARRAP & COMPANY LTD. + LONDON CALCUTTA SYDNEY + + + + +[Illustration: Robin Hood and the Black Monk + +William Sewell + +[_Page 331_]] + + + + +_First published August 1910_ +_by GEORGE G. HARRAP & CO._ +_39-41 Parker Street, Kingsway, London, W.C.2_ + +_Reprinted: October 1910_ + _September 1911_ + _December 1914_ + _May 1916_ + _December 1917_ + _February 1920_ + _June 1924_ + + +_Printed in Great Britain at THE BALLANTYNE PRESS by_ +SPOTTISWOODE, BALLANTYNE & CO. LTD. +_Colchester, London & Eton_ + + + + + TO + + MISS JULIA KENNEDY + + IN TOKEN OF THE ADMIRATION + AND AFFECTION OF AN + OLD PUPIL + THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED + + + + +PREFACE + + +In refashioning, for the pleasure of readers of the twentieth century, +these versions of ancient tales which have given pleasure to +story-lovers of all centuries from the eighth onward, I feel that some +explanation of my choice is necessary. Men's conceptions of the heroic +change with changing years, and vary with each individual mind; hence +it often happens that one person sees in a legend only the central +heroism, while another sees only the inartistic details of mediæval +life which tend to disguise and warp the heroic quality. + +It may be that to some people the heroes I have chosen do not seem +heroic, but there is no doubt that to the age and generation which +wrote or sang of them they appeared real heroes, worthy of remembrance +and celebration, and it has been my object to come as close as +possible to the mediæval mind, with its elementary conceptions of +honour, loyalty, devotion, and duty. I have therefore altered the +tales as little as I could, and have tried to put them as fairly as +possible before modern readers, bearing in mind the altered conditions +of things and of intellects to-day. + +In the work of selecting and retelling these stories I have to +acknowledge with most hearty thanks the help and advice of Mr. F. E. +Bumby, B.A., of the University College, Nottingham, who has been +throughout a most kind and candid censor or critic. His help has been +in every way invaluable. I have also to acknowledge the generous +permission given me by Mr. W. B. Yeats to write in prose the story of +his beautiful play, "The Countess Cathleen," and to adorn it with +quotations from that play. + +The poetical quotations are attributed to the authors from whose +works they are taken wherever it is possible. When mediæval passages +occur which are not thus attributed they are my own versions from the +original mediæval poems. + + M. I. EBBUTT + + TANGLEWOOD + BARNT GREEN + _July 1910_ + + + + +CONTENTS + + + CHAP. PAGE + INTRODUCTION xvii + + I. BEOWULF 1 + + II. THE DREAM OF MAXEN WLEDIG 42 + + III. THE STORY OF CONSTANTINE AND ELENE 50 + + IV. THE COMPASSION OF CONSTANTINE 63 + + V. HAVELOK THE DANE 73 + + VI. HOWARD THE HALT 95 + + VII. ROLAND, THE HERO OF EARLY FRANCE 119 + + VIII. THE COUNTESS CATHLEEN 156 + + IX. CUCHULAIN, THE CHAMPION OF IRELAND 184 + + X. THE TALE OF GAMELYN 204 + + XI. WILLIAM OF CLOUDESLEE 225 + + XII. BLACK COLIN OF LOCH AWE 248 + + XIII. THE MARRIAGE OF SIR GAWAYNE 265 + + XIV. KING HORN 286 + + XV. ROBIN HOOD 314 + + XVI. HEREWARD THE WAKE 334 + + GLOSSARY AND INDEX 353 + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + + + PAGE + Robin Hood and the Black Monk + (_William Sewell_) _Frontispiece_ + + _To face page_ + "The demon of evil, with his fierce ravening, greedily + grasped them" + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 4 + + Beowulf replies haughtily to Hunferth + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 12 + + Beowulf finds the head of Aschere + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 22 + + Beowulf shears off the head of Grendel + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 26 + + The death of Beowulf + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 40 + + The dream of the Emperor + (_Byam Shaw_) 46 + + The Queen's dilemma + (_Byam Shaw_) 60 + + They filled the great vessel of silver with pure water + (_Byam Shaw_) 70 + + "Havelok sat up surprised" + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 78 + + "Havelok again overthrew the porters" + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 82 + + "With great joy they fell on their knees" + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 88 + + Olaf and Sigrid + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 98 + + Howard leaves the house of Thorbiorn + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 106 + + "The silver rolled in all directions from his cloak" + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 110 + + "Thorbiorn lifted the huge stone" + (_J. H. F. Bacon, A.R.A._) 116 + + Charlemagne + (_Stella Langdale_) 120 + + "Here sits Charles the King" + (_Byam Shaw_) 124 + + "Ganelon rode away" + (_Byam Shaw_) 130 + + "Charlemagne heard it again" + (_Byam Shaw_) 144 + + Aude the Fair + (_Evelyn Paul_) 154 + + "Day by day Cathleen went among them" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 162 + + The peasant's story + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 172 + + "Thieves have broken into the treasure-chamber" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 176 + + "Cathleen signed the bond" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 180 + + "All three drove furiously towards Cruachan" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 190 + + "Three monstrous cats were let into the room" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 192 + + "The dragon sank towards him, opening its terrible jaws" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 196 + + "The body of Uath arose" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 200 + + "Go and do your own baking!" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 206 + + "Lords, for Christ's sake help poor Gamelyn out of prison!" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 214 + + "Then cheer thee, Adam" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 218 + + "Come from the seat of justice!" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 222 + + "William continued his wonderful archery" + (_Patten Wilson_) 232 + + Adam Bell writes the letter + (_Patten Wilson_) 234 + + The fight at the gate + (_Patten Wilson_) 238 + + William of Cloudeslee and his son + (_Patten Wilson_) 244 + + "Wait for me seven years, dear wife" + (_Byam Shaw_) 252 + + "The King blew a loud note on his bugle" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 268 + + "Now you have released me from the spell completely" + (_W. H. Margetson, R.I._) 282 + + Queen Godhild prays ever for her son Horn + (_Patten Wilson_) 288 + + Horn kills the Saracen Leader + (_Patten Wilson_) 298 + + Horn and his followers disguised as minstrels + (_Patten Wilson_) 312 + + "Little John caught the horse by the bridle" + (_Patten Wilson_) 316 + + "I have no money worth offering" + (_Patten Wilson_) 320 + + "Sir Richard knelt in courteous salutation" + (_Patten Wilson_) 324 + + "Much shot the monk to the heart" + (_Patten Wilson_) 330 + + "Her pleading won relief for them" + (_Gertrude Demain Hammond, R.I._) 334 + + Alftruda + (_Gertrude Demain Hammond, R.I._) 340 + + Hereward and the Princess + (_Gertrude Demain Hammond, R.I._) 344 + + Hereward and Sigtryg + (_Gertrude Demain Hammond, R.I._) 348 + + + + +INTRODUCTION + + +The writer who would tell again for people of the twentieth century +the legends and stories that delighted the folk of the thirteenth and +fourteenth centuries finds himself confronted with a vast mass of +material ready to his hand. Unless he exercises a wise discrimination +and has some system of selection, he becomes lost in the mazes of as +enchanted a land, + + "Where Truth and Dream walk hand in hand,"[1] + +as ever bewildered knights of old in days of romance. Down all the +dimly lighted pathways of mediæval literature mystical figures beckon +him in every direction; fairies, goblins, witches, knights and ladies +and giants entice him, and unless, like Theseus of old, he follows +closely his guiding clue, he will find that he reaches no goal, +attains to no clear vision, achieves no quest. He will remain +spell-bound, captivated by the Middle Ages-- + + "The life, the delight, and the sorrow + Of troublous and chivalrous years + That knew not of night nor of morrow, + Of hopes or of fears. + The wars and the woes and the glories + That quicken, and lighten, and rain + From the clouds of its chronicled stories + The passion, the pride, and the pain."[2] + +Such a golden clue to guide the modern seeker through the labyrinths +of the mediæval mind is that which I have tried to suggest in the +title "_Hero_-Myths and Legends of the British Race"--the pursuit and +representation of the ideal hero as the mind of Britain and of early +and mediæval England imagined him, together with the study of the +characteristics which made this or that particular person, mythical or +legendary, a hero to the century which sang or wrote about him. The +interest goes deeper when we study, not merely + + "Old heroes who could grandly do + As they could greatly dare,"[3] + +but + + "Heroes of our island breed + And men and women of our British birth."[4] + +"Hero-worship endures for ever while man endures," wrote Thomas +Carlyle, and this fidelity of men to their admiration for great heroes +is one of the surest tokens by which we can judge of their own +character. Such as the hero is, such will his worshippers be; and the +men who idolised Robin Hood will be found to have been men who were +themselves in revolt against oppressive law, or who, finding law +powerless to prevent tyranny, glorified the lawless punishment of +wrongs and the bold denunciation of perverted justice. The warriors +who listened to the saga of Beowulf looked on physical prowess as the +best of all heroic qualities, and the Normans who admired Roland saw +in him the ideal of feudal loyalty. To every age, and to every nation, +there is a peculiar ideal of heroism, and in the popular legends of +each age this ideal may be found. + +Again, these legends give not only the hero as he seemed to his age; +they also show the social life, the virtues and vices, the +superstitions and beliefs, of earlier ages embedded in the tradition, +as fossils are found in the uplifted strata of some ancient ocean-bed. +They have ceased to live; but they remain, tokens of a life long past. +So in the hero-legends of our nation we may find traces of the +thoughts and religions of our ancestors many centuries ago; traces +which lie close to one another in these romances, telling of the +nations who came to these Islands of the West, settled, were conquered +and driven away to make room for other races whose supremacy has been +as brief, till all these superimposed races have blended into one, to +form the British nation, the most widespread race of modern times. For + + "Britain's might and Britain's right + And the brunt of British spears"[5] + +are not the boast of the English race alone. No man in England now can +boast of unmixed descent, but must perforce trace his family back +through many a marriage of Frank, and Norman, and Saxon, and Dane, and +Roman, and Celt, and even Iberian, back to prehistoric man-- + + "Scot and Celt and Norman and Dane, + With the Northman's sinew and heart and brain, + And the Northman's courage for blessing or bane, + Are England's heroes too."[6] + +When Tennyson sang his greeting at the coming of Alexandra, + + "Saxon or Dane or Norman we, + Teuton or Celt or whatever we be," + +he was only recognising a truth which no boast of pure birth can +cover--the truth that the modern Englishman is a compound of many +races, with many characteristics; and if we would understand him, we +must seek the clue to the riddle in early England and Scotland and +Ireland and Wales, while even France adds her share of enlightenment +towards the solution of the riddle. + + "The Saxon force, the Celtic fire, + These are thy manhood's heritage."[7] + +Britain, as far as we can trace men in our island, was first inhabited +by cave-men, who have left no history at all. In the course of ages +they passed away before the Iberians or Ivernians, who came from the +east, and bore a striking resemblance to the Basques. It may be that +some Mongolian tribe, wandering west, drawn by the instinct which has +driven most race-migrations westward, sent offshoots north and +south--one to brave the dangers of the sea and inhabit Britain and +Ireland, one to cross the Pyrenees and remain sheltered in their deep +ravines; or it may be that Basques from the Pyrenees, daring the +storms of the Bay of Biscay in their frail coracles, ventured to the +shores of Britain. Short and dark were these sturdy voyagers, +harsh-featured and long-headed, worshipping the powers of Nature with +mysterious and cruel rites of human sacrifice, holding beliefs in +totems and ancestor-worship and in the superiority of high descent +claimed through the mother to that claimed through the father. When +the stronger and more civilised Celt came he drove before him these +little dark men, he enslaved their survivors or wedded their women, +and in his turn fell into slavery to the cruel Druidic religion of his +subjects. To these Iberians, and to the Celtic dread of them, we +probably owe all the stories of dwarfs, goblins, elves, and +earth-gnomes which fill our fairy-tale books; and if we examine +carefully the descriptions of the abodes of these beings we shall find +them not inconsistent with the earth-dwellings, caves, circle huts, or +even with the burial mounds, of the Iberian race. + +The race that followed the Iberians, and drove them out or subdued +them, so that they served as slaves where they had once ruled as +lords, was the proud Aryan Celtic race. Of different tribes, Gaels, +Brythons, and Belgæ, they were all one in spirit, and one in physical +feature. + +Tall, blue-eyed, with fair or red hair, they overpowered in every way +the diminutive Iberians, and their tattooing, while it gave them a +name which has often been mistaken for a national designation (Picts, +or painted men), made them dreadful to their enemies in battle, and +ferocious-looking even in time of peace. Their civilisation was of a +much higher type than that of the Iberians; their weapons, their +war-chariots, their mode of life and their treatment of women, are all +so closely similar to that of the Greeks of Homer that a theory has +been advanced and ably defended, that the Homeric Greeks were really +invading Celts--Gaelic or Gaulish tribes from the north of Europe. If +it indeed be so, we owe to the Celts a debt of imperishable culture +and civilisation. To them belongs more especially, in our national +amalgam, the passion for the past, the ardent patriotism, the longing +for spiritual beauty, which raises and relieves the Saxon materialism. + + "Though fallen the state of Erin and changed the Scottish land, + Though small the power of Mona, though unwaked Llewellyn's band, + Though Ambrose Merlin's prophecies are held as idle tales, + Though Iona's ruined cloisters are swept by northern gales, + One in name and in fame + Are the sea-divided Gaels. + + "In Northern Spain and Italy our brethren also dwell, + And brave are the traditions of their fathers that they tell; + The Eagle or the Crescent in the dawn of history pales + Before the advancing banners of the great Rome-conquering Gaels: + One in name and in fame + Are the sea-divided Gaels."[8] + +It is almost impossible to overestimate the value of the Celtic +contribution to our national literature and character: the race that +gave us Ossian, and Finn, and Cuchulain, that sang of the sorrowful +love and doom of Deirdre, that told of the pursuit of Diarmit and +Grania, till every dolmen and cromlech in Ireland was associated with +these lovers; the race that preserved for us + + "That grey king whose name, a ghost, + Streams like a cloud, man-shaped, from mountain-peak + And cleaves to cairn and cromlech still,"[9] + +the King Arthur whose Arthur's Seat overhangs Edinburgh, whose +presence haunts the Lakes, and Wales, and Cornwall, and the forests of +Brittany; the race that held up for us the image of the Holy +Grail--that race can claim no small share in the moulding of the +modern Briton. + +The Celt, however, had his day of supremacy and passed: the Roman +crushed his power of initiative and made him helpless and dependent, +and the Teuton, whether as Saxon, Angle, Frisian, or Jute, dwelt in +his homes and ruled as slaves the former owners of the land. These +new-comers were not physically unlike the Celts whom they +dispossessed. Tall and fair, grey-eyed and sinewy, the Teuton was a +hardier, more sturdy warrior than the Celt: he had not spent centuries +of quiet settlement and imitative civilisation under the ægis of +Imperial Rome: he had not learnt to love the arts of peace and he +cultivated none but those of war; he was by choice a warrior and a +sailor, a wanderer to other lands, a plougher of the desolate places +of the "vasty deep," yet withal a lover of home, who trod at times, +with bitter longing for his native land, the thorny paths of exile. To +him physical cowardice was the unforgivable sin, next to treachery to +his lord; for the loyalty of thane to his chieftain was a very deep +and abiding reality to the Anglo-Saxon warrior, and in the early poems +of our English race, love for "his dear lord, his chieftain-friend," +takes the place of that love of woman which other races felt and +expressed. A quiet death bed was the worst end to a man's life, in the +Anglo-Saxon's creed; it was "a cow's death," to be shunned by every +means in a man's power; while a death in fight, victor or vanquished, +was a worthy finish to a warrior's life. There was no fear of death +itself in the English hero's mind, nor of Fate; the former was the +inevitable, + + "Seeing that Death, a necessary end, + Will come when it will come,"[10] + +and the latter a goddess whose decrees must needs be obeyed with proud +submission, but not with meek acceptance. Perhaps there was little of +spiritual insight in the minds of these Angles and Saxons, little love +of beauty, little care for the amenities of life; but they had a +sturdy loyalty, an uprightness, a brave disregard of death in the +cause of duty, which we can still recognise in modern Englishmen. To +the Saxon belong the tales where + + "The warrior kings, + In height and prowess more than human, strive + Again for glory, while the golden lyre + Is ever sounding in heroic ears + Heroic hymns."[11] + +When the English (Anglo-Saxons, as we generally call them) had settled +down in England, had united their warring tribes, and developed a +somewhat centralised government, their whole national existence was +imperilled by the incursions of the Danes. Kindred folk to the +Anglo-Saxons were these Danes, these Vikings from Christiania Wik, +these Northmen from Norway or Iceland, whose fame went before them, +and the dread of whom inspired the petition in the old Litany of the +Church, "From the fury of the Northmen, good Lord, deliver us!" Their +fair hair and blue or grey eyes, their tall and muscular frames, bore +testimony to their kinship with the races they harried and plundered, +but their spirit was different from that of the conquered Teutonic +tribes. The Viking _loved_ the sea; it was his summer home, his field +of war and profit. To go "a-summer-harrying" was the usual employment +of the true Viking, and in the winter only could he enjoy domestic +life and the pleasures of the family circle. The rapturous fight with +the elements, in which the Northman lived and moved and had his being, +gave him a strain of ruthless cruelty unlike anything in the more +peaceful Anglo-Saxon character: his disregard of death for himself led +to a certain callousness with regard to human life, and to a certain +enjoyment in inflicting physical anguish. There was an element of Red +Indian ruthlessness in the Viking, which looms large in the story of +the years of Norse ascendancy over Western Europe. Yet there was also +a power of bold and daring action, of reckless valour, of rapid +conception and execution, which contrasted strongly with the slower +and more placid temperament of the Anglo-Saxon, and to this Danish +strain modern Englishmen probably owe the power of initiative, the +love of adventure, and the daring action which have made England the +greatest colonising nation on the earth. The Danish, Norse, or Viking +element spread far and wide in mediæval Europe--Iceland, Normandy +(Northman's Land), the Isle of Man, the Hebrides, the east of +Ireland, the Danelagh of East Anglia, and the Cumberland dales all +show traces of the conquering Danish race; and raider after raider +came to England and stayed, until half of our island was Danish, and +even our royal family became for a time one with the royal line of +Denmark. The acceptance of Christianity by the Danes in England when +Guthrum was baptized rendered much more easy their amalgamation with +the English; but it was not so in Ireland, where the Round Towers +still stand to show (as some authorities hold) how the terrified +native Irish sheltered from the Danish fury which nearly destroyed the +whole fabric of Irish Christianity. The legends of Ireland, too, are +full of the terror of the men of "Lochlann," which is generally taken +to mean Norway; and the great coast cities of Ireland--Dublin, Cork, +Waterford, Wexford, and others--were so entirely Danish that only the +decisive battle of Clontarf, in which the saintly and victorious Brian +Boru was slain, saved Ireland to Christendom and curbed the power of +the heathen invaders. + +A second wave of Norse invasion swept over England at the Norman +Conquest, and for a time submerged the native English population. The +chivalrous Norman knights who followed William of Normandy's sacred +banner, whether from religious zeal or desire of plunder, were as +truly Vikings by race as were the Danes who settled in the Danelagh. +The days when Rolf (Rollo, or Rou), the Viking chief, won Normandy +were not yet so long gone by that the fierce piratical instincts of +his followers had ceased to influence their descendants: piety and +learning, feudal law and custom, had made some impression upon the +character of the Norman, but at heart he was still a Northman. The +Norman barons fought for their independence against Duke William with +all the determination of those Norse chiefs who would not acknowledge +the overlordship of Harold Fairhair, but fled to colonise Iceland when +he made himself King of Norway. The seafaring instincts which drove +the Vikings to harry other lands in like manner drove the Normans to +piratical plundering up and down the English Channel, and, when they +had settled in England, led to continual sea-fights in the Channel +between English and French, hardy Kentish and Norman, or Cornish and +Breton, sailors, with a common strain of fighting blood, and a common +love of the sea. + +The Norman Conquest of England was but one instance of Norman +activity: Sicily, Italy, Constantinople, even Antioch, and the Holy +Land itself, showed in time Norman states, Norman laws, Norman +civilisation, and all alike felt the impulse of Norman energy and +inspiration. England lay ready to hand for Norman invasion--the hope +of peaceable succession to the saintly Edward the Confessor had to be +abandoned by William; the gradual permeation of sluggish England with +Norman earls, churchmen, courtiers, had been comprehended and checked +by Earl Godwin and his sons (themselves of Danish race); but there +still remained the way of open war and an appeal to religious zeal; +and this way William took. There was genius as well as statesmanship +in the idea of combining a personal claim to the throne held by Harold +the usurper with a crusading summons against the schismatic and +heretical English, who refused obedience to the true successor of St. +Peter. The success of the idea was its justification: the success of +the expedition proved the need that England had of some new leaven to +energise the sluggish temperament of her sons. The Norman Conquest not +only revived and quickened, but unified and solidified the English +nation. The tyranny of the Norman nobles, held in check at first only +by the tyranny of the Norman king, was the factor in mediæval English +life that made for a national consciousness; it also helped the +appreciation of the heroism of revolt against tyranny which is seen in +Hereward the Wake, in Robin Hood, in William of Cloudeslee, and in +many other English hero-rebels; but it gradually led men to a +realization of their own rights as Englishmen. When all men alike felt +themselves sons of England, the days were past when Norman and Saxon +were aliens to each other, and Norman robber soon became as truly +English as Danish viking, Anglo-Saxon seafarer, or Celtic settler. +Then the full value of the Norman infusion was seen in quicker +intellectual apprehension, nimbler wit, a keener sense of reverence, a +more spiritual piety, a more refined courtesy, and a more enlightened +perception of the value of law. The materialism of the original Saxon +race was successively modified by many influences, and not least of +these was the Norman Conquest. + +From the Norman Conquest onward England has welcomed men of many +nations--French, Flemings, Germans, Dutch: men brought by war, by +trade, by love of adventure, by religion; traders, refugees, exiles, +all have found in her a hospitable shelter and a second home, and all +have come to love the "grey old mother" that counted them among her +sons and grew to think them her own in very truth. + +Geographically, also, we must recognise the admixture of races in our +islands. The farthest western borders show most strongly the type of +man whom we can imagine the Iberian to have been: Western Ireland, the +Hebrides, Central and South Wales, and Cornwall are still inhabited by +folk of Iberian descent. The blue-eyed Celt yet dwells in the +Highlands and the greater part of Wales and the Marches--Hereford and +Shropshire, and as far as Worcestershire and Cheshire; still the +Dales of Cumberland, the Fen Country, East Anglia, and the Isle of Man +show traces of Danish blood, speech, manners, and customs; still the +slow, stolid Saxon inhabits the lands south of the Thames from Sussex +to Hampshire and Dorset. The Angle has settled permanently over the +Lowlands of Scotland, with the Celt along the western fringe, and +Flemish blood shows its traces in Pembroke on the one side ("Little +England beyond Wales") and in Norfolk on the other. + +With all these nations, all these natures, amalgamated in our own, it +is no wonder that the literature of our isles contains many different +ideals of heroism, changing according to nationality and epoch. Thus +the physical valour of Beowulf is not the same quality as the valour +of Havelok the Dane, though both are heroes of the strong arm; and the +chivalry of Diarmit is not the same as the chivalry of Roland. Again, +religion has its share in changing the ideals of a nation, and +Constantine, the warrior of the Early English poem of "Elene," is far +from being the same in character as the tender-hearted Constantine of +"moral Gower's" apocryphal tale. The law-abiding nature of the +earliest heroes, whose obedience to their king and their priest was +absolute, differs almost entirely from the lawlessness of Gamelyn and +Robin Hood, both of whom set church and king at defiance, and even +account it a merit to revolt from the rule of both. It follows from +this that we shall find our chosen heroes of very different types and +characters; but we shall recognise that each represented to his own +age an ideal of heroism, which that age loved sufficiently to put into +literature, and perpetuate by the best means in its power. Of many +another hero besides Arthur--of Barbarossa, of Hiawatha, even of +Napoleon--has the tradition grown that he is not dead, but has passed +away into the deathless land, whence he shall come again in his own +time. As Tennyson has sung, + + "Great bards of him will sing + Hereafter; and dark sayings from of old + Ranging and ringing through the minds of men, + And echoed by old folk beside their fires + For comfort after their wage-work is done, + Speak of the King." + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Lightfoot. + +[2] Swinburne. + +[3] Gerald Massey. + +[4] J. R. Denning. + +[5] W. W. Campbell. + +[6] _Ibid._ + +[7] C. Roberts. + +[8] T. Darcy McGee. + +[9] Tennyson. + +[10] Shakespeare, _Julius Cæsar_. + +[11] Tennyson. + + + + +CHAPTER I: BEOWULF + + +Introduction + +The figure which meets us as we enter on the study of Heroes of the +British Race is one which appeals to us in a very special way, since +he is the one hero in whose legend we may see the ideals of our +English forefathers before they left their Continental home to settle +in this island. Opinions may differ as to the date at which the poem +of "Beowulf" was written, the place in which it was localised, and the +religion of the poet who combined the floating legends into one epic +whole, but all must accept the poem as embodying the life and feelings +of our Forefathers who dwelt in North Germany on the shores of the +North Sea and of the Baltic. The life depicted, the characters +portrayed, the events described, are such as a simple warrior race +would cherish in tradition and legend as relics of the life lived by +their ancestors in what doubtless seemed to them the Golden Age. +Perhaps stories of a divine Beowa, hero and ancestor of the English, +became merged in other myths of sun-hero and marsh-demon, but in any +case the stories are now crystallized around one central human figure, +who may even be considered an historical hero, Beowulf, the thane of +Hygelac, King of the Geats. It is this grand primitive hero who +embodies the ideal of English heroism. Bold to rashness for himself, +prudent for his comrades, daring, resourceful, knowing no fear, loyal +to his king and his kinsmen, generous in war and in peace, +self-sacrificing, Beowulf stands for all that is best in manhood in an +age of strife. It is fitting that our first British hero should be +physically and mentally strong, brave to seek danger and brave to look +on death and Fate undaunted, one whose life is a struggle against +evil forces, and whose death comes in a glorious victory over the +powers of evil, a victory gained for the sake of others to whom +Beowulf feels that he owes protection and devotion. + + +The Story. The Coming and Passing of Scyld + +Once, long ago, the Danish land owned the sway of a mighty monarch, +Scyld Scefing, the founder of a great dynasty, the Scyldings. This +great king Scyld had come to Denmark in a mysterious manner, since no +man knew whence he sprang. As a babe he drifted to the Danish shore in +a vessel loaded with treasures; but no man was with him, and there was +no token to show his kindred and race. When Scyld grew up he increased +the power of Denmark and enlarged her borders; his fame spread far and +wide among men, and his glory shone undimmed until the day when, full +of years and honours, he died, leaving the throne securely established +in his family. Then the sorrowing Danes restored him to the mysterious +ocean from which he had come to them. Choosing their goodliest ship, +they laid within it the corpse of their departed king, and heaped +around him all their best and choicest treasures, until the venerable +countenance of Scyld looked to heaven from a bed of gold and jewels; +then they set up, high above his head, his glorious gold-wrought +banner, and left him alone in state. The vessel was loosed from the +shore where the mourning Danes bewailed their departing king, and +drifted slowly away to the unknown west from which Scyld had sailed to +his now sorrowing people; they watched until it was lost in the +shadows of night and distance, but no man under heaven knoweth what +shore now holds the vanished Scyld. The descendants of Scyld ruled and +prospered till the days of his great-grandson Hrothgar, one of a +family of four, who can all be identified historically with various +Danish kings and princes. + + +Hrothgar's Hall + +Hrothgar was a mighty warrior and conqueror, who won glory in battle, +and whose fame spread wide among men, so that nobly born warriors, his +kinsmen, were glad to serve as his bodyguard and to fight for him +loyally in strife. So great was Hrothgar's power that he longed for +some outward sign of the magnificence of his sway; he determined to +build a great hall, in which he could hold feasts and banquets, and +could entertain his warriors and thanes, and visitors from afar. The +hall rose speedily, vast, gloriously adorned, a great meeting-place +for men; for Hrothgar had summoned all his people to the work, and the +walls towered up high and majestic, ending in pinnacles and gables +resembling the antlers of a stag. At the great feast which Hrothgar +gave first in his new home the minstrels chanted the glory of the +hall, "Heorot," "The Hart," as the king named it; Hrothgar's desire +was well fulfilled, that he should build the most magnificent of +banquet-halls. Proud were the mighty warriors who feasted within it, +and proud the heart of the king, who from his high seat on the daïs +saw his brave thanes carousing at the long tables below him, and the +lofty rafters of the hall rising black into the darkness. + + +Grendel + +Day by day the feasting continued, until its noise and the festal joy +of its revellers aroused a mighty enemy, Grendel, the loathsome +fen-monster. This monstrous being, half-man, half-fiend, dwelt in the +fens near the hill on which Heorot stood. Terrible was he, dangerous +to men, of extraordinary strength, human in shape but gigantic of +stature, covered with a green horny skin, on which the sword would not +bite. His race, all sea-monsters, giants, goblins, and evil demons, +were offspring of Cain, outcasts from the mercy of the Most High, +hostile to the human race; and Grendel was one of mankind's most +bitter enemies; hence his hatred of the joyous shouts from Heorot, and +his determination to stop the feasting. + + "This the dire mighty fiend, he who in darkness dwelt, + Suffered with hatred fierce, that every day and night + He heard the festal shouts loud in the lofty hall; + Sound of harp echoed there, and gleeman's sweet song. + Thus they lived joyously, fearing no angry foe + Until the hellish fiend wrought them great woe. + Grendel that ghost was called, grisly and terrible, + Who, hateful wanderer, dwelt in the moorlands, + The fens and wild fastnesses; the wretch for a while abode + In homes of the giant-race, since God had cast him out. + When night on the earth fell, Grendel departed + To visit the lofty hall, now that the warlike Danes + After the gladsome feast nightly slept in it. + A fair troop of warrior-thanes guarding it found he; + Heedlessly sleeping, they recked not of sorrow. + The demon of evil, the grim wight unholy, + With his fierce ravening, greedily grasped them, + Seized in their slumbering thirty right manly thanes; + Thence he withdrew again, proud of his lifeless prey, + Home to his hiding-place, bearing his booty, + In peace to devour it." + +[Illustration: "The demon of evil, with his fierce ravening, greedily +grasped them"] + +When dawn broke, and the Danes from their dwellings around the hall +entered Heorot, great was the lamentation, and dire the dismay, for +thirty noble champions had vanished, and the blood-stained tracks of +the monster showed but too well the fate that had overtaken them. +Hrothgar's grief was profound, for he had lost thirty of his dearly +loved bodyguard, and he himself was too old to wage a conflict against +the foe--a foe who repeated night by night his awful deeds, in +spite of all that valour could do to save the Danes from his terrible +enmity. At last no champion would face the monster, and the Danes, in +despair, deserted the glorious hall of which they had been so proud. +Useless stood the best of dwellings, for none dared remain in it, but +every evening the Danes left it after their feast, and slept +elsewhere. This affliction endured for twelve years, and all that time +the beautiful hall of Heorot stood empty when darkness was upon it. By +night the dire fiend visited it in search of prey, and in the morning +his footsteps showed that his deadly enmity was not yet appeased, but +that any effort to use the hall at night would bring down his fatal +wrath on the careless sleepers. + +Far and wide spread the tidings of this terrible oppression, and many +champions came from afar to offer King Hrothgar their aid, but none +was heroic enough to conquer the monster, and many a mighty warrior +lost his life in a vain struggle against Grendel. At length even these +bold adventurers ceased to come; Grendel remained master of Heorot, +and the Danes settled down in misery under the bondage of a perpetual +nightly terror, while Hrothgar grew old in helpless longing for +strength to rescue his people from their foe. + + +Beowulf + +Meanwhile there had come to manhood and full strength a hero destined +to make his name famous for mighty deeds of valour throughout the +whole of the Teutonic North. In the realm of the Geats (Götaland, in +the south of Sweden) ruled King Hygelac, a mighty ruler who was +ambitious enough to aim at conquering his neighbours on the mainland +of Germany. His only sister, daughter of the dead king Hrethel, had +married a great noble, Ecgtheow, and they had one son, Beowulf, who +from the age of seven was brought up at the Geatish court. The boy was +a lad of great stature and handsome appearance, with fair locks and +gallant bearing; but he greatly disappointed his grandfather, King +Hrethel, by his sluggish character. Beowulf as a youth had been +despised by all for his sloth and his unwarlike disposition; his +good-nature and his rarely stirred wrath made others look upon him +with scorn, and the mighty stature to which he grew brought him +nothing but scoffs and sneers and insults in the banquet-hall when the +royal feasts were held. Yet wise men might have seen the promise of +great strength in his powerful sinews and his mighty hands, and the +signs of great force of character in the glance of his clear blue eyes +and the fierceness of his anger when he was once aroused. At least +once already Beowulf had distinguished himself in a great feat--a +swimming-match with a famous champion, Breca, who had been beaten in +the contest. For this and other victories, and for the bodily strength +which gave Beowulf's hand-grip the force of thirty men, the hero was +already famed when the news of Grendel's ravages reached Geatland. +Beowulf, eager to try his strength against the monster, and burning to +add to his fame, asked and obtained permission from his uncle, King +Hygelac, to seek the stricken Danish king and offer his help against +Grendel; then, choosing fourteen loyal comrades and kinsfolk, he took +a cheerful farewell of the Geatish royal family and sailed for +Denmark. + +Thus it happened that one day the Warden of the Coast, riding on his +round along the Danish shores, saw from the white cliffs a strange +war-vessel running in to shore. Her banners were unknown to him, her +crew were strangers and all in war-array, and as the Warden watched +them they ran the ship into a small creek among the mountainous +cliffs, made her fast to a rock with stout cables, and then landed and +put themselves in readiness for a march. Though there were fifteen of +the strangers and the Warden was alone, he showed no hesitation, but, +riding boldly down into their midst, loudly demanded: + + "What are ye warlike men wielding bright weapons, + Wearing grey corslets and boar-adorned helmets, + Who o'er the water-paths come with your foaming keel + Ploughing the ocean surge? I was appointed + Warden of Denmark's shores; watch hold I by the wave + That on this Danish coast no deadly enemy + Leading troops over sea should land to injure. + None have here landed yet more frankly coming + Than this fair company: and yet ye answer not + The password of warriors, and customs of kinsmen. + Ne'er have mine eyes beheld a mightier warrior, + An earl more lordly, than is he, the chief of you; + He is no common man; if looks belie him not, + He is a hero bold, worthily weaponed. + Anon must I know of you kindred and country, + Lest ye as spies should go free on our Danish soil. + Now ye men from afar, sailing the surging sea, + Have heard my earnest thought: best is a quick reply, + That I may swiftly know whence ye have hither come." + +So the aged Warden sat on his horse, gazing attentively on the faces +of the fifteen strangers, but watching most carefully the countenance +of the leader; for the mighty stature, the clear glance of command, +the goodly armour, and the lordly air of Beowulf left no doubt as to +who was the chieftain of that little band. When the questions had been +asked the leader of the new-comers moved forward till his mighty +figure stood beside the Warden's horse, and as he gazed up into the +old man's eyes he answered: "We are warriors of the Geats, members of +King Hygelac's bodyguard. My father, well known among men of wisdom, +was named Ecgtheow, a wise counsellor who died full of years and +famous for his wisdom, leaving a memory dear to all good men." + + "We come to seek thy king Healfdene's glorious son, + Thy nation's noble lord, with friendly mind. + Be thou a guardian good to us strangers here! + We have an errand grave to the great Danish king, + Nor will I hidden hold what I intend! + Thou canst tell if it is truth (as we lately heard) + That some dire enemy, deadly in evil deed, + Cometh in dark of night, sateth his secret hate, + Worketh through fearsome awe, slaughter and shame. + I can give Hrothgar bold counsel to conquer him, + How he with valiant mind Grendel may vanquish, + If he would ever lose torment of burning care, + If bliss shall bloom again and woe shall vanish." + +The aged Warden replied: "Every bold warrior of noble mind must +recognise the distinction between words and deeds. I judge by thy +speech that you are all friends to our Danish king; therefore I bid +you go forward, in warlike array, and I myself will guide you to King +Hrothgar; I will also bid my men draw your vessel up the beach, and +make her fast with a barricade of oars against any high tide. Safe she +shall be until again she bears you to your own land. May your +expedition prove successful." + +Thus speaking, he turned his horse's head and led the way up the steep +cliff paths, while the Geats followed him, resplendent in shining +armour, with boar-crests on their helmets, shields and spears in their +hands, and mighty swords hanging in their belts: a goodly band were +they, as they strode boldly after the Warden. Anon there appeared a +roughly trodden path, which soon became a stone-paved road, and the +way led on to where the great hall, Heorot, towered aloft, gleaming +white in the sun; very glorious it seemed, with its pinnacled gables +and its carved beams and rafters, and the Geats gazed at it with +admiration as the Warden of the Coast said: "Yonder stands our +monarch's hall, and your way lies clear before you. May the All-Father +keep you safe in the conflict! Now it is time for me to return; I go +to guard our shores from every foe." + + +Hrothgar and Beowulf + +The little band of Geats, in their shining war-gear, strode along the +stone-paved street, their ring-mail sounding as they went, until they +reached the door of Heorot; and there, setting down their broad +shields and their keen spears against the wall, they prepared to enter +as peaceful guests the great hall of King Hrothgar. Wulfgar, one of +Hrothgar's nobles, met them at the door and asked whence such a +splendid band of warlike strangers, so well armed and so worthily +equipped, had come. Their heroic bearing betokened some noble +enterprise. Beowulf answered: "We are Hygelac's chosen friends and +companions, and I am Beowulf. To King Hrothgar, thy master, will I +tell mine errand, if the son of Healfdene will allow us to approach +him." + +Wulfgar, impressed by the words and bearing of the hero, replied: "I +will announce thy coming to my lord, and bring back his answer"; and +then made his way up the hall to the high seat where Hrothgar sat on +the daïs amidst his bodyguard of picked champions. Bowing +respectfully, he said: + + "Here are come travelling over the sea-expanse, + Journeying from afar, heroes of Geatland. + Beowulf is the name of their chief warrior. + This is their prayer, my lord, that they may speak with thee; + Do not thou give them a hasty refusal! + Do not deny them the gladness of converse! + They in their war-gear seem worthy of men's respect. + Noble their chieftain seems, he who the warriors + Hither has guided." + +At these words the aged king aroused himself from the sad reverie into +which he had fallen and answered: "I knew him as a boy. Beowulf is the +son of Ecgtheow, who wedded the daughter of the Geat King Hrethel. His +fame has come hither before him; seafarers have told me that he has +the might of thirty men in his hand-grip. Great joy it is to know of +his coming, for he may save us from the terror of Grendel. If he +succeeds in this, great treasures will I bestow upon him. Hasten; +bring in hither Beowulf and his kindred thanes, and bid them welcome +to the Danish folk!" + +Wulfgar hurried down the hall to the place where Beowulf stood with +his little band; he led them gladly to the high seat, so that they +stood opposite to Hrothgar, who looked keenly at the well-equipped +troop, and kindly at its leader. A striking figure was Beowulf as he +stood there in his gleaming ring-mail, with the mighty sword by his +side. It was, however, but a minute that Hrothgar looked in silence, +for with respectful greeting Beowulf spoke: + + "Hail to thee, Hrothgar King! Beowulf am I, + Hygelac's kinsman and loyal companion. + Great deeds of valour wrought I in my youth. + To me in my native land Grendel's ill-doing + Came as an oft-heard tale told by our sailors. + They say that this bright hall, noblest of buildings, + Standeth to every man idle and useless + After the evening-light fails in the heavens. + Thus, Hrothgar, ancient king, all my friends urged me, + Warriors and prudent thanes, that I should seek thee, + Since they themselves had known my might in battle. + Now I will beg of thee, lord of the glorious Danes, + Prince of the Scylding race, Folk-lord most friendly, + Warden of warriors, only one boon. + Do not deny it me, since I have come from far; + I with my men alone, this troop of heroes good, + Would without help from thee cleanse thy great hall! + Oft have I also heard that the fierce monster + Through his mad recklessness scorns to use weapons; + Therefore will I forego (so may King Hygelac, + My friendly lord and king, find in me pleasure) + That I should bear my sword and my broad yellow shield + Into the conflict: with my hand-grip alone + I 'gainst the foe will strive, and struggle for my life-- + He shall endure God's doom whom death shall bear away. + I know that he thinketh in this hall of conflict + Fearless to eat me, if he can compass it, + As he has oft devoured heroes of Denmark. + Then thou wilt not need my head to hide away, + Grendel will have me all mangled and gory; + Away will he carry, if death then shall take me, + My body with gore stained will he think to feast on, + On his lone track will bear it and joyously eat it, + And mark with my life-blood his lair in the moorland; + Nor more for my welfare wilt thou need to care then. + Send thou to Hygelac, if strife shall take me, + That best of byrnies which my breast guardeth, + Brightest of war-weeds, the work of Smith Weland, + Left me by Hrethel. Ever Wyrd has her way." + +The aged King Hrothgar, who had listened attentively while the hero +spoke of his plans and of his possible fate, now greeted him saying: +"Thou hast sought my court for honour and for friendship's sake, O +Beowulf: thou hast remembered the ancient alliance between Ecgtheow, +thy father, and myself, when I shielded him, a fugitive, from the +wrath of the Wilfings, paid them the due wergild for his crime, and +took his oath of loyalty to myself. Long ago that time is; Ecgtheow is +dead, and I am old and in misery. It were too long now to tell of all +the woe that Grendel has wrought, but this I may say, that many a +hero has boasted of the great valour he would display in strife with +the monster, and has awaited his coming in this hall; in the morning +there has been no trace of each hero but the dark blood-stains on +benches and tables. How many times has that happened! But sit down now +to the banquet and tell thy plans, if such be thy will." + +Thereupon room was made for the Geat warriors on the long benches, and +Beowulf sat in the place of honour opposite to the king: great respect +was shown to him, and all men looked with wonder on this mighty hero, +whose courage led him to hazard this terrible combat. Great carved +horns of ale were borne to Beowulf and his men, savoury meat was +placed before them, and while they ate and drank the minstrels played +and sang to the harp the deeds of men of old. The mirth of the feast +was redoubled now men hoped that a deliverer had come indeed. + + +The Quarrel + +Among all the Danes who were rejoicing over Beowulf's coming there was +one whose heart was sad and his brow gloomy--one thane whom jealousy +urged to hate any man more distinguished than himself. Hunferth, King +Hrothgar's orator and speech-maker, from his official post at +Hrothgar's feet watched Beowulf with scornful and jealous eyes. He +waited until a pause came in the clamour of the feast, and suddenly +spoke, coldly and contemptuously: "Art thou that Beowulf who strove +against Breca, the son of Beanstan, when ye two held a swimming +contest in the ocean and risked your lives in the deep waters? In vain +all your friends urged you to forbear--ye would go on the hazardous +journey; ye plunged in, buffeting the wintry waves through the +rising storm. Seven days and nights ye toiled, but Breca overcame +thee: he had greater strength and courage. Him the ocean bore to +shore, and thence he sought his native land, and the fair city where +he ruled as lord and chieftain. Fully he performed his boast against +thee. So I now look for a worse issue for thee, for thou wilt find +Grendel fiercer in battle than was Breca, if thou darest await him +this night." + +Beowulf's brow flushed with anger as he replied haughtily: "Much hast +thou spoken, friend Hunferth, concerning Breca and our swimming +contest; but belike thou art drunken, for wrongly hast thou told the +tale. A youthful folly of ours it was, when we two boasted and +challenged each other to risk our lives in the ocean; that indeed we +did. Naked swords we bore in our hands as we swam, to defend ourselves +against the sea-monsters, and we floated together, neither +outdistancing the other, for five days, when a storm drove us apart. +Cold were the surging waves, bitter the north wind, rough was the +swelling flood, under the darkening shades of night. Yet this was not +the worst: the sea-monsters, excited by the raging tempest, rushed at +me with their deadly tusks and bore me to the abyss. Well was it then +for me that I wore my well-woven ring-mail, and had my keen sword in +hand; with point and edge I fought the deadly beasts, and killed them. +Many a time the hosts of monsters bore me to the ocean-bottom, but I +slew numbers among them, and thus we battled all the night, until in +the morning came light from the east, and I could see the windy cliffs +along the shore, and the bodies of the slain sea-beasts floating on +the surge. Nine there were of them, for Wyrd is gracious to the man +who is valiant and unafraid. Never have I heard of a sterner +conflict, nor a more unhappy warrior lost in the waters; yet I saved +my life, and landed on the shores of Finland. Breca wrought not so +mightily as I, nor have I heard of such warlike deeds on thy part, +even though thou, O Hunferth, didst murder thy brothers and nearest +kinsmen. + + "Truly I say to thee, O son of Ecglaf bold, + Grendel the grisly fiend ne'er dared have wrought + So many miseries, such shame and anguish dire, + To thy lord, Hrothgar old, in his bright Heorot, + Hadst thou shown valiant mood, sturdy and battle-fierce, + As thou now boastest." + +[Illustration: Beowulf replies haughtily to Hunferth] + +Very wroth was Hunferth over the reminder of his former wrongdoing and +the implied accusation of cowardice, but he had brought it on himself +by his unwise belittling of Beowulf's feat, and the applause of both +Danes and Geats showed him that he dared no further attack the +champion; he had to endure in silence Beowulf's boast that he and his +Geats would that night await Grendel in the hall, and surprise him +terribly, since the fiend had ceased to expect any resistance from the +warlike Danes. The feast continued, with laughter and melody, with +song and boast, until the door from the women's bower, in the upper +end of the hall, opened suddenly, and Hrothgar's wife, the fair and +gracious Queen Wealhtheow, entered. The tumult lulled for a short +space, and the queen, pouring mead into a goblet, presented it to her +husband; joyfully he received and drank it. Then she poured mead or +ale for each man, and in due course came to Beowulf, as to the guest +of honour. Gratefully Wealhtheow greeted the lordly hero, and thanked +him for the friendship which brought him to Denmark to risk his life +against Grendel. Beowulf, rising respectfully and taking the cup from +the queen's hand, said with dignity: + + "This I considered well when I the ocean sought, + Sailed in the sea-vessel with my brave warriors, + That I alone would win thy folk's deliverance, + Or in the fight would fall fast in the demon's grip. + Needs must I now perform knightly deeds in this hall, + Or here must meet my doom in darksome night." + +Well pleased, Queen Wealhtheow went to sit beside her lord, where her +gracious smile cheered the assembly. Then the clamour of the feast was +renewed, until Hrothgar at length gave the signal for retiring. +Indeed, it was necessary to leave Heorot when darkness fell, for the +fiend came each night when sunlight faded. So the whole assembly +arose, each man bade his comrades "Good night," and the Danes +dispersed; but Hrothgar addressed Beowulf half joyfully, half sadly, +saying: + + "Never before have I since I held spear and shield + Given o'er to any man this mighty Danish hall, + Save now to thee alone. Keep thou and well defend + This best of banquet-halls. Show forth thy hero-strength, + Call up thy bravery, watch for the enemy! + Thou shalt not lack gifts of worth if thou alive remain + Winner in this dire strife." + +Thus Hrothgar departed, to seek slumber in a less dangerous abode, +where, greatly troubled in mind, he awaited the dawn with almost +hopeless expectation, and Beowulf and his men prepared themselves for +the perils of the night. + + +Beowulf and Grendel + +The fourteen champions of the Geats now made ready for sleep; but +while the others lay down in their armour, with weapons by their +sides, Beowulf took off his mail, unbelted his sword, unhelmed +himself, and gave his sword to a thane to bear away. For, as he said +to his men, "I will strive against this fiend weaponless. With no +armour, since he wears none, will I wrestle with him, and try to +overcome him. I will conquer, if I win, by my hand-grip alone; and the +All-Father shall judge between us, and grant the victory to whom He +will." + +The Geats then lay down--brave men who slept calmly, though they knew +they were risking their lives, for none of them expected to see the +light of day again, or to revisit their native land: they had heard, +too, much during the feast of the slaughter which Grendel had wrought. +So night came, the voices of men grew silent, and the darkness +shrouded all alike--calm sleepers, anxious watchers, and the deadly, +creeping foe. + +When everything was still Grendel came. From the fen-fastnesses, by +marshy tracts, through mists and swamp-born fogs, the hideous monster +made his way to the house he hated so bitterly. Grendel strode fiercely +to the door of Heorot, and would fain have opened it as usual, but it +was locked and bolted. Then the fiend's wrath was roused; he grasped +the door with his mighty hands and burst it in. As he entered he seemed +to fill the hall with his monstrous shadow, and from his eyes shone a +green and uncanny light, which showed him a troop of warriors lying +asleep in their war-gear; it seemed that all slept, and the fiend did +not notice that one man half rose, leaning on his elbow and peering +keenly into the gloom. Grendel hastily put forth his terrible scaly +hand and seized one hapless sleeper. Tearing him limb from limb, so +swiftly that his cry of agony was unheard, he drank the warm blood and +devoured the flesh; then, excited by the hideous food, he reached forth +again. Great was Grendel's amazement to find that his hand was seized +in a grasp such as he had never felt before, and to know that he had +at last found an antagonist whom even he must fight warily. Beowulf +sprang from his couch as the terrible claws of the monster fell upon +him, and wrestled with Grendel in the darkness and gloom of the +unlighted hall, where the flicker of the fire had died down to a dim +glow in the dull embers. That was a dreadful struggle, as the +combatants, in deadly conflict, swayed up and down the hall, +overturning tables and benches, trampling underfoot dishes and goblets +in the darkling wrestle for life. The men of the Geats felt for their +weapons, but they could not see the combatants distinctly, though they +heard the panting and the trampling movements, and occasionally caught +a gleam from the fiend's eyes as his face was turned towards them. When +they struck their weapons glanced harmlessly off Grendel's scaly hide. +The struggle continued for some time, and the hall was an utter wreck +within, when Grendel, worsted for once, tried to break away and rush +out into the night; but Beowulf held him fast in the grip which no man +on earth could equal or endure, and the monster writhed in anguish as +he vainly strove to free himself--vainly, for Beowulf would not loose +his grip. Suddenly, with one great cry, Grendel wrenched himself free, +and staggered to the door, leaving behind a terrible blood-trail, for +his arm and shoulder were torn off and left in the victor's grasp. So +the monster fled wailing over the moors to his home in the gloomy mere, +and Beowulf sank panting on a shattered seat, scarce believing in his +victory, until his men gathered round, bringing a lighted torch, by the +flaring gleam of which the green, scaly arm of Grendel looked ghastly +and threatening. But the monster had fled, and after such a wound as +the loss of his arm and shoulder must surely die; therefore the Geats +raised a shout of triumph, and then took the hateful trophy and +fastened it high up on the roof of the hall, that all who entered might +see the token of victory and recognise that the Geat hero had performed +his boast, that he would conquer with no weapon, but by the strength of +his hands alone. + +In the morning many a warrior came to Heorot to learn the events of +the night, and all saw the grisly trophy, praised Beowulf's might and +courage, and followed with eager curiosity the blood-stained track of +the fleeing demon till it came to the brink of the gloomy lake, where +it disappeared, though the waters were stained with gore, and boiled +and surged with endless commotion. There on the shore the Danes +rejoiced over the death of their enemy, and returned to Heorot +care-free and glad at heart. Meanwhile Beowulf and his Geats stayed in +Heorot, for Hrothgar had not yet come to receive an account of their +night-watch. Throughout the day there was feasting and rejoicing, with +horse-races, and wrestling, and manly contests of skill and endurance; +or the Danes collected around the bard as he chanted the glory of +Sigmund and his son Fitela. Then came King Hrothgar himself, with his +queen and her maiden train, and they paused to gaze with horror on the +dreadful trophy, and to turn with gratitude to the hero who had +delivered them from this evil spirit. Hrothgar said: "Thanks be to the +All-Father for this happy sight! Much sorrow have I endured at the +hands of Grendel, many warriors have I lost, many uncounted years of +misery have I lived, but now my woe has an end! Now a youth has +performed, with his unaided strength, what all we could not compass +with our craft! Well might thy father, O Beowulf, rejoice in thy fame! +Well may thy mother, if she yet lives, praise the All-Father for the +noble son she bore! A son indeed shalt thou be to me in love, and +nothing thou desirest shalt thou lack, that I can give thee. Often +have I rewarded less heroic deeds with great gifts, and to thee I can +deny nothing." + +Beowulf answered: "We have performed our boast, O King, and have +driven away the enemy. I intended to force him down on one of the +beds, and to deprive him of his life by mere strength of my hand-grip, +but in this I did not succeed, for Grendel escaped from the hall. Yet +he left here with me his hand, his arm, and shoulder as a token of his +presence, and as the ransom with which he bought off the rest of his +loathsome body; yet none the longer will he live thereby, since he +bears with him so deadly a wound." + +Then the hall was cleared of the traces of the conflict and hasty +preparation was made for a splendid banquet. There was joy in Heorot. +The Danes assembled once again free from fear in their splendid hall, +the walls were hung with gold-wrought embroideries and hangings of +costly stuffs, while richly chased goblets shone on the long tables, +and men's tongues waxed loud as they discussed and described the +heroic struggle of the night before. Beowulf and King Hrothgar sat on +the high seats opposite to each other, and their men, Danes and Geats, +sitting side by side, shouted and cheered and drank deeply to the fame +of Beowulf. The minstrels sang of the Fight in Finnsburg and the deeds +of Finn and Hnæf, of Hengest and Queen Hildeburh. Long was the chant, +and it roused the national pride of the Danes to hear of the victory +of their Danish forefathers over Finn of the Frisians; and merrily the +banquet went forward, gladdened still more by the presence of Queen +Wealhtheow. Now Hrothgar showed his lavish generosity and his +thankfulness by the gifts with which he loaded the Geat chief; and not +only Beowulf, but every man of the little troop. Beowulf received a +gold-embroidered banner, a magnificent sword, helmet, and corslet, a +goblet of gold, and eight fleet steeds. On the back of the best was +strapped a cunningly wrought saddle, Hrothgar's own, with gold +ornaments. When the Geat hero had thanked the king fittingly, Queen +Wealhtheow arose from her seat, and, lifting the great drinking-cup, +offered it to her lord, saying: + + "Take thou this goblet, my lord and my ruler, + O giver of treasure, O gold-friend of heroes, + And speak to the Geats fair speeches of kindness, + Be mirthful and joyous, for so should a man be! + To the Geats be gracious, mindful of presents + Now that from far and near thou hast firm peace! + Tidings have come to me that thou for son wilt take + This mighty warrior who has cleansed Heorot, + Brightest of banquet-halls! Enjoy while thou mayest + These manifold pleasures, and leave to thy kinsmen + Thy lands and thy lordships when thou must journey forth + To meet thy death." + +Turning to Beowulf, the queen said: "Enjoy thy reward, O dear Beowulf, +while thou canst, and live noble and blessed! Keep well thy widespread +fame, and be a friend to my sons in time to come, should they ever +need a protector." Then she gave him two golden armlets, set with +jewels, costly rings, a corslet of chain-mail and a wonderful jewelled +collar of exquisite ancient workmanship, and, bidding them continue +their feasting, with her maidens she left the hall. The feast went on +till Hrothgar also departed to his dwelling, and left the Danes, now +secure and careless, to prepare their beds, place each warrior's +shield at the head, and go to sleep in their armour ready for an +alarm. Meanwhile Beowulf and the Geats were joyfully escorted to +another lodging, where they slept soundly without disturbance. + + +Grendel's Mother + +In the darkness of the night an avenger came to Heorot, came in +silence and mystery as Grendel had done, with thoughts of murder and +hatred raging in her heart. Grendel had gone home to die, but his +mother, a fiend scarcely less terrible than her son, yet lived to +avenge his death. She arose from her dwelling in the gloomy lake, +followed the fen paths and moorland ways to Heorot, and opened the +door. There was a horrible panic when her presence became known, and +men ran hither and thither vainly seeking to attack her; yet there was +less terror among them than before when they saw the figure of a +horrible woman. In spite of all, the monster seized Aschere, one of +King Hrothgar's thanes, and bore him away to the fens, leaving a house +of lamentation where men had feasted so joyously a few hours before. +The news was brought to King Hrothgar, who bitterly lamented the loss +of his wisest and dearest counsellor, and bade them call Beowulf to +him, since he alone could help in this extremity. When Beowulf stood +before the king he courteously inquired if his rest had been peaceful. +Hrothgar answered mournfully: "Ask me not of peace, for care is +renewed in Heorot. Dead is Aschere, my best counsellor and friend, the +truest of comrades in fight and in council. Such as Aschere was should +a true vassal be! A deadly fiend has slain him in Heorot, and I know +not whither she has carried his lifeless body. This is doubtless her +vengeance for thy slaying of Grendel; he is dead, and his kinswoman +has come to avenge him." + + "I have heard it reported by some of my people + That they have looked on two such unearthly ones, + Huge-bodied march-striders holding the moor wastes; + One of them seemed to be shaped like a woman, + Her fellow in exile bore semblance of manhood, + Though huger his stature than man ever grew to: + In years that are long gone by Grendel they named him, + But know not his father nor aught of his kindred. + Thus these dire monsters dwell in the secret lands, + Haunt the hills loved by wolves, the windy nesses, + Dangerous marshy paths, where the dark moorland stream + 'Neath the o'erhanging cliffs downwards departeth, + Sinks in the sombre earth. Not far remote from us + Standeth the gloomy mere, round whose shores cluster + Groves with their branches mossed, hoary with lichens grey + A wood firmly rooted o'ershadows the water. + There is a wonder seen nightly by wanderers, + Flame in the waterflood: liveth there none of men + Ancient or wise enough to know its bottom. + Though the poor stag may be hard by the hounds pursued, + Though he may seek the wood, chased by his cruel foes, + Yet will he yield his life to hunters on the brink + Ere he will hide his head in the dark waters. + 'Tis an uncanny place. Thence the surge swelleth up + Dark to the heavens above, when the wind stirreth oft + Terrible driving storms, till the air darkens, + The skies fall to weeping." + +Then Hrothgar burst forth in uncontrollable emotion: "O Beowulf, help +us if thou canst! Help is only to be found in thee. But yet thou +knowest not the dangerous place thou must needs explore if thou seek +the fiend in her den. I will richly reward thy valour if thou +returnest alive from this hazardous journey." + +Beowulf was touched by the sorrow of the grey-haired king, and +replied: + + "Grieve not, O prudent King! Better it is for each + That he avenge his friend, than that he mourn him much. + Each man must undergo death at the end of life. + Let him win while he may warlike fame in the world! + That is best after death for the slain warrior." + +"Arise, my lord; let us scan the track left by the monster, for I +promise thee I will never lose it, wheresoever it may lead me. Only +have patience yet for this one day of misery, as I am sure thou wilt." + +Hrothgar sprang up joyously, almost youthfully, and ordered his horse +to be saddled; then, with Beowulf beside him, and a mixed throng of +Geats and Danes following, he rode away towards the home of the +monsters, the dread lake which all men shunned. The blood-stained +tracks were easy to see, and the avengers moved on swiftly till they +came to the edge of the mere, and there, with grief and horror, saw +the head of Aschere lying on the bank. + +[Illustration: Beowulf finds the head of Aschere] + + "The lake boiled with blood, with hot welling gore; + The warriors gazed awe-struck, and the dread horn sang + From time to time fiercely eager defiance. + The warriors sat down there, and saw on the water + The sea-dragons swimming to search the abysses. + They saw on the steep nesses sea-monsters lying, + Snakes and weird creatures: these madly shot away + Wrathful and venomous when the sound smote their ears, + The blast of the war-horn." + +As Beowulf stood on the shore and watched the uncouth sea-creatures, +serpents, nicors, monstrous beasts of all kinds, he suddenly drew his +bow and shot one of them to the heart. The rest darted furiously away, +and the thanes were able to drag the carcase of the slain beast on +shore, where they surveyed it with wonder. + + +The Fight with Grendel's Mother + +Meanwhile Beowulf had made ready for his task. He trusted to his +well-woven mail, the corslet fitting closely to his body and +protecting his breast, the shining helm guarding his head, bright with +the boar-image on the crest, and the mighty sword Hrunting, which +Hunferth, his jealousy forgotten in admiration, pressed on the +adventurous hero. + + "That sword was called Hrunting, an ancient heritage. + Steel was the blade itself, tempered with poison-twigs, + Hardened with battle-blood: never in fight it failed + Any who wielded it, when he would wage a strife + In the dire battlefield, folk-moot of enemies." + +When Beowulf stood ready with naked sword in hand, he turned and +looked at his loyal followers, his friendly hosts, the grey old King +Hrothgar, the sun and the green earth, which he might never see again; +but it was with no trace of weakness or fear that he spoke: + + "Forget not, O noble kinsman of Healfdene, + Illustrious ruler, gold-friend of warriors, + What we two settled when we spake together, + If I for thy safety should end here my life-days, + That thou wouldst be to me, though dead, as a father. + Be to my kindred thanes, my battle-comrades, + A worthy protector should death o'ertake me. + Do thou, dear Hrothgar, send all these treasures here + Which thou hast given me, to my king, Hygelac. + Then may the Geat king, brave son of Hrethel dead, + See by the gold and gems, know by the treasures there, + That I found a generous lord, whom I loved in my life. + Give thou to Hunferth too my wondrous old weapon, + The sword with its graven blade; let the right valiant man + Have the keen war-blade: I will win fame with his, + With Hrunting, noble brand, or death shall take me." + +Beowulf dived downward, as it seemed to him, for the space of a day +ere he could perceive the floor of that sinister lake, and all that +time he had to fight the sea-beasts, for they, attacking him with tusk +and horn, strove to break his ring-mail, but in vain. As Beowulf came +near the bottom he felt himself seized in long, scaly arms of gigantic +strength. The fierce claws of the wolfish sea-woman strove eagerly to +reach his heart through his mail, but in vain; so the she-wolf of the +waters, a being awful and loathsome, bore him to her abode, rushing +through thick clusters of horrible sea-beasts. + + "The hero now noticed he was in some hostile hall, + Where him the water-stream no whit might injure, + Nor for the sheltering roof the rush of the raging flood + Ever could touch him. He saw the strange flickering flame, + Weird lights in the water, shining with livid sheen: + He saw, too, the ocean-wolf, the hateful sea-woman." + +Terrible and almost superhuman was the contest which now followed: the +awful sea-woman flung Beowulf down on his back and stabbed at him with +point and edge of her broad knife, seeking some vulnerable point; but +the good corslet resisted all her efforts, and Beowulf, exerting his +mighty force, overthrew her and sprang to his feet. Angered beyond +measure, he brandished the flaming sword Hrunting, and flashed one +great blow at her head which would have killed her had her scales and +hair been vulnerable; but alas! the edge of the blade turned on her +scaly hide, and the blow failed. Wrathfully Beowulf cast aside the +useless sword, and determined to trust once again to his hand-grip. +Grendel's mother now felt, in her turn, the deadly power of Beowulf's +grasp, and was borne to the ground; but the struggle continued long, +for Beowulf was weaponless, since the sword failed in its work. Yet +some weapon he must have. + + "So he gazed at the walls, saw there a glorious sword, + An old brand gigantic, trusty in point and edge, + An heirloom of heroes; that was the best of blades, + Splendid and stately, the forging of giants; + But it was huger than any of human race + Could bear to battle-strife, save Beowulf only." + +This mighty sword, a relic of earlier and greater races, brought new +hope to Beowulf. Springing up, he snatched it from the wall and swung +it fiercely round his head. The blow fell with crushing force on the +neck of the sea-woman, the dread wolf of the abyss, and broke the +bones. Dead the monster sank to the ground, and Beowulf, standing +erect, saw at his feet the lifeless carcase of his foe. The hero still +grasped his sword and looked warily along the walls of the +water-dwelling, lest some other foe should emerge from its recesses; +but as he gazed Beowulf saw his former foe, Grendel, lying dead on a +bed in some inner hall. He strode thither, and, seizing the corpse by +the hideous coiled locks, shore off the head to carry to earth again. +The poisonous hot blood of the monster melted the blade of the mighty +sword, and nothing remained but the hilt, wrought with curious +ornaments and signs of old time. This hilt and Grendel's head were all +that Beowulf carried off from the water-fiends' dwelling; and laden +with these the hero sprang up through the now clear and sparkling +water. + +[Illustration: Beowulf shears off the head of Grendel] + +Meanwhile the Danes and Geats had waited long for his reappearance. +When the afternoon was well advanced the Danes departed sadly, +lamenting the hero's death, for they concluded no man could have +survived so long beneath the waters; but his loyal Geats sat there +still gazing sadly at the waves, and hoping against all hope that +Beowulf would reappear. At length they saw changes in the mere--the +blood boiling upwards in the lake, the quenching of the unholy light, +then the flight of the sea-monsters and a gradual clearing of the +waters, through which at last they could see their lord uprising. How +gladly they greeted him! What awe and wonder seized them as they +surveyed his dreadful booty, the ghastly head of Grendel and the +massive hilt of the gigantic sword! How eagerly they listened to his +story, and how they vied with one another for the glory of bearing his +armour, his spoils, and his weapons back over the moorlands and the +fens to Heorot. It was a proud and glad troop that followed Beowulf +into the hall, and up through the startled throng until they laid down +before the feet of King Hrothgar the hideous head of his dead foe, and +Beowulf, raising his voice that all might hear above the buzz and hum +of the great banquet-hall, thus addressed the king: + + "Lo! we this sea-booty, O wise son of Healfdene, + Lord of the Scyldings, have brought for thy pleasure, + In token of triumph, as thou here seest. + From harm have I hardly escaped with my life, + The war under water sustained I with trouble, + The conflict was almost decided against me, + If God had not guarded me! Nought could I conquer + With Hrunting in battle, though 'tis a doughty blade. + But the gods granted me that I saw suddenly + Hanging high in the hall a bright brand gigantic: + So seized I and swung it that in the strife I slew + The lords of the dwelling. The mighty blade melted fast + In the hot boiling blood, the poisonous battle-gore; + But the hilt have I here borne from the hostile hall. + I have avenged the crime, the death of the Danish folk, + As it behovèd me. Now can I promise thee + That thou in Heorot care-free mayest slumber + With all thy warrior-troop and all thy kindred thanes, + The young and the aged: thou needst not fear for them + Death from these mortal foes, as thou of yore hast done." + +King Hrothgar was now more delighted than ever at the return of his +friend and the slaughter of his foes. He gazed in delight and wonder +at the gory head of the monster, and the gigantic hilt of the weapon +which struck it off. Then, taking the glorious hilt, and scanning +eagerly the runes which showed its history, as the tumult stilled in +the hall, and all men listened for his speech, he broke out: "Lo! this +may any man say, who maintains truth and right among his people, that +good though he may be this hero is even better! Thy glory is +widespread, Beowulf my friend, among thine own and many other nations, +for thou hast fulfilled all things by patience and prudence. I will +surely perform what I promised thee, as we agreed before; and I +foretell of thee that thou wilt be long a help and protection to thy +people." + +King Hrothgar spoke long and eloquently while all men listened, for he +reminded them of mighty warriors of old who had not won such glorious +fame, and warned them against pride and lack of generosity and +self-seeking; and then, ending with thanks and fresh gifts to Beowulf, +he bade the feast continue with increased jubilation. The tumultuous +rejoicing lasted till darkness settled on the land, and when it ended +all retired to rest free from fear, since no more fiendish monsters +would break in upon their slumbers; gladly and peacefully the night +passed, and with the morn came Beowulf's resolve to return to his king +and his native land. + +When Beowulf had come to this decision he went to Hrothgar and said: + + "Now we sea-voyagers come hither from afar + Must utter our intent to seek King Hygelac. + Here were we well received, well hast thou treated us. + If on this earth I can do more to win thy love, + O prince of warriors, than I have wrought as yet, + Here stand I ready now weapons to wield for thee. + If I shall ever hear o'er the encircling flood + That any neighbouring foes threaten thy nation's fall, + As Grendel grim before, swift will I bring to thee + Thousands of noble thanes, heroes to help thee. + I know of Hygelac, King of the Geat folk, + That he will strengthen me (though he is young in years) + In words and warlike deeds to bear my warrior-spear + Over the ocean surge, when arms would serve thy need, + Swift to thine aid. If thy son Hrethric young + Comes to the Geat court, there to gain skill in arms, + Then will he surely find many friends waiting him: + Better in distant lands learneth by journeying + He who is valiant." + +Hrothgar was greatly moved by the words of the Geat hero and his +promise of future help. He wondered to find such wisdom in so young a +warrior, and felt that the Geats could never choose a better king if +battle should cut off the son of Hygelac, and he renewed his assurance +of continual friendship between the two countries and of enduring +personal affection. Finally, with fresh gifts of treasure and with +tears of regret Hrothgar embraced Beowulf and bade him go speedily to +his ship, since a friend's yearning could not retain him longer from +his native land. So the little troop of Geats with their gifts and +treasures marched proudly to their vessel and sailed away to Geatland, +their dragon-prowed ship laden with armour and jewels and steeds, +tokens of remembrance and thanks from the grateful Danes. + + +Beowulf's Return + +Blithe-hearted were the voyagers, and gaily the ship danced over the +waves, as the Geats strained their eyes towards the cliffs of their +home and the well-known shores of their country. When their vessel +approached the land the coast-warden came hurrying to greet them, for +he had watched the ocean day and night for the return of the valiant +wanderers. Gladly he welcomed them, and bade his underlings help to +bear their spoils up to the royal palace, where King Hygelac, himself +young and valiant, awaited his victorious kinsman, with his beauteous +queen, Hygd, beside him. Then came Beowulf, treading proudly the rocky +paths to the royal abode, for messengers had gone in advance to +announce to the king his nephew's success, and a banquet was being +prepared, where Beowulf would sit beside his royal kinsman. + +Once more there was a splendid feast, with tumultuous rejoicing. Again +a queenly hand--that of the beauteous Hygd--poured out the first bowl +in which to celebrate the safe return of the victorious hero. And now +the wonderful story of the slaying of the fen-fiends must be told. + +Beowulf was called upon to describe again his perils and his +victories, and told in glowing language of the grisly monsters and the +desperate combats, and of the boundless gratitude and splendid +generosity of the Danish king, and of his prophecy of lasting +friendship between the Danes and the Geats. Then he concluded: + + "Thus that great nation's king lived in all noble deeds. + Of guerdon I failed not, of meed for my valour, + But the wise son of Healfdene gave to me treasures great, + Gifts to my heart's desire. These now I bring to thee, + Offer them lovingly: now are my loyalty + And service due to thee, O hero-king, alone! + Near kinsmen have I few but thee, O Hygelac!" + +As the hero showed the treasures with which Hrothgar had rewarded his +courage, he distributed them generously among his kinsmen and friends, +giving his priceless jewelled collar to Queen Hygd, and his best steed +to King Hygelac, as a true vassal and kinsman should. So Beowulf +resumed his place as Hygelac's chief warrior and champion, and settled +down among his own people. + + +Fifty Years After + +When half a century had passed away, great and sorrowful changes had +taken place in the two kingdoms of Denmark and Geatland. Hrothgar was +dead, and had been succeeded by his son Hrethric, and Hygelac had been +slain in a warlike expedition against the Hetware. In this expedition +Beowulf had accompanied Hygelac, and had done all a warrior could do +to save his kinsman and his king. When he saw his master slain he had +fought his way through the encircling foes to the sea-shore, where, +though sorely wounded, he flung himself into the sea and swam back to +Geatland. There he had told Queen Hygd of the untimely death of her +husband, and had called on her to assume the regency of the kingdom +for her young son Heardred. Queen Hygd called an assembly of the +Geats, and there, with the full consent of the nation, offered the +crown to Beowulf, the wisest counsellor and bravest hero among them; +but he refused to accept it, and so swayed the Geats by his eloquence +and his loyalty that they unanimously raised Heardred to the throne, +with Beowulf as his guardian and protector. When in later years +Heardred also fell before an enemy, Beowulf was again chosen king, and +as he was now the next of kin he accepted the throne, and ruled long +and gloriously over Geatland. His fame as a warrior kept his country +free from invasion, and his wisdom as a statesman increased its +prosperity and happiness; whilst the vengeance he took for his +kinsman's death fulfilled all ideals of family and feudal duty held by +the men of his time. Beowulf, in fact, became an ideal king, as he was +an ideal warrior and hero, and he closed his life by an ideal act of +self-sacrifice for the good of his people. + + +Beowulf and the Fire-Dragon + +In the fiftieth year of Beowulf's reign a great terror fell upon the +land: terror of a monstrous fire-dragon, who flew forth by night from +his den in the rocks, lighting up the blackness with his blazing +breath, and burning houses and homesteads, men and cattle, with the +flames from his mouth. The glare from his fiery scales was like the +dawn-glow in the sky, but his passage left behind it every night a +trail of black, charred desolation to confront the rising sun. Yet the +dragon's wrath was in some way justified, since he had been robbed, +and could not trace the thief. Centuries before Beowulf's lifetime a +mighty family of heroes had gathered together, by feats of arms, and +by long inheritance, an immense treasure of cups and goblets, of +necklaces and rings, of swords and helmets and armour, cunningly +wrought by magic spells; they had joyed in their cherished hoard for +long years, until all had died but one, and he survived solitary, +miserable, brooding over the fate of the dearly loved treasure. At +last he caused his servants to make a strong fastness in the rocks, +with cunningly devised entrances, known only to himself, and thither, +with great toil and labour of aged limbs, he carried and hid the +precious treasure. As he sadly regarded it, and thought of its future +fate, he cried aloud: + + "Hold thou now fast, O earth, now men no longer can, + The treasure of mighty earls. From thee brave men won it + In days that are long gone by, but slaughter seized on them, + Death fiercely vanquished them, each of my warriors, + Each one of my people, who closed their life-days here + After the joy of earth. None have I sword to wield + Or bring me the goblet, the richly wrought vessel. + All the true heroes have elsewhere departed! + Now must the gilded helm lose its adornments, + For those who polished it sleep in the gloomy grave, + Those who made ready erst war-gear of warriors. + Likewise the battle-sark which in the fight endured + Bites of the keen-edged blades midst the loud crash of shields + Rusts, with its wearer dead. Nor may the woven mail + After the chieftain's death wide with a champion rove. + Gone is the joy of harp, gone is the music's mirth. + Now the hawk goodly-winged hovers not through the hall, + Nor the swift-footed mare tramples the castle court: + Baleful death far has sent all living tribes of men." + +When this solitary survivor of the ancient race died his hoard +remained alone, unknown, untouched, until at length the fiery dragon, +seeking a shelter among the rocks, found the hidden way to the cave, +and, creeping within, discovered the lofty inner chamber and the +wondrous hoard. For three hundred winters he brooded over it +unchallenged, and then one day a hunted fugitive, fleeing from the +fury of an avenging chieftain, in like manner found the cave, and the +dragon sleeping on his gold. Terrified almost to death, the fugitive +eagerly seized a marvellously wrought chalice and bore it stealthily +away, feeling sure that such an offering would appease his lord's +wrath and atone for his offence. But when the dragon awoke he +discovered that he had been robbed, and his keen scent assured him +that some one of mankind was the thief. As he could not at once see +the robber, he crept around the outside of the barrow snuffing eagerly +to find traces of the spoiler, but it was in vain; then, growing more +wrathful, he flew over the inhabited country, shedding fiery death +from his glowing scales and flaming breath, while no man dared to face +this flying horror of the night. + +The news came to Beowulf that his folk were suffering and dying, and +that no warrior dared to risk his life in an effort to deliver the +land from this deadly devastation; and although he was now an aged man +he decided to attack the fire-drake. Beowulf knew that he would not be +able to come to hand-grips with this foe as he had done with Grendel +and his mother: the fiery breath of this dragon was far too deadly, +and he must trust to armour for protection. He commanded men to make +a shield entirely of iron, for he knew that the usual shield of +linden-wood would be instantly burnt up in the dragon's flaming +breath. He then chose with care eleven warriors, picked men of his own +bodyguard, to accompany him in this dangerous quest. They compelled +the unhappy fugitive whose theft had begun the trouble to act as their +guide, and thus they marched to the lonely spot where the dragon's +barrow stood close to the sea-shore. The guide went unwillingly, but +was forced thereto by his lord, because he alone knew the way. + + +Beowulf Faces Death + +When the little party reached the place they halted for a time, and +Beowulf sat down meditating sadly on his past life, and on the chances +of this great conflict which he was about to begin. When he had +striven with Grendel, when he had fought against the Hetware, he had +been confident of victory and full of joyous self-reliance, but now +things were changed. Beowulf was an old man, and there hung over him a +sad foreboding that this would be his last fight, and that he would +rid the land of no more monsters. Wyrd seemed to threaten him, and a +sense of coming woe lay heavy on his heart as he spoke to his little +troop: "Many great fights I had in my youth. How well I remember them +all! I was only seven years old when King Hrethel took me to bring up, +and loved me as dearly as his own sons, Herebeald, Hathcyn, or my own +dear lord Hygelac. Great was our grief when Hathcyn, hunting in the +forest, slew all unwittingly his elder brother: greater than ordinary +sorrow, because we could not avenge him on the murderer! It would have +given no joy to Hrethel to see his second son killed disgracefully as +a murderer! So we endured the pain till King Hrethel died, borne down +by his bitter loss, and I wept for my protector, my kinsman. Then +Hathcyn died also, slain by the Swedes, and my dear lord Hygelac came +to the throne: he was gracious to me, a giver of weapons, a generous +distributor of treasure, and I repaid him as much as I could in battle +against his foes. Daghrefn, the Frankish warrior who slew my king, I +sent to his doom with my deadly hand-grip: he, at least, should not +show my lord's armour as trophy of his prowess. But this fight is +different: here I must use both point and edge, as I was not wont in +my youth: but here too will I, old though I be, work deeds of valour. +I will not give way the space of one foot, but will meet him here in +his own abode and make all my boasting good. Abide ye here, ye +warriors, for this is not your expedition, nor the work of any man but +me alone; wait till ye know which is triumphant, for I will win the +gold and save my people, or death shall take me." So saying he raised +his great shield, and, unaccompanied, set his face to the dark +entrance, where a stream, boiling with strange heat, flowed forth from +the cave; so hot was the air that he stood, unable to advance far for +the suffocating steam and smoke. Angered by his impotence, Beowulf +raised his voice and shouted a furious defiance to the awesome +guardian of the barrow. Thus aroused, the dragon sprang up, roaring +hideously and flapping his glowing wings together; out from the +recesses of the barrow came his fiery breath, and then followed the +terrible beast himself. Coiling and writhing he came, with head +raised, and scales of burnished blue and green, glowing with inner +heat; from his nostrils rushed two streams of fiery breath, and his +flaming eyes shot flashes of consuming fire. He half flew, half sprang +at Beowulf. But the hero did not retreat one step. His bright sword +flashed in the air as he wounded the beast, but not mortally, striking +a mighty blow on his scaly head. The guardian of the hoard writhed and +was stunned for a moment, and then sprang at Beowulf, sending forth so +dense a cloud of flaming breath that the hero stood in a mist of fire. +So terrible was the heat that the iron shield glowed red-hot and the +ring-mail on the hero's limbs seared him as a furnace, and his breast +swelled with the keen pain: so terrible was the fiery cloud that the +Geats, seated some distance away, turned and fled, seeking the cool +shelter of the neighbouring woods, and left their heroic lord to +suffer and die alone. + + +Beowulf's Death + +Among the cowardly Geats, however, there was one who thought it +shameful to flee--Wiglaf, the son of Weohstan. He was young, but a +brave warrior, to whom Beowulf had shown honour, and on whom he had +showered gifts, for he was a kinsman, and had proved himself worthy. +Now he showed that Beowulf's favour had been justified, for he seized +his shield, of yellow linden-wood, took his ancient sword in hand, and +prepared to rush to Beowulf's aid. With bitter words he reproached his +cowardly comrades, saying: "I remember how we boasted, as we sat in +the mead hall and drank the foaming ale, as we took gladly the gold +and jewels which our king lavished upon us, that we would repay him +for all his gifts, if ever such need there were! Now is the need come +upon him, and we are here! Beowulf chose us from all his bodyguard to +help him in this mighty struggle, and we have betrayed and deserted +him, and left him alone against a terrible foe. Now the day has come +when our lord should see our valour, and we flee from his side! Up, +let us go and aid him, even while the grim battle-flame flares around +him. God knows that I would rather risk my body in the fiery cloud +than stay here while my king fights and dies! Not such disloyalty has +Beowulf deserved through his long reign that he should stand alone in +the death-struggle. He and I will die together, or side by side will +we conquer." The youthful warrior tried in vain to rouse the courage +of his companions: they trembled, and would not move. So Wiglaf, +holding on high his shield, plunged into the fiery cloud and moved +towards his king, crying aloud: "Beowulf, my dear lord, let not thy +glory be dimmed. Achieve this last deed of valour, as thou didst +promise in days of yore, that thy fame should not fall, and I will aid +thee." + +The sound of another voice roused the dragon to greater fury, and +again came the fiery cloud, burning up like straw Wiglaf's linden +shield, and torturing both warriors as they stood behind the iron +shield with their heated armour. But they fought on manfully, and +Beowulf, gathering up his strength, struck the dragon such a blow on +the head that his ancient sword was shivered to fragments. The dragon, +enraged, now flew at Beowulf and seized him by the neck with his +poisonous fangs, so that the blood gushed out in streams, and ran down +his corslet. Wiglaf was filled with grief and horror at this dreadful +sight, and, leaving the protection of Beowulf's iron shield, dashed +forth at the dragon, piercing the scaly body in a vital part. At once +the fire began to fade away, and Beowulf, mastering his anguish, drew +his broad knife, and with a last effort cut the hideous reptile +asunder. Then the agony of the envenomed wound came upon him, and his +limbs burnt and ached with intolerable pain. In growing distress he +staggered to a rough ancient seat, carved out of the rock, hard by +the door of the barrow. There he sank down, and Wiglaf laved his brow +with water from the little stream, which boiled and steamed no longer. +Then Beowulf partially recovered himself, and said: "Now I bequeath to +thee, my son, the armour which I also inherited. Fifty years have I +ruled this people in peace, so that none of my neighbours durst attack +us. I have endured and toiled much on this earth, have held my own +justly, have pursued none with crafty hatred, nor sworn unjust oaths. +At all this may I rejoice now that I lie mortally wounded. Do thou, O +dear Wiglaf, bring forth quickly from the cave the treasures for which +I lose my life, that I may see them and be glad in my nation's wealth +ere I die." + +Thereupon Wiglaf entered the barrow, and was dazed by the bewildering +hoard of costly treasures. Filling his arms with such a load as he +could carry, he hastened out of the barrow, fearing even then to find +his lord dead. Then he flung down the treasures--magic armour, +dwarf-wrought swords, carved goblets, flashing gems, and a golden +standard--at Beowulf's feet, so that the ancient hero's dying gaze +could fall on the hoard he had won for his people. But Beowulf was now +so near death that he swooned away, till Wiglaf again flung water over +him, and the dying champion roused himself to say, as he grasped his +kinsman's hand and looked at the glittering heap before him: + + "I thank God eternal, the great King of Glory, + For the vast treasures which I here gaze upon, + That I ere my death-day might for my people + Win so great wealth. Since I have given my life, + Thou must now look to the needs of the nation; + Here dwell I no longer, for Destiny calleth me! + Bid thou my warriors after my funeral pyre + Build me a burial-cairn high on the sea-cliff's head; + It shall for memory tower up on Hronesness, + So that the seafarers Beowulf's Barrow + Henceforth shall name it, they who drive far and wide + Over the mighty flood their foamy keels. + Thou art the last of all the kindred of Wagmund! + Wyrd has swept all my kin, all the brave chiefs away! + Now must I follow them!" + +These last words spoken, Beowulf fell back, and his soul passed away, +to meet the joy reserved for all true and steadfast spirits. The hero +was dead, but amid his grief Wiglaf yet remembered that the dire +monster too lay dead, and the folk were delivered from the horrible +plague, though at terrible cost! Wiglaf, as he mourned over his dead +lord, resolved that no man should joy in the treasures for which so +grievous a price had been paid--the cowards who deserted their king +should help to lay the treasures in his grave and bury them far from +human use and profit. Accordingly, when the ten faithless dastards +ventured out from the shelter of the wood, and came shamefacedly to +the place where Wiglaf sat, sorrowing, at the head of dead Beowulf, he +stilled their cries of grief with one wave of the hand, which had +still been vainly striving to arouse his king by gentle touch, and, +gazing scornfully at them, he cried: "Lo! well may a truthful man say, +seeing you here, safely in the war-gear and ornaments which our dead +hero gave you, that Beowulf did but throw away his generous gifts, +since all he bought with them was treachery and cowardice in the day +of battle! No need had Beowulf to boast of his warriors in time of +danger! Yet he alone avenged his people and conquered the fiend--I +could help him but little in the fray, though I did what I could: all +too few champions thronged round our hero when his need was sorest. +Now are all the joys of love and loyalty ended; now is all prosperity +gone from our nation, when foreign princes hear of your flight and +the shameless deed of this day. Better is death to every man than a +life of shame!" + +[Illustration: The death of Beowulf] + +The Geats stood silent, abashed before the keen and deserved +reproaches of the young hero, and they lamented the livelong day. None +left the shore and their lord's dead corpse; but one man who rode over +the cliff near by saw the mournful little band, with Beowulf dead in +the midst. This warrior galloped away to tell the people, saying: "Now +is our ruler, the lord of the Geats, stretched dead on the plain, +stricken by the dragon which lies dead beside him; and at his head +sits Wiglaf, son of Weohstan, lamenting his royal kinsman. Now is the +joy and prosperity of our folk vanished! Now shall our enemies make +raids upon us, for we have none to withstand them! But let us hasten +to bury our king, to bear him royally to his grave, with mourning and +tears of woe." These unhappy tidings roused the Geats, and they +hastened to see if it were really true, and found all as the messenger +had said, and wondered at the mighty dragon and the glorious hoard of +gold. They feared the monster and coveted the treasure, but all felt +that the command now lay with Wiglaf. At last Wiglaf roused himself +from his silent grief and said: "O men of the Geats, I am not to blame +that our king lies here lifeless. He would fight the dragon and win +the treasure; and these he has done, though he lost his life therein; +yea, and I aided him all that I might, though it was but little I +could do. Now our dear lord Beowulf bade me greet you from him, and +bid you to make for him, after his funeral pyre, a great and mighty +cairn, even as he was the most glorious of men in his lifetime. Bring +ye all the treasures, bring quickly a bier, and place thereon our +king's corpse, and let us bear our dear lord to Hronesness, where +his funeral fire shall be kindled, and his burial cairn built." + +The Geats, bitterly grieving, fulfilled Wiglaf's commands. They +gathered wood for the fire, and piled it on the cliff-head; then eight +chosen ones brought thither the treasures, and threw the dragon's body +over the cliff into the sea; then a wain, hung with shields, was +brought to bear the corpse of Beowulf to Hronesness, where it was +solemnly laid on the funeral pile and consumed to ashes. + + "There then the Weder Geats wrought for their ruler dead + A cairn on the ocean cliff widespread and lofty, + Visible far and near by vessels' wandering crews. + They built in ten days' space the hero's monument, + And wrought with shining swords the earthen rampart wall, + So that the wisest men worthy might deem it. + Then in that cairn they placed necklets and rings and gems + Which from the dragon's hoard brave men had taken. + Back to the earth they gave treasures of ancient folk, + Gold to the gloomy mould, where it now lieth + Useless to sons of men as it e'er was of yore. + Then round the mound there rode twelve manly warriors, + Chanting their bitter grief, singing the hero dead, + Mourning their noble king in fitting words of woe! + They praised his courage high and his proud, valiant deeds, + Honoured him worthily, as it is meet for men + Duly to praise in words their friendly lord and king + When his soul wanders forth far from its fleshly home. + So all the Geat chiefs, Beowulf's bodyguard, + Wept for their leader's fall: sang in their loud laments + That he of earthly kings mildest to all men was, + Gentlest, most gracious, most keen to win glory." + + + + +CHAPTER II: THE DREAM OF MAXEN WLEDIG + + +The Position of Constantine + +It would seem that the Emperor Constantine the Great loomed very large +in the eyes of mediæval England. Even in Anglo-Saxon times many +legends clustered round his name, so that Cynewulf, the religious poet +of early England, wrote the poem of "Elene" mainly on the subject of +his conversion. The story of the Vision of the Holy Cross with the +inscription _In hoc signo vinces_ was inspiring to a poet to whom the +heathen were a living reality, not a distant abstraction; and +Constantine's generosity to the Church of Rome and its bishop +Sylvester added another element of attraction to his character in the +mediæval mind. It is hardly surprising that other legends of his +conversion and generosity should have sprung up, which differ entirely +from the earlier and more authentic record. Thus "the moral Gower" has +preserved for us an alternative legend of the cause of Constantine's +conversion, which forms a good illustration of the virtue of pity in +the "Confessio Amantis." Whence this later legend sprang we have no +knowledge, for nothing in the known history of Constantine warrants +our regarding him as a disciple of mercy, but its existence shows that +the mediæval mind was busied with his personality. Another most +interesting proof of his importance to Britain is given in the +following legend of "The Dream of Maxen Wledig," preserved in the +"Mabinogion." This belongs to the Welsh patriotic legends, and tends +to glorify the marriage of the British Princess Helena with the Roman +emperor, by representing it as preordained by Fate. The fact that the +hero of the Welsh saga is the Emperor Maxentius instead of +Constantius detracts little from the interest of the legend, which is +only one instance of the well-known theme of the lover led by dream, +or vision, or magic glass to the home and heart of the beloved. + + +The Emperor Maxen Wledig + +The Emperor Maxen Wledig was the most powerful occupant of the throne +of the Cæsars who had ever ruled Europe from the City of the Seven +Hills. He was the most handsome man in his dominions, tall and strong +and skilled in all manly exercises; withal he was gracious and +friendly to all his vassals and tributary kings, so that he was +universally beloved. One day he announced his wish to go hunting, and +was accompanied on his expedition down the Tiber valley by thirty-two +vassal kings, with whom he enjoyed the sport heartily. At noon the +heat was intense, they were far from Rome, and all were weary. The +emperor proposed a halt, and they dismounted to take rest. Maxen lay +down to sleep with his head on a shield, and soldiers and attendants +stood around making a shelter for him from the sun's rays by a roof of +shields hung on their spears. Thus he fell into a sleep so deep that +none dared to awake him. Hours passed by, and still he slumbered, and +still his whole retinue waited impatiently for his awakening. At +length, when the evening shadows began to lie long and black on the +ground, their impatience found vent in little restless movements of +hounds chafing in their leashes, of spears clashing, of shields +dropping from the weariness of their holders, and horses neighing and +prancing; and then Maxen Wledig awoke suddenly with a start. "Ah, why +did you arouse me?" he asked sadly. "Lord, your dinner hour is long +past--did you not know?" they said. He shook his head mournfully, but +said no word, and, mounting his horse, turned it and rode in unbroken +silence back to Rome, with his head sunk on his breast. Behind him +rode in dismay his retinue of kings and tributaries, who knew nothing +of the cause of his sorrowful mood. + + +The Emperor's Malady + +From that day the emperor was changed, changed utterly. He rode no +more, he hunted no more, he paid no heed to the business of the +empire, but remained in seclusion in his own apartments and slept. The +court banquets continued without him, music and song he refused to +hear, and though in his sleep he smiled and was happy, when he awoke +his melancholy could not be cheered or his gloom lightened. When this +condition of things had continued for more than a week it was +determined that the emperor must be aroused from this dreadful state +of apathy, and his groom of the chamber, a noble Roman of very high +rank--indeed, a king, under the emperor--resolved to make the +endeavour. + +"My lord," said he, "I have evil tidings for you. The people of Rome +are beginning to murmur against you, because of the change that has +come over you. They say that you are bewitched, that they can get no +answers or decisions from you, and all the affairs of the empire go to +wrack and ruin while you sleep and take no heed. You have ceased to be +their emperor, they say, and they will cease to be loyal to you." + + +The Dream of the Emperor + +Then Maxen Wledig roused himself and said to the noble: "Call hither +my wisest senators and councillors, and I will explain the cause of my +melancholy, and perhaps they will be able to give me relief." +Accordingly the senators came together, and the emperor ascended his +throne, looking so mournful that the whole Senate grieved for him, and +feared lest death should speedily overtake him. He began to address +them thus: + +"Senators and Sages of Rome, I have heard that my people murmur +against me, and will rebel if I do not arouse myself. A terrible fate +has fallen upon me, and I see no way of escape from my misery, unless +ye can find one. It is now more than a week since I went hunting with +my court, and when I was wearied I dismounted and slept. In my sleep I +dreamt, and a vision cast its spell upon me, so that I feel no +happiness unless I am sleeping, and seem to live only in my dreams. I +thought I was hunting along the Tiber valley, lost my courtiers, and +rode to the head of the valley alone. There the river flowed forth +from a great mountain, which looked to me the highest in the world; +but I ascended it, and found beyond fair and fertile plains, far +vaster than any in our Italy, with mighty rivers flowing through the +lovely country to the sea. I followed the course of the greatest +river, and reached its mouth, where a noble port stood on the shores +of a sea unknown to me. In the harbour lay a fleet of well-appointed +ships, and one of these was most beautifully adorned, its planks +covered with gold or silver, and its sails of silk. As a gangway of +carved ivory led to the deck, I crossed it and entered the vessel, +which immediately sailed out of the harbour into the ocean. The voyage +was not of long duration, for we soon came to land in a wondrously +beautiful island, with scenery of varied loveliness. This island I +traversed, led by some secret guidance, till I reached its farthest +shore, broken by cliffs and precipices and mountain ranges, while +between the mountains and the sea I saw a fair and fruitful land +traversed by a silvery, winding river, with a castle at its mouth. My +longing drew me to the castle, and when I came to the gate I entered, +for the dwelling stood open to every man, and such a hall as was +therein I have never seen for splendour, even in Imperial Rome. The +walls were covered with gold, set with precious gems, the seats were +of gold and the tables of silver, and two fair youths, whom I saw +playing chess, used pieces of gold on a board of silver. Their attire +was of black satin embroidered with gold, and golden circlets were on +their brows. I gazed at the youths for a moment, and next became aware +of an aged man sitting near them. His carved ivory seat was adorned +with golden eagles, the token of Imperial Rome; his ornaments on arms +and hands and neck were of bright gold, and he was carving fresh +chessmen from a rod of solid gold. Beside him sat, on a golden chair, +a maiden (the loveliest in the whole world she seemed, and still +seems, to me). White was her inner dress under a golden overdress, her +crown of gold adorned with rubies and pearls, and a golden girdle +encircled her slender waist. The beauty of her face won my love in +that moment, and I knelt and said: 'Hail, Empress of Rome!' but as she +bent forward from her seat to greet me I awoke. Now I have no peace +and no joy except in sleep, for in dreams I always see my lady, and in +dreams we love each other and are happy; therefore in dreams will I +live, unless ye can find some way to satisfy my longing while I wake." + +[Illustration: The dream of the Emperor] + + +The Quest for the Maiden + +The senators were at first greatly amazed, and then one of them said: +"My lord, will you not send out messengers to seek throughout all your +lands for the maiden in the castle? Let each group of messengers +search for one year, and return at the end of the year with +tidings. So shall you live in good hope of success from year to year." +The messengers were sent out accordingly, with wands in their hands +and a sleeve tied on each cap, in token of peace and of an embassy; +but though they searched with all diligence, after three years three +separate embassies had brought back no news of the mysterious land and +the beauteous maiden. + +Then the groom of the chamber said to Maxen Wledig: "My lord, will you +not go forth to hunt, as on the day when you dreamt this enthralling +dream?" To this the emperor agreed, and rode to the place in the +valley where he had slept. "Here," he said, "my dream began, and I +seemed to follow the river to its source." Then the groom of the +chamber said: "Will you not send messengers to the river's source, my +lord, and bid them follow the track of your dream?" Accordingly +thirteen messengers were sent, who followed the river up until it +issued from the highest mountain they had ever seen. "Behold our +emperor's dream!" they exclaimed, and they ascended the mountain, and +descended the other side into a most beautiful and fertile plain, as +Maxen Wledig had seen in his dream. Following the greatest river of +all (probably the Rhine), the ambassadors reached the great seaport on +the North Sea, and found the fleet waiting with one vessel larger than +all the others; and they entered the ship and were carried to the fair +island of Britain. Here they journeyed westward, and came to the +mountainous land of Snowdon, whence they could see the sacred isle of +Mona (Anglesey) and the fertile land of Arvon lying between the +mountains and the sea. "This," said the messengers, "is the land of +our master's dream, and in yon fair castle we shall find the maiden +whom our emperor loves." + + +The Finding of the Maiden + +So they went through the lovely land of Arvon to the castle of +Caernarvon, and in that lordly fortress was the great hall, with the +two youths playing chess, the venerable man carving chessmen, and the +maiden in her chair of gold. When the ambassadors saw the fair +Princess Helena they fell on their knees before her and said: "Empress +of Rome, all hail!" But Helena half rose from her seat in anger as she +said: "What does this mockery mean? You seem to be men of gentle +breeding, and you wear the badge of messengers: whence comes it, then, +that ye mock me thus?" But the ambassadors calmed her anger, saying: +"Be not wroth, lady: this is no mockery, for the Emperor of Rome, the +great lord Maxen Wledig, has seen you in a dream, and he has sworn to +wed none but you. Which, therefore, will you choose, to accompany us +to Rome, and there be made empress, or to wait here until the emperor +can come to you?" The princess thought deeply for a time, and then +replied: "I would not be too credulous, or too hard of belief. If the +emperor loves me and would wed me, let him find me in my father's +house, and make me his bride in my own home." + + +The Dream Realized + +After this the thirteen envoys departed, and returned to the emperor +in such haste that when their horses failed they gave no heed, but +took others and pressed on. When they reached Rome and informed Maxen +Wledig of the success of their mission he at once gathered his army +and marched across Europe towards Britain. When the Roman emperor had +crossed the sea he conquered Britain from Beli the son of Manogan, +and made his way to Arvon. On entering the castle he saw first the two +youths, Kynon and Adeon, playing chess, then their father, Eudav, the +son of Caradoc, and then his beloved, the beauteous Helena, daughter +of Eudav. "Empress of Rome, all hail!" Maxen Wledig said; and the +princess bent forward in her chair and kissed him, for she knew he was +her destined husband. The next day they were wedded, and the Emperor +Maxen Wledig gave Helena as dowry all Britain for her father, the son +of the gallant Caradoc, and for herself three castles, Caernarvon, +Caerlleon, and Caermarthen, where she dwelt in turn; and in one of +them was born her son Constantine, the only British-born Emperor of +Rome. To this day in Wales the old Roman roads that connected Helena's +three castles are known as "Sarn Helen." + + + + +CHAPTER III: THE STORY OF CONSTANTINE AND ELENE + + +The Greatness of Constantine Provokes Attack + +In the year 312, the sixth year after Constantine had become emperor, +the Roman Empire had increased on every hand, for Constantine was a +mighty leader in war, a gracious and friendly lord in peace; he was a +true king and ruler, a protector of all men. So mightily did he +prosper that his enemies assembled great armies against him, and a +confederation to overthrow him was made by the terrible Huns, the +famous Goths, the brave Franks, and the warlike Hugas. This powerful +confederation sent against Constantine an overwhelming army of Huns, +whose numbers seemed to be countless, and yet the Hunnish leaders +feared, when they knew that the emperor himself led the small Roman +host. + + +The Eve of the Battle + +The night before the battle Constantine lay sadly in the midst of his +army, watching the stars, and dreading the result of the next day's +conflict; for his warriors were few compared with the Hunnish +multitude, and even Roman discipline and devotion might not win the +day against the mad fury of the barbarous Huns. At last, wearied out, +the emperor slept, and a vision came to him in his sleep. He seemed to +see, standing by him, a beautiful shining form, a man more glorious +than the sons of men, who, as Constantine sprang up ready helmed for +war, addressed him by name. The darkness of night fled before the +heavenly light that shone from the angel, and the messenger said: + + "O Constantinus, the Ruler of Angels, + The Lord of all glory, the Master of heaven's hosts, + Claims from thee homage. Be not thou affrighted, + Though armies of aliens array them for battle, + Though terrible warriors threaten fierce conflict. + Look thou to the sky, to the throne of His glory; + There seest thou surely the symbol of conquest." + + _Elene._ + + +Vision of the Cross + +Constantine looked up as the angel bade him, and saw, hovering in the +air, a cross, splendid, glorious, adorned with gems and shining with +heavenly light. On its wood letters were engraved, gleaming with +unearthly radiance: + + "With this shalt thou conquer the foe in the conflict, + And with it shalt hurl back the host of the heathen." + + _Elene._ + + +Constantine is Cheered + +Constantine read these words with awe and gladness, for indeed he knew +not what deity had thus favoured him, but he would not reject the help +of the Unknown God; so he bowed his head in reverence, and when he +looked again the cross and the angel had disappeared, and around him +as he woke was the greyness of the rising dawn. The emperor summoned +to his tent two soldiers from the troops, and bade them make a cross +of wood to bear before the army. This they did, greatly marvelling, +and Constantine called a standard-bearer, to whom he gave charge to +bear forward the Standard of the Cross where the danger was greatest +and the battle most fierce. + + +The Morning of Battle + +When the day broke, and the two armies could see each other, both +hosts arrayed themselves for battle, in serried ranks of armed +warriors, shouting their war-cries. + + "Loud sang the trumpets to stern-minded foemen + The dewy-winged eagle watched them march onward, + The horny-billed raven rejoiced in the battle-play, + The sly wolf, the forest-thief, soon saw his heart's desire + As the fierce warriors rushed at each other. + Great was the shield-breaking, loud was the clamour, + Hard were the hand-blows, and dire was the downfall, + When first the heroes felt the keen arrow-shower. + Soon did the Roman host fall on the death-doomed Huns, + Thrust forth their deadly spears over the yellow shields, + Broke with their battle-glaives breasts of the foemen." + + _Elene._ + + +The Cross is Raised + +Then, when the battle was at its height, and the Romans knew not +whether they would conquer or die fighting to the last, the +standard-bearer raised the Cross, the token of promised victory, +before all the host, and sang the chant of triumph. Onward he marched, +and the Roman host followed him, pressing on resistless as the surging +waves. The Huns, bewildered by the strange rally, and dreading the +mysterious sign of some mighty god, rolled back, at first slowly, and +then more and more quickly, till sullen retreat became panic rout, and +they broke and fled. Multitudes were cut down as they fled, other +multitudes were swept away by the devouring Danube as they tried to +cross its current; some, half dead, reached the other side, and saved +their lives in fortresses, guarding the steep cliffs beyond the +Danube. Few, very few they were who ever saw their native land again. + +There was great rejoicing in the Roman army and in the Roman camp when +Constantine returned in triumph with the wondrous Cross borne before +him. He passed on to the city, and the people of Rome gazed with awe +on the token of the Unknown God who had saved their city, but none +would say who that God might be. + + +A Council Summoned + +The emperor summoned a great council of all the wisest men in Rome, +and when all were met he raised the Standard of the Cross in the midst +and said: + + "Can any man tell me, by spells or by ancient lore, + Who is the gracious God, giver of victory, + Who came in His glory, with the Cross for His token, + Who rescued my people and gave me the victory, + Scattered my foemen and put the fierce Huns to flight, + Showed me in heaven His sign of deliverance, + The loveliest Cross of light, gleaming in glory?" + + _Elene._ + +At first no man could give him any answer--perhaps none dared--till +after a long silence the wisest of all arose and said he had heard +that the Cross was the sign of Christ the King of Heaven, and that the +knowledge of His way was only revealed to men in baptism. When strict +search was made some Christians were found, who preached the way of +life to Constantine, and rejoiced that they might tell before men, of +the life and death, the Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus Christ, +who redeemed mankind from the bonds of evil; and then Constantine, +being fully instructed and convinced, was baptized and became the +first Christian emperor. + + +Constantine Desires to Find our Saviour's Cross + +Constantine's heart, however, was too full of love for his new Lord to +let him rest satisfied without some visible token of Christ's sojourn +on earth. He longed to have, to keep for his own, one thing at least +which Jesus had touched during His life, and his thoughts turned +chiefly to that Cross which had been to himself both the sign of +triumph and the guide to the way of life. Thus he again called +together his Christian teachers, and inquired more closely where +Christ had suffered. + +"In Judæa, outside the walls of Jerusalem, He died on the Cross," they +told him. + +"Then there, near that city, so blest and so curst, we must seek His +precious Cross," cried Constantine. + + +Summons his Mother Elene + +Forthwith he summoned from Britain his mother the British Princess +Elene, and when she had been taught the truth, had been converted and +baptized, he told her of his heart's desire, and begged her to journey +to Jerusalem and seek the sacred Cross. + +Elene herself, when she heard Constantine's words, was filled with +wonder, and said: "Dear son, thy words have greatly rejoiced my heart, +for know that I, too, have seen a vision, and would gladly seek the +Holy Cross, where it lies hidden from the eyes of men." + + +Elene's Vision + + "Now will I tell thee the brightest of visions, + Dreamt at the midnight when men lay in slumber. + Hovering in heaven saw I a radiant Cross, + Gloriously gold-adorned, shining in splendour; + Starry gems shone on it at the four corners, + Flashed from the shoulder-span five gleaming jewels. + Angels surrounded it, guarding it gladly. + Yet in its loveliness sad was that Cross to see, + For 'neath the gold and gems fast blood flowed from it, + Till it was all defiled with the dark drops." + + _Dream of the Rood._ + +In this dream of Elene's the Cross spoke to her, and told her of the +sad fate which had made of that hapless tree the Cross on which the +Redeemer of mankind had released the souls of men from evil, on which +He had spread out His arms to embrace mankind, had bowed His head, +weary with the strife, and had given up His soul. All creation wept +that hour, for Christ was on the Cross. + + "Yet His friends came to him, left not His corpse alone, + Took down the Mighty King from His sharp sufferings-- + Humbly I bowed myself down to the hands of men. + Sadly they laid Him down in His dark rock-hewn grave, + Sadly they sang for Him dirges for death-doomed ones, + Sadly they left Him there as His fair corpse grew cold. + We, the three Crosses, stood mournful in loneliness, + Till evil-thinking men felled us all three to ground, + Sank us deep into earth, sealed us from sight of man." + + _Dream of the Rood._ + + +She Undertakes the Quest + +As Constantine had been guided by the heavenly vision of the True +Cross, so now Elene would journey to the land of the Jews and find the +reality of that Holy Cross. Her will and that of her son were one in +this matter, so that before long the whole city resounded with the +bustle and clamour of preparation, for Elene was to travel with the +pomp and retinue befitting the mother of the Emperor of Rome. + + "There by the Wendel Sea stood the wave-horses. + Proudly the plunging ships sought out the ocean path. + Line followed after line of the tall brine-ploughs. + Forth went the water-steeds o'er the sea-serpent's road + Bright shields on the bulwarks oft broke the foaming surge. + Ne'er saw I lady lead such a fair following!" + + _Elene._ + + +She Comes to Judæa + +Queen Elene had a prosperous voyage, and, after touching at the land +of the Greeks, reached in due time the country of Judæa, and so, with +good hope came to Jerusalem. There, in the emperor's name, she +summoned to an assembly all the oldest and wisest Jews, a congregation +of a thousand venerable rabbis, learned in all the books of the Law +and the Prophets and proud that they were the Chosen People in a world +of heathens, aliens from the True God. These she addressed at first +with a blending of flattery and reproach--flattery for the Chosen +People, reproach for their perversity of wickedness--and, finally, +peremptorily demanded an answer to any question she might ask of them. +The Jews withdrew and deliberated sadly whether they durst refuse the +request of so mighty a person as the emperor's mother, and, deciding +that they durst not, returned to the hall where Elene sat in splendour +on her throne and announced their readiness to reply to all her +questions. Elene, however, bade them first lessen their numbers. They +chose five hundred to reply for them, and on these she poured such +bitter reproaches that they at last exclaimed: + + "Lady, we learnt of yore laws of the Hebrew folk + Which all our fathers learnt from the true ark of God. + Lady, we know not now why thou thus blamest us; + How has the Jewish race done grievous wrong to thee?" + + _Elene._ + + +She Cross-questions the Rabbis + +Elene only replied: "Go ye away, and choose out from among these five +hundred those whose wisdom is great enough to show them without delay +the answer to all things I require"; and again they left her presence. +When they were alone, one of them, named Judas, said "I know what +this queen requires: she will demand to know from us where the Cross +is concealed on which the Lord of the Christians was crucified; but if +we tell this secret I know well that the Jews will cease to bear rule +on the earth, and our holy scriptures will be forgotten. For my +grandfather Zacchæus, as he lay dying, bade me confess the truth if +ever man should inquire concerning the Holy Tree; and when I asked how +our nation had failed to recognise the Holy and Just One, he told me +that he had always withdrawn himself from the evil deeds of his +generation, and their leaders had been blinded by their own +unrighteousness, and had slain the Lord of Glory. And he ended: + + "'Thus I and my father secretly held the Faith. + Now warn I thee, my son, speak not thou mockingly + Of the true Son of God reigning in glory: + For whom my Stephen died, and the Apostle Paul.' + + _Elene._ + +"Now," said Judas, "since things are so, decide ye what we shall +reveal, or what conceal, if this queen asks us." + + +One Appointed to Answer her + +The other elders replied: "Do what seems to thee best, since thou +alone knowest this. Never have we heard of these strange secrets. Do +thou according to thy great wisdom." + +While they still deliberated came the heralds with silver trumpets, +which they blew, proclaiming aloud: + + "The mighty Queen calls you, O men, to the Council, + That she may hear from you of your decision. + Great is the need ye have of all your wisdom." + + _Elene._ + +Slowly and reluctantly the Jewish rabbis returned to the +council-chamber, and listened to Elene as she plied them with +questions about the ancient prophecies and the death of Christ; but to +all her inquiries they professed entire ignorance, until, in her +wrath, the queen threatened them with death by fire. Then they led +forward Judas, saying: "He can reveal the mysteries of Fate, for he is +of noble race, the son of a prophet. He will tell thee truth, O Queen, +as thy soul loveth." Thus Elene let the other Jews go in peace, and +took Judas for a hostage. + + +She Threatens him + +Now Elene greeted Judas and said: + + "Lo, thou perverse one, two things lie before thee, + Or death or life for thee: choose which thou wilt." + + _Elene._ + +Judas replied to her, since he could not escape: + + "If the starved wanderer lost on the barren moors + Sees both a stone and bread, easily in his reach, + Which, O Queen, thinkest thou he will reject?" + + _Elene._ + +Thereupon Elene said: "If thou wouldst dwell in heaven with the +angels, reveal to me where the True Cross lies hidden." Now Judas was +very sad, for his choice lay between death and the revealing of the +fateful secret, but he still tried to evade giving an answer, +protesting that too long a time had passed for the secret to be known. +Elene retorted that the Trojan War was a still more ancient story, and +yet was still well known; but Judas replied that men are bound to +remember the valiant deeds of nations; he himself had never even heard +the story of which she spoke. This obstinacy angered the queen +greatly, and she demanded to be taken at once to the hill of Calvary, +that she might purify it, for the sake of Him who died there; but +Judas only repeated: + + "I know not the place, nor aught of that field." + + _Elene._ + +Queen Elene was yet more enraged by his stubborn denials, and +determined to obtain by force an answer to her questions. Calling her +servants, she bade them thrust Judas into a deep dry cistern, where he +lay, starving, bound hand and foot, for seven nights and days. On the +seventh day his stubborn spirit yielded, and Judas lifted up his voice +and called aloud, saying: + + "Now I beseech you all by the great God of heaven + That you will lift me up out of this misery. + I will tell all I know of that True Holy Cross, + Now I no longer can hide it for heavy pain. + Hunger has daunted me through all these dreary days. + Foolish was I of yore; late I confess it." + + _Elene._ + + +He Guides her to Calvary + +The message was brought to Elene where she waited to hear tidings, and +she bade her servants lift the weakened Judas from the dark pit; then +they led him, half dead with hunger, out of the city to the hill of +Calvary. There Judas prayed to the God whom he now feared and +worshipped for a sign, some token to guide them in their search for +the Holy Cross. As he prayed a sweet-smelling vapour, curling upwards +like the incense-wreaths around the altar, rose to the skies from the +summit of the hill. The sign was manifest to all, and Judas gave +thanks to God for His great mercy; then, bidding the wondering +soldiers help him, he began to dig. By this time all men knew what +they sought, and each wished to uncover the holy relic, so that all +dug with great zeal, until, under twenty feet of earth, they +uncovered three crosses, so well preserved that they lay in the earth +just as the Jews had hidden them. + + +Three Crosses Found + +Judas and all rejoiced greatly at this marvel, and, reverently raising +the three crosses, they bore them into the city, and laid them at the +feet of Queen Elene, whose first rapture of joy was speedily turned to +perplexity as she realised that she knew not which was that sacred +Cross on which the King of Angels had suffered. "For," she said, "two +thieves were crucified with him." But even Judas could not clear her +doubts. + + "Lo we have heard of this from all the holy books, + That there were with him two in His deep anguish. + They hung in death by Him; He was Himself the third. + Heaven was all darkened o'er at that dread moment. + Say, if thou rightly canst, which of these crosses + Is that blest Tree of Fate which bore the Heaven's King." + + _Elene._ + +[Illustration: The Queen's dilemma] + + +A Miracle to Reveal our Saviour's Cross + +Judas, however, suggested that the crosses should be carried to the +midst of the city, and that they should pray for another miracle to +reveal the truth. This was done at dawn, and the triumphant band of +Christians raised hymns of prayer and praise until the ninth hour; +then came a mighty crowd bearing a young man lifeless on his bier. At +Judas's command they laid down the bier, and he, praying to God, +solemnly raised in turn each of the crosses and held it above the dead +man's head. Lifeless still he lay as Judas raised the first two, but +when he held above the corpse the third, the True Cross, the dead man +arose instantly, body and soul reunited, one in praising God, and the +whole multitude broke out into shouts of thanksgiving to the Lord +of Hosts, and the sacred relic was restored to the loving care of the +queen. + + +The Nails Sought for + +Nevertheless Elene's longing was still unsatisfied. She called Judas +(whose new name in baptism was Cyriacus) and begged him to fulfil her +desires, and to pray to God that she might find the nails which had +pierced the Lord of Life, where they lay hidden from men in the ground +of Calvary. Leading her out of the town, Cyriacus again prayed on +Mount Calvary that God would send forth a token and reveal the secret. +As he prayed there came from heaven a leaping flame, brighter than the +sun, which touched the surface of the ground here and there, and +kindled in each place a tiny star. When they dug at the spots where +the stars shone they found each nail shining visibly and casting a +radiance of its own in the dark earth. So Elene had obtained her +heart's desire, and had now the True Cross and the Holy Nails. + + +Good News Brought to Constantine + +Word of his mother's success was sent to the Emperor Constantine, and +he was asked what should be done with these glorious relics. He bade +Elene build in Jerusalem a glorious church, and make therein a +beautiful shrine of silver, where the Holy Cross should be guarded for +all generations by priests who should watch it day and night. This was +done, but the nails were still Elene's possession, and she was at a +loss how to preserve these holy relics, when the devout Cyriacus, now +ordained Bishop of Jerusalem, went to her and said: "O lady and queen, +take these precious nails for thy son the emperor. Make with them +rings for his horse's bridle. Victory shall ever go with them; they +shall be called Holy to God, and he shall be called blessed whom that +horse bears." The advice pleased the queen, and she had wrought a +glorious bridle, adorned with the Holy Nails, and sent it to her son. +Constantine received it with all reverence, and ordained that April +24, the day of the miracle of revelation, should henceforth be kept in +honour as "Holy Cross Day." Thus were the Emperor's zeal and the royal +mother's devotion rewarded, and Christendom was enriched by some of +its most precious treasures, the True Cross and the Holy Nails. + + + + +CHAPTER IV: THE COMPASSION OF CONSTANTINE + + +Youth of Constantine + +Constantine the Great was the eldest son of the Roman Emperor +Constantius and the British Princess Helena, or Elena, and was brought +up as a devout worshipper of the many gods of Rome. The lad grew up +strong and handsome, of a tall and majestic figure, skilled in all +warlike exercises, and, as he fought in the civil wars between the +various Roman emperors, he showed himself a bold and prudent general +in battle, a friendly and popular leader in time of peace. The +popularity of the youthful Constantine was dangerous to him, and he +needed, and showed, great skill in evading the deadly jealousy of the +old Emperor Diocletian, and the hatred of his father's rival, +Galerius. At last, however, his position became so dangerous that +Constantius felt his son's life was no longer safe, and earnestly +begged him to visit his native land of Britain, where Constantius had +just been proclaimed emperor and had defeated the wild Caledonians. +The excuse given was that Constantius was in bad health and needed his +son; but not until the young man was actually in Britain would his +anxious father avow that he feared for his son's life. + + +Acclaimed Emperor + +When the half-British Constantius died, Constantine, who was the +favourite of the Roman soldiery of the west, was at once acclaimed as +emperor by his devoted troops. He professed unwillingness to accept +the honour, and it is said that he even tried in vain to escape on +horseback from the affectionate solicitations of his soldiers. Seeing +the uselessness of further protest, Constantine accepted the imperial +title, and wrote to Galerius claiming the throne and justifying his +acceptance of the unsought dignity thrust upon him. Galerius +acquiesced in the inevitable, and granted Constantine the inferior +title of "Cæsar," with rule over Western Europe, and the wise prince +was content to wait until favouring circumstances should destroy his +rivals and give him that sole sway over the Roman Empire for which he +was so well fitted. He had now reached the age of thirty, had fought +valiantly in the wars in Egypt and Persia, and had risen by merit to +the rank of tribune. His marriage with Fausta, the daughter of the +Emperor Maximian, and his elevation to the rank of Augustus brought +him nearer to the attainment of his ambition; and at length the defeat +and death of his rivals placed him at the head of the world-wide +empire of Rome. It is to some period previous to Constantine's +elevation to the supreme authority that we must refer the following +story, told by Gower in his "Confessio Amantis" as an example of that +true charity which is the mother of pity, and makes a man's heart so +tender that, + + "Though he might himself relieve, + Yet he would not another grieve," + +but in order to give pleasure to others would bear his own trouble +alone. + + +Becomes a Leper + +The noble Constantine, Emperor of Rome, was in the full flower of his +age, goodly to look upon, strong and happy, when a great and sudden +affliction came upon him: leprosy attacked him. The horrible disease +showed itself first in his face, so that no concealment was possible, +and if he had not been the emperor he would have been driven out to +live in the forests and wilds. The leprosy spread from his face till +it entirely covered his body, and became so bad that he could no +longer ride out or show himself to his people. When all cures had been +tried and had failed, Constantine withdrew himself from his lords, +gave up all use of arms, abandoned his imperial duties, and shut +himself in his palace, where he lived such a secluded life in his own +apartments that Rome had, as it were, no lord, and all men throughout +the empire talked of his illness and prayed their gods to heal him. +When everything seemed to be in vain, Constantine yielded to the +prayer of his council, that he would summon all the doctors, learned +men, and physicians from every realm to Rome, that they might consider +his illness and try if any cure could be found for his malady. + + +Rewards Offered for his Cure + +A proclamation went forth throughout the world and great rewards were +offered to any man who should heal the emperor. Tempted by the rewards +and the great fame to be won, there came leeches and physicians from +Persia and Arabia, and from every land that owned the sway of Rome, +philosophers from Greece and Egypt, and magicians and sorcerers from +the unexplored desert of the east. But, though Constantine tried all +the remedies suggested or recommended by the wise men, his leprosy +grew no better, but rather worse, and even magic could give him no +help. + +Again the learned men assembled and consulted what they should advise, +for all were loath to abandon the emperor in his great distress, but +they were all at a loss. They sat in silence, till at last one very +old and very wise man, a great physician from Arabia, arose and said: + + +A Desperate Remedy + +"Now that all else has failed, and naught is of any avail, I will tell +of a remedy of which I have heard. It will, I believe, certainly cure +our beloved emperor, but it is very terrible, and therefore I was +loath to name it till every other means had been tried and failed, for +it is a cruel thing for any man to do. Let the Emperor dip himself in +a full bath of the blood of infants and children, seven years old or +under, and he shall be healed, and his leprosy shall fall from him; +for this malady is not natural to his body, and it demands an +unnatural cure." + + +Constantine Assents Regretfully + +The proposal was a terrible one to the assembly, and many would not +agree to it at first, but when they considered that nothing else would +heal the emperor they at length gave way, and sent two from among +themselves to bring the news to Constantine, who was waiting for them +in his darkened room. He was horrified when he heard the counsel they +brought, and at first utterly refused to carry out so evil a plan; but +because his life was very dear to his people, and because he felt that +he had a great work to do in the world, he ultimately agreed, with +many tears, to try the terrible remedy. + + +A Cruel Proclamation + +Thereupon the council drew up letters, under the emperor's hand and +seal, and sent them out to all the world, bidding all mothers with +children of seven years of age or under to bring them with speed to +Rome, that there the blood of the innocents might prove healing to the +emperor's malady. Alas! what weeping and wailing there was among the +mothers when they heard this cruel decree! How they cried, and clasped +their babes to their breasts, and how they called Constantine more +cruel than Herod, who killed the Holy Innocents! The eastern ruler, +they said, slew only the infants of one poor village, but their +emperor, more ruthless, claimed the lives of all the young children of +his whole empire. + + +Constantine is Conscience-stricken + +But though the mothers lamented bitterly, they must needs bow to the +emperor's decree, whether they were lief or loath, and thus a great +multitude gathered in the great courtyard of the imperial palace at +Rome: women nursing sucking-babes at the breast, or holding toddling +infants by the hand, or with little children running by their sides, +and all so heart-broken and woebegone that many swooned for very +grief. The mothers wailed aloud, the children cried, and the tumult +grew until Constantine heard it, where he sat lonely and wretched in +his darkened room. He looked out of his window on the mournful sight +in the courtyard, and was roused as from a trance, saying to himself: +"O Divine Providence, who hast formed all men alike, lo! the poor man +is born, lives, suffers, and dies, just as does the rich; to wise man +and fool alike come sickness and health; and no man may avoid that +fortune which Nature's law hath ordained for him. Likewise to all men +are Nature's gifts of strength and beauty, of soul and reason, freely +and fully given, so that the poor child is born as capable of virtue +as the king's son; and to each man is given free will to choose virtue +or vice. Yet thou givest to men diversity of rank, wealth or poverty, +lordship or servitude, not always according to their deserts; so much +the more virtuous should that man be to whom thou hast put other men +in subjection, men who are nevertheless his fellows and wear his +likeness. Thou, O God, who hast put Nature and the whole universe +under law, wouldst have all men rule themselves by law, and thou hast +said that a man must do to others such things as he would have done to +himself." + + +His Noble Resolve + +Thus Constantine spoke within himself as he stood by the window and +looked upon the weeping mothers and children, the very sentinels of +his palace pitying them, and trying in vain to comfort them; and a +strife grew strong within him between his natural longing for healing +and deliverance from this loathsome disease which had darkened his +life, and the pity he felt for these poor creatures, and his horror at +the thought of so much human blood to be shed for himself alone. The +great moaning of the woeful mothers came to him and the pitiful crying +of the children, and he thought: "What am I that my health is to +outweigh the lives and happiness of so many of my people? Is my life +of more value to the world than those of all the children who must +shed their blood for my healing? Surely each babe is as precious as +Constantine the Emperor!" Thus his heart grew so tender and so full of +compassion that he chose rather to die by this terrible sickness than +to commit so great a slaughter of innocent children, and he renounced +all other physicians, and trusted himself wholly to God's care. + + +He Announces his Determination + +He at once summoned his council, and announced to them his resolution, +giving as his reason, "He that will be truly master must be ever +servant to pity!" and without delay the anxious mothers were told +that their children were free and safe, for the emperor had renounced +the cure, and needed their blood no longer. What raptures of rejoicing +there were, what outpouring of blessing on the emperor, what songs of +praise and thanks from the women wild with joy, cannot be fully told; +and yet greater grew their joy and thankfulness when Constantine, +calling his high officials, bade them take all his gathered treasures +and distribute them among the poor women, that they might feed and +clothe their children, and so return home untouched by any loss, and +recompensed in some degree for their sufferings. Thus did Constantine +obey the behests of pity, and try to atone for the wrong to which he +had consented in his heart, and which he had so nearly done to his +people. + + +The Victims Sent Home Happy + +Home to all parts of the Roman Empire went the women, bearing with +them their happy children, and the rich gifts they had received. Each +one thanked and blessed the emperor, and sang his praises, where +before she had passed with tears and bitter curses on his head; each +woman shared her joy with her neighbours; and the very children learnt +from their mothers and fathers to pray for the healing of their great +lord, who had given up his own will and sacrificed his own cure for +gentle pity's sake. Thus the whole world prayed for Constantine's +healing. + + +A Vision + +Lo! it never yet was known that charity went unrequited and this +Constantine now learnt in his own glad experience; for that same +night, as he lay asleep, God sent to him a vision of two strangers, +men of noble face and form, whom he reverenced greatly, and who said +to him: "O Constantine, because thou hast obeyed the voice of pity, +thou hast deserved pity; therefore shalt thou find such mercy, that +God, in His great pity, will save thee. Double healing shalt thou +receive, first for thy body, and next for thy woeful soul; both alike +shall be made whole. And that thou mayst not despair, God will grant +thee a sign--thy leprosy shall not increase till thou hast sent to +Mount Celion, to Sylvester and all his clergy. There they dwell in +secret for dread of thee, who hast been a foe to the law of Christ, +and hast destroyed those who preach in His Holy Name. Now thou hast +appeased God somewhat by thy good deed, since thou hast had pity on +the innocent blood, and hast spared it; for this thou shalt find +teaching, from Sylvester, to the salvation of both body and soul. Thou +wilt need no other leech." The emperor, who had listened with +eagerness and awe, now spoke: "Great thanks I owe to you, my lords, +and I will indeed do as ye have said; but one thing I would pray +you--what shall I tell Sylvester of the name or estate of those who +send me to him?" The two strangers said: "We are the Apostles Peter +and Paul, who endured death here in thy city of Rome for the Holy Name +of Christ, and we bid Sylvester teach and baptize thee into the true +faith. So shall the Roman Empire become the kingdom of the Lord and of +His Christ." So saying, they blessed him, and passed into the heavens +out of his sight, and Constantine awoke from his slumber and knew that +he had seen a vision. He called aloud eagerly, and his servants +waiting in an outer room ran in to him quickly, for there was urgency +in his voice. To them Constantine told his vision and the command +which was laid upon him. + + +Sylvester Summoned + +Messengers rode in hot haste to Mount Celion, and inquired long and +anxiously for Sylvester. At last they found him, a holy and venerable +man, and summoned him, saying: "The Emperor calls for thee: come, +therefore, at once." Sylvester's clergy were greatly affrighted, not +knowing what this summons might mean, and dreading the death of their +dear bishop and master; but he went forth gladly, not knowing to what +fate he was going. When he was brought to the palace the emperor +greeted him kindly, and told him all his dream, and the command of the +Apostles Peter and Paul, and ended with these words: "Now I have done +as the vision bade, and have fetched thee here: tell me, I pray, the +glad tidings which shall bring healing to my body and soul." When +Sylvester heard this speech he was filled with joy and wonder, and +thanked God for the vision He had sent to the emperor, and then he +began to preach to him the Christian faith: he told of the Fall of +Man, and the redemption of the world by the death and resurrection of +Jesus Christ, of the Ascension of Jesus and His return at the Day of +Judgment, of the justice of God, who will judge all men impartially +according to their works, good or bad, and of the life of joy or +misery to come. As Sylvester taught, the monarch listened and +believed, and, when the tale was ended, announced his conversion to +the true faith, and said he was ready, with his whole heart and soul, +to be baptized. + + +Constantine Baptized + +At the emperor's command, they took the great vessel of silver which +had been made for the children's blood, and Sylvester bade them fill +it with pure water from the well. When that was done with all haste, +he bade Constantine stand therein, so that the water reached his chin. +As the holy rite began a great light like the sun's rays shone from +heaven into the place, and upon Constantine; and as the sacred words +were being read there fell now and again from his body scales like +those of a fish, till there was nothing left of his horrible disease; +and thus in baptism Constantine was purified in body and soul. + +[Illustration: They filled the great vessel of silver with pure water] + + + + +CHAPTER V: HAVELOK THE DANE + + +The Origin of the Story + +The Danish occupation of England has left a very strong mark on our +country in various ways--on its place-names, its racial +characteristics, its language, its literature, and, in part, on its +ideals. The legend of Havelok the Dane, with its popularity and +widespread influence, is one result of Danish supremacy. It is thought +that the origin of the legend, which contains a twofold version of the +common story of the cruel guardian and the persecuted heir, is to be +found in Wales; but, however that may be, it is certain that in the +continual rise and fall of small tribal kingdoms, Celtic or Teutonic, +English or Danish, the circumstances out of which the story grew must +have been common enough. Kings who died leaving helpless heirs to the +guardianship of ambitious and wicked nobles were not rare in the early +days of Britain, Wales, or Denmark; the murder of the heir and the +usurpation of the kingdom by the cruel regent were no unusual +occurrences. The opportunity of localising the early legend seems to +have come with the growing fame of Anlaf, or Olaf, Sihtricson, who was +known to the Welsh as Abloec or Habloc. His adventurous life included +a threefold expulsion from his inheritance of Northumbria, a marriage +with the daughter of King Constantine III. of Scotland, and a family +kinship with King Athelstan of England. In Anlaf Curan (as he was +called) we have an historical hero on whom various romantic stories +were gradually fathered, because of his adventurous life and his +strong personality. These stories finally crystallized in a form which +shows the English and Danish love of physical prowess (Havelok is the +strongest man in the kingdom), as well as a certain cruelty of +revenge which is more peculiarly Danish. There is resentment of the +Norman predominance to be found in the popularity of a story which +shows the kitchen-boy excelling all the nobles in manly exercises, and +the heiress to the kingdom wedded in scorn, as so many Saxon heiresses +were after the Conquest, to a mere scullion. There can be no doubt, +however, that Havelok stood to mediæval England as a hero of the +strong arm, a champion of the populace against the ruling race, and +that his royal birth and dignity were a concession to historic facts +and probabilities, not much regarded by the common people. The story, +again, showed another truly humble hero, Grim the fisher, whose +loyalty was supposed to account for the special trading privileges of +his town, Grimsby. In Grim the story found a character who was in +reality a hero of the poor and lowly, with the characteristic devotion +of the tribesman to his chief, of the vassal to his lord, a devotion +which was handed on from father to son, so that a second generation +continued the services, and received the rewards, of the father who +risked life and all for the sake of his king's heir. + +The reader will not fail to notice the characteristic anachronisms +which give to life in Saxon England in the tenth century the colour of +the Norman chivalry of the thirteenth. + + +Havelok and Godard + +In Denmark, long ago, lived a good king named Birkabeyn, rich and +powerful, a great warrior and a man of mighty prowess, whose rule was +undisputed over the whole realm. He had three children--two daughters, +named Swanborow and Elfleda the Fair, and one young and goodly son, +Havelok, the heir to all his dominions. All too soon came the day +that no man can avoid, when Death would call King Birkabeyn away, and +he grieved sore over his young children to be left fatherless and +unprotected; but, after much reflection, and prayers to God for wisdom +to help his choice, he called to him Jarl Godard, a trusted counsellor +and friend, and committed into his hands the care of the realm and of +the three royal children, until Havelok should be of age to be +knighted and rule the land himself. King Birkabeyn felt that such a +charge was too great a temptation for any man unbound by oaths of +fealty and honour, and although he did not distrust his friend, he +required Godard to swear, + + "By altar and by holy service book, + By bells that call the faithful to the church, + By blessed sacrament, and sacred rites, + By Holy Rood, and Him who died thereon, + That thou wilt truly rule and keep my realm, + Wilt guard my babes in love and loyalty, + Until my son be grown, and dubbèd knight: + That thou wilt then resign to him his land, + His power and rule, and all that owns his sway." + +Jarl Godard took this most solemn oath at once with many protestations +of affection and whole-hearted devotion to the dying king and his +heir, and King Birkabeyn died happy in the thought that his children +would be well cared for during their helpless youth. + +When the funeral rites were celebrated Jarl Godard assumed the rule of +the country, and, under pretext of securing the safety of the royal +children, removed them to a strong castle, where no man was allowed +access to them, and where they were kept so closely that the royal +residence became a prison in all but name. Godard, finding Denmark +submit to his government without resistance, began to adopt measures +to rid himself of the real heirs to the throne, and gave orders that +food and clothes should be supplied to the three children in such +scanty quantities that they might die of hardship; but since they were +slow to succumb to this cruel, torturing form of murder, he resolved +to slay them suddenly, knowing that no one durst call him to account. +Having steeled his heart against all pitiful thoughts, he went to the +castle, and was taken to the inner dungeon where the poor babes lay +shivering and weeping for cold and hunger. As he entered, Havelok, who +was even then a bold lad, greeted him courteously, and knelt before +him, with clasped hands, begging a boon. + +"Why do you weep and wail so sore?" asked Godard. + +"Because we are so hungry," answered Havelok. "We have so little food, +and we have no servants to wait on us; they do not give us half as +much as we could eat; we are shivering with cold, and our clothes are +all in rags. Woe to us that we were ever born! Is there in the land no +more corn with which men can make bread for us? We are nearly dead +from hunger." + +These pathetic words had no effect on Godard, who had resolved to +yield to no pity and show no mercy. He seized the two little girls as +they lay cowering together, clasping one another for warmth, and cut +their throats, letting the bodies of the hapless babies fall to the +floor in a pool of blood; and then, turning to Havelok, aimed his +knife at the boy's heart. The poor child, terrified by the awful fate +of the two girls, knelt again before him and begged for mercy: + + "Fair lord, have mercy on me now, I pray! + Look on my helpless youth, and pity me! + Oh, let me live, and I will yield you all-- + My realm of Denmark will I leave to you, + And swear that I will ne'er assail your sway. + Oh, pity me, lord! be compassionate! + And I will flee far from this land of mine, + And vow that Birkabeyn was ne'er my sire!" + +Jarl Godard was touched by Havelok's piteous speech, and felt some +faint compassion, so that he could not slay the lad himself; yet he +knew that his only safety was in Havelok's death. + +"If I let him go," thought he, "Havelok will at last work me woe! I +shall have no peace in my life, and my children after me will not hold +the lordship of Denmark in safety, if Havelok escapes! Yet I cannot +slay him with my own hands. I will have him cast into the sea with an +anchor about his neck: thus at least his body will not float." + +Godard left Havelok kneeling in terror, and, striding from the tower, +leaving the door locked behind him, he sent for an ignorant fisherman, +Grim, who, he thought, could be frightened into doing his will. When +Grim came he was led into an ante-room, where Godard, with terrible +look and voice, addressed him thus: + +"Grim, thou knowest thou art my thrall." "Yea, fair lord," quoth Grim, +trembling at Godard's stern voice. "And I can slay thee if thou dost +disobey me." "Yea, lord; but how have I offended you?" "Thou hast not +yet; but I have a task for thee, and if thou dost it not, dire +punishment shall fall upon thee." "Lord, what is the work that I must +do?" asked the poor fisherman. "Tarry: I will show thee." Then Godard +went into the inner room of the tower, whence he returned leading a +fair boy, who wept bitterly. "Take this boy secretly to thy house, and +keep him there till dead of night; then launch thy boat, row out to +sea, and fling him therein with an anchor round his neck, so that I +shall see him never again." + +Grim looked curiously at the weeping boy, and said: "What reward +shall I have if I work this sin for you?" + +Godard replied: "The sin will be on my head as I am thy lord and bid +thee do it; but I will make thee a freeman, noble and rich, and my +friend, if thou wilt do this secretly and discreetly." + +Thus reassured and bribed, Grim suddenly took the boy, flung him to +the ground, and bound him hand and foot with cord which he took from +his pockets. So anxious was he to secure the boy that he drew the +cords very tight, and Havelok suffered terrible pain; he could not cry +out, for a handful of rags was thrust into his mouth and over his +nostrils, so that he could hardly breathe. Then Grim flung the poor +boy into a horrible black sack, and carried him thus from the castle, +as if he were bringing home broken food for his family. When Grim +reached his poor cottage, where his wife Leve was waiting for him, he +slung the sack from his shoulder and gave it to her, saying, "Take +good care of this boy as of thy life. I am to drown him at midnight, +and if I do so my lord has promised to make me a free man and give me +great wealth." + +When Dame Leve heard this she sprang up and flung the lad down in a +corner, and nearly broke his head with the crash against the earthen +floor. There Havelok lay, bruised and aching, while the couple went to +sleep, leaving the room all dark but for the red glow from the fire. +At midnight Grim awoke to do his lord's behest, and Dame Leve, going +to the living-room to kindle a light, was terrified by a mysterious +gleam as bright as day which shone around the boy on the floor and +streamed from his mouth. Leve hastily called Grim to see this wonder, +and together they released Havelok from the gag and bonds and +examined his body, when they found on the right shoulder the token of +true royalty, a cross of red gold. + +"God knows," quoth Grim, "that this is the heir of our land. He will +come to rule in good time, will bear sway over England and Denmark, +and will punish the cruel Godard." Then, weeping sore, the loyal +fisherman fell down at Havelok's feet, crying, "Lord, have mercy on me +and my wife! We are thy thralls, and never will we do aught against +thee. We will nourish thee until thou canst rule, and will hide thee +from Godard; and thou wilt perchance give me my freedom in return for +thy life." + +At this unexpected address Havelok sat up surprised, and rubbed his +bruised head and said: "I am nearly dead, what with hunger, and thy +cruel bonds, and the gag. Now bring me food in plenty!" "Yea, lord," +said Dame Leve, and bustled about, bringing the best they had in the +hut; and Havelok ate as if he had fasted for three days; and then he +was put to bed, and slept in peace while Grim watched over him. + +[Illustration: "Havelok sat up surprised"] + +However, Grim went the next morning to Jarl Godard and said: "Lord, I +have done your behest, and drowned the boy with an anchor about his +neck. He is safe, and now, I pray you, give me my reward, the gold and +other treasures, and make me a freeman as you have promised." But +Godard only looked fiercely at him and said: "What, wouldst thou be an +earl? Go home, thou foul churl, and be ever a thrall! It is enough +reward that I do not hang thee now for insolence, and for thy wicked +deeds. Go speedily, else thou mayst stand and palter with me too +long." And Grim shrank quietly away, lest Godard should slay him for +the murder of Havelok. + +Now Grim saw in what a terrible plight he stood, at the mercy of this +cruel and treacherous man, and he took counsel with himself and +consulted his wife, and the two decided to flee from Denmark to save +their lives. Gradually Grim sold all his stock, his cattle, his nets, +everything that he owned, and turned it into good pieces of gold; then +he bought and secretly fitted out and provisioned a ship, and at last, +when all was ready, carried on board Havelok (who had lain hidden all +this time), his own three sons and two daughters; then when he and his +wife had gone on board he set sail, and, driven by a favourable wind, +reached the shores of England. + + +Goldborough and Earl Godrich + +Meanwhile in England a somewhat similar fate had befallen a fair +princess named Goldborough. When her father, King Athelwold, lay dying +all his people mourned, for he was the flower of all fair England for +knighthood, justice, and mercy; and he himself grieved sorely for the +sake of his little daughter, soon to be left an orphan. "What will she +do?" moaned he. "She can neither speak nor walk! If she were only able +to ride, to rule England, and to guard herself from shame, I should +have no grief, even if I died and left her alone, while I lived in the +joy of paradise!" + +Then Athelwold summoned a council to be held at Winchester, and asked +the advice of the nobles as to the care of the infant Goldborough. +They with one accord recommended Earl Godrich of Cornwall to be made +regent for the little princess; and the earl, on being appointed, +swore with all solemn rites that he would marry her at twelve years +old to the highest, the best, fairest, and strongest man alive, and in +the meantime would train her in all royal virtues and customs. So +King Athelwold died, and was buried with great lamentations, and +Godrich ruled the land as regent. He was a strict but just governor, +and England had great peace, without and within, under his severe +rule, for all lived in awe of him, though no man loved him. +Goldborough grew and throve in all ways, and became famous through the +land for her gracious beauty and gentle and virtuous demeanour. This +roused the jealousy of Earl Godrich, who had played the part of king +so long that he almost believed himself King of England, and he began +to consider how he could secure the kingdom for himself and his son. +Thereupon he had Goldborough taken from Winchester, where she kept +royal state, to Dover, where she was imprisoned in the castle, and +strictly secluded from all her friends; there she remained, with poor +clothes and scanty food, awaiting a champion to uphold her right. + + +Havelok Becomes Cook's Boy + +When Grim sailed from Denmark to England he landed in the Humber, at +the place now called Grimsby, and there established himself as a +fisherman. So successful was he that for twelve years he supported his +family well, and carried his catches of fish far afield, even to +Lincoln, where rare fish always brought a good price. In all this time +Grim never once called on Havelok for help in the task of feeding the +family; he reverenced his king, and the whole household served Havelok +with the utmost deference, and often went with scanty rations to +satisfy the boy's great appetite. At length Havelok began to think how +selfishly he was living, and how much food he consumed, and was filled +with shame when he realized how his foster-father toiled unweariedly +while he did nothing to help. In his remorseful meditations it became +clear to him that, though a king's son, he ought to do some useful +work. "Of what use," thought he, "is my great strength and stature if +I do not employ it for some good purpose? There is no shame in honest +toil. I will work for my food, and try to make some return to Father +Grim, who has done so much for me. I will gladly bear his baskets of +fish to market, and I will begin to-morrow." + +On the next day, in spite of Grim's protests Havelok carried a load of +fish equal to four men's burden to Grimsby market, and sold it +successfully, returning home with the money he received; and this he +did day by day, till a famine arose and fish and food both became +scarce. Then Grim, more concerned for Havelok than for his own +children, called the youth to him and bade him try his fortunes in +Lincoln, for his own sake and for theirs; he would be better fed, and +the little food Grim could get would go further among the others if +Havelok were not there. The one obstacle in the way was Havelok's lack +of clothes, and Grim overcame that by sacrificing his boat's sail to +make Havelok a coarse tunic. That done, they bade each other farewell, +and Havelok started for Lincoln, barefooted and bareheaded, for his +only garment was the sailcloth tunic. In Lincoln Havelok found no +friends and no food for two days, and he was desperate and faint with +hunger, when he heard a call: "Porters, porters! hither to me!" Roused +to new vigour by the chance of work, Havelok rushed with the rest, and +bore down and hurled aside the other porters so vigorously that he was +chosen to carry provisions for Bertram, the earl's cook; and in return +he received the first meal he had eaten for nearly three days. + +On the next day Havelok again overthrew the porters, and, knocking +down at least sixteen, secured the work. This time he had to carry +fish, and his basket was so laden that he bore nearly a cartload, +with which he ran to the castle. There the cook, amazed at his +strength, first gave him a hearty meal, and then offered him good +service under himself, with food and lodging for his wages. This offer +Havelok accepted, and was installed as cook's boy, and employed in all +the lowest offices--carrying wood, water, turf, hewing logs, lifting, +fetching, carrying--and in all he showed himself a wonderfully strong +worker, with unfailing good temper and gentleness, so that the little +children all loved the big, gentle, fair-haired youth who worked so +quietly and played with them so merrily. When Havelok's old tunic +became worn out, his master, the cook, took pity on him and gave him a +new suit, and then it could be seen how handsome and tall and strong a +youth this cook's boy really was, and his fame spread far and wide +round Lincoln Town. + +[Illustration: "Havelok again overthrew the porters"] + + +Havelok and Goldborough + +At the great fair of Lincoln, sports of all kinds were indulged in, +and in these Havelok took his part, for the cook, proud of his mighty +scullion, urged him to compete in all the games and races. As Earl +Godrich had summoned his Parliament to meet that year at Lincoln, +there was a great concourse of spectators, and even the powerful Earl +Regent himself sometimes watched the sports and cheered the champions. +The first contest was "putting the stone," and the stone chosen was so +weighty that none but the most stalwart could lift it above the +knee--none could raise it to his breast. This sport was new to +Havelok, who had never seen it before, but when the cook bade him try +his strength he lifted the stone easily and threw it more than twelve +feet. This mighty deed caused his fame to be spread, not only among +the poor servants with whom Havelok was classed, but also among the +barons, their masters, and Havelok's Stone became a landmark in +Lincoln. Thus Godrich heard of a youth who stood head and shoulders +taller than other men and was stronger, more handsome--and yet a mere +common scullion. The news brought him a flash of inspiration: "Here is +the highest, strongest, best man in all England, and him shall +Goldborough wed. I shall keep my vow to the letter, and England must +fall to me, for Goldborough's royal blood will be lost by her marriage +with a thrall, the people will refuse her obedience, and England will +cast her out." + +Godrich therefore brought Goldborough to Lincoln, received her with +bell-ringing and seemly rejoicing, and bade her prepare for her +wedding. This the princess refused to do until she knew who was her +destined husband, for she said she would wed no man who was not of +royal birth. Her firmness drove Earl Godrich to fierce wrath, and he +burst out: "Wilt thou be queen and mistress over me? Thy pride shall +be brought down: thou shalt have no royal spouse: a vagabond and +scullion shalt thou wed, and that no later than to-morrow! Curses on +him who speaks thee fair!" In vain the princess wept and bemoaned +herself: the wedding was fixed for the morrow morn. + +The next day at dawn Earl Godrich sent for Havelok, the mighty cook's +boy, and asked him: "Wilt thou take a wife?" + +"Nay," quoth Havelok, "that will I not. I cannot feed her, much less +clothe and lodge her. My very garments are not my own, but belong to +the cook, my master." Godrich fell upon Havelok and beat him +furiously, saying, "Unless thou wilt take the wench I give thee for +wife I will hang or blind thee"; and so, in great fear, Havelok agreed +to the wedding. At once Goldborough was brought, and forced into an +immediate marriage, under penalty of banishment or burning as a witch +if she refused. And thus the unwilling couple were united by the +Archbishop of York, who had come to attend the Parliament. + +Never was there so sad a wedding! The people murmured greatly at this +unequal union, and pitied the poor princess, thus driven to wed a man +of low birth; and Goldborough herself wept pitifully, but resigned +herself to God's will. All men now acknowledged with grief that she +and her husband could have no claim to the English throne, and thus +Godrich seemed to have gained his object. Havelok and his unwilling +bride recognised that they would not be safe near Godrich, and as +Havelok had no home in Lincoln to which he could take the princess, he +determined to go back to his faithful foster-father, Grim, and put the +fair young bride under his loyal protection. Sorrowfully, with grief +and shame in their hearts, Havelok and Goldborough made their way on +foot to Grimsby, only to find the loyal Grim dead; but his five +children were alive and in prosperity. When they saw Havelok and his +wife they fell on their knees and saluted them with all respect and +reverence. In their joy to see their king again, these worthy +fisherfolk forgot their newly won wealth, and said: "Welcome, dear +lord, and thy fair lady! What joy is ours to see thee again, for thy +subjects are we, and thou canst do with us as thou wilt. All that we +have is thine, and if thou wilt dwell with us we will serve thee and +thy wife truly in all ways!" This greeting surprised Goldborough, who +began to suspect some mystery, and she was greatly comforted when +brothers and sisters busied themselves in lighting fires, cooking +meals, and waiting on her hand and foot, as if she had been indeed a +king's wife. Havelok, however, said nothing to explain the mystery, +and Goldborough that night lay awake bewailing her fate as a thrall's +bride, even though he was the fairest man in England. + + +The Revelation and Return to Denmark + +As Goldborough lay sleepless and unhappy she became aware of a +brilliant light shining around Havelok and streaming from his mouth; +and while she feared and wondered an angelic voice cried to her: + + "Fair Princess, cease this grief and heavy moan! + For Havelok, thy newly wedded spouse, + Is son and heir to famous kings: the sign + Thou findest in the cross of ruddy gold + That shineth on his shoulder. He shall be + Monarch and ruler of two mighty realms; + Denmark and England shall obey his rule, + And he shall sway them with a sure command. + This shalt thou see with thine own eyes, and be + Lady and Queen, with Havelok, o'er these lands." + +This angelic message so gladdened Goldborough that she kissed, for the +first time, her unconscious husband, who started up from his sleep, +saying, "Dear love, sleepest thou? I have had a wondrous dream. I +thought I sat on a lofty hill, and saw all Denmark before me. As I +stretched out my arms I embraced it all, and the people clung to my +arms, and the castles fell at my feet; then I flew over the salt sea +with the Danish people clinging to me, and I closed all fair England +in my hand, and gave it to thee, dear love! Now what can this mean?" + +Goldborough answered joyfully: "It means, dear heart, that thou shalt +be King of Denmark and of England too: all these realms shall fall +into thy power, and thou shalt be ruler in Denmark within one year. +Now do thou follow my advice, and let us go to Denmark, taking with us +Grim's three sons, who will accompany thee for love and loyalty; and +have no fear, for I know thou wilt succeed." + +The next morning Havelok went to church early, and prayed humbly and +heartily for success in his enterprise and retribution on the false +traitor Godard; then, laying his offering on the altar before the +Cross, he went away glad in heart. Grim's three sons, Robert the Red, +William Wendut, and Hugh the Raven, joyfully consented to go with +Havelok to Denmark, to attack with all their power the false Jarl +Godard and to win the kingdom for the rightful heir. Their wives and +families stayed in England, but Goldborough would not leave her +husband, and after a short voyage the party landed safely on the +shores of Denmark, in the lands of Jarl Ubbe, an old friend of King +Birkabeyn, who lived far from the court now that a usurper held sway +in Denmark. + + +Havelok and Ubbe + +Havelok dared not reveal himself and his errand until he knew more of +the state of parties in the country, and he therefore only begged +permission to live and trade there, giving Ubbe, as a token of +goodwill and a tribute to his power, a valuable ring, which the jarl +prized greatly. Ubbe, gazing at the so-called merchant's great stature +and beauty, lamented that he was not of noble birth, and planned to +persuade him to take up the profession of arms. At first, however, he +simply granted Havelok permission to trade, and invited him and +Goldborough to a feast, promising them safety and honour under his +protection. Havelok dreaded lest his wife's beauty might place them in +jeopardy, but he dared not refuse the invitation, which was pointedly +given to both; accordingly, when they went to Ubbe's hall, Goldborough +was escorted by Robert the Red and William Wendut. + +Ubbe received them with all honour, and all men marvelled at +Goldborough's beauty, and Ubbe's wife loved Goldborough at first sight +as her husband did Havelok, so that the feast passed off with all joy +and mirth, and none dared raise a hand or lift his voice against the +wandering merchant whom Ubbe so strangely favoured. But Ubbe knew that +when once Havelok and his wife were away from his protection there +would be little safety for them, since the rough Danish nobles would +think nothing of stealing a trader's fair wife, and many a man had +cast longing eyes on Goldborough's loveliness. Therefore when the +feast was over, and Havelok took his leave, Ubbe sent with him a body +of ten knights and sixty men-at-arms, and recommended them to the +magistrate of the town, Bernard Brown, a true and upright man, bidding +him, as he prized his life, keep the strangers in safety and honour. +Well it was that Ubbe and Bernard Brown took these precautions, for +late at night a riotous crowd came to Bernard's house clamouring for +admittance. Bernard withstood the angry mob, armed with a great axe, +but they burst the door in by hurling a huge stone; and then Havelok +joined in the defence. He drew out the great beam which barred the +door, and crying, "Come quickly to me, and you shall stay here! Curses +on him who flees!" began to lay about him with the big beam, so that +three fell dead at once. A terrible fight followed, in which Havelok, +armed only with the beam, slew twenty men in armour, and was then sore +beset by the rest of the troop, aiming darts and arrows at his +unarmoured breast. It was going hardly with him, when Hugh the Raven, +hearing and understanding the cries of the assailants, called his +brothers to their lord's aid, and they all joined the fight so +furiously that, long ere day, of the sixty men who had attacked the +inn not one remained alive. + +In the morning news was brought to Jarl Ubbe that his stranger +guest had slain sixty of the best of his soldiery. + +"What can this mean?" said Ubbe. "I had better go and see to it +myself, for any messenger would surely treat Havelok discourteously, +and I should be full loath to do that." He rode away to the house of +Bernard Brown, and asked the meaning of its damaged and battered +appearance. + +"My lord," answered Bernard Brown, "last night at moonrise there came +a band of sixty thieves who would have plundered my house and bound me +hand and foot. When Havelok and his companions saw it they came to my +aid, with sticks and stones, and drove out the robbers like dogs from +a mill. Havelok himself slew three at one blow. Never have I seen a +warrior so good! He is worth a thousand in a fray. But alas! he is +grievously wounded, with three deadly gashes in side and arm and +thigh, and at least twenty smaller wounds. I am scarcely harmed at +all, but I fear he will die full soon." + +Ubbe could scarcely believe so strange a tale, but all the bystanders +swore that Bernard told nothing but the bare truth, and that the whole +gang of thieves, with their leader, Griffin the Welshman, had been +slain by the hero and his small party. Then Ubbe bade them bring +Havelok, that he might call a leech to heal his wounds, for if the +stranger merchant should live Jarl Ubbe would without fail dub him +knight; and when the leech had seen the wounds he said the patient +would make a good and quick recovery. Then Ubbe offered Havelok and +his wife a dwelling in his own castle, under his own protection, till +Havelok's grievous wounds were healed. There, too, fair Goldborough +would be under the care of Ubbe's wife, who would cherish her as her +own daughter. This kind offer was accepted gladly, and they all went +to the castle, where a room was given them next to Ubbe's own. + +At midnight Ubbe woke, aroused by a bright light in Havelok's room, +which was only separated from his own by a slight wooden partition. He +was vexed suspecting his guest of midnight wassailing, and went to +inquire what villainy might be hatching. To his surprise, both husband +and wife were sound asleep, but the light shone from Havelok's mouth, +and made a glory round his head. Utterly amazed at the marvel, Ubbe +went away silently, and returned with all the garrison of his castle +to the room where his guests still lay sleeping. As they gazed on the +light Havelok turned in his sleep, and they saw on his shoulder the +golden cross, shining like the sun, which all men knew to be the token +of royal birth. Then Ubbe exclaimed: "Now I know who this is, and why +I loved him so dearly at first sight: this is the son of our dead King +Birkabeyn. Never was man so like another as this man is to the dead +king: he is his very image and his true heir." With great joy they +fell on their knees and kissed him eagerly, and Havelok awoke and +began to scowl furiously, for he thought it was some treacherous +attack; but Ubbe soon undeceived him. + +[Illustration: "With great joy they fell on their knees"] + + "'Dear lord,' quoth he, 'be thou in naught dismayed, + For in thine eyes methinks I see thy thought-- + Dear son, great joy is mine to live this day! + My homage, lord, I freely offer thee: + Thy loyal men and vassals are we all, + For thou art son of mighty Birkabeyn, + And soon shalt conquer all thy father's land, + Though thou art young and almost friendless here. + To-morrow will we swear our fealty due, + And dub thee knight, for prowess unexcelled.'" + +Now Havelok knew that his worst danger was over, and he thanked God +for the friend He had sent him, and left to the good Jarl Ubbe the +management of his cause. Ubbe gathered an assembly of as many mighty +men of the realm, and barons, and good citizens, as he could summon; +and when they were all assembled, pondering what was the cause of this +imperative summons, Ubbe arose and said: + +"Gentles, bear with me if I tell you first things well known to you. +Ye know that King Birkabeyn ruled this land until his death-day, and +that he left three children--one son, Havelok, and two daughters--to +the guardianship of Jarl Godard: ye all heard him swear to keep them +loyally and treat them well. But ye do not know how he kept his oath! +The false traitor slew both the maidens, and would have slain the boy, +but for pity he would not kill the child with his own hands. He bade a +fisherman drown him in the sea; but when the good man knew that it was +the rightful heir, he saved the boy's life and fled with him to +England, where Havelok has been brought up for many years. And now, +behold! here he stands. In all the world he has no peer, and ye may +well rejoice in the beauty and manliness of your king. Come now and +pay homage to Havelok, and I myself will be your leader!" + +Jarl Ubbe turned to Havelok, where he stood with Goldborough beside +him, and knelt before him to do homage, an example which was followed +by all present. At a second and still larger assembly held a fortnight +later a similar oath of fealty was sworn by all, Havelok was dubbed +knight by the noble Ubbe, and a great festival was celebrated, with +sports and amusements for the populace. A council of war and vengeance +was held with the great nobles. + + +The Death of Godard + +Havelok, now acknowledged King of Denmark, was unsatisfied until he had +punished the treacherous Godard, and he took a solemn oath from his +soldiers that they would never cease the search for the traitor till +they had captured him and brought him bound to judgment. After all, +Godard was captured as he was hunting. Grim's three sons, now knighted +by King Havelok, met him in the forest, and bade him come to the king, +who called on him to remember and account for his treatment of +Birkabeyn's children. Godard struck out furiously with his fists, but +Sir Robert the Red wounded him in the right arm. When Godard's men +joined in the combat, Robert and his brothers soon slew ten of their +adversaries, and the rest fled; returning, ashamed at the bitter +reproaches of their lord, they were all slain by Havelok's men. Godard +was taken, bound hand and foot, placed on a miserable jade with his +face to the tail, and so led to Havelok. The king refused to be the +judge of his own cause, and entrusted to Ubbe the task of presiding at +the traitor's trial. No mercy was shown to the cruel Jarl Godard, and +he was condemned to a traitor's death, with torments of terrible +barbarity. The sentence was carried out to the letter, and Denmark +rejoiced in the punishment of a cruel villain. + + +Death of Godrich + +Meanwhile Earl Godrich of Cornwall had heard with great uneasiness +that Havelok had become King of Denmark, and intended to invade +England with a mighty army to assert his wife's right to the throne. +He recognised that his own device to shame Goldborough had turned +against him, and that he must now fight for his life and the usurped +dominion he held over England. Godrich summoned his army to Lincoln +for the defence of the realm against the Danes, and called out every +man fit to bear weapons, on pain of becoming thrall if they failed +him. Then he thus addressed them: + + "Friends, listen to my words, and you will know + 'Tis not for sport, nor idle show, that I + Have bidden you to meet at Lincoln here. + Lo! here at Grimsby foreigners are come + Who have already won the Priory. + These Danes are cruel heathen, who destroy + Our churches and our abbeys: priests and nuns + They torture to the death, or lead away + To serve as slaves the haughty Danish jarls. + Now, Englishmen, what counsel will ye take? + If we submit, they will rule all our land, + Will kill us all, and sell our babes for thralls, + Will take our wives and daughters for their own. + Help me, if ever ye loved English land, + To fight these heathen and to cleanse our soil + From hateful presence of these alien hordes. + I make my vow to God and all the saints + I will not rest, nor houseled be, nor shriven, + Until our realm be free from Danish foe! + Accursed be he who strikes no blow for home!" + +The army was inspired with valour by these courageous words, and the +march to Grimsby began at once, with Earl Godrich in command. +Havelok's men marched out gallantly to meet them, and when the battle +joined many mighty deeds of valour were done, especially by the king +himself, his foster-brothers, and Jarl Ubbe. The battle lasted long +and was very fierce and bloody, but the Danes gradually overcame the +resistance of the English, and at last, after a great hand-to-hand +conflict, King Havelok captured Godrich. The traitor earl, who had +lost a hand in the fray, was sent bound and fettered to Queen +Goldborough, who kept him, carefully guarded, until he could be tried +by his peers, since (for all his treason) he was still a knight. + +When the English recognised their rightful lady and queen they did +homage with great joy, begging mercy for having resisted their lawful +ruler at the command of a wicked traitor; and the king and queen +pardoned all but Godrich, who was speedily brought to trial at +Lincoln. He was sentenced to be burnt at the stake, and the sentence +was carried out amid general rejoicings. + +Now that vengeance was satisfied, Havelok and his wife thought of +recompensing the loyal helpers who had believed in them and supported +them through the long years of adversity. Havelok married one of +Grim's daughters to the Earl of Chester, and the other to Bertram, the +good cook, who became Earl of Cornwall in the place of the felon +Godrich and his disinherited children; the heroic Ubbe was made Regent +of Denmark for Havelok, who decided to stay and rule England, and all +the noble Danish warriors were rewarded with gifts of gold, and lands +and castles. After a great coronation feast, which lasted for forty +days, King Havelok dismissed the Danish regent and his followers, and +after sad farewells they returned to their own country. Havelok and +Goldborough ruled England in peace and security for sixty years, and +lived together in all bliss, and had fifteen children, who all became +mighty kings and queens. + + + + +CHAPTER VI: HOWARD THE HALT + + +Introduction + +In every society and in all periods the obligations of family +affection and duty to kinsmen have been recognised as paramount. In +the early European communities a man's first duty was to stand by his +kinsman in strife and to avenge him in death, however unrighteous the +kinsman's quarrel might be. + +How pitiful is the aged Priam's lament that he must needs kiss the +hands that slew his dear son Hector, and, kneeling, clasp the knees of +his son's murderer! How sad is Cuchulain's plaint that his son Connla +must go down to the grave unavenged, since his own father slew him, +all unwitting! One remembers, too, Beowulf's words: "Better it is for +every man that he avenge his friend than that he mourn him much!" +Since, then, family affection, the laws of honour and duty, and every +recognised standard of life demanded that a kinsman should obtain a +full wergild (or money payment) for his relative's death, unless he +chose to take up the blood-feud against the murderer's family, we can +hardly wonder that some of the heroes of early European literature are +heroes of vengeance. Orestes and Electra are Greek embodiments of the +idea of the sacredness of vengeance for murdered kinsfolk, and similar +feelings are revealed in Gudrun's revenge for the murder of Siegfried +in the "Nibelungenlied." To the Teutonic or Celtic warrior there would +be heroism of a noble type in a just vengeance fully accomplished, and +this heroism would be more easily recognised when the wrongdoer was +rich and powerful, the avenger old, poor, and friendless. While +admitting that the hero of vengeance belongs to and represents only +one side of the civilisation of a somewhat barbaric community, we +must allow that the elements of dogged perseverance, dauntless +courage, and resolute loyalty in some degree redeemed the ferocity and +cruelty of the blood-feud he waged against the ill-doer. + +It is certain that in the popular Icelandic saga of "Howard the Halt" +tradition has recorded with minute detail of approbation the story of +a man and woman, old, weak, friendless, who, in spite of terrible +odds, succeeded in obtaining a late but sufficing vengeance for the +cruel slaughter of their only son, the murderer being the most +powerful man of the region. The part here assigned to the woman +indicates the firm hold which the blood-feud had gained on the +imagination of the Norsemen. + + +Icelandic Ghosts + +The story possesses a further interest as revealing the unique +character of the Icelandic ghost or phantom. In other literatures the +spirit returned from the dead is a thin, immaterial, disembodied +essence, a faint shadow of its former self; in Icelandic legend the +spirit returns in full possession of its body, but more evil-disposed +to mankind than before death. It fights and wrestles, pummels its +adversary black and blue, it is huge and bloated and hideous, it tries +to strangle men, and leaves finger-marks on their throats. If the +ghosts are those of drowned men, they come home every night dripping +with sea-water, and crowd the family from the fire and from the hall. +Apparently they are evil spirits animating the dead body, and nothing +but the utter destruction of the body avails to drive away the +malignant spirit. + + +The Story. Howard and Thorbiorn + +Thus runs the saga of "Howard the Halt": + +About the year 1000, when the Christian faith had hardly yet been +heard of in Iceland, there dwelt at Bathstead, on the shores of +Icefirth, in that far-distant land a mighty chieftain, of royal +descent and great wealth, named Thorbiorn. Though not among the first +settlers of Iceland, he had appropriated much unclaimed land, and was +one of the leading men of the country-side, but was generally disliked +for his arrogance and injustice. Thorkel, the lawman and arbitrator of +Icefirth, was weak and easily cowed, so Thorbiorn's wrongdoing +remained unchecked; many a maiden had he betrothed to himself, and +afterwards rejected, and many a man had he ousted from his lands, yet +no redress could be obtained, and no man was bold enough to attack so +great a chieftain or resist his will. Thorbiorn's house at Bathstead +was one of the best in the district, and his lands stretched down to +the shores of the firth, where he had made a haven with a jetty for +ships. His boathouse stood a little back above a ridge of shingle, and +beside a deep pool or lagoon. The household of Thorbiorn included +Sigrid, a fair maiden, young and wealthy, who was his housekeeper; +Vakr, an ill-conditioned and malicious fellow, Thorbiorn's nephew; and +a strong and trusted serving-man named Brand. Besides these there were +house-carles in plenty, and labourers, all good fighting-men. + +Not far from Bathstead, at Bluemire, dwelt an old Viking called +Howard. He was of honourable descent, and had won fame in earlier +Viking expeditions, but since he had returned lamed and nearly +helpless from his last voyage he had aged greatly, and men called him +Howard the Halt. His wife, Biargey, however, was an active and +stirring woman, and their only son, Olaf, bade fair to become a +redoubtable warrior. Though only fifteen, Olaf had reached full +stature, was tall, fair, handsome, and stronger than most men. He wore +his fair hair long, and always went bareheaded, for his great bodily +strength defied even the bitter winter cold of Iceland, and he faced +the winds clad in summer raiment only. With all his strength and +beauty, Olaf was a loving and obedient son to Howard and Biargey, and +the couple loved him as the apple of their eye. + + +Olaf Meets Sigrid + +The men of Icefirth were wont to drive their sheep into the mountains +during the summer, leave them there till autumn, and then, collecting +the scattered flocks, to restore to each man his own branded sheep. +One autumn the flocks were wild and shy, and it was found that many +sheep had strayed in the hills. When those that had been gathered were +divided Thorbiorn had lost at least sixty wethers, and was greatly +vexed. Some weeks later Olaf Howardson went alone into the hills, and +returned with all the lost sheep, having sought them with great toil +and danger. Olaf drove the rest of the sheep home to their grateful +owners, and then took Thorbiorn's to Bathstead. Reaching the house at +noonday, he knocked on the door, and as all men sat at their noontide +meal, the housekeeper, the fair Sigrid, went forth herself and saw +Olaf. + +She greeted him courteously and asked his business, and he replied, "I +have brought home Thorbiorn's wethers which strayed this autumn," and +then the two talked together for a short time. Now Thorbiorn was +curious to know what the business might be, and sent his nephew Vakr +to see who was there; he went secretly and listened to the +conversation between Sigrid and Olaf, but heard little, for Olaf was +just saying, "Then I need not go in to Thorbiorn; thou, Sigrid, canst +as well tell him where his sheep are now"; then he simply bade her +farewell and turned away. + +[Illustration: Olaf and Sigrid] + +Vakr ran back into the hall, shouting and laughing, till Thorbiorn +asked: "How now, nephew! Why makest thou such outcry? Who is there?" + +"It was Olaf Howardson, the great booby of Bluemire, bringing back the +sheep thou didst lose in the autumn." + +"That was a neighbourly deed," said Thorbiorn. + +"Ah! but there was another reason for his coming, I think," said Vakr. +"He and Sigrid had a long talk together, and I saw her put her arms +round his neck; she seemed well pleased to greet him." + +"Olaf may be a brave man, but it is rash of him to anger me thus, by +trying to steal away my housekeeper," said Thorbiorn, scowling +heavily. Olaf had no thanks for his kindness, and was ill received +whenever he came; yet he came often to see Sigrid, for he loved her, +and tried to persuade her to wed him. Thorbiorn hated him the more for +his open wooing, which he could not forbid. + + +Thorbiorn Insults Olaf + +The next year, when harvest was over, and the sheep were brought home, +again most of the missing sheep belonged to Thorbiorn, and again Olaf +went to the mountains alone and brought back the stray ones. All +thanked him, except the master of Bathstead, to whom Olaf drove back +sixty wethers. Thorbiorn had grown daily more enraged at Olaf's +popularity, his strength and beauty, and his evident love for Sigrid, +and now chose this opportunity of insulting the bold youth who +rivalled him in fame and in public esteem. + +Olaf reached Bathstead at noon, and seeing that all men were in the +hall, he entered, and made his way to the daïs where Thorbiorn sat; +there he leaned on his axe, gazed steadily at the master, who gave him +no single word of greeting. Then every one kept silence watching them +both. + +At last Olaf broke the stillness by asking: "Why are you all dumb? +There is no honour to those who say naught. I have stood here long +enough and had no word of courteous greeting. Master Thorbiorn, I have +brought home thy missing sheep." + +Vakr answered spitefully: "Yes, we all know that thou hast become the +Icefirth sheep-drover; and we all know that thou hast come to claim +some share of the sheep, as any other beggar might. Kinsman Thorbiorn, +thou hadst better give him some little alms to satisfy him!" + +Olaf flushed angrily as he answered: "Nay, it is not for that I came; +but, Thorbiorn, I will not seek thy lost sheep a third time." And as +he turned and strode indignantly from the hall Vakr mocked and jeered +at him. Yet Olaf passed forth in silence. + +The third year Olaf found and brought home all men's sheep but +Thorbiorn's; and then Vakr spread the rumour that Olaf had stolen +them, since he could not otherwise obtain a share of them. This rumour +came at last to Howard's ears, and he upbraided Olaf, saying, when his +son praised their mutton, "Yes, it is good, and it is really ours, not +Thorbiorn's. It is terrible that we have to bear such injustice." + +Olaf said nothing, but, seizing the leg of mutton, flung it across the +room; and Howard smiled at the wrath which his son could no longer +suppress; perhaps, too, Howard longed to see Olaf in conflict with +Thorbiorn. + + +Olaf and the Wizard's Ghost + +While Howard was still upbraiding Olaf a widow entered, who had come +to ask for help in a difficult matter. Her dead husband (a reputed +wizard) returned to his house night after night as a dreadful ghost, +and no man would live in the house. Would Howard come and break the +spell and drive away the dreadful nightly visitant? + +"Alas!" replied Howard, "I am no longer young and strong. Why do you +not ask Thorbiorn? He accounts himself to be chief here, and a +chieftain should protect those in his country-side." + +"Nay," said the widow. "I am only too glad if Thorbiorn lets me alone. +I will not meddle with him." + +Then said Olaf: "Father, I will go and try my strength with this +ghost, for I am young and stronger than most, and I deem such a matter +good sport." + +Accordingly Olaf went back with the widow, and slept in the hall that +night, with a skin rug over him. At nightfall the dead wizard came in, +ghastly, evil-looking, and terrible, and tore the skin from over Olaf; +but the youth sprang up and wrestled with the evil creature, who +seemed to have more than mortal strength. They fought grimly till the +lights died out, and the struggle raged in the darkness up and down +the hall, and finally out of doors. In the yard round the house the +dead wizard fell, and Olaf knelt upon him and broke his back, and +thought him safe from doing any mischief again. When Olaf returned to +the hall men had rekindled the lights, and all made much of him, and +tended his bruises and wounds, and counted him a hero indeed. His fame +spread through the whole district, and he was greatly beloved by all +men; but Thorbiorn hated him more than ever. + +Soon another quarrel arose, when a stranded whale, which came ashore +on Howard's land, was adjudged to Thorbiorn. The lawman, Thorkel, was +summoned to decide to whom the whale belonged, and came to view it. +"It is manifestly theirs," said he falteringly, for he dreaded +Thorbiorn's wrath. "Whose saidst thou?" cried Thorbiorn, coming to him +menacingly, with drawn sword. "Thine," said Thorkel, with downcast +eyes; and Thorbiorn triumphantly claimed and took the whale though the +injustice of the decree was evident. Yet Olaf felt no ill-will to +Thorbiorn, for Sigrid's sake, but contrived to render him another +service. + + +Olaf's Second Fight with the Ghost + +Brand the Strong, Thorbiorn's shepherd, could not drive his sheep one +day. Olaf met him trying to get his frightened wethers home: it seemed +an impossible task, because an uncanny human form, with waving arms, +stood in a narrow bend of the path and drove them back and scattered +them. Brand told Olaf all the tale, and when the two went to look, +Olaf saw that the enemy was the ghost of the dead wizard whom he had +fought before. "Which wilt thou do," said Olaf, "fight the wizard or +gather thy sheep?" + +"I have no wish to fight the ghost; I will find my scattered sheep," +said Brand; "that is the easier task." + +Then Olaf ran at the ghost, who awaited him at the top of a high bank, +and he and the wizard wrestled again with each other till they fell +from the bank into a snowdrift, and so down to the sea-shore. There +Olaf, whose strength had been tried to the utmost, had the upper hand, +and again broke the back of the dead wizard; but, seeing that that had +been of no avail before, he took the body, swam out to sea with it, +and sank it deep in the firth. Ever after men believed that this part +of the coast was dangerous to ships. + +Brand thanked the youth much for his help, and when he reached +Bathstead related what Olaf had done for him. Thorbiorn said nothing, +but Vakr sneered, and called Brand a coward for asking help of Olaf. +The strife grew keen between them, almost to blows, and was only +settled by Thorbiorn, who forbade Brand to praise Olaf or to accept +help from him. His ill-will grew so evident to all men that Howard the +Halt decided, in spite of Olaf's reluctance, to remove to a homestead +on the other side of the firth, away from Thorbiorn's neighbourhood. + + +Olaf Meets Thorbiorn + +That summer Thorbiorn decided to marry. He wooed a maiden who was +sister of the wise Guest, who dwelt at the Mead, and Guest agreed to +the match, on condition that Thorbiorn should renounce his injustice +and evil ways; to this Thorbiorn assented, and the wedding was held +shortly after. Thorbiorn had said nothing to his household of his +proposed marriage, and Sigrid first heard of it when the wedding was +over, and the bridal party would soon be riding home to Bathstead. +Sigrid was very wroth that she must give up her control of the +household to another, and refused to stay to serve under Thorbiorn's +wife; accordingly she withdrew from Bathstead to a kinsman's house, +taking all her goods with her. Thorbiorn raged furiously on his +return, when he found that she was gone, for her wealth made a great +difference to his comfort, and threatened dire punishment to all who +had helped her. Olaf continued his wooing of Sigrid, and went to see +her often in her kinsman's abode, and they loved each other greatly. + +One day when Olaf had been seeking some lost sheep he made his way to +Sigrid's house, to talk with her as usual. As they stood near the +house together and talked Sigrid looked suddenly anxious and said: + +"I see Thorbiorn and Vakr coming in a boat over the firth with weapons +beside them, and I see the gleam of Thorbiorn's great sword Warflame. +I fear they have done, or will do, some evil deed, and therefore I +pray thee, Olaf, not to stay and meet them. He has hated thee for a +long time, and the help thou didst give me to leave Bathstead did not +mend matters. Go thy way now, and do not fall in with them." + +"I am not afraid," said Olaf. "I have done Thorbiorn no wrong, and I +will not flee before him. He is only one man, as I am." + +"Alas!" Sigrid replied, "how canst thou, a stripling of eighteen, hope +to stand before a grown man, a mighty champion, armed with a magic +sword? Thy words and thoughts are brave, as thou thyself art, but the +odds are too great for thee: they are two to one, since Vakr, ever +spiteful and malicious, will not stand idle while thou art in combat +with Thorbiorn." + +"Well," said Olaf, "I will not avoid them, but I will not seek a +contest. If it must be so, I will fight bravely; thou shalt hear of my +deeds." + +"No, that will never be; I will not live after thee to ask of them," +said Sigrid. + +"Farewell now; live long and happily!" said Olaf; and so they bade +each other farewell, and Olaf left her there, and went down to the +shore where his sheep lay. Thorbiorn and Vakr had just landed, and +they greeted each other, and Olaf asked them their errand. "We go to +my mother," said Vakr. + +"Let us go together," replied Olaf, "for my way is the same in part. +But I am sorry that I must needs drive my sheep home, for Icefirth +sheep-drovers will become proud if a great man like thee should join +the trade, Thorbiorn." + +"Nay, I do not mind that," said Thorbiorn; so they all went on +together; and as he went Olaf caught up a crooked cudgel with which to +herd his sheep; he noticed, too, that Thorbiorn and Vakr kept trying +to lag behind him, and he took care that they all walked abreast. + + +The Combat + +When the three came near the house of Thordis, Vakr's mother, where +the ways divided, Thorbiorn said: "Now, nephew Vakr, we need no longer +delay what we would do." And then Olaf knew that he had fallen into +their snare. He ran up a bank beside the road, and the two set on him +from below, and he defended himself at first manfully with the crooked +cudgel; but Thorbiorn's sword Warflame sliced this like a stalk of +flax, and Olaf had to betake himself to his axe, and the fight went on +for long. + + +A New Enemy Comes + +The noise of the fray reached the ears of Thordis, Vakr's mother, in +her house, so that she sent a boy to learn the cause, and when he told +her that Olaf Howardson was fighting against Thorbiorn and Vakr she +bade her second son go to the help of his kinsfolk. + +"I will not go," said he. "I would rather fight for Olaf than for +them. It is a shame for two to set on one man, and they such great +champions too. I will not be the third; I will not go." + +"Now I know that thou art a coward," sneered his mother. "Daughter, +not son, thou art, too timid to help thy kinsfolk. I will show thee +that I am a braver daughter than thou a son!" + + +Olaf's Death + +By these words Thordis so enraged her son that he seized his axe and +rushed from the house down the hill towards Olaf, who could not see +the new-comer, because he stood with his back to the house. Coming +close to Olaf, the new assailant drove the axe in deep between his +shoulders, and when Olaf felt the blow he turned and with a mighty +stroke slew his last enemy. Thereupon Thorbiorn thrust Olaf through +with the sword Warflame, and he died. Then Thorbiorn took Olaf's +teeth, which he smote from his jaw, wrapped them in a cloth, and +carried them home. + +The news of the slaughter was at once told by Thorbiorn (for so long +as homicide was not concealed it was not considered murder), and told +fairly, so that all men praised Olaf for his brave defence, and +lamented his death. But when men sought for the fair Sigrid she could +not be found, and was seen no more from that day. She had loved Olaf +greatly, had seen him fall, and could not live when he was dead; but +no man knew where she died or was buried. + +The terrible news of Olaf's death came to Howard, and he sighed +heavily and took to his bed for grief, and remained bedridden for +twelve months, leaving his wife Biargey to manage the daily fishing +and the farm. Men thought that Olaf would be for ever unavenged, +because Howard was too feeble, and his adversary too mighty and too +unjust. + + +Howard Claims Wergild for Olaf + +When a year had passed away Biargey came to Howard where he lay in his +bed, and bade him arise and go to Bathstead. Said she: + +"I would have thee claim wergild for our son, since a man that can no +longer fight may well prove his valour by word of mouth, and if +Thorbiorn should show any sign of justice thou shalt not claim too +much." + +Howard replied: "I know it is a bootless errand to ask justice from +Thorbiorn, but I will do thy will in this matter." + +So Howard went heavily, walking as an old man, to Bathstead, and, +after the usual greetings, said: + +"I have come to thee, Thorbiorn, on a great matter--to claim wergild +for my dead son Olaf, whom thou didst slay guiltless." + +Thorbiorn answered: "I have never yet paid a wergild, though I have +slain many men--some say innocent men. But I am sorry for thee, since +thou hast lost a brave son, and I will at least give thee something. +There is an old horse named Dodderer out in the pastures, grey with +age, sore-backed, too old to work; but thou canst take him home, and +perhaps he will be some good, when thou hast fed him up." + +Now Howard was angered beyond speech. He reddened and turned straight +to the door; and as he went down the hall Vakr shouted and jeered; but +Howard said no word, good or bad. He returned home, and took to his +bed for another year. + +[Illustration: Howard leaves the house of Thorbiorn] + + +Howard at the Thing + +In the second year Biargey again urged Howard to try for a wergild. +She suggested that he should follow Thorbiorn to the Thing and try to +obtain justice, for men loathed Thorbiorn's evil ways, and Howard +would be sure to have many sympathizers. Howard was loath to go. +"Thorbiorn, my son's slayer, has mocked me once; shall he mock me +again where all the chieftains are assembled? I will not go to endure +such shame!" + +To his surprise, Biargey urged her will, saying: "Thou wilt have +friends, I know, since Guest will be there, and he is a just man, and +will strive to bring about peace between thee and Thorbiorn. And +hearken to me, and heed my words, husband! If Thorbiorn is condemned +to pay thee money, and there is a large ring of assessors, it may be +that when thou and he are in the ring together he will do something +to grieve thee sorely. Then look thou well to it! If thy heart be +light, make thou no peace; I am somewhat foresighted, and I know that +then Olaf shall be avenged. But if thou be heavy-hearted, then do thou +be reconciled to Thorbiorn, for I know that Olaf shall lie unatoned +for." + +Howard replied: "Wife, I understand thee not, nor thy words, but this +I know: I would do and bear all things if I might but obtain due +vengeance for Olaf's death." + +At last Howard, impressed by his wife's half-prophetic words, roused +himself, and rode away to the Thing; here he found shelter with a +great chieftain, Steinthor of Ere, who was kind to the old man, and +gave Howard a place in his booth. Steinthor praised Olaf's courage and +manful defence, and bade his followers cherish the old man, and not +arouse his grief for his dead son. + + +Howard and Thorbiorn + +As the days wore on Howard did nothing towards obtaining compensation +for his great loss, until Steinthor asked him why he took no action in +the matter. Howard replied that he felt helpless against Thorbiorn's +evil words and deeds; but Steinthor bade him try to win Guest to his +side--then he would succeed. Howard took heart, and set off for the +booth which Thorbiorn shared with Guest; but unhappily Guest was not +there when Howard came. Thorbiorn greeted him and asked what matter +had brought him, and Howard replied: + +"My grief for Olaf is yet deep in my heart; still I remember his +death; and now again I come to claim a wergild for him." + +Thorbiorn answered: "Come to me at home in my own country, and I may +do somewhat for thee, but I will not have thee whining against me +here." + +Howard said: "If thou wilt do nothing here, I have proved that thou +wilt do still less in thine own country; but I had hoped for help from +other chieftains." + +Thorbiorn burst out wrathfully: "See! He will stir up other men +against me! Get thee gone, old man, or thou shalt not escape a +beating." + +Now Howard was greatly angered, and said: "Yes, old I am--too old and +feeble to win respect; but the days have been when I would not have +endured such wrong; yea, and if Olaf were still alive thou wouldst not +have flouted me thus." As he left Thorbiorn's sight his grief and +anger were so great that he did not notice Guest returning, but went +heavily to Steinthor's booth, where he told all Thorbiorn's injustice, +and won much sympathy. + + +Guest and Howard + +When Guest had entered the booth he sat down beside Thorbiorn and +said: + +"Who was the man whom I met leaving the booth just now?" + +"A wise question for a wise man to ask! How can I tell? So many come +and go," said Thorbiorn. + +"But this was an old man, large of stature, lame in one knee; yet he +looked a brave warrior, and he was so wrathful that he did not know +where he went. He seemed a man likely to be lucky, too, and not one to +be lightly wronged." + +"That must have been old Howard the Halt," said Thorbiorn. "He is a +man from my district, who has come after me to the Thing." + +"Ah! Was it his brave son Olaf whom thou didst slay guiltless?" + +"Yes, certainly," returned Thorbiorn. + +"How hast thou kept the promise of better ways which thou didst make +when thou didst marry my sister?" he asked; and Thorbiorn sat silent. +"This wrong must be amended," said Guest, and sent an honourable man +to bring Howard to him. Howard at first refused to face Thorbiorn +again, but at last reluctantly consented to meet Guest, and when the +latter had greeted him in friendly and honourable fashion he told the +whole story, from the time of Thorbiorn's first jealousy of Olaf. + +Guest was horrified. "Heard ever man such injustice!" he cried. "Now, +Thorbiorn, choose one of two things: either my sister shall no longer +be thy wife, or thou shalt allow me to give judgment between Howard +and thee." + + +Guest's Judgment and the Payment of the Wergild + +Thorbiorn agreed to leave the matter in Guest's hands, and many men +were called to make a ring as assessors, that all might be legally +done, and Thorbiorn and Howard stood together in the ring. Then Guest +gave judgment: "Thorbiorn, I cannot condemn thee to pay Howard all +thou owest--with all thy wealth, thou hast not money enough for that; +but for slaying Olaf thou shalt pay a threefold wergild. For the other +wrongs thou hast done him, I, thy brother-in-law, will try to atone by +gifts, and friendship, and all honour in my power, as long as we both +live; and if he will come home to stay with me he shall be right +welcome." + +Thorbiorn agreed to the award, saying carelessly: "I will pay him at +home in my own country, if he will come to me when I have more +leisure." + +"No," said Guest, who distrusted Thorbiorn, "thou shalt pay here, and +now, fully; and I myself will pay one wergild, to help thee in +atonement." When this was agreed Howard sat down in the ring, and +Guest gave him the one wergild (a hundred of silver), which Howard +received in the skirt of his cloak; and then Thorbiorn paid one +wergild slowly, coin by coin, and said he had no more money; but Guest +bade him pay it all. + +Then Thorbiorn drew out a cloth and untied it, saying, "He will surely +count himself paid in full if I give him this!" and he flung into the +old man's face, as he sat on the ground, the teeth of the dead Olaf, +saying, "Here are thy son's teeth!" + +Howard sprang up, bleeding, mad with rage and grief. The silver rolled +in all directions from his cloak as he came to his feet, but he heeded +it not at all. Blinded with blood, and furious, he broke through the +ring of assessors, dashed one of them to earth, and rushed away like a +young man; but when he came to Steinthor's booth he lay as if dead, +and spoke to no man. + +[Illustration: "The silver rolled in all directions from his cloak"] + +Guest would have no more to do with Thorbiorn. "Thou hast no equal for +cruelty and evil; thou shalt surely repent it," he said; and he rode +to Bathstead, took his sister away, with all her wealth, and broke off +his alliance with Thorbiorn, caring nothing for the shame he put upon +so unjust a man. + +Howard went home, told Biargey all that had happened, and took to his +bed again, a poor, old, helpless, miserable man; but his wife, who saw +her presage beginning to come true, kept up her courage, rowed out +fishing every day, and guided the household for yet another year. + + +Biargey and her Brethren + +That summer, one day, as Biargey was rowed out to the fishing as +usual, she saw Thorbiorn's boat coming up the firth, and bade her man +take up the lines and go to meet him, and row round the cutter, while +she talked with Thorbiorn. As Biargey's little boat approached the +cutter Thorbiorn stopped his vessel for he saw that she would speak +with him, and her boat circled round the cutter while she asked his +business, and learnt that he was going with Vakr to meet a brother and +nephew of his, to bring them to Bathstead, and that he expected to be +away from home for a week. The little skiff had now passed completely +round the motionless cutter, and Olaf's mother, having learnt all she +wanted, bade her rower quit Thorbiorn; the little boat shot swiftly +and suddenly away, leaving Thorbiorn with an uneasy sense of +witchcraft. So disquieted did he feel that he would have pursued her +and drowned "the old hag," as he called her, had he not been prevented +by Brand the Strong, who had been helped in his need by Olaf. + +As the little craft shot away Biargey smiled mysteriously, and said to +her rower: "Now I feel sure that Olaf my son will be avenged. I have +work to do: let us not go home yet." + +"Where, then, shall we go?" asked the man. + +"To my brother Valbrand." + + +Valbrand + +Now Valbrand was an old man who had been a mighty warrior in his +youth, but had now settled down to a life of quiet and peace; he had, +however, two promising sons, well-grown and manly youths. When +Valbrand saw his sister he came to meet her, saying: + +"Welcome, sister! Seldom it is that we see thee. Wilt thou abide with +us this night, or is thine errand one that craves haste?" + +"I must be home to-night," she replied, and added mysteriously: "But +there is help I would fain ask of thee. Wilt thou lend me thy +seal-nets? We have not enough to catch such fish as we need." + +Valbrand answered: "Willingly, and thou shalt choose for thyself. Here +are three, one old and worn out, two new and untried; which wilt thou +take?" + +"I will have the new ones, but I do not need them yet; keep them ready +for the day when I shall send and ask for them," Biargey replied, and +bade Valbrand farewell, and rowed away to her next brother. + + +Thorbrand and Asbrand + +When Howard's wife came to her brother Thorbrand she was well received +by him and his two sons, and here she asked for the loan of a +trout-net, since she had not enough to catch the fish. Thorbrand +offered her her choice--one old and worn out, or two new and untried +nets; and again Biargey chose the new ones, and bade them be ready +when the messenger came. + +From her third brother, Asbrand, who had only one son, Biargey asked a +turf-cutter, as hers was not keen enough to cut all she wanted; again +she was offered her choice, and chose the new, untried cutter, instead +of the old, rusty, notched one. Then Biargey bade farewell to Asbrand, +refusing his offer of hospitality, and went home to Howard, and told +him of her quests and the promises she had received. The old couple +knew what the promises meant, but they said nothing to each other +about it. + + +The Arousing of Howard + +When seven days had passed Biargey came to Howard, saying: "Arise now, +and play the man, if thou wilt ever win vengeance for Olaf. Thou must +do it now or never, since now the opportunity has come. Knowest thou +not that to-day Thorbiorn returns to Bathstead, and thou must meet him +to-day? And have I not found helpers for thee in my nephews? Thou wilt +not need to face the strife alone." + +Hereupon Howard sprang up joyfully from his bed, and was no longer +lame or halt, nor looked like an old man, but moved briskly, clad +himself in good armour, and seemed a mighty warrior. His joy broke +forth in words, and he chanted songs of gladness in vengeance, and joy +in strife, and evil omen to the death-doomed foe. Thus gladly, with +spear in hand, he went forth to find his enemy and avenge his son; but +he turned and kissed his brave wife farewell, for he said: "It may +well be that we shall not meet again." Biargey said: "Nay, we shall +meet again, for I know that thou bearest a bold heart and a strong +arm, and wilt do valiantly." + + +Howard Gathers his Friends + +Howard and one fighting-man took their boat and rowed to Valbrand's +house, and saw him and his sons making hay. Valbrand greeted Howard +well, for he had not seen him for long, and begged him to stay there, +but Howard would not. "I am in haste, and have come to fetch the two +new seal-nets thou didst lend to my wife," he said; and Valbrand +understood him well. He called to his sons, "Come hither, lads; here +is your kinsman Howard, with mighty work on hand," and the two youths +ran up hastily, leaving their hay-making. Valbrand went to the house, +and returned bearing good weapons, which he gave to his sons, bidding +them follow their kinsman Howard and help in his vengeance. + +They three went down to the boat, took their seats beside Howard's +man, and rowed to Asbrand's house. There Howard asked for the promised +new turf-cutter, and Asbrand's son, a tall and manly youth, joined the +party. At their next visit, to Thorbrand's house, Howard asked for the +two trout-nets, and Thorbrand's two sons, with one stout fighting-man, +came gladly with their kinsman. + + +Howard's Plan + +As they rowed away together one of the youths asked: "Why is it that +thou hast no sword or axe, Uncle Howard?" Howard replied: "It may be +that we shall meet Thorbiorn, and when the meeting is over I shall not +be a swordless man, but it is likely that I shall have Warflame, that +mighty weapon, the best of swords; and here I have a good spear." + +These words seemed to them all a good omen, and as they rowed towards +Bathstead they saw a flock of ravens, which encouraged them yet more, +since the raven was the bird of Odin, the haunter of fields of strife +and bloodshed. + +When they reached Bathstead they sprang on the jetty, carried their +boat over the ridge of shingle to the quiet pool by the boathouse, and +hid themselves where they could see, but remain themselves unseen. +Howard took command, and appointed their places, bidding them be wary, +and not stir till he gave the word. + + +Thorbiorn's Return + +Late that evening, just before dusk, Thorbiorn and Vakr came home, +bringing their kinsmen with them, a party of ten in all. They had no +suspicion of any ambush, and Thorbiorn said to Vakr: "It is a fine +night, and dry, Vakr; we will leave the boat here--she will take no +hurt through the night--and thou shalt carry our swords and spears up +to the boathouse." + +Vakr obeyed, and bore all the weapons to the boathouse. Howard's men +would have slain him then but Howard forbade, and let him return to +the jetty for more armour. When Vakr had gone back Howard sent to the +boathouse for the magic sword, Warflame; drawing it, he gripped it +hard and brandished it, for he would fain avenge Olaf with the weapon +which had slain him. When Vakr came towards the ambush a second time +he was laden with shields and helmets. Howard's men sprang up to take +him, and he turned to flee as he saw and heard them. But his foot +slipped, and he fell into the pool, and lay there weighed down by all +the armour, till he died miserably--a fitting end for one so ignoble +and cruel. + + +Thorbiorn's Death + +Howard's men shouted and waved their weapons, and ran down to the +beach to attack their enemies; but Thorbiorn, seeing them, flung +himself into the sea, swimming towards a small rocky islet. When +Howard saw this he took Warflame between his teeth, and, old as he +was, plunged into the waves and pursued Thorbiorn. The latter had, +however, a considerable start, and was both younger and stronger than +his adversary, so that he was already on the rock and prepared to dash +a huge stone at Howard, when the old man reached the islet. Now there +seemed no hope for Howard, but still he clung fiercely to the rock and +strove to draw himself up on the land. Thorbiorn lifted the huge stone +to cast at his foe, but his foot slipped on the wet rocks, and he fell +backward; before he could recover his footing Howard rushed forward +and slew him with his own sword Warflame, striking out his teeth, as +Thorbiorn had done to Olaf. + +[Illustration: "Thorbiorn lifted the huge stone"] + +When Howard swam back to Bathstead, and they told him that in all +six of Thorbiorn's men were dead, while he had only lost one +serving-man, he rejoiced greatly; but his vengeance was not satisfied +until he had slain yet another brother of Thorbiorn's. + + +Steinthor Shelters Howard + +Then, with the news of this great revenge to be told, Howard and his +kinsmen took refuge with that Steinthor who had given him help and +shelter during the Thing. + +"Who are ye, and what tidings do ye bring?" asked Steinthor as the +little party of seven entered his hall. + +"I am Howard, and these are my kinsmen," said Howard. "We tell the +slaying of Thorbiorn and his brothers, his nephews and his +house-carles, eight in all." + +Steinthor exclaimed in surprise: "Art thou that Howard, old and +bedridden, who didst seem like to die last year at the Thing, and hast +thou done these mighty deeds with only these youths to aid thee? This +is a great marvel, nearly as wondrous as thy restoration to youth and +health. Great enmity will ye have aroused against you!" + +Said Howard: "Bethink thee that thou didst promise me thy help if I +should ever need it. Therefore have I come to thee now, because I have +some little need of aid." + +Steinthor laughed. "A little help! When dost thou think thou wilt need +much, if this be not the time? But bide ye all here in honour, and I +will set the matter right, since thou and these thy helpers have done +so valiantly." + + +The Thing and Guest's Award + +Howard and his kinsmen abode long with their host, until the Thing met +again; then Steinthor rode away, leaving the uncle and nephews under +good safeguard. It was a great meeting, with many cases to judge. +When the matter of the death of Thorbiorn's family was brought up +Steinthor spoke on Howard's behalf, and offered to let Guest again +give judgment, since he had done so before. This offer was accepted by +Thorbiorn's surviving kinsfolk, and Guest, as before, gave a fair +award. + +Since a threefold wergild was still due to Howard for the slaying of +Olaf, three of the eight dead need not be paid for. Thorbiorn, Vakr, +and that brother of his slain by Olaf should continue unatoned for, +because they were evildoers, and fell in an unrighteous quarrel of +their own seeking; moreover, the slaying of Howard's serving-man +cancelled one wergild; there remained, therefore, but one wergild for +Howard to pay--one hundred of silver--which was paid out of hand. In +addition to this, Howard must change his dwelling, and his nephews +must travel abroad for some years. This sentence pleased all men +greatly, and they broke up the Thing in great content, and Howard rode +home at the head of a goodly company to his stout-hearted wife +Biargey, who had kept his house and lands in good order all this time. +They made a great feast, and gave rich gifts to all their friends and +kinsmen; then when the farewells were over the exiles went abroad and +did valiantly in Norway; but Howard sold his lands and moved to +another part of the island. There he prospered greatly; and when he +died his memory was handed down as that of a mighty warrior and a +valiant and prudent man. + + + + +CHAPTER VII: ROLAND, THE HERO OF EARLY FRANCE + + +The Roland Legends + +Charles the Great, King of the Franks, world-famous as Charlemagne, +won his undying renown by innumerable victories for France and for the +Church. Charles as the head of the Holy Roman Empire and the Pope as +the head of the Holy Catholic Church equally dominated the imagination +of the mediæval world. Yet in romance Charlemagne's fame has been +eclipsed by that of his illustrious nephew and vassal, Roland, whose +crowning glory has sprung from his last conflict and heroic death in +the valley of Roncesvalles. + + "Oh for a blast of that dread horn, + On Fontarabian echoes borne, + That to King Charles did come, + When Roland brave, and Olivier, + And every paladin and peer + On Roncesvalles died." + + _Scott._ + +Briefly, the historical facts are these: In A.D. 778 Charles was +returning from an expedition into Spain, where the dissensions of the +Moorish rulers had offered him the chance of extending his borders +while he fought for the Christian faith against the infidel. He had +taken Pampeluna, but had been checked before Saragossa, and had not +ventured beyond the Ebro; he was now making his way home through the +Pyrenees. When the main army had safely traversed the passes, the rear +was suddenly attacked by an overwhelming body of mountaineers, Gascons +and Basques, who, resenting the violation of their mountain +sanctuaries, and longing for plunder, drove the Frankish rearguard +into a little valley (now marked by the chapel of Ibagneta and still +called Roncesvalles), and there slew every man. + +[Illustration: Charlemagne + +Stella Langdale] + + +The Historic Basis + +The whole romantic legend of Roland has sprung from the simple words +in a contemporary chronicle, "In which battle was slain Roland, +prefect of the marches of Brittany."[12] + +This same fight of Roncesvalles was the theme of an archaic poem, the +"Song of Altobiscar," written about 1835. In it we hear the exultation +of the Basques as they see the knights of France fall beneath their +onslaughts. The Basques are on the heights--they hear the trampling of +a mighty host which throngs the narrow valley below: its numbers are +as countless as the sands of the sea, its movement as resistless as +the waves which roll those sands on the shore. Awe fills the bosoms of +the mountain tribesmen, but their leader is undaunted. "Let us unite +our strong arms!" he cries aloud. "Let us tear our rocks from their +beds and hurl them upon the enemy! Let us crush and slay them all!" So +said, so done: the rocks roll plunging into the valley, slaying whole +troops in their descent. "And what mangled flesh, what broken bones, +what seas of blood! Soon of that gallant band not one is left alive; +night covers all, the eagles devour the flesh, and the bones whiten in +this valley to all eternity!" + + +A Spanish Version + +So runs the "Song of Altobiscar." But Spain too claims part of the +honour of the day of Roncesvalles. True, Roland was in reality +slain by Basques, not by Spaniards; but Spain, eager to share the +honour, has glorified a national hero, Bernardo del Carpio, who, in +the Spanish legend, defeats Roland in single combat and wins the day. + + +The Italian Orlando + +Italy has laid claim to Roland, and in the guise of Orlando, Orlando +Furioso, Orlando Innamorato, has made him into a fantastic, chivalrous +knight, a hero of many magical adventures. + + +Roland in French Literature + +Noblest of all, however, is the development of the "Roland Saga" in +French literature; for, even setting aside much legendary lore and +accumulated tradition, the Roland of the old epic is a perfect hero of +the early days of feudalism, when chivalry was in its very beginnings, +before the cult of the Blessed Virgin Mary added the grace of courtesy +to its heroism. Evidently Roland had grown in importance before the +"Chanson de Roland" took its present form, for we find the rearguard +skirmish magnified into a great battle, which manifestly contains +recollections of later Saracen invasions and Gascon revolts. As befits +the hero of an epic, Roland is now of royal blood, the nephew of the +great emperor, who has himself increased in age and splendour; this +heroic Roland can obviously only be overcome by the treachery of one +of the Franks themselves, so there appears the traitor Ganelon (a +Romance version of a certain Danilo or Nanilo), who is among the +Twelve Peers what Judas was among the Apostles; the mighty Saracens, +not the insignificant Basques, are now the victors; and the vengeance +taken by Charlemagne on the Saracens and on the traitor is boldly +added to history, which leaves the disaster unavenged. Thus the bare +fact was embroidered over gradually by the historical imagination, +aided by patriotism, until a really national hero was evolved out of +an obscure Breton count. + + +The "Chanson de Roland" + +The "Song of Roland," as we now have it, seems to be a late version of +an Anglo-Norman poem, made by a certain Turoldus or Thorold; and it +must bear a close resemblance to that chant which fired the soldiers +of William the Norman at Hastings, when + + "Taillefer, the noble singer, + On his war-horse swift and fiery, + Rode before the Norman host; + Tossed his sword in air and caught it, + Chanted loud the death of Roland, + And the peers who perished with him + At the pass of Roncevaux." + + _Roman de Rou._ + +The "Song of Roland" bears an intimate relation to the development of +European thought, and the hero is doubly worth our study as hero and +as type of national character. Thus runs the story: + + +The Story + +The Emperor Charles the Great, Carolus Magnus, or Charlemagne, had +been for seven years in Spain, and had conquered it from sea to sea, +except Saragossa, which, among its lofty mountains, and ruled by its +brave king Marsile, had defied his power. Marsile still held to his +idols, Mahomet, Apollo, and Termagaunt, dreading in his heart the day +when Charles would force him to become a Christian. + + +The Saracen Council + +The Saracen king gathered a council around him, as he reclined on a +seat of blue marble in the shade of an orchard, and asked the advice +of his wise men. + + "'My lords,' quoth he, 'you know our grievous state. + The mighty Charles, great lord of France the fair, + Has spread his hosts in ruin o'er our land. + No armies have I to resist his course, + No people have I to destroy his hosts. + Advise me now, what counsel shall I take + To save my race and realm from death and shame?'" + + +Blancandrin's Advice + +A wily emir, Blancandrin, of Val-Fonde, was the only man who replied. +He was wise in counsel, brave in war, a loyal vassal to his lord. + + "'Fear not, my liege,' he answered the sad king. + 'Send thou to Charles the proud, the arrogant, + And offer fealty and service true, + With gifts of lions, bears, and swift-foot hounds, + Seven hundred camels, falcons, mules, and gold-- + As much as fifty chariots can convey-- + Yea, gold enough to pay his vassals all. + Say thou thyself will take the Christian faith, + And follow him to Aix to be baptized. + If he demands thy hostages, then I + And these my fellows give our sons to thee, + To go with Charles to France, as pledge of truth. + Thou wilt not follow him, thou wilt not yield + To be baptized, and so our sons must die; + But better death than life in foul disgrace, + With loss of our bright Spain and happy days.' + So cried the pagans all; but Marsile sat + Thoughtful, and yet at last accepted all." + + +An Embassy to Charlemagne + +Now King Marsile dismissed the council with words of thanks, only +retaining near him ten of his most famous barons, chief of whom was +Blancandrin; to them he said: "My lords, go to Cordova, where Charles +is at this time. Bear olive-branches in your hands, in token of peace, +and reconcile me with him. Great shall be your reward if you succeed. +Beg Charles to have pity on me, and I will follow him to Aix within a +month, will receive the Christian law, and become his vassal in love +and loyalty." + +"Sire," said Blancandrin, "you shall have a good treaty!" + +The ten messengers departed, bearing olive-branches in their hands, +riding on white mules, with reins of gold and saddles of silver, and +came to Charles as he rested after the siege of Cordova, which he had +just taken and sacked. + + +Reception by Charlemagne + +Charlemagne was in an orchard with his Twelve Peers and fifteen +thousand veteran warriors of France. The messengers from the heathen +king reached this orchard and asked for the emperor; their gaze +wandered over groups of wise nobles playing at chess, and groups of +gay youths fencing, till at last it rested on a throne of solid gold, +set under a pine-tree and overshadowed with eglantine. There sat +Charles, the king who ruled fair France, with white flowing beard and +hoary head, stately of form and majestic of countenance. No need was +there of usher to cry: "Here sits Charles the King." + +[Illustration: "Here sits Charles the King"] + +The ambassadors greeted Charlemagne with all honour, and Blancandrin +opened the embassy thus: + +"Peace be with you from God the Lord of Glory whom you adore! Thus +says the valiant King Marsile: He has been instructed in your faith, +the way of salvation, and is willing to be baptized; but you have been +too long in our bright Spain, and should return to Aix. There will +he follow you and become your vassal, holding the kingdom of Spain at +your hand. Gifts have we brought from him to lay at your feet, for he +will share his treasures with you!" + + +He is Perplexed + +Charlemagne raised his hands in thanks to God, but then bent his head +and remained thinking deeply, for he was a man of prudent mind, +cautious and far-seeing, and never spoke on impulse. At last he said +proudly: "Ye have spoken fairly, but Marsile is my greatest enemy: how +can I trust your words?" + +Blancandrin replied: "He will give hostages, twenty of our noblest +youths, and my own son will be among them. King Marsile will follow +you to the wondrous springs of Aix-la-Chapelle, and on the feast of +St. Michael will receive baptism in your court." + +Thus the audience ended. The messengers were feasted in a pavilion +raised in the orchard, and the night passed in gaiety and +good-fellowship. + + +He Consults his Twelve Peers + +In the early morning Charlemagne arose and heard Mass; then, sitting +beneath a pine-tree, he called the Twelve Peers to council. There came +the twelve heroes, chief of them Roland and his loyal brother-in-arms +Oliver; there came Archbishop Turpin; and, among a thousand loyal +Franks, there came Ganelon the traitor. When all were seated in due +order Charlemagne began: + +"My lords and barons, I have received an embassy of peace from King +Marsile, who sends me great gifts and offers, but on condition that I +leave Spain and return to Aix. Thither will he follow me, to receive +the Faith, become a Christian and my vassal. Is he to be trusted?" + +"Let us beware," cried all the Franks. + + +Roland Speaks + +Roland, ever impetuous, now rose without delay, and spoke: "Fair uncle +and sire, it would be madness to trust Marsile. Seven years have we +warred in Spain, and many cities have I won for you, but Marsile has +ever been treacherous. Once before when he sent messengers with +olive-branches you and the French foolishly believed him, and he +beheaded the two counts who were your ambassadors to him. Fight +Marsile to the end, besiege and sack Saragossa, and avenge those who +perished by his treachery." + + +Ganelon Objects + +Charlemagne looked out gloomily from under his heavy brows, he twisted +his moustache and pulled his long white beard, but said nothing, and +all the Franks remained silent, except Ganelon, whose hostility to +Roland showed clearly in his words: + +"Sire, blind credulity were wrong and foolish, but follow up your own +advantage. When Marsile offers to become your vassal, to hold Spain at +your hand and to take your faith, any man who urges you to reject such +terms cares little for our death! Let pride no longer be your +counsellor, but hear the voice of wisdom." + +The aged Duke Naimes, the Nestor of the army, spoke next, supporting +Ganelon: "Sire, the advice of Count Ganelon is wise, if wisely +followed. Marsile lies at your mercy; he has lost all, and only begs +for pity. It would be a sin to press this cruel war, since he offers +full guarantee by his hostages. You need only send one of your barons +to arrange the terms of peace." + +This advice pleased the whole assembly, and a murmur was heard: "The +Duke has spoken well." + + +"Who Shall Go to Saragossa?" + + "'My lords and peers, whom shall we send + To Saragossa to Marsile?' + 'Sire, let me go,' replied Duke Naimes; + 'Give me your glove and warlike staff.' + 'No!' cried the king, 'my counsellor, + Thou shalt not leave me unadvised-- + Sit down again; I bid thee stay.' + + "'My lords and peers, whom shall we send + To Saragossa to Marsile?' + 'Sire, I can go,' quoth Roland bold. + 'That canst thou not,' said Oliver; + 'Thy heart is far too hot and fierce-- + I fear for thee. But I will go, + If that will please my lord the King.' + 'No!' cried the king, 'ye shall not go. + I swear by this white flowing beard + No peer shall undertake the task.' + + "'My lords and peers, whom shall we send?' + Archbishop Turpin rose and spoke: + 'Fair sire, let me be messenger. + Your nobles all have played their part; + Give me your glove and warlike staff, + And I will show this heathen king + In frank speech how a true knight feels.' + But wrathfully the king replied: + 'By this white beard, thou shalt not go! + Sit down, and raise thy voice no more.'" + + +Roland Suggests Ganelon + +"Knights of France," quoth Charlemagne, "choose me now one of your +number to do my errand to Marsile, and to defend my honour valiantly, +if need be." + +"Ah," said Roland, "then it must be Ganelon, my stepfather; for +whether he goes or stays, you have none better than he!" + +This suggestion satisfied all the assembly, and they cried: "Ganelon +will acquit himself right manfully. If it please the King, he is the +right man to go." + +Charlemagne thought for a moment, and then, raising his head, beckoned +to Ganelon. "Come hither, Ganelon," he said, "and receive this glove +and staff, which the voice of all the Franks gives to thee." + + +Ganelon is Angry + +"No," replied Ganelon, wrathfully. "This is the work of Roland, and I +will never forgive him, nor his friends, Oliver and the other Peers. +Here, in your presence, I bid them defiance!" + +"Your anger is too great," said Charlemagne; "you will go, since it is +my will also." + +"Yes, I shall go, but I shall perish as did your two former +ambassadors. Sire, forget not that your sister is my wife, and that +Baldwin, my son, will be a valiant champion if he lives. I leave to +him my lands and fiefs. Sire, guard him well, for I shall see him no +more." + +"Your heart is too tender," said Charlemagne. "You must go, since such +is my command." + + +He Threatens Roland + +Ganelon, in rage and anguish, glared round the council, and his face +drew all eyes, so fiercely he looked at Roland. + +"Madman," said he, "all men know that I am thy stepfather, and for +this cause thou hast sent me to Marsile, that I may perish! But if I +return I will be revenged on thee." + +"Madness and pride," Roland retorted, "have no terrors for me; but +this embassy demands a prudent man not an angry fool: if Charles +consents, I will do his errand for thee." + +"Thou shalt not. Thou art not my vassal, to do my work, and Charles, +my lord, has given me his commands. I go to Saragossa; but there will +I find some way to vent my anger." + +Now Roland began to laugh, so wild did his stepfather's threats seem, +and the laughter stung Ganelon to madness. "I hate you," he cried to +Roland; "you have brought this unjust choice on me." Then, turning to +the emperor: "Mighty lord, behold me ready to fulfil your commands." + + +But is Sent + +"Fair Lord Ganelon," spoke Charlemagne, "bear this message to Marsile. +He must become my vassal and receive holy baptism. Half of Spain shall +be his fief; the other half is for Count Roland. If Marsile does not +accept these terms I will besiege Saragossa, capture the town, and +lead Marsile prisoner to Aix, where he shall die in shame and torment. +Take this letter, sealed with my seal, and deliver it into the king's +own right hand." + +Thereupon Charlemagne held out his right-hand glove to Ganelon, who +would fain have refused it. So reluctant was he to grasp it that the +glove fell to the ground. "Ah, God!" cried the Franks, "what an evil +omen! What woes will come to us from this embassy!" "You shall hear +full tidings," quoth Ganelon. "Now, sire, dismiss me, for I have no +time to lose." Very solemnly Charlemagne raised his hand and made the +sign of the Cross over Ganelon, and gave him his blessing, saying, +"Go, for the honour of Jesus Christ, and for your Emperor." So +Ganelon took his leave, and returned to his lodging, where he prepared +for his journey, and bade farewell to the weeping retainers whom he +left behind, though they begged to accompany him. "God forbid," cried +he, "that so many brave knights should die! Rather will I die alone. +You, sirs, return to our fair France, greet well my wife, guard my son +Baldwin, and defend his fief!" + + +He Plots with Marsile's Messengers + +Then Ganelon rode away, and shortly overtook the ambassadors of the +Moorish king, for Blancandrin had delayed their journey to accompany +him, and the two envoys began a crafty conversation, for both were +wary and skilful, and each was trying to read the other's mind. The +wily Saracen began: + + "'Ah! what a wondrous king is Charles! + How far and wide his conquests range! + The salt sea is no bar to him: + From Poland to far England's shores + He stretches his unquestioned sway; + But why seeks he to win bright Spain?' + 'Such is his will,' quoth Ganelon; + 'None can withstand his mighty power!' + + "'How valiant are the Frankish lords + But how their counsel wrongs their king + To urge him to this long-drawn strife-- + They ruin both themselves and him!' + 'I blame not them,' quoth Ganelon, + 'But Roland, swollen with fatal pride. + Near Carcassonne he brought the King + An apple, crimson streaked with gold: + "Fair sire," quoth he, "here at your feet + I lay the crowns of all the kings." + If he were dead we should have peace!' + + "'How haughty must this Roland be + Who fain would conquer all the earth! + Such pride deserves due chastisement! + What warriors has he for the task?' + 'The Franks of France,' quoth Ganelon, + 'The bravest warriors 'neath the sun! + For love alone they follow him + (Or lavish gifts which he bestows) + To death, or conquest of the world!'" + +[Illustration: "Ganelon rode away"] + + +To Betray Roland + +The bitterness in Ganelon's tone at once struck: Blancandrin, who cast +a glance at him and saw the Frankish envoy trembling with rage. He +suddenly addressed Ganelon in whispered tones: "Hast thou aught +against the nephew of Charles? Wouldst thou have revenge on Roland? +Deliver him to us, and King Marsile will share with thee all his +treasures." Ganelon was at first horrified, and refused to hear more, +but so well did Blancandrin argue and so skilfully did he lay his +snare that before they reached Saragossa and came to the presence of +King Marsile it was agreed that Roland should be destroyed by their +means. + + +Ganelon with the Saracens + +Blancandrin and his fellow ambassadors conducted Ganelon into the +presence of the Saracen king, and announced Charlemagne's peaceable +reception of their message and the coming of his envoy. "Let him +speak: we listen," said Marsile. + +Ganelon then began artfully: "Peace be to you in the name of the Lord +of Glory whom we adore! This is the message of King Charles: You shall +receive the Holy Christian Faith, and Charles will graciously grant +you one-half of Spain as a fief; the other half he intends for his +nephew Roland (and a haughty partner you will find him!). If you +refuse he will take Saragossa, lead you captive to Aix, and give you +there to a shameful death." + + +Marsile's Anger + +Marsile's anger was so great at this insulting message that he sprang +to his feet, and would have slain Ganelon with his gold-adorned +javelin; but he, seeing this, half drew his sword, saying: + + "'Sword, how fair and bright thou art! + Come thou forth and view the light. + Long as I can wield thee here + Charles my Emperor shall not say + That I die alone, unwept. + Ere I fall Spain's noblest blood + Shall be shed to pay my death.'" + + +The Saracen Council + +However, strife was averted, and Ganelon received praise from all for +his bold bearing and valiant defiance of his king's enemy. When quiet +was restored he repeated his message and delivered the emperor's +letter, which was found to contain a demand that the caliph, Marsile's +uncle, should be sent, a prisoner, to Charles, in atonement for the +two ambassadors foully slain before. The indignation of the Saracen +nobles was intense, and Ganelon was in imminent danger, but, setting +his back against a pine-tree, he prepared to defend himself to the +last. Again the quarrel was stayed, and Marsile, taking his most +trusted leaders, withdrew to a secret council, whither, soon, +Blancandrin led Ganelon. Here Marsile excused his former rage, and, in +reparation, offered Ganelon a superb robe of marten's fur, which was +accepted; and then began the tempting of the traitor. First demanding +a pledge of secrecy, Marsile pitied Charlemagne, so aged and so weary +with rule. Ganelon praised his emperor's prowess and vast power. +Marsile repeated his words of pity, and Ganelon replied that as long +as Roland and the Twelve Peers lived Charlemagne needed no man's pity +and feared no man's power; his Franks, also, were the best living +warriors. Marsile declared proudly that he could bring four hundred +thousand men against Charlemagne's twenty thousand French; but Ganelon +dissuaded him from any such expedition. + + +Ganelon Plans Treachery + + "'Not thus will you overcome him; + Leave this folly, turn to wisdom. + Give the Emperor so much treasure + That the Franks will be astounded. + Send him, too, the promised pledges, + Sons of all your noblest vassals. + To fair France will Charles march homeward, + Leaving (as I will contrive it) + Haughty Roland in the rearguard. + Oliver, the bold and courteous, + Will be with him: slay those heroes, + And King Charles will fall for ever!' + 'Fair Sir Ganelon,' quoth Marsile, + 'How must I entrap Count Roland?' + 'When King Charles is in the mountains + He will leave behind his rearguard + Under Oliver and Roland. + Send against them half your army: + Roland and the Peers will conquer, + But be wearied with the struggle-- + Then bring on your untired warriors. + France will lose this second battle, + And when Roland dies, the Emperor + Has no right hand for his conflicts-- + Farewell all the Frankish greatness! + Ne'er again can Charles assemble + Such a mighty host for conquest, + And you will have peace henceforward!'" + + +Welcomed by Marsile + +Marsile was overjoyed at the treacherous advice and embraced and +richly rewarded the felon knight. The death of Roland and the Peers +was solemnly sworn between them, by Marsile on the book of the Law of +Mahomet, by Ganelon on the sacred relics in the pommel of his sword. +Then, repeating the compact between them, and warning Ganelon against +treason to his friends, Marsile dismissed the treacherous envoy who +hastened to return and put his scheme into execution. + + +Ganelon Returns to Charles + +In the meantime Charles had retired as far as Valtierra, on his way to +France, and there Ganelon found him, and delivered the tribute, the +keys of Saragossa, and a false message excusing the absence of the +caliph. He had, so Marsile said, put to sea with three hundred +thousand warriors who would not renounce their faith, and all had been +drowned in a tempest, not four leagues from land. Marsile would obey +King Charles's commands in all other respects. "Thank God!" cried +Charlemagne. "Ganelon, you have done well, and shall be well +rewarded!" + + +The French Camp. Charles Dreams + +Now the whole Frankish army marched towards the Pyrenees, and, as +evening fell, found themselves among the mountains, where Roland +planted his banner on the topmost summit, clear against the sky, and +the army encamped for the night; but the whole Saracen host had also +marched and encamped in a wood not far from the Franks. Meanwhile, as +Charlemagne slept he had dreams of evil omen. Ganelon, in his dreams, +seized the imperial spear of tough ash-wood, and broke it, so that +the splinters flew far and wide. In another dream he saw himself at +Aix attacked by a leopard and a bear, which tore off his right arm; a +greyhound came to his aid but he knew not the end of the fray, and +slept unhappily. + + +A Morning Council + +When morning light shone, and the army was ready to march, the +clarions of the host sounded gaily, and Charlemagne called his barons +around him. + + "'My lords and Peers, ye see these strait defiles: + Choose ye to whom the rearguard shall be given.' + 'My stepson Roland,' straight quoth Ganelon. + ''Mid all the Peers there is no braver knight: + In him will lie the safety of your host.' + Charles heard in wrath, and spoke in angry tones: + 'What fiendish rage has prompted this advice? + Who then will go before me in the van?' + The traitor tarried not, but answered swift: + 'Ogier the Dane will do that duty best.'" + +When Roland heard that he was to command the rearguard he knew not +whether to be pleased or not. At first he thanked Ganelon for naming +him. "Thanks, fair stepfather, for sending me to the post of danger. +King Charles shall lose no man nor horse through my neglect." But when +Ganelon replied sneeringly, "You speak the truth, as I know right +well," Roland's gratitude turned to bitter anger, and he reproached +the villain. "Ah, wretch! disloyal traitor! thou thinkest perchance +that I, like thee, shall basely drop the glove, but thou shalt see! +Sir King, give me your bow. I will not let my badge of office fall, as +thou didst, Ganelon, at Cordova. No evil omen shall assail the host +through me." + + +Roland for the Rearguard + +Charlemagne was very loath to grant his request, but on the advice of +Duke Naimes, most prudent of counsellors, he gave to Roland his bow, +and offered to leave with him half the army. To this the champion +would not agree, but would only have twenty thousand Franks from fair +France. Roland clad himself in his shining armour, laced on his lordly +helmet, girt himself with his famous sword Durendala, and hung round +his neck his flower-painted shield; he mounted his good steed +Veillantif, and took in hand his bright lance with the white pennon +and golden fringe; then, looking like the Archangel St. Michael, he +rode forward, and easy it was to see how all the Franks loved him and +would follow where he led. Beside him rode the famous Peers of France, +Oliver the bold and courteous, the saintly Archbishop Turpin, and +Count Gautier, Roland's loyal vassal. They chose carefully the twenty +thousand French for the rearguard, and Roland sent Gautier with one +thousand of their number to search the mountains. Alas! they never +returned, for King Almaris, a Saracen chief, met and slew them all +among the hills; and only Gautier, sorely wounded and bleeding to +death, returned to Roland in the final struggle. + +Charlemagne spoke a mournful "Farewell" to his nephew and the +rearguard, and the mighty army began to traverse the gloomy ravine +through the dark masses of rocks, and to emerge on the other side of +the Pyrenees. All wept, most for joy to set eyes on that dear land of +fair France, which for seven years they had not seen; but Charles, +with a sad foreboding of disaster, hid his eyes beneath his cloak and +wept in silence. + + +Charles is Sad + +"What grief weighs on your mind, sire?" asked the wise Duke Naimes, +riding up beside Charlemagne. + +"I mourn for my nephew. Last night in a vision I saw Ganelon break my +trusty lance--this Ganelon who has sent Roland to the rear. And now I +have left Roland in a foreign land, and, O God! if I lose him I shall +never find his equal!" And the emperor rode on in silence, seeing +naught but his own sad foreboding visions. + + +The Saracen Pursuit + +Meanwhile King Marsile, with his countless Saracens, had pursued so +quickly that the van of the heathen army soon saw waving the banners +of the Frankish rear. Then as they halted before the strife began, one +by one the nobles of Saragossa, the champions of the Moors, advanced +and claimed the right to measure themselves against the Twelve Peers +of France. Marsile's nephew received the royal glove as chief +champion, and eleven Saracen chiefs took a vow to slay Roland and +spread the faith of Mahomet. + +"Death to the rearguard! Roland shall die! Death to the Peers! Woe to +France and Charlemagne! We will bring the Emperor to your feet! You +shall sleep at St. Denis! Down with fair France!" Such were their +confident cries as they armed for the conflict; and on their side no +less eager were the Franks. + +"Fair Sir Comrade," said Oliver to Roland, "methinks we shall have a +fray with the heathen." + +"God grant it," returned Roland. "Our duty is to hold this pass for +our king. A vassal must endure for his lord grief and pain, heat and +cold, torment and death; and a knight's duty is to strike mighty +blows, that men may sing of him, in time to come, no evil songs. +Never shall such be sung of me." + + +Oliver Descries the Saracens + +Hearing a great tumult, Oliver ascended a hill and looked towards +Spain, where he perceived the great pagan army, like a gleaming sea, +with shining hauberks and helms flashing in the sun. "Alas! we are +betrayed! This treason is plotted by Ganelon, who put us in the rear," +he cried. "Say no more," said Roland; "blame him not in this: he is my +stepfather." + +Now Oliver alone had seen the might of the pagan array, and he was +appalled by the countless multitudes of the heathens. He descended +from the hill and appealed to Roland. + + +Roland will not Blow his Horn + + "'Comrade Roland, sound your war-horn, + Your great Olifant, far-sounding: + Charles will hear it and return here.' + 'Cowardice were that,' quoth Roland; + 'In fair France my fame were tarnished. + No, these Pagans all shall perish + When I brandish Durendala.' + + "'Comrade Roland, sound your war-horn: + Charles will hear it and return here.' + 'God forbid it,' Roland answered, + 'That it e'er be sung by minstrels + I was asking help in battle + From my King against these Pagans. + I will ne'er do such dishonour + To my kinsmen and my nation. + No, these heathen all shall perish + When I brandish Durendala.' + + "'Comrade Roland, sound your war-horn + Charles will hear it and return here. + See how countless are the heathen + And how small our Frankish troop is!' + 'God forbid it,' answered Roland, + 'That our fair France be dishonoured + Or by me or by my comrades-- + Death we choose, but not dishonour!'" + +Roland was a valiant hero, but Oliver had prudence as well as valour, +and his advice was that of a good and careful general. Now he spoke +reproachfully. + + +It is Too Late + +"Ah, Roland, if you had sounded your magic horn the king would soon be +here, and we should not perish! Now look to the heights and to the +mountain passes: see those who surround us. None of us will see the +light of another day!" + +"Speak not so foolishly," retorted Roland. "Accursed be all cowards, +say I." Then, softening his tone a little, he continued: "Friend and +comrade, say no more. The emperor has entrusted to us twenty thousand +Frenchmen, and not a coward among them. Lay on with thy lance, Oliver, +and I will strike with Durendala. If I die men shall say: 'This was +the sword of a noble vassal.'" + + +Turpin Blesses the Knights + +Then spoke the brave and saintly Archbishop Turpin. Spurring his +horse, he rode, a gallant figure, to the summit of a hill, whence he +called aloud to the Frankish knights: + + "'Fair sirs and barons, Charles has left us here + To serve him, or at need to die for him. + See, yonder come the foes of Christendom, + And we must fight for God and Holy Faith. + Now, say your shrift, and make your peace with Heaven; + I will absolve you and will heal your souls; + And if you die as martyrs, your true home + Is ready midst the flowers of Paradise!'" + +The Frankish knights, dismounting, knelt before Turpin, who blessed +and absolved them all, bidding them, as penance, to strike hard +against the heathen. + +Then Roland called his brother-in-arms, the brave and courteous +Oliver, and said: "Fair brother, I know now that Ganelon has betrayed +us for reward and Marsile has bought us; but the payment shall be made +with our swords, and Charlemagne will terribly avenge us." + + +"Montjoie! Montjoie!" + +While the two armies yet stood face to face in battle array Oliver +replied: "What good is it to speak? You would not sound your horn, and +Charles cannot help us; he is not to blame. Barons and lords, ride on +and yield not. In God's name fight and slay, and remember the war-cry +of our Emperor." And at the words the war-cry of "Montjoie! Montjoie!" +burst from the whole army as they spurred against the advancing +heathen host. + + +The Fray + +Great was the fray that day, deadly was the combat, as the Moors and +Franks crashed together, shouting their cries, invoking their gods or +saints, wielding with utmost courage sword, lance, javelin, scimitar, +or dagger. Blades flashed, lances were splintered, helms were cloven +in that terrible fight of heroes. Each of the Twelve Peers did mighty +feats of arms. Roland himself slew the nephew of King Marsile, who had +promised to bring Roland's head to his uncle's feet, and bitter were +the words that Roland hurled at the lifeless body of his foe, who had +but just before boasted that Charlemagne should lose his right hand. +Oliver slew the heathen king's brother, and one by one the Twelve +Peers proved their mettle on the twelve champions of King Marsile, and +left them dead or mortally wounded on the field. Wherever the battle +was fiercest and the danger greatest, where help was most needed, +there Roland spurred to the rescue, swinging Durendala, and, falling +on the heathen like a thunderbolt of war, turned the tide of battle +again and yet again. + + "Red was Roland, red with bloodshed: + Red his corselet, red his shoulders, + Red his arm, and red his charger." + +Like the red god Mars he rode through the battle; and as he went he +met Oliver, with the truncheon or a spear in his grasp. + + "'Friend, what hast thou there?' cried Roland. + 'In this game 'tis not a distaff, + But a blade of steel thou needest. + Where is now Hauteclaire, thy good sword, + Golden-hilted, crystal-pommeled?' + 'Here,' said Oliver; 'so fight I + That I have not time to draw it.' + 'Friend,' quoth Roland, 'more I love thee + Ever henceforth than a brother.'" + + +The Saracens Perish + +Thus the battle continued, most valiantly contested by both sides, and +the Saracens died by hundreds and thousands, till all their host lay +dead but one man, who fled wounded, leaving the Frenchmen masters of +the field, but in sorry plight--broken were their swords and lances, +rent their hauberks, torn and blood-stained their gay banners and +pennons, and many, many of their brave comrades lay lifeless. Sadly +they looked round on the heaps of corpses, and their minds were filled +with grief as they thought of their companions, of fair France which +they should see no more, and of their emperor who even now awaited +them while they fought and died for him. Yet they were not +discouraged; loudly their cry re-echoed, "Montjoie! Montjoie!" as +Roland cheered them on, and Turpin called aloud: "Our men are heroes; +no king under heaven has better. It is written in the Chronicles of +France that in that great land it is our king's right to have valiant +soldiers." + + +A Second Saracen Army + +While they sought in tears the bodies of their friends, the main army +of the Saracens, under King Marsile in person, came upon them; for the +one fugitive who had escaped had urged Marsile to attack again at +once, while the Franks were still weary. The advice seemed good to +Marsile, and he advanced at the head of a hundred thousand men, whom +he now hurled against the French in columns of fifty thousand at a +time; and they came on right valiantly, with clarions sounding and +trumpets blowing. + + "'Soldiers of the Lord,' cried Turpin, + 'Be ye valiant and steadfast, + For this day shall crowns be given you + Midst the flowers of Paradise. + In the name of God our Saviour, + Be ye not dismayed nor frighted, + Lest of you be shameful legends + Chanted by the tongue of minstrels. + Rather let us die victorious, + Since this eve shall see us lifeless!-- + Heaven has no room for cowards! + Knights, who nobly fight, and vainly, + Ye shall sit amid the holy + In the blessed fields of Heaven. + On then, Friends of God, to glory!'" + +And the battle raged anew, with all the odds against the small handful +of French, who knew they were doomed, and fought as though they were +"fey."[13] + + +Gloomy Portents + +Meanwhile the whole course of nature was disturbed. In France there +were tempests of wind and thunder, rain and hail; thunderbolts fell +everywhere, and the earth shook exceedingly. From Mont St. Michel to +Cologne, from Besançon to Wissant, not one town could show its walls +uninjured, not one village its houses unshaken. A terrible darkness +spread over all the land, only broken when the heavens split asunder +with the lightning-flash. Men whispered in terror: "Behold the end of +the world! Behold the great Day of Doom!" Alas! they knew not the +truth: it was the great mourning for the death of Roland. + + +Many French Knights Fall + +In this second battle the French champions were weary, and before long +they began to fall before the valour of the newly arrived Saracen +nobles. First died Engelier the Gascon, mortally wounded by the lance +of that Saracen who swore brotherhood to Ganelon; next Samson, and the +noble Duke Anseis. These three were well avenged by Roland and Oliver +and Turpin. Then in quick succession died Gerin and Gerier and other +valiant Peers at the hands of Grandoigne, until his death-dealing +career was cut short by Durendala. Another desperate single combat was +won by Turpin, who slew a heathen emir "as black as molten pitch." + + +The Second Army Defeated + +Finally this second host of the heathens gave way and fled, begging +Marsile to come and succour them; but now of the victorious French +there were but sixty valiant champions left alive, including Roland, +Oliver, and the fiery prelate Turpin. + + +A Third Appears + +Now the third host of the pagans began to roll forward upon the +dauntless little band, and in the short breathing-space before the +Saracens again attacked them Roland cried aloud to Oliver: + + "'Fair Knight and Comrade, see these heroes, + Valiant warriors, lying lifeless! + I must mourn for our fair country + France, left widowed of her barons. + Charles my King, why art thou absent? + Brother mine, how shall we send him + Mournful tidings of our struggle?' + 'How I know not,' said his comrade. + 'Better death than vile dishonour.'" + + +Roland Willing to Blow his Horn + + "'Comrade, I will blow my war-horn: + Charles will hear it in the passes + And return with all his army.' + Oliver quoth: ''Twere disgraceful + To your kinsmen all their life-days. + When I urged it, then you would not; + Now, to sound your horn is shameful, + And I never will approve it.'" + + +Oliver Objects. They Quarrel + + "'See, the battle goes against us: + Comrade, I shall sound my war-horn.' + Oliver replied: 'O coward! + When I urged it, then you would not. + If fair France again shall greet me + You shall never wed my sister; + By this beard of mine I swear it!' + + "'Why so bitter and so wrathful?' + Oliver returned: ''Tis thy fault; + Valour is not kin to madness, + Temperance knows naught of fury. + You have killed these noble champions, + You have slain the Emperor's vassals, + You have robbed us of our conquests. + Ah, your valour, Count, is fatal! + Charles must lose his doughty heroes, + And your league with me must finish + With this day in bitter sorrow.'" + + +Turpin Mediates + +Archbishop Turpin heard the dispute, and strove to calm the angry +heroes. "Brave knights, be not so enraged. The horn will not save the +lives of these gallant dead, but it will be better to sound it, that +Charles, our lord and emperor, may return, may avenge our death and +weep over our corpses, may bear them to fair France, and bury them in +the sanctuary, where the wild beasts shall not devour them." "That is +well said," quoth Roland and Oliver. + + +The Horn is Blown + +Then at last Roland put the carved ivory horn, the magic Olifant, to +his lips, and blew so loudly that the sound echoed thirty leagues +away. "Hark! our men are in combat!" cried Charlemagne; but Ganelon +retorted: "Had any but the king said it, that had been a lie." + +A second time Roland blew his horn, so violently and with such anguish +that the veins of his temples burst, and the blood flowed from his +brow and from his mouth. Charlemagne, pausing, heard it again, and +said: "That is Roland's horn; he would not sound it were there no +battle." But Ganelon said mockingly: "There is no battle, for Roland +is too proud to sound his horn in danger. Besides, who would dare to +attack Roland, the strong, the valiant, great and wonderful Roland? No +man. He is doubtless hunting, and laughing with the Peers. Your +words, my liege, do but show how old and weak and doting you are. Ride +on, sire; the open country lies far before you." + +[Illustration: "Charlemagne heard it again"] + +When Roland blew the horn for the third time he had hardly breath to +awaken the echoes; but still Charlemagne heard. "How faintly comes the +sound! There is death in that feeble blast!" said the emperor; and +Duke Naimes interrupted eagerly: "Sire, Roland is in peril; some one +has betrayed him--doubtless he who now tries to beguile you! Sire, +rouse your host, arm for battle, and ride to save your nephew." + + +Ganelon Arrested + +Then Charlemagne called aloud: "Hither, my men. Take this traitor +Ganelon and keep him safe till my return." And the kitchen folk seized +the felon knight, chained him by the neck, and beat him; then, binding +him hand and foot, they flung him on a sorry nag, to be borne with +them till Charles should demand him at their hands again. + + +Charles Returns + +With all speed the whole army retraced their steps, turning their +faces to Spain, and saying: "Ah, if we could find Roland alive what +blows we would strike for him!" Alas! it was too late! Too late! + +How lofty are the peaks, how vast and shadowy the mountains! How dim +and gloomy the passes, how deep the valleys! How swift the rushing +torrents! Yet with headlong speed the Frankish army hastens back, with +trumpets sounding in token of approaching help, all praying God to +preserve Roland till they come. Alas! they cannot reach him in time! +Too late. Too late! + + +Roland Weeps for his Comrades + +Now Roland cast his gaze around on hill and valley, and saw his noble +vassals and comrades lie dead. As a noble knight he wept for them, +saying: + + "'Fair Knights, may God have mercy on your souls! + May He receive you into Paradise + And grant you rest on banks of heavenly flowers! + Ne'er have I known such mighty men as you. + Fair France, that art the best of all dear lands, + How art thou widowed of thy noble sons! + Through me alone, dear comrades, have you died, + And yet through me no help nor safety comes. + God have you in His keeping! Brother, come, + Let us attack the heathen and win death, + Or grief will slay me! Death is duty now.'" + + +He Fights Desperately + +So saying, he rushed into the battle, slew the only son of King +Marsile, and drove the heathen before him as the hounds drive the +deer. Turpin saw and applauded. "So should a good knight do, wearing +good armour and riding a good steed. He must deal good strong strokes +in battle, or he is not worth a groat. Let a coward be a monk in some +cloister and pray for the sins of us fighters." + +Marsile in wrath attacked the slayer of his son, but in vain; Roland +struck off his right hand, and Marsile fled back mortally wounded to +Saragossa, while his main host, seized with panic, left the field to +Roland. However, the caliph, Marsile's uncle, rallied the ranks, and, +with fifty thousand Saracens, once more came against the little troop +of Champions of the Cross, the three poor survivors of the rearguard. + +Roland cried aloud: "Now shall we be martyrs for our faith. Fight +boldly, lords, for life or death! Sell yourselves dearly! Let not fair +France be dishonoured in her sons. When the Emperor sees us dead with +our slain foes around us he will bless our valour." + + +Oliver Falls + +The pagans were emboldened by the sight of the three alone, and the +caliph, rushing at Oliver, pierced him from behind with his lance. But +though mortally wounded Oliver retained strength enough to slay the +caliph, and to cry aloud: "Roland! Roland! Aid me!" then he rushed on +the heathen army, doing heroic deeds and shouting "Montjoie! +Montjoie!" while the blood ran from his wound and stained the earth +blood-red. At this woeful sight Roland swooned with grief, and Oliver, +faint from loss of blood, and with eyes dimmed by fast-coming death, +distinguished not the face of his dear friend; he saw only a vague +figure drawing near, and, mistaking it for an enemy, raised his sword +Hauteclaire and gave Roland one last terrible blow, which clove the +helmet, but harmed not the head. The blow roused Roland from his +swoon, and, gazing tenderly at Oliver, he gently asked him: + + "'Comrade and brother, was that blow designed + To slay your Roland, him who loves you so? + There is no vengeance you would wreak on me.' + 'Roland, I hear you speak, but see you not. + God guard and keep you, friend; but pardon me + The blow I struck, unwitting, on your head.' + 'I have no hurt,' said Roland; 'I forgive + Here and before the judgment-throne of God.'" + + +And Dies + +Now Oliver felt the pains of death come upon him. Both sight and +hearing were gone, his colour fled, and, dismounting, he lay upon the +earth; there, humbly confessing his sins, he begged God to grant him +rest in Paradise, to bless his lord Charlemagne and the fair land of +France, and to keep above all men his comrade Roland, his best-loved +brother-in-arms. This ended, he fell back, his heart failed, his head +drooped low, and Oliver the brave and courteous knight lay dead on the +blood-stained earth, with his face turned to the east. Roland lamented +him in gentle words: "Comrade, alas for thy valour! Many days and +years have we been comrades: no ill didst thou to me, nor I to thee: +now thou art dead, 'tis pity that I live!" + + +Turpin is Mortally Wounded. The Horn Again + +Turpin and Roland now stood together for a time and were joined by the +brave Count Gautier, whose thousand men had been slain, and he himself +grievously wounded; he now came, like a loyal vassal, to die with his +lord Roland, and was slain in the first discharge of arrows which the +Saracens shot. Taught by experience, the pagans kept their distance, +and wounded Turpin with four lances, while they stood some yards away +from the heroes. But when Turpin felt himself mortally wounded he +plunged into the throng of the heathen, killing four hundred before he +fell, and Roland fought on with broken armour, and with ever-bleeding +head, till in a pause of the deadly strife he took his horn and again +sent forth a feeble dying blast. + + +Charles Answers the Horn + +Charlemagne heard it, and was filled with anguish. "Lords, all goes +ill: I know by the sound of Roland's horn he has not long to live! +Ride on faster, and let all our trumpets sound, in token of our +approach." Then sixty thousand trumpets sounded, so that mountains +echoed it and valleys replied, and the heathen heard it and trembled. +"It is Charlemagne! Charles is coming!" they cried. "If Roland lives +till he comes the war will begin again, and our bright Spain is +lost." Thereupon four hundred banded together to slay Roland; but he +rushed upon them, mounted on his good steed Veillantif, and the +valiant pagans fled. But while Roland dismounted to tend the dying +archbishop they returned and cast darts from afar, slaying Veillantif, +the faithful war-horse, and piercing the hero's armour. Still nearer +and nearer sounded the clarions of Charlemagne's army in the defiles, +and the Saracen host fled for ever, leaving Roland alone, on foot, +expiring, amid the dying and the dead. + + +Turpin Blesses the Dead + +Roland made his way to Turpin, unlaced his golden helmet, took off his +hauberk, tore his own tunic to bind up his grievous wounds, and then +gently raising the prelate, carried him to the fresh green grass, +where he most tenderly laid him down. + + "'Ah, gentle lord,' said Roland, 'give me leave + To carry here our comrades who are dead, + Whom we so dearly loved; they must not lie + Unblest; but I will bring their corpses here + And thou shalt bless them, and me, ere thou die.' + 'Go,' said the dying priest, 'but soon return. + Thank God! the victory is yours and mine!'" + +With great pain and many delays Roland traversed the field of +slaughter, looking in the faces of the dead, till he had found and +brought to Turpin's feet the bodies of the eleven Peers, last of all +Oliver, his own dear friend and brother, and Turpin blessed and +absolved them all. Now Roland's grief was so deep and his weakness so +great that he swooned where he stood, and the archbishop saw him fall +and heard his cry of pain. Slowly and painfully Turpin struggled to +his feet, and, bending over Roland, took Olifant, the curved ivory +horn; inch by inch the dying archbishop tottered towards a little +mountain stream, that the few drops he could carry might revive +Roland. + + +He Dies + +However, his weakness overcame him before he reached the water, and he +fell forward dying. Feebly he made his confession, painfully he joined +his hands in prayer, and as he prayed his spirit fled. Turpin, the +faithful champion of the Cross, in teaching and in battle, died in the +service of Charlemagne. May God have mercy on his soul! + +When Roland awoke from his swoon he looked for Turpin, and found him +dead, and, seeing Olifant, he guessed what the archbishop's aim had +been, and wept for pity. Crossing the fair white hands over Turpin's +breast, he sadly prayed: + + "'Alas! brave priest, fair lord of noble birth, + Thy soul I give to the great King of Heaven! + No mightier champion has He in His hosts, + No prophet greater to maintain the Faith, + No teacher mightier to convert mankind + Since Christ's Apostles walked upon the earth! + May thy fair soul escape the pains of Hell + And Paradise receive thee in its bowers!'" + + +Roland's Last Fight + +Now death was very near to Roland, and he felt it coming upon him +while he yet prayed and commended himself to his guardian angel +Gabriel. Taking in one hand Olifant, and in the other his good sword +Durendala, Roland climbed a little hill, one bowshot within the realm +of Spain. There under two pine-trees he found four marble steps, and +as he was about to climb them, fell swooning on the grass very near +his end. A lurking Saracen, who had feigned death, stole from his +covert, and, calling aloud, "Charles's nephew is vanquished! I will +bear his sword back to Arabia," seized Durendala as it lay in Roland's +dying clasp. The attempt roused Roland, and he opened his eyes, +saying, "Thou art not of us," then struck such a blow with Olifant on +the helm of the heathen thief that he fell dead before his intended +victim. + + +He Tries to Break his Sword + +Pale, bleeding, dying, Roland struggled to his feet, bent on saving +his good blade from the defilement of heathen hands. He grasped +Durendala, and the brown marble before him split beneath his mighty +blows; but the good sword stood firm, the steel grated but did not +break, and Roland lamented aloud that his famous sword must now become +the weapon of a lesser man. Again Roland smote with Durendala, and +clove the block of sardonyx, but the good steel only grated and did +not break, and the hero bewailed himself aloud, saying, "Alas! my good +Durendala, how bright and pure thou art! How thou flamest in the +sunbeams, as when the angel brought thee! How many lands hast thou +conquered for Charles my King, how many champions slain, how many +heathen converted! Must I now leave thee to the pagans? May God spare +fair France this shame!" A third time Roland raised the sword and +struck a rock of blue marble, which split asunder, but the steel only +grated--it would not break; and the hero knew that he could do no +more. + + +His Last Prayer + +Then he flung himself on the ground under a pine-tree with his face to +the earth, his sword and Olifant beneath him, his face to the foe, +that Charlemagne and the Franks might see when they came that he died +victorious. He made his confession, prayed for mercy, and offered to +Heaven his glove, in token of submission for all his sins. "_Mea +culpa!_ O God! I pray for pardon for all my sins, both great and +small, that I have sinned from my birth until this day." So he held up +towards Heaven his right-hand glove, and the angels of God descended +around him. Again Roland prayed: + + "'O very Father, who didst never lie, + Didst bring St. Lazarus from the dead again, + Didst save St. Daniel from the lion's mouth, + Save Thou my soul and keep it from all ills + That I have merited by all my sins!'" + + +He Dies + +Again he held up to Heaven his glove, and St. Gabriel received it; +then, with head bowed and hands clasped, the hero died, and the +waiting cherubim, St. Raphael, St. Michael, and St. Gabriel, bore his +soul to Paradise. + +So died Roland and the Peers of France. + + +Charles Arrives + +Soon after Roland's heroic spirit had passed away the emperor came +galloping out of the mountains into the valley of Roncesvalles, where +not a foot of ground was without its burden of death. + +Loudly he called: "Fair nephew, where art thou? Where is the +archbishop? And Count Oliver? Where are the Peers?" + +Alas! of what avail was it to call? No man replied, for all were dead; +and Charlemagne wrung his hands, and tore his beard and wept, and his +army bewailed their slain comrades, and all men thought of vengeance. +Truly a fearful vengeance did Charles take, in that terrible battle +which he fought the next day against the Emir of Babylon, come from +oversea to help his vassal Marsile, when the sun stood still in heaven +that the Christians might be avenged on their enemies; in the capture +of Saragossa and the death of Marsile, who, already mortally wounded, +turned his face to the wall and died when he heard of the defeat of +the emir; but when vengeance was taken on the open enemy Charlemagne +thought of mourning, and returned to Roncesvalles to seek the body of +his beloved nephew. + +The emperor knew well that Roland would be found before his men, with +his face to the foe. Thus he advanced a bowshot from his companions +and climbed a little hill, there found the little flowery meadow +stained red with the blood of his barons, and there at the summit, +under the trees, lay the body of Roland on the green grass. The broken +blocks of marble bore traces of the hero's dying efforts, and +Charlemagne raised Roland, and, clasping the hero in his arms, +lamented over him. + + +His Lament + + "'The Lord have mercy, Roland, on thy soul! + Never again shall our fair France behold + A knight so worthy, till France be no more! + + "'The Lord have mercy, Roland, on thy soul! + That thou mayest rest in flowers of Paradise + With all His glorious Saints for evermore! + My honour now will lessen and decay, + My days be spent in grief for lack of thee, + My joy and power will vanish. There is none, + Comrade or kinsman, to maintain my cause. + + "'The Lord have mercy, Roland, on thy soul! + And grant thee place in Paradise the blest, + Thou valiant youth, thou mighty conqueror! + How widowed lies our fair France and how lone + How will the realms that I have swayed rebel + Now thou art taken from my weary age! + So deep my woe that fain would I die too + And join my valiant Peers in Paradise + While men inter my weary limbs with thine!'"[14] + + +The Dead Buried + +The French army buried the dead with all honour, where they had +fallen, except the bodies of Roland, Oliver, and Turpin, which were +carried to Blaye, and interred in the great cathedral there; and then +Charlemagne returned to Aix. + + +Aude the Fair + +As Charles the Great entered his palace a beauteous maiden met him, +Aude the Fair, the sister of Oliver and betrothed bride of Roland. She +asked eagerly: + +"Where is Roland the mighty captain, who swore to take me for his +bride?" + +[Illustration: Aude the Fair + +Evelyn Paul] + +"Alas! dear sister and friend," said Charlemagne, weeping and tearing +his long white beard, "thou askest tidings of the dead. But I will +replace him: thou shalt have Louis, my son, Count of the Marches." + +"These words are strange," exclaimed Aude the Fair. "God and all His +saints and angels forbid that I should live when Roland my love is +dead." Thereupon she lost her colour and fell at the emperor's feet; +he thought her fainting, but she was dead. God have mercy on her soul! + + +The Traitor Put to Death + +Too long it would be to tell of the trial of Ganelon the traitor. +Suffice it that he was torn asunder by wild horses, and his name +remains in France a byword for all disloyalty and treachery. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[12] _See_ "Myths and Legends of the Middle Ages," by H. Guerber. + +[13] Marked out for death. + +[14] The poetical quotations are from the "Chanson de Roland." + + + + +CHAPTER VIII: THE COUNTESS CATHLEEN + + +Celtic Mysticism + +In all Celtic literature there is recognisable a certain spirit which +seems to be innate in the very character of the people, a spirit of +mysticism and acknowledgment of the supernatural. It carries with it a +love of Nature, a delight in beauty, colour and harmony, which is +common to all the Celtic races. But with these characteristics we find +in Ireland a spiritual beauty, a passion of self-sacrifice, unknown in +Wales or Brittany. Hence the early Irish heroes are frequently found +renouncing advantages, worldly honour, and life itself, at the bidding +of some imperative moral impulse. They are the knights-errant of early +European chivalry which was a much deeper and more real inspiration +than the carefully cultivated artificial chivalry of centuries later. +Cuchulain, Diarmuit, Naesi all pay with their lives for their +obedience to the dictates of honour and conscience. And in women, for +whom in those early days sacrifice of self was the only way of +heroism, the surrender even of eternal bliss was only the sublimation +of honour and chivalry; and this was the heroism of the Countess +Cathleen. + + +The Cathleen Legend + +The legend is old, so old that its root has been lost and we know not +who first imagined it; but the idea, the central incident, doubtless +goes back to Druid times, when a woman might well have offered herself +up to the cruel gods to avert their wrath and stay the plagues which +fell upon her people. Under a like impulse Curtius sprang into the +gulf in the Forum, and Decius devoted himself to death to win the +safety of the Roman army. In each case the powers, evil or +beneficent, were supposed to be appeased by the offering of a human +life. When Christianity found this legend of sacrifice popular among +the heathen nations, it was comparatively easy to adopt it and give it +a yet wider scope, by making the sacrifice spiritual rather than +physical, and by finally rewarding the hero with heavenly joys. It is +to be noted, too, that even at this early period there is a certain +glorification of chicanery: the fiend fulfils his side of the +contract, but God Himself breaks the other side. This becomes a +regular feature in all tales that relate dealings with the Evil One: +all Devil's Bridges, Devil's Dykes, and the Faust legends show that +Satan may be trusted to keep his word, while the saints invariably +kept the letter and broke the spirit. To so primitive a tale as that +of "The Countess Cathleen" the pettifogging quibbles of later saints +are utterly unknown: God saves her soul because it is His will to +reward such abnegation of self, and even the Evil One dare not +question the Divine Will. + + +The Story. Happy Ireland + +Once, long ago, as the Chronicles tell us, Ireland was known +throughout Europe as "The Isle of Saints," for St. Patrick had not +long before preached the Gospel, the message of good tidings, to the +warring inhabitants, to tribes of uncivilised Celts, and to marauding +Danes and Vikings. He had driven out the serpent-worshippers, and +consecrated the Black Stone of Tara to the worship of the True God; he +had convinced the High King of the truth and reasonableness of the +doctrine of the Trinity by the illustration of the shamrock leaf, and +had overthrown the great idols and purified the land. Therefore the +fair shores and fertile vales of Erin, the clustered islets, dropped +like jewels in the azure seas, the mist-covered, heather-clad +hill-sides, even the barren mountain-tops and the patches of firm +ground scattered in the solitudes of fathomless bogs, were homes of +pious Culdee or lonely hermit. There was still strife in Ireland, for +king fought with king, and heathen marauders still vexed the land; but +many warlike Irish clans or "septs" turned their ardour for fight to +religious conflicts, and often every man of a tribe became a monk, so +that great abbeys and tribal monasteries and schools were built on the +hills where, in former days, stood the chieftain's stronghold (_rath_ +or _dun_, as Irish legends name it), with its earth mounds and wooden +palisades. Holy psalms and chants replaced the boastful songs of the +old bards, whilst warriors accustomed to regard fighting and hunting +as the only occupations worthy of a free-born man, now peacefully +illuminated manuscripts or wrought at useful handicrafts. Yet still in +secret they dreaded and tried to appease the wrath of the Dagda, +Brigit of the Holy Fire, Ængus the Ever-Young, and the awful Washers +of the Ford, the Choosers of the Slain; and to this dread was now +joined the new fear of the cruel demons who obeyed Satan, the Prince +of Evil. + + +The Young Countess + +At this time there dwelt in Ireland the Countess Cathleen, young, +good, and beautiful. Her eyes were as deep, as changeful, and as pure +as the ocean that washed Erin's shores; her yellow hair, braided in +two long tresses, was as bright as the golden circlet on her brow or +the yellow corn in her garners; and her step was as light and proud +and free as that of the deer in her wide domains. She lived in a +stately castle in the midst of great forests, with the cottages of her +tribesmen around her gates, and day by day and year by year she +watched the changing glories of the mighty woods, as the seasons +brought new beauties, till her soul was as lovely as the green woods +and purple hills around. The Countess Cathleen loved the dim, +mysterious forest, she loved the tales of the ancient gods, and of + + "Old, unhappy, far-off things, + And battles long ago;" + + _Wordsworth._ + +but more than all she loved her clansmen and vassals: she prayed for +them at all the holy hours, and taught and tended them with loving +care, so that in no place in Ireland could be found a happier tribe +than that which obeyed her gentle rule. + + +Dearth and Famine + +One year there fell upon Ireland, erewhile so happy, a great +desolation--"For Scripture saith, an ending to all good things must +be"[15]--and the happiness of the Countess Cathleen's tribe came to an +end in this wise: A terrible famine fell on the land; the seed-corn +rotted in the ground, for rain and never-lifting mists filled the +heavy air and lay on the sodden earth; then when spring came barren +fields lay brown where the shooting corn should be; the cattle died in +the stall or fell from weakness at the plough, and the sheep died of +hunger in the fold; as the year passed through summer towards autumn +the berries failed in the sun-parched woods, and the withered leaves, +fallen long before the time, lay rotting on the dank earth; the timid +wild things of the forest, hares, rabbits, squirrels, died in their +holes or fell easy victims to the birds and beasts of prey; and these, +in their turn, died of hunger in the famine-stricken forests. + + "I searched all day: the mice and rats and hedgehogs + Seemed to be dead, and I could hardly hear + A wing moving in all the famished woods."[16] + + +Distress of the Peasants + +A cry of bitter agony and lamentation rose from the starving Isle of +Saints to the gates of Heaven, and fell back unheard; the sky was hard +as brass above and the earth was barren beneath, and men and women +died in despair, their shrivelled lips still stained green by the +dried grass and twigs they had striven to eat. + + "I passed by Margaret Nolan's: for nine days + Her mouth was green with dock and dandelion; + And now they wake her." + + +The Misery Increases + +In vain the High King of Ireland proclaimed a universal peace, and +wars between quarrelling tribes stopped and foreign pirates ceased to +molest the land, and chief met chief in the common bond of misery; in +vain the rich gave freely of their wealth--soon there was no +distinction between rich and poor, high and low, chief and vassal, for +all alike felt the grip of famine, all died by the same terrible +hunger. Soon many of the great monasteries lay desolate, their stores +exhausted, their portals open, while the brethren, dead within, had +none to bury them; the lonely hermits died in their little +beehive-shaped cells, or fled from the dreadful solitude to gather in +some wealthy abbey which could still feed its monks; and isle and vale +which had echoed their holy chants knew the sounds no more. Over all, +unlifting, unchanging, brooded the deadly vapour, bearing the plague +in its heavy folds, and filling the air with a sultry lurid haze. + + "There is no sign of change--day copies day, + Green things are dead--the cattle too are dead + Or dying--and on all the vapour hangs + And fattens with disease, and glows with heat." + + +Cathleen Heartbroken for her People + +Round the castle of the Countess Cathleen there was great stir and +bustle, for her tender heart was wrung with the misery of her people, +and her prayers for them ascended to God unceasingly. So thin she grew +and so worn that the physicians bade her servants bring harp and song +to charm away the sadness that weighed upon her spirit; but all in +vain! Neither the well-loved legends of the ancient gods, nor her +harp, nor the voice of her bards could bring her relief--nothing but +the attempt to save her people. From the earliest days of the famine +her house and her stores were ever ready to supply the wants of the +homeless, the poor, the suffering; her wealth was freely spent for +food for the starving while supplies could yet be bought either near +or in distant baronies; and when known supplies failed her lavish +offers tempted the churlish farmers, who still hoarded grain that they +might enrich themselves in the great dearth, to sell some of their +garnered stores. When she could no longer induce them to part with +their grain, her own winter provisions, wine and corn, were +distributed generously to all who asked for relief, and none ever left +her castle without succour. + + +Her Wide Charity + +Thus passed the early months of bitter starvation, and the Countess +Cathleen's name was borne far and wide through Ireland, accompanied +with the blessings of all the rescued; and round her castle, from +every district, gathered a mighty throng of poor--not only her own +clansmen--who all looked to her for a daily dole of food and drink to +keep some life in them until the pestilential mists should pass away. +The wholesome cold of winter would purify the air and bring new hope +and promise of new life in the coming year. Alas! the winter drew on +apace and still the poisonous yellow vapours hung heavily over the +land, and still the deadly famine clutched each feeble heart and +weakened the very springs of life, and the winter frosts slew more +than the summer heats, so feeble were the people and so weakened. + + +Lawlessness Breaks Out + +At last, even in the Isle of Saints, the bonds of right and wrong were +loosened, all respect for property vanished in the universal +desolation, and men began to rob and plunder, to trust only to the +right of might, thinking that their poor miserable lives were of more +value than aught else, than conscience and pity and honesty. Thus +Cathleen lost by barefaced robbery much of what she still possessed of +flocks and herds, of scanty fruit and corn. Her servants would gladly +have pursued the robbers and regained the spoils, but Cathleen forbade +it, for she pitied the miserable thieves, and thought no evil of them +in this bitter dearth. By this time she had distributed all her winter +stores, and had only enough to feed her poor pensioners and her +household with most scanty rations; and she herself shared equally +with them, for the most earnest entreaties of her faithful servants +could not induce her to fare better than they in anything. Soon there +would be nothing left for daily distribution, and her heart almost +broke as she saw the misery of her helpless dependents; they looked to +her as an angel of pity and deliverance, while she knew herself to be +as helpless as they. Day by day Cathleen went among them, with her +pitifully scanty doles of food, cheering them by her words and +smiles, and by her very presence; and each day she went to her chapel, +where she could cast aside the mask of cheerfulness she wore before +her people, and prayed to the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the saints +to show her how to save her own tribe and all the land. + +[Illustration: "Day by day Cathleen went among them"] + + +Cathleen Has an Inspiration + +As the Countess knelt long before the altar one noontide she passed +from her prayers into a deep sleep, and sank down on the altar steps. +In the troubled depths of her mind a thought arose, which came to her +as an inspiration from Heaven itself. She awoke and sprang up +joyfully, exclaiming aloud: "Thanks be to Our Lady and to all the +saints! To them alone the blessed thought is due. Thus can I save my +poor until the dearth is over." + +Then Cathleen left her oratory with such a light heart as she had not +felt since the terrible visitation began, and the gladness in her face +was so new and wonderful that all her servants noticed the change, and +her old foster-mother, who loved the Countess with the utmost +devotion, shuddered at the thought that perhaps her darling had come +under the power of the ancient gods and would be bewitched away to +Tir-nan-og, the land of never-dying youth. Fearfully old Oona watched +Cathleen's face as she passed through the hall, and Cathleen saw the +anxious gaze, and came and laid her hand on the old woman's shoulder, +saying, "Nay, fear not, nurse; the saints have heard my prayer and put +it into my heart to save all these helpless ones." Then she crossed +the hall to her own room, and called a servant, saying, "Send hither +quickly Fergus my steward." + + +She Summons her Steward + +Shortly afterwards the steward came, Fergus the White, an old +grey-haired man, who had been foster-brother to Cathleen's +grandfather. He had seen three generations pass away, he had watched +the change from heathenism to Christianity, and of all the chief's +family, to which his loyal devotion had ever clung, there remained but +this one young girl, and he loved her as his own child. Fergus did +obeisance to his liege lady, and kissed her hand kneeling as he asked: + +"What would the Countess Cathleen with her steward? Shall I render my +account of lands and wealth?" + + +Demands to Know what Wealth she Owns + +"How much have I in lands?" the Countess asked. And Fergus answered in +surprise: "Your lands are worth one hundred thousand pounds." + +"Of what value is the timber in my forests?" "As much again." + +"What is the worth of my castles and my fair residences?" continued +the Countess Cathleen. And Fergus still replied: "As much more," +though in his heart he questioned why his lady wished to know now, +while the famine made all riches seem valueless. + +"How much gold still unspent lies in thy charge in my +treasure-chests?" + +"Lady, your stored gold is three hundred thousand pounds, as much as +all your lands and forests and houses are worth." + +The Countess Cathleen thought for an instant, and then, as one who +makes a momentous decision, spoke firmly, though her lips quivered as +she gave utterance to her thought: + + +"Go Far and Buy Food" + +"Then, Fergus, take my bags of coin and go. Leave here my jewels and +some gold, for I may hear of some stores of grain hoarded by niggard +farmers, and may induce them to sell, if not for the love of God, then +for the love of gold. Take, too, authority from me, written and sealed +with my seal, to sell all my lands and timber, and castles, except +this one alone where I must dwell. Send a man, trustworthy and speedy, +to the North, to Ulster, where I hear the famine is less terrible, and +let him buy what cattle he can find, and drive them back as soon as +may be." + + "Keeping this house alone, sell all I have; + Go to some distant country, and come again + With many herds of cows and ships of grain." + + +The Steward Reluctantly Obeys + +The ancient steward, Fergus the White, stood at first speechless with +horror and grief, but after a moment of silence his sorrow found vent +in words, and he besought his dear lady not to sell everything, her +ancient home, her father's lands, her treasured heirlooms, and leave +herself no wealth for happier times. All his persuasions were useless, +for Cathleen would not be moved; she bade him "Farewell" and hastened +his journey, saying, "A cry is in mine ears; I cannot rest." So there +was no help for it. A trusty man was despatched to Ulster to buy up +all the cattle (weak and famine-stricken as they would be) in the +North Country; while Fergus himself journeyed swiftly to England, +which was still prosperous and fertile, untouched by the deadly +famine, and knowing nothing of the desolation of the sister isle, to +which the English owed so much of their knowledge of the True Faith. + + +Buys Stores in England + +In England Fergus spent all the gold he brought with him, and then +sold all the Countess Cathleen bade him sell--lands, castles, forests, +pastures, timber--all but one lonely castle in the desolate woods, +where she dwelt among her own people, with the dying folk thronging +round her gates and in her halls. Good bargains Fergus made also, for +he was a shrewd and loyal steward, and the saints must have touched +the hearts of the English merchants, so that they gave good prices for +all, or perhaps they did not realize the dire distress that prevailed +in Ireland. However that may have been, Fergus prospered in his +trading, and bought grain, and wine, and fat oxen and sheep, so that +he loaded many ships with full freights of provisions, enough to carry +the starving peasantry through the famine year till the next harvest. +At last all his money was spent, all his ships were laden, everything +was ready, and the little fleet lay in harbour, only awaiting a fair +wind, which, unhappily, did not come. + + +His Return Delayed + +First of all Fergus waited through a deadly calm, when the sails hung +motionless, drooping, with no breath of air to stir them, when the fog +that brooded over the shores of England never lifted and all sailing +was impossible; then the winds dispersed the fog, and Fergus, +forgetting caution in his great anxiety to return, hastily set sail +for his own land, and there came fierce tempests and contrary winds, +so that his little fleet was driven back, and one or two ships went +down with all their stores of food. Fergus wept to see his lady's +wealth lost in the wintry sea, but he dared not venture again, and +though he chafed and fretted at the delay, it was nearly two months +after he reached England before he could sail back to his young +mistress and her starving countrymen. The trusty messenger who had +been sent to buy cattle had succeeded beyond his own expectation; he +also had made successful bargains, and had found more cattle than he +believed were still alive in Ireland. He had bought all, and was +driving them slowly towards the Countess Cathleen's forest dwelling. +Their progress was so slow, because of their weakness and the scanty +fodder by the way, that no news of them came to Cathleen, and she knew +not that while corn and cattle were coming with Fergus across the sea, +food was also coming to her slowly through the barren ways of her own +native land. None of this she knew, and despair would have filled her +heart, but for her faith in God and her belief in the great +inspiration that had been given to her. + + +Deepening Misery in Ireland + +Meanwhile terrible things had been happening in Ireland. As in England +in later days, "men said openly that Christ and His saints slept"; +they thought with longing of the mighty old gods, for the new seemed +powerless, and they yearned for the friendly "good people" who had +fled from the sound of the church bell. Thus many minds were ready to +revolt from the Christian faith if they had not feared the life after +death and the endless torments of the Christian Hell. Some few, +desperate, even offered secret worship to the old heathen gods, and +true love to the One True God had grown cold. + + +Two Mysterious Strangers + +Now on the very day on which Fergus sailed for England, and his +comrade departed to Ulster, two mysterious and stately strangers +suddenly appeared in Erin. Whence they came no man knew, but they were +first seen near the wild sea-shore of the west, and the few poor +inhabitants thought they had been put ashore by some vessel or wrecked +on that dangerous coast. Aliens they certainly were, for they talked +with each other in a tongue that none understood, and they appeared as +if they did not comprehend the questions asked of them. Thus they +passed away from the western coasts, and made their way inland; but +when they next appeared, in a village not far from Dublin, they had +greatly changed: they wore magnificent robes and furs, with splendid +jewelled gloves on their hands, and golden circlets, set with gleaming +rubies, bound their brows; their black steeds showed no trace of +weakness and famine as they rode through the woods and carefully noted +the misery everywhere. + + +Their Strange Story + +At last they alighted at the little lodge, where a forester's widow +gladly received them; and their royal dress, lofty bearing and strange +language accorded ill with the mean surroundings and the scanty +accommodation of that little hut. The dead forester had been one of +the Countess Cathleen's most faithful vassals, and his holding was but +a short distance from the castle, so that the strangers could, +unobserved, watch the life of the little village. As time passed they +told their hostess they were merchants, simple traders from a distant +country, trafficking in very precious gems; but they had no wares for +exchange, and no gems to show; they made no inquiries or researches, +bargained with no man, seemed to do no business; they were the most +unusual merchants ever seen in Ireland, and the strangeness of their +behaviour troubled men's minds. + + +Mysterious Behaviour + +Day by day they ate, unquestioning, the coarse food their poor hostess +set before them, and the black bread which was the best food +obtainable in those terrible days, but they added to it wine, rich and +red, from their own private store, and they paid her lavishly in good +red gold, so that she wondered that any men should stay in the +famine-stricken country when they could so easily leave it at their +will. Gradually, too, speaking now in the Irish tongue, they began to +ask her cautious questions of the people, of the land, of the famine, +how men lived and how they died, and so they heard of the exceeding +goodness of the Countess Cathleen, whose bounty had saved so many +lives, and was still saving others, though the deadly pinch of famine +grew sorer with the passing days. To their hostess they admired +Cathleen's goodness, and were loud in her praises, but they looked +askance at one another and their brows were black with discontent. + + +Professed Errand of Mercy + +Then one day the kingly merchants told the poor widow who harboured +them that they too were the friends of the poor and starving; they +were servants of a mighty prince, who in his compassion and mercy had +sent them on a mission to Ireland to help the afflicted peasants to +fight against famine and death. They said that they themselves had no +food to give, only wine and gold in plenty, so that men might exert +themselves and search for food to buy. Their hostess, hearing this, +and knowing that there were still some niggards who refused to part +with their mouldering heaps of corn, setting the price so high that no +man could buy, called down the blessing of God and Mary and all the +saints upon their heads, for if they would distribute their gold to +all, or even buy the corn themselves and distribute it, men need no +longer die of hunger. + + +A New Traffic + +When she prayed for a blessing on the two strangers they smiled +scornfully and impatiently; and the elder said, cunningly: + + "Alas! we know the evils of mere charity, + And would devise a more considered way. + Let each man bring one piece of merchandise." + +"Ah, sirs!" replied the hostess, "then your compassion, your gold and +your goodwill are of no avail. Think you, after all these weary +months, that any man has merchandise left to sell? They have sold long +ago all but the very clothes they wear, to keep themselves alive till +better days come. Such offers are mockery of our distress." + +"We mock you not," said the elder merchant. "All men have the one +precious thing we wish to buy, and have come hither to find; none has +already lost or sold it." + +"What precious treasure can you mean? Men in Ireland now have only +their lives, and can barely cherish those," said the poor woman, +wondering greatly and much afraid. + + +Buyers of Souls + +The elder merchant continued gazing at her with a crafty smile and an +eye ever on the alert for tokens of understanding. "Poor as they are, +Irishmen have still one thing that we will purchase, if they will +sell: their souls, which we have come to obtain for our mighty Prince, +and with the great price that we shall pay in pure gold men can well +save their lives till the starving time is over. Why should men die a +cruel, lingering death or drag through weary months of miserable +half-satisfied life when they may live well and merrily at the cost of +a soul, which is no good but to cause fear and pain? We take men's +souls and liberate them from all pain and care and remorse, and we +give in exchange money, much money, to procure comforts and ease; we +enrol men as vassals of our great lord, and he is no hard taskmaster +to those who own his sway." + + +Slow Trade at First + +When the poor widow heard these dreadful words she knew that the +strangers were demons come to tempt men's souls and to lure them to +Hell. She crossed herself, and fled from them in fear, praying to be +kept from temptation; and she would not return to her little cottage +in the forest, but stayed in the village warning men against the evil +demons who were tempting the starving people, till she too died of the +famine, and her house was left wholly to the strangers. Yet the +merchants fared ever well, better than before her departure, and those +who ventured to the forest dwelling found good food and rich wine, +which the strangers sometimes gave to their visitors, with crafty +hints of abundance to be easily obtained. Then when timid individuals +asked the way to win these comforts the strangers began their +tempting, and represented the case to be gained by the sale of men's +souls. One man, bolder than the rest, made a bargain with the demons +and gave them his soul for three hundred crowns of gold, and from that +time he in his turn became a tempter. He boasted of his wealth, of the +rich food the merchants gave him at times, of the potent wine he drank +from their generously opened bottles, and, best of all, he vaunted +his freedom from pity, conscience, or remorse. + + +Trade Increases + +Gradually many people came to the forest dwelling and trafficked with +the demon merchants. The purchase of souls went on busily, and the +demons paid prices varying according to the worth of the soul and the +record of its former sins; but to all who sold they gave food and +wine, and in gloating over their gold and satisfying hunger and +thirst, men forgot to ask whence came this food and wine and the +endless stores of coin. Now many people ventured into the forest to +deal with the demons, and the narrow track grew into a broad beaten +way with the numbers of those who came, and all returned fed and +warmed, and bearing bags heavy with coin, and the promise of abundant +food and easy service. Those who had sold their souls rioted with the +money, for the demons gave them food, and they bought wine from the +inexhaustible stores of the evil merchants. The poor, lost people knew +that there was no hope for them after death, and they tried by all +means to keep themselves alive and to enjoy what was yet left to them; +but their mirth was fearful and they durst not stop to think. + + +Cathleen Hears of the Demon Traders + +At first the Countess Cathleen knew nothing of the terrible doings of +the demons, for she never passed beyond her castle gates, but spent +her time in prayer for her people's safety and for the speedy return +of her messengers; but when the starving throng of pensioners at her +gates grew daily less, and there were fewer claimants for the pitiful +allowance which was all she had to give, she wondered if some other +mightier helper had come to Ireland. But she could hear of none, +and soon the shameless rioting and drunkenness in the village came to +her knowledge, and she wondered yet more whence her clansmen obtained +the means for their excesses, for she felt instinctively that the +origin of all this rioting must be evil. Cathleen therefore called to +her an old peasant, whose wife had died of hunger in the early days of +the famine, so that he himself had longed to die and join her; but +when he came to her she was horror-struck by the change in him. Now he +came flushed with wine, with defiant look and insolent bearing, and +his face was full of evil mirth as he tried to answer soberly the +Countess's questions. + +"Why do the villagers and strangers no longer come to me for food? I +have but little now to give, but all are welcome to share it with me +and my household." + + +The Peasant's Story + +"They do not come, O Countess, because they are no longer starving. +They have better food and wine, and abundance of money to buy more." + +[Illustration: The peasant's story] + +"Whence then have they obtained the money, the food, and the wine for +the drinking-bouts, the tumult of which reaches me even in my +oratory?" + +"Lady, they have received all from the generous merchants who are in +the forest dwelling where old Mairi formerly lived; she is dead now, +and these noble strangers keep open house in her cottage night and +day; they are so wealthy that they need not stint their bounty, and so +powerful that they can find good food, enough for all who go to them. +Since Brigit died (your old servant, lady) her husband and son work no +more, but serve the strange merchants, and urge men to join them; and +I, and many others, have done so, and we are now wealthy" (here he +showed the Countess a handful of gold) "and well fed, and have wine as +much as heart can desire." + +"But do you give them nothing in return for all their generosity? Are +they so noble that they ask nothing in requital of their bounty?" + + +"Good Gold for Souls" + +"Oh, yes, we give them something, but nothing of importance, nothing +we cannot spare. They are merchants of souls, and buy them for their +king, and they pay good red gold for the useless, painful things. I +have sold my soul to them, and now I weep no more for my wife; I am +gay, and have wine enough and gold enough to help me through this +dearth!" + +"Alas!" sighed the Countess, "and what when you too die?" The old +peasant laughed at her grief as he said: "Then, as now, I shall have +no soul to trouble me with remorse or conscience"; and the Countess +covered her eyes with her hand and beckoned silently that he should +go. In her oratory, whither she betook herself immediately, she prayed +with all her spirit that the Virgin and all the saints would inspire +her to defeat the demons and to save her people's souls. + + +Cathleen Tries to Check the Traffic + +Next day Cathleen called together all the people in the village, her +own tribesmen and strangers. She offered them again a share of all she +had, and the daily rations she could distribute, but told them that +all must share alike and that she had nothing but the barest +necessaries to give--scanty portions of corn and meal, with milk from +one or two famine-stricken cows her servants had managed to keep +alive. To this she added that she had sent two trusty messengers for +help, one to Ulster for cattle, and Fergus to England for corn and +wine; they must return soon, she felt sure, with abundant supplies, if +men would patiently await their return. + + +In Vain + +But all was useless. Her messengers had sent no word of their return, +and the abundant supplies at the forest cottage were more easily +obtained, and were less carefully regulated, than those of the +Countess Cathleen. The merchants, too, were ever at hand with their +cunning wiles, and their active, persuasive dupes, who would gladly +bring all others into their own soulless condition. The wine given by +the demons warmed the hearts of all who drank, and the deceived +peasants dreamed of happiness when the famine was over, and so the +passionate appeal of the Countess failed, and the sale of souls +continued merrily. The noise of revelry grew daily louder and more +riotous, and the drinkers cared nothing for the death or departure of +their dearest friends; while those who died, died drunken and utterly +reckless, or full of horror and despair, reviling the crafty merchants +who had deceived them with promises of life and happiness. The evil +influence clung all about the country-side, and seemed in league with +the pitiless powers of Nature against the souls of men, till at last +the stricken Countess, putting her trust in God, sought out the forest +lodge where the demon merchants dwelt, trafficking for souls. The way +was easy to find now, for a broad beaten track led to the dwelling, +and as the evil spirits saw Cathleen coming slowly along the path +their wicked eyes gleamed and their clawlike hands worked convulsively +in their jewelled gloves, for they hoped she had come to sell her pure +soul. + + +She Visits the Demons + +"What does the Countess Cathleen wish to obtain from two poor stranger +merchants?" said the elder with an evil smile; and the younger, bowing +deeply said: "Lady, you may command us in all things, save what +touches our allegiance to our king." Cathleen replied: "I have no +merchandise to barter, nothing for trade with you, for you buy such +things as I will never sell: you buy men's souls for Hell. I come only +to beg that you will release the poor souls whom you have bought for +Satan's kingdom, and will have mercy on my ignorant people and deceive +them no more. I have yet some gold unspent and jewels unsold: take all +there is but let my people go free." Then the merchants laughed aloud +scornfully, and rejected her offer. "Would you have us undo our work? +Have we toiled, then, for naught to extend our master's sway? Have we +won for him so many souls to dwell for ever in his kingdom and do his +work, and shall we give them back for your entreaties? We have gold +enough, and food and wine enough, fair lady. The souls we have bought +we keep, for our master gives us honour and rank proportioned to the +number of souls we win for him, and you may see by the golden circlets +round our brows that we are princes of his kingdom, and have brought +him countless souls. Nevertheless, there is one most rare and precious +thing which could redeem these bartered souls of Ireland's peasants, +things of little worth." + + +They Make a Proposal + +"Oh, what is that?" said the Countess. "If I have it, or can in any +way procure it, tell me, that I may redeem these deluded people's +souls." + +"You have it now, fair saint. It is one pure soul, precious as +multitudes of more sin-stained souls. Our master would far rather have +a perfect and flawless pearl for his diadem than myriads of these +cracked and flawed crystals. Your soul, most saintly Countess, would +redeem the souls of all your tribe, if you would sell it to our king; +it would be the fairest jewel in his crown. But think not to save your +people otherwise, and beguile them no longer with false promises of +help: your messenger to Ulster lies sick of ague in the Bog of Allen, +and no food comes from England." + + +False Tidings + + "We saw a man + Heavy with sickness in the Bog of Allen + Whom you had bid buy cattle. Near Fair Head + We saw your grain ships lying all becalmed + In the dark night, and not less still than they + Burned all their mirrored lanterns in the sea." + +When Cathleen heard of the failure of her messengers to bring food it +seemed as if all hope were indeed over, and the demons smiled craftily +upon her as she turned silently to go, and laughed joyously to each +other when she had left their presence. Now they had good hope to win +her for their master; but they knew that their time was short, since +help was not far away. + + "Last night, closed in the image of an owl, + I hurried to the cliffs of Donegal, + And saw, creeping on the uneasy surge, + Those ships that bring the woman grain and meal; + They are five days from us. + I hurried east, + A grey owl flitting, flitting in the dew, + And saw nine hundred oxen toil through Meath, + Driven on by goads of iron; they too, brother, + Are full five days from us. Five days for traffic." + + +Cathleen's Despair + +The Countess then went back in bitter grief to her desolate castle, +where only faithful old servants now waited in the halls, and +whispered together in the dark corners, and, kneeling in her oratory, +she prayed far into the night for light in her darkness. As she prayed +before the altar she slept for very weariness, and was aroused by a +sudden furious knocking, and an outcry of "Thieves! Thieves!" Cathleen +rose quickly from the altar steps, and met her foster-mother, Oona, at +the door of the oratory; and Oona cried aloud: "Thieves have broken +into the treasure-chamber, and nothing is left!" Cathleen asked if +this were true, and discovered that not a single coin, not a single +gem was left: the demons had stolen all. And while the servants still +mourned over the lost treasures of the house there came another cry of +"Thieves! Thieves!" and an old peasant rushed in, exclaiming that all +the food was gone. That, alas! was true: the few sacks of meal which +supplied the scanty daily fare were emptied and the bags flung on the +floor. Now indeed the last poor resource was gone. + +[Illustration: "Thieves have broken into the treasure-chamber"] + + +A Desperate Decision + +When the Countess heard of this last terrible misfortune a great light +broke upon her mind with a blinding flash, and showed her a way to +save others, even at the cost of her own salvation. It seemed God's +answer to her prayer for guidance, and she resolved to follow the +inspiration thus sent into her mind. She decided now what she would +do; her mind was made up, and the light which shines from extreme +sacrifice of self was so bright upon her face that her old nurse and +her servants, wailing around her, were awe-stricken and durst not +question or check her. She returned to her oratory door, and, standing +on the steps, looking down on her weeping domestics, she cried: + + "I am desolate, + For a most sad resolve wakes in my heart; + But always I have faith. Old men and women, + Be silent; God does not forsake the world. + Mary Queen of Angels + And all you clouds and clouds of saints, farewell!" + +With one last long gaze at the little altar of her oratory she +resolutely closed the door and turned away. + + +She Revisits the Demons + +The next day the merchants in their forest lodge were still buying +souls, and giving food and wine to the starving peasants who sold. +They were buying men and women, sinful, terrified, afraid to die, +eager to live; buying them more cheaply than before because of the +increase of sin and terror. Bargains were being struck and bartering +was in full progress, when suddenly all the peasants stopped, +shamefaced, as one said, "Here comes the Countess Cathleen," and down +the track she was seen approaching slowly. One by one the peasants +slunk away, and the demon merchants were quite alone when Cathleen +entered the little cottage where they sat, with bags of coin on the +table before them and on the ground beside them. Again they greeted +her with mocking respect, and asked to know her will. + +"Merchants, do you still buy souls for Hell?" + +"Lady, our traffic prospers, for the famine lies long on the land, and +men would fain live till better days come again. Besides, we can give +them food and wine and wealth for future years; and all in exchange +for a mere soul, a little breath of wind." + +"Perhaps the Countess Cathleen has come to deal with us," said the +younger. + +"Merchant, you are right; I have come to bring you merchandise. I have +a soul to sell, so costly that perhaps the price is beyond your +means." + +The elder merchant replied joyfully: "No price is beyond our means, if +only the soul be worth the price; if it be a pure and stainless soul, +fit to join the angels and saints in Paradise, our master will gladly +pay all you ask. Whose is the soul, and what is the price?" + + +Her Terms + + "The people starve, therefore the people go + Thronging to you. I hear a cry come from them, + And it is in my ears by night and day: + And I would have five hundred thousand crowns, + To find food for them till the dearth go by; + And have the wretched spirits you have bought + For your gold crowns, released, and sent to God. + The soul that I would barter is my soul." + + +The Bond Signed + +When the demons heard this, and knew that Cathleen was willing to give +her own soul as ransom for the souls of others, they were overjoyed, +their eyes flashed, the rubies of their golden crowns shot out fiery +gleams, and their fingers clutched the air as if they already held her +stainless soul. This would be a great triumph to their master, and +they would win great honour in Hell when they brought him a soul worth +far, far more than large abundance of ordinary sinful souls. Very +carefully they watched while the trembling Countess signed the bond +which gave her soul to Hell, very gladly they paid down the money for +which she had stipulated, and very joyously they saw the signs of +speedy death in her face, knowing, as they did, how soon the coming +relief would show her sacrifice to have been unnecessary, though +now it was irrevocable. + +[Illustration: "Cathleen signed the bond"] + + +General Lamentation + +Sadly but resolutely she turned away, followed by her servants bearing +the bags of gold, and as she passed through the village a rumour ran +before her of what she had done. All men were sobered by the terrible +tidings, and the redeemed people waited for her coming, and followed +her weeping and lamenting, for now their souls were free again, and +they recognised the great sacrifice she had made for them; but it was +too late to save her, though now all would have died for her. Cathleen +passed on into her castle, and there in the courtyard she distributed +the money to all her people, and bade them dwell quietly in obedience +till her steward returned. She herself, she said, could not stay; she +must go on a long and dark journey, for her people's need had broken +her heart and conquered her; she was no longer her own, but belonged +to the dark lord of Hell; she could not bid them pray for her, nor +could she pray for herself. + + +Cathleen Fades Away + +Her people, who knew the great price at which she had redeemed them, +besought the Blessed Virgin and all the saints to have mercy on her; +and all the souls she had released, on earth and in Heaven, prayed for +her night and day, and the blessed saints interceded for her. Yet from +day to day the Countess Cathleen faded, and the demons, ceasing all +other traffic, lurked in waiting to catch her soul as she died. Night +and day her heart-broken foster-mother Oona tended her; but she grew +feebler, till it seemed that she would die before Fergus returned. + + +The Steward Returns + +On the fifth day, however, glad tidings came. Fergus had landed, and +sent word that he was bringing corn and meal as quickly as possible; +also a wandering peasant brought a message that nine hundred oxen were +within one day's journey of her castle; and when the gentle Cathleen +heard this, and knew that her people were safe, she died with a smile +on her lips and thanks to God for her people on her tongue. That same +night a great tempest broke over the land, which drove away the +pestilential mists, and left the country free from evil influences, +for with the morning men found the forest lodge crushed beneath the +fallen trees, and the two demon merchants vanished. All gathered round +the castle and mourned for the Countess Cathleen, for none knew how it +would go with her spirit; they feared that the evil demons had borne +her soul to Hell. All had prayed for her, but there had been no sign, +no token of forgiveness. Nevertheless their prayers were heard and +answered. + + +The Demons Cheated + +In the next night, when the great storm had passed away and the +vapours no longer filled the air, when Fergus had distributed food and +wine, and the oxen had been apportioned to every family, so that +plenty reigned in every house, when only Cathleen's castle lay +desolate, shrouded in gloom, the faithful old nurse Oona, watching by +the body of her darling, had a glorious vision. She saw the splendid +armies of the angels who guard mankind from evil, she saw the saints +who had suffered and overcome, and amid them was the Countess +Cathleen, happy with saints and angels in the bliss of Paradise; for +her love had redeemed her own soul as well as the souls of others, +and God had pardoned her sin because of her self-sacrifice. + + "The light beats down: the gates of pearl are wide, + And she is passing to the floor of peace, + And Mary of the seven times wounded heart + Has kissed her lips, and the long blessed hair + Has fallen on her face; the Light of Lights + Looks always on the motive, not the deed, + The Shadow of Shadows on the deed alone." + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[15] C. Kingsley. + +[16] The poetical quotations throughout this story are taken, by +permission, from Mr. W. B. Yeats's play "The Countess Cathleen." + + + + +CHAPTER IX: CUCHULAIN, THE CHAMPION OF IRELAND + + +Introduction + +Among all the early literatures of Europe, there are two which, at +exactly opposite corners of the continent, display most strikingly +similar characteristics, characteristics which apparently point to +some racial affinity in the peoples who produced them. These +literatures are the Greek and the Irish. It has been maintained with +much ingenuity that the Greeks of Homer, the early Britons, and the +Irish Celts were all of one stock, as shown by the many points they +had in common. It is certain that in customs, manner of life, ethics, +ideas of religion, and methods of warfare a striking similarity may be +seen between the Greeks as described by Homer and the Britons as +Julius Cæsar knew them, or the Irish as their own legends reveal them. +We must expect to find in their myths and legends a certain +resemblance of Celtic ideas to Greek ideas; and if the great Achilles +sulks in his tent because he is unjustly deprived of his captive, the +fair Briseis, we shall not be surprised to find the Champion of Erin +quarrelling over his claim to precedence. The contest between the +heroes for the armour of dead Achilles is paralleled by this contest +between the three greatest warriors of Ireland for the special dish of +honour called the "Champion's Portion," a distinction which also +recalls Greek life. + + +Cuchulain, the Irish Achilles + +The resemblance of the Cuchulain legend to the story of Achilles is so +strong that Cuchulain is often called "the Irish Achilles," but there +are elements of humour and pathos in his story which the tale of +Achilles cannot show, and in reckless courage, power of inspiring +dread, sense of personal merit, and frankness of speech the Irish hero +is not inferior to the mighty Greek. The way in which Cuchulain +established his claim to be regarded as Chief Champion of Erin is +related in the following story, which shows some primitive Celtic +features found again in Welsh legends and other national folk-tales. + + +The Youth of Cuchulain + +Cuchulain was the nephew of King Conor of Ulster, son of his sister +Dechtire, and men say his father was no mortal man, but the great god +Lugh of the Long Hand. When Cuchulain was born he was brought up by +King Conor himself and the wisest men of Ireland; when five years old, +he beat all the other boys in games and warlike exercises, and on the +day on which he was seven he assumed the arms of a warrior, so much +greater was he than the sons of mortal men. Cuchulain had overheard +his tutor, Cathbad the Druid, say to the older youths, "If any young +man take arms to-day, his name will be greater than any other name in +Ireland, but his span of life will be short," and as he loved fame +above long life, he persuaded his uncle, King Conor, to invest him +with the weapons of manhood. His fame soon spread all over Ireland, +for his warlike deeds were those of a proved warrior, not of a child +of nursery age, and by the time Cuchulain was seventeen he was in +reality without peer among the champions of Ulster, or of all Ireland. + + +Cuchulain's Marriage + +When the men of Ulster remembered Cuchulain's divine origin, they +would fain have him married, so that he might not die childless; and +for a year they searched all Erin for a fit bride for so great a +champion. Cuchulain, however, went wooing for himself, to the dun of +Forgall the Wily, a Druid of great power. Forgall had two daughters, +of whom the younger, Emer, was the most lovely and virtuous maiden to +be found in the country, and she became Cuchulain's chosen bride. +Gallant was his wooing, and merry and jesting were her answers to his +suit, for though Emer loved Cuchulain at first sight she would not +accept him at once, and long they talked together. Finally Emer +consented to wed Cuchulain when he had undergone certain trials and +adventures for a year, and had accomplished certain feats, a test +which she imposed on her lover, partly as a trial of his worthiness +and constancy and partly to satisfy her father Forgall, who would not +agree to the marriage. When Cuchulain returned triumphant at the end +of the year, he rescued Emer from the confinement in which her father +had placed her, and won her at the sword's point; they were wedded, +and dwelt at Armagh, the capital of Ulster, under the protection of +King Conor. + + +Bricriu's Feast + +It happened that at Conor's court was one chief who delighted in +making mischief, as Thersites among the Grecian leaders. This man, +Bricriu of the Bitter Tongue, came to King Conor and invited him and +all the heroes of the Red Branch, the royal bodyguard of Ulster, to a +feast at his new dwelling, for he felt sure he could find some +occasion to stir up strife at a feast. King Conor, however, and the +Red Branch heroes, distrusted Bricriu so much that they refused to +accept the invitation, unless Bricriu would give sureties that, having +received his guests, he would leave the hall before the feasting +began. Bricriu, who had expected some such condition, readily agreed, +and before going home to prepare his feast took measures for stirring +up strife among the heroes of Ulster. + + +Bricriu's Falsehood + +Before Bricriu left Armagh he went to the mighty Laegaire and with +many words of praise said: "All good be with you, O Laegaire, winner +of battles! Why should you not be Champion of Ireland for ever?" + +"I can be, if I will," said Laegaire. + +"Follow my advice, and you shall be head of all the champions of +Ireland," said cunning Bricriu. + +"What is your counsel?" asked Laegaire. + +"King Conor is coming to a feast in my house," said Bricriu, "and the +Champion's Bit will be a splendid portion for any hero. That warrior +who obtains it at this feast will be acclaimed Chief Champion of Erin. +When the banquet begins do you bid your chariot-driver rise and claim +the hero's portion for you, for you are indeed worthy of it, and I +hope that you may get what you so well deserve!" + +"Some men shall die if my right is taken from me," quoth Laegaire; but +Bricriu only laughed and turned away. + + +Bricriu Meets Conall Cearnach + +Bricriu next met Conall Cearnach, Cuchulain's cousin, one of the +chiefs of the Red Branch. + +"May all good be with you, Conall the Victorious," quoth he. "You are +our defence and shield, and no foe dare face you in battle. Why should +you not be Chief Champion of Ulster?" + +"It only depends on my will," said Conall; and then Bricriu continued +his flattery and insidious suggestions until he had stirred up Conall +to command his charioteer to claim the Champion's Portion at +Bricriu's feast. Very joyous was Bricriu, and very evilly he smiled as +he turned away when he had roused the ambition of Conall Cearnach, for +he revelled in the prospect of coming strife. + + +Bricriu Meets Cuchulain + +"May all good be with you, Cuchulain," said Bricriu, as he met the +youthful hero. "You are the chief defence of Erin, our bulwark against +the foe, our joy and darling, the hero of Ulster, the favourite of all +the maidens of Ireland, the greatest warrior of our land! We all live +in safety under the protection of your mighty hand, so why should you +not be the Chief Champion of Ulster? Why will you leave the Hero's +Portion to some less worthy warrior?" + +"By the god of my people, I will have it, or slay any bold man who +dares to deprive me of it," said Cuchulain. + +Thereupon Bricriu left Cuchulain and travelled to his home, where he +made his preparations for receiving the king, as if nothing were +further from his thoughts than mischief-making and guile. + + +The Feast and the Quarrel + +When King Conor and his court had entered Bricriu's house at Dundrum, +and were sitting at the feast, Bricriu was forced by his sureties to +leave the hall, for men feared his malicious tongue, and as he went to +his watch-tower he turned and cried: + +"The Champion's Portion at my feast is worth having; let it be given +to the best hero in Ulster." + +The carving and distribution of the viands began, and when the +Champion's Portion was brought forward it was claimed by three +chariot-drivers, Laegaire's, Conall's, and Cuchulain's, each on +behalf of his master; and when no decision was made by King Conor the +three heroes claimed it, each for himself. But Laegaire and Conall +united in defying Cuchulain and ridiculing his claim, and a great +fight began in the hall, till all men shook for fear; and at last King +Conor intervened, before any man had been wounded. + +"Put up your swords," he said. "The Champion's Portion at this feast +shall be divided among the three, and we will ask King Ailill and +Queen Meave of Connaught to say who is the greatest champion." This +plan pleased every one but Bricriu, who saw his hopes of fomenting +strife disappear. + + +The Women's Quarrel + +Just at that moment the women rose and quitted the hall to breathe the +fresh air, and Bricriu spied his opportunity. Going down from his +watch-tower, he met Fedelm, the wife of Laegaire, with her fifty +maidens, and said to her: + +"All good be with you to-night, Fedelm of the Fresh Heart! Truly in +beauty, in birth, in dignity, no woman in Ulster is your equal. If you +enter my hall first to-night, you will be queen of the Ulster women." + +Fedelm walked on merrily enough, but determined that she would soon +re-enter the hall, and certainly before any other woman. Bricriu next +met Lendabair the Favourite, Conall's wife, and gave her similar +flattery and a similar prophecy, and Lendabair also determined to be +first back at the house and first to enter the hall. + +Then Bricriu waited till he saw Emer, Cuchulain's fair wife. "Health +be with you, Emer, wife of the best man in Ireland! As the sun +outshines the stars, so do you outshine all other women! You should +of right enter the house first, for whoever does so will be queen of +the women of Ulster, and none has a better claim to be their queen +than Cuchulain's wife, Forgall's fair daughter." + + +The Husbands Intervene + +The three fair women, each with her train of fifty maidens, watched +one another carefully, and when one turned back towards the house the +others accompanied her, step for step; and the noise of their +returning footsteps as they raced along alarmed their husbands. +Sencha, the king's wise counsellor, reassured them, saying, "It is +only a woman's quarrel; Bricriu has stirred up enmity among the wives +of the heroes"; and as he spoke Emer reached the hall, having suddenly +outrun the others; but the doors were shut. Then followed bitter +complaints from Fedelm and Lendabair, both united against Emer, as +their husbands had been against Cuchulain. Again King Conor was forced +to call for silence, since each hero was supporting his own wife's +claims to be queen of the Ulster women. The strife was only calmed by +the promise that the claim to the highest place should be settled by +Ailill and Meave of Connaught, who would be impartial judges. + + +The Heroes Journey to Connaught + +Bricriu's feast lasted for three days longer, and then King Conor and +the Red Branch heroes returned to Armagh. There the dispute about the +Championship began again, and Conor sent the heroes to Cruachan, in +Connaught, to obtain a judgment from King Ailill. "If he does not +decide, go to Curoi of Munster, who is a just and wise man, and will +find out the best hero by wizardry and enchantments." When Conor had +decided thus, Laegaire and Conall, after some disputation as to who +should start first, had their chariots got ready and drove towards +Cruachan, but Cuchulain stayed amusing himself and the women in +Armagh. When his chariot-driver reproached him with losing the +Champion's Portion through laziness Cuchulain replied: "I never +thought about it, but there is still time to win it. Yoke my steeds to +the chariot." By this time, however, the other two heroes were far, +very far, in advance, with the chief men of Ulster following them. + + +Cuchulain's Steeds + +Cuchulain had quite lately won two mighty magic steeds, which arose +from two lonely lakes--the Grey of Macha, his best-beloved horse, and +the Black Sainglain. The struggle between the hero and these magic +steeds had been terrible before he had been able to tame them and +reduce them to submission; now he had them yoked to his chariot, and +when he had once started he soon came up with the other two heroes, +and all three drove furiously towards Cruachan, with all the warriors +of Ulster behind them. + +[Illustration: "All three drove furiously towards Cruachan"] + + +Queen Meave Watches the Heroes + +The noise of the advancing war-chariots reached Queen Meave at +Cruachan, and she wondered greatly to hear thunder from a clear sky; +but her fair daughter, looking from her window, said: "Mother, I see +chariots coming." + +"Who comes in the first?" asked Queen Meave. + +"I see a big stout man, with reddish gold hair and long forked beard, +dressed in purple with gold adornments; and his shield is bronze edged +with gold; he bears a javelin in his hand." + +"That man I know well," answered her mother. "He is mighty Laegaire, +the Storm of War, the Knife of Victory; he will slay us all, unless he +comes in peace." + +"I see another chariot," quoth the princess, "bearing a fair man with +long wavy hair, a man of clear red and white complexion, wearing a +white vest and a cloak of blue and crimson. His shield is brown, with +yellow bosses and a bronze edge." + +"That is valiant Conall the Victorious," quoth Meave. "Small chance +shall we have if he comes in anger." + +"Yet a third chariot comes, wherein stands a dark, sad youth, most +handsome of all the men of Erin; he wears a crimson tunic, brooched +with gold, a long white linen cloak, and a white, gold-embroidered +hood. His hair is black, his look draws love, his glance shoots fire, +and the hero-light gleams around him. His shield is crimson, with a +silver rim, and images of beasts shine on it in gold." + + +Terror in Connaught + +"Alas! that is the hero Cuchulain," said Meave. "He is more to be +feared than all others. His voice in anger tells the doom of men; his +wrath is fatal. Truly we are but dead if we have aroused Cuchulain's +wrath." After a pause: "Tell me, daughter, are there yet other +chariots?" + +"The men of Ulster follow in chariots so numerous that the earth +quakes beneath them, and their sound is as thunder, or the dashing +waves of the sea." + +Now Queen Meave was terrified in good earnest, but hoped by a hearty +welcome to turn aside the wrath of the heroes of Ulster; thus when +they arrived at the dun of Cruachan they found the best of receptions, +and all the Red Branch warriors were feasted for three days and +nights. + + +Conor Explains the Matter + +After three days Ailill of Connaught asked their business, and King +Conor related to him everything as it had occurred--the feast, the +dispute for the Champion's Portion, the women's quarrel, and the +decision to be judged by King Ailill. This angered Ailill, who was a +peaceable man. + +"It was no friend of mine who referred you to me, for I shall surely +incur the hatred of two heroes," quoth he. + +"You are the best judge of all," replied King Conor. + +"Then I must have time--three days and nights--to decide," said +Ailill. + +"We can spare our heroes so long," quoth Conor, and therewith the +Ulster men returned to Armagh, leaving the three claimants to the +Championship at Cruachan. + + +The First Test + +That night Ailill put them to an unexpected test. Their feast was +served to them in a separate room, and the king went to his +protectors, the Fairy People of the Hills, in the Good People's Hill +at Cruachan, and begged some help in his judgment. They willingly +aided him, and three magic beasts, in the shape of monstrous cats, +were let into the room where the heroes feasted. When they saw them +Laegaire and Conall rose up from their meal, clambered up among the +rafters, and stayed there all night. Cuchulain waited till one +attacked him, and then drawing his sword, struck the monster. It +showed no further sign of fight, and Cuchulain kept watch all night, +till the magic beasts disappeared at daybreak. When Ailill came into +the room and saw the heroes as they had spent the night he laughed as +he said: + +"Are you not content to yield the Championship to Cuchulain?" + +[Illustration: "Three monstrous cats were let into the room"] + +"Indeed no," said Conall and Laegaire. "We are used to fighting men, +not monstrous beasts." + + +The Second Test + +The next day King Ailill sent the heroes to his own foster-father, +Ercol, to spend a night with him, that he also might test them. When +they arrived, and had feasted, Laegaire was sent out that night to +fight the witches of the valley. Fierce and terrible were these +witches, and they beat Laegaire, and took his arms and armour. + +When Conall went to fight them the witches beat him and took his +spear, but he kept his sword and brought it back with honour. +Cuchulain, who was the youngest, went last, and he too was being +beaten, when the taunts of his chariot-driver, who was watching, +aroused him, and he beat the witches, and bore off in triumph their +cloaks of battle. Yet even after this the other two heroes would not +acknowledge Cuchulain's superiority. + + +Ercol's Defeat + +The next day Ercol fought with each champion separately, and conquered +both Laegaire and Conall, terrifying the former so much that he fled +to Cruachan and told Meave and Ailill that Ercol had killed the other +two. When Cuchulain arrived victorious, with Ercol tied captive at his +chariot-wheels, he found all men mourning for him and Conall as for +the dead. + + +Meave's Plan to Avoid Strife in Cruachan + +Now indeed Ailill was in great perplexity, for he durst not delay his +decision, and he dreaded the wrath of the two disappointed heroes. He +and Queen Meave consulted long together, and at length Meave promised +to relieve him of the responsibility of judgment. Summoning Laegaire +to the king's room, she said: + +"Welcome, O Laegaire! You are greatest of the warriors of Ulster. To +you we give the headship of the heroes of Ireland and the Champion's +Portion, and to your wife the right to walk first of all the women of +Ulster. In token thereof we give you this cup of bronze with a silver +bird embossed, to be seen by no man till you be come to King Conor in +the Red Branch House at Armagh. Then show your cup and claim your +right, and none will dispute it with you." + +So Laegaire went away well pleased, and they sent for Conall. To him +they gave a silver cup, with a bird embossed in gold, and to him they +pretended to adjudge the Championship, and Conall left them well +content. + +Cuchulain, who was playing chess, refused to attend the King of +Connaught when he was summoned, and Queen Meave had to entreat him to +come to their private room. There they gave him a golden cup, with a +bird designed in precious gems, with many words of flattery for +Cuchulain and his fair and noble wife, Emer. + + +The Return of the Champions + +Now the heroes, each well content, bade farewell to the court at +Cruachan, and drove back to Armagh, but none durst ask how they had +sped. That evening, at the banquet, when the Champion's Portion was +set aside, Laegaire arose and claimed it, showing as proof that his +claim was just the bronze cup he brought from Queen Meave. + +But alas! Conall the Victorious had a silver cup, and while he was +exulting in this proof of his rightful claim to the championship +Cuchulain produced his golden cup, and the dispute began all over +again. King Conor would have allowed Cuchulain's claim, but Laegaire +vowed that his rival had bribed Ailill and Meave with great treasures +to give him the golden cup, and neither Laegaire nor Conall would +yield him the victory or accept the judgment as final. "Then you must +go to Curoi," said the king, and to that they all agreed. + + +The Champions Visit Curoi + +The next day the three champions drove to Kerry where Curoi dwelt in a +magic dun. He was away from home planning enchantments to test them, +for he knew they were coming, but his wife welcomed them, and bade +them watch the dun for one night each, beginning with Laegaire, as the +eldest. Laegaire took up his sentinel's post outside the dun, and +Curoi's wife worked the charm which prevented entrance after +nightfall. The night was long and silent, and Laegaire thought he +would have a quiet watch, when he saw a great shadow arise from the +sea. + + +The Giant Fights Laegaire and Conall + +This shadow took the shape of a huge giant, whose spears were mighty +branch-stripped oaks, which he hurled at Laegaire. They did not touch +him, however, and Laegaire made some show of fight; but the giant took +him up, squeezed him so tightly as nearly to slay him, and then threw +him over the magic wall of the dun, where the others found him lying +half dead. All men thought that he had sprung with a mighty leap over +the wall, since no other entrance was to be found, and Laegaire kept +silence and did not explain to them. + +Conall, who took the watch the second night, fared exactly as Laegaire +had done, and likewise did not confess how he had been thrown over +the wall of the dun, nor what became of the giant in the dawn. + + +Cuchulain's Trials + +The third night was Cuchulain's watch, and he took his post outside +the dun, and the gates and wall were secured by magic spells, so that +none could enter. Vainly he watched till midnight, and then he thought +he saw nine grey shadowy forms creeping towards him. + +"Who goes there?" he cried. "If you be friends, stop; if foes, come +on!" Then the nine shadowy foes raised a shout, and fell upon the +hero; but he fought hard and slew them, and beheaded them. A second +and a third time similar groups of vague, shadowy foemen rushed at +him, and he slew them all in like manner, and then, wearied out, sat +down to rest. + + +The Dragon + +Later on in the night, as he was still watching, he heard a heavy +sound, like waves surging in the lake, and when he roused himself to +see what it was he beheld a monstrous dragon. It was rising from the +water and flying towards the dun, and seemed ready to devour +everything in its way. When the dragon perceived him it soared swiftly +into the air, and then gradually sank towards him, opening its +terrible jaws. Cuchulain sprang up, giving his wonderful hero-leap, +and thrust his arm into the dragon's mouth and down its throat; he +found its heart, tore it out, and saw the monster fall dead on the +ground. He then cut off its scaly head, which he added to those of his +former enemies. + +[Illustration: "The dragon sank towards him, opening its terrible +jaws"] + + +The Giant Worsted by Cuchulain + +Towards daybreak, when feeling quite worn out and very sleepy, he +became slowly aware of a great shadow coming to him westward from the +sea. The shadow, as before, became a giant, who greeted him in a surly +tone with, "This is a bad night." "It will be worse yet for you," said +Cuchulain. The giant, as he had done with the other heroes, threw +oaks, but just missed him; and when he tried to grapple with him the +hero leaped up with drawn sword. In his anger the hero-light shone +round him, and he sprang as high as the giant's head, and gave him a +stroke that brought him to his knees. "Life for life, Cuchulain," said +the giant, and vanished at once, leaving no trace. + + +Cuchulain Re-enters the Dun + +Now Cuchulain would gladly have returned to the fort to rest, but +there seemed no way of entrance, and the hero was vexed at his own +helplessness, for he thought his comrades had jumped over the magic +walls. Twice he boldly essayed to leap the lofty wall, and twice he +failed; then in his wrath his great strength came upon him, the +hero-light shone round him, and he took a little run and, leaning on +his spear, leaped so high and so far that he alighted in the middle of +the court, just before the door of the hall. + +As he sighed heavily and wearily, Curoi's wife said: "That is the sigh +of a weary conqueror, not of a beaten man"; and Cuchulain went in and +sat down to rest. + + +The Decision + +The next morning Curoi's wife asked the champions: "Are you content +that the Championship should go to Cuchulain? I know by my magic skill +what he has endured in the past night, and you must see that you are +not equal to him." + +"Nay, that we will not allow," quoth they. "It was one of Cuchulain's +friends among the People of the Hills who came to conquer us and to +give him the Championship. We are not content, and we will not give up +our claim, for the fight was not fair." + +"Go home now to Armagh, is Curoi's word, and wait there until he +himself brings his decision," said Curoi's wife. So they bade her +farewell, and went back to the Red Branch House in Armagh, with the +dispute still unsettled; but they agreed to await peaceably Curoi's +decision, and abide by it when he should bring it. + + +Uath, the Stranger + +Some time after this, when Curoi had made no sign of giving judgment, +it happened that all the Ulster heroes were in their places in the Red +Branch House, except Cuchulain and his cousin Conall. As they sat in +order of rank in the hall they saw a terrible stranger coming into the +room. He was gigantic in stature, hideous of aspect, with ravening +yellow eyes. He wore a skin roughly sewn together, and a grey cloak +over it, and he sheltered himself from the light with a spreading tree +torn up by the roots. In his hand he bore an enormous axe, with keen +and shining edge. This hideous apparition strode up the hall and leant +against a carved pillar beside the fire. + +"Who are you?" asked one chieftain in sport. "Are you come to be our +candlestick, or would you burn the house down? Is this the place for +such as you? Go farther down the hall!" + +"My name is Uath, the Stranger, and for neither of those things am I +come. I seek that which I cannot find in the whole world, and that is +a man to keep the agreement he makes with me." + + +The Agreement + +"What is the agreement?" asked King Conor. + +"Behold my axe!" quoth the stranger. "The man who will grasp it +to-day may cut my head off with it, provided that I may, in like +manner, cut off his head to-morrow. Now you men of Ulster, heroes of +the Red Branch, have won the palm through the wide world for courage, +honour, strength, truth, and generosity; do you, therefore, find me a +man to keep this agreement. King Conor is excepted, because of his +royal dignity, but no other. And if you have no champion who dare face +me, I will say that Ulster has lost her courage and is dishonoured." + +"It is not right for a whole province to be disgraced for lack of a +man to keep his word," said King Conor, "but I fear we have no such +champions here." + + +Laegaire Accepts the Challenge + +"By my word," said Laegaire, who had listened attentively to the whole +conversation, "there will be a champion this very moment. Stoop down, +fellow, and let me cut off your head, that you may take mine +to-morrow." + +Then Uath chanted magic spells over the axe as he stroked the edge, +and laid his neck on a block, and Laegaire hewed so hard that the axe +severed the head from the body and struck deep into the block. Then +the body of Uath arose, took up the head and the axe, and strode away +down the hall, all people shrinking out of its way, and so it passed +out into the night. + +[Illustration: "The body of Uath arose"] + +"If this terrible stranger returns to-morrow he will slay us all," +they whispered, as they looked pityingly at Laegaire, who was trying +in vain to show no signs of apprehension. + + +Laegaire and Conall Disgraced + +When the next evening came, and men sat in the Red Branch House, +talking little and waiting for what would happen, in came Uath, the +Stranger, as well and sound as before the terrible blow, bearing his +axe, and eager to return the stroke. Alas! Laegaire's heart had failed +him and he did not come, and the stranger jeered at the men of Ulster +because their great champion durst not keep his agreement, nor face +the blow he should receive in return for one he gave. + +The men of Ulster were utterly ashamed, but Conall Cearnach, the +Victorious, was present that night, and he made a new agreement with +Uath. Conall gave a blow which beheaded Uath, but again, when the +stranger returned whole and sound on the following evening, the +champion was not to be found: Conall would not face the blow. + + +Cuchulain Accepts the Challenge + +When Uath found that a second hero of Ulster had failed him he again +taunted them all with cowardice and promise-breaking. + +"What! is there not one man of courage among you Ulstermen? You would +fain have a great name, but have no courage to earn it! Great heroes +are you all! Not one among you has bravery enough to face me! Where is +that childish youth Cuchulain! A poor miserable fellow he is, but I +would like to see if his word is better to be relied on than the word +of these two great heroes." + +"A youth I may be," said Cuchulain, "but I will keep my word without +any agreement." + +Uath laughed aloud. "Yes! that is likely, is it not? And you with so +great a fear of death!" + +Thereupon the youth leapt up, caught the deadly axe, and severed the +giant's head as he stood with one stroke. + + +Cuchulain Stands the Test + +The next day the Red Branch heroes watched Cuchulain to see what he +would do. They would not have been surprised if he had failed like the +others, who now were present. The champion, however, showed no signs +of failing or retreat. He sat sorrowfully in his place waiting for the +certain death that must come, and regretting his rashness, but with no +thought of breaking his word. + +With a sigh he said to King Conor as they waited: "Do not leave this +place till all is over. Death is coming to me very surely, but I must +fulfil my agreement, for I would rather die than break my word." + +Towards the close of day Uath strode into the hall exultant. + +"Where is Cuchulain?" he cried. + +"Here I am," was the reply. + +"Ah, poor boy! your speech is sad to-night, and the fear of death lies +heavy on you; but at least you have redeemed your word and have not +failed me." + +The youth rose from his seat and went towards Uath, as he stood with +the great axe ready, and knelt to receive the blow. + + +Curoi's Decision and Cuchulain's Victory + +The hero of Ulster laid his head on the block; but Uath was not +satisfied. "Stretch out your neck better," said he. + +"You are playing with me, to torment me," said Cuchulain. "Slay me now +speedily, for I did not keep you waiting last night." + +However, he stretched out his neck as Uath bade, and the stranger +raised his axe till it crashed upwards through the rafters of the +hall, like the crash of trees falling in a storm. When the axe came +down with a terrific sound all men looked fearfully at Cuchulain. The +descending axe had not even touched him; it had come down with the +blunt side on the ground, and the youth knelt there unharmed. Smiling +at him, and leaning on his axe, stood no terrible and hideous +stranger, but Curoi of Kerry, come to give his decision at last. + +"Rise up, Cuchulain," said Curoi. "There is none among all the heroes +of Ulster to equal you in courage and loyalty and truth. The +Championship of the Heroes of Ireland is yours from this day forth, +and the Champion's Portion at all feasts; and to your wife I adjudge +the first place among all the women of Ulster. Woe to him who dares to +dispute this decision!" Thereupon Curoi vanished, and the Red Branch +warriors gathered around Cuchulain, and all with one voice acclaimed +him the Champion of the Heroes of all Ireland--a title which has clung +to him until this day. + + + + +CHAPTER X: THE TALE OF GAMELYN + + +The "Wicked Brothers" Theme + +The tale of "Gamelyn" is a variant of the old fairy-tale subject of +the Wicked Elder Brothers, one of the oldest and most interesting +versions of which may still be read in the Biblical story of Joseph +and his brethren. Usually a father dies leaving three sons, of whom +the two elder are worthless and the youngest rises to high honour, +whereupon the elder brothers try to kill the youngest from envy at his +good fortune. A similar root-idea is found in "Cinderella" and other +fairy-tales of girls, but in these there may usually be found a cruel +stepmother and two contemptuous stepsisters--a noteworthy variation +which seems to point to some deep-rooted idea that the ties of blood +are stronger among women than among men. + + +Literary Influence of the "Gamelyn" Story + +The story of "Gamelyn" has two great claims to our attention: it is, +through Lodge's "Euphues' Golden Legacy," the ultimate source of +Shakespeare's _As You Like It_, and it seems to be the earliest +presentment in English literature of the figure of "the noble outlaw." +In fact, Gamelyn is probably the literary ancestor of "bold Robin +Hood," and stands for an English ideal of justice and equity, against +legal oppression and wickedness in high places. He shows, too, the +love of free life, of the merry greenwood and the open road, which +reappears after so many centuries in the work of Robert Louis +Stevenson. + + +The Story + +In the reign of King Edward I. there dwelt in Lincolnshire, near the +vast expanse of the Fens, a noble gentleman, Sir John of the Marches. +He was now old, but was still a model of all courtesy and a "very +perfect gentle knight." He had three sons, of whom the youngest, +Gamelyn, was born in his father's old age, and was greatly beloved by +the old man; the other two were much older than he, and John, the +eldest, had already developed a vicious and malignant character. +Gamelyn and his second brother, Otho, reverenced their father, but +John had no respect or obedience for the good gentleman, and was the +chief trouble of his declining years, as Gamelyn was his chief joy. + + +The Father Feels his End Approaching + +At last old age and weakness overcame the worthy old Sir John, and he +was forced to take to his bed, where he lay sadly meditating on his +children's future, and wondering how to divide his possessions justly +among the three. There was no difficulty of inheritance or +primogeniture, for all the knight's lands were held in fee-simple, and +not in entail, so that he might bequeath them as he would. Sir John of +the Marches, fearing lest he should commit an injustice, sent +throughout the district for wise knights, begging them to come +hastily, if they wished to see him alive, and help him. When the +country squires and lords, his near neighbours, heard of his grave +condition, they hurried to the castle, and gathered in the bedchamber, +where the dying knight greeted them thus: "Lords and gentlemen, I warn +you in truth that I may no longer live; by the will of God death lays +his hand upon me." When they heard this they tried to encourage him, +by bidding him remember that God can provide a remedy for every +disease, and the good knight received their kindly words without +dispute. "That God can send remedy for an ill I will never deny; but +I beseech you, for my sake, to divide my lands among my three sons. +For the love of God deal justly, and forget not my youngest, Gamelyn. +Seldom does any heir to an estate help his brothers after his father's +death." + + +How Shall he Dispose of his Estate? + +The friends whom Sir John had summoned deliberated long over the +disposal of the estate. The majority wished to give all to the eldest +son, but a strong minority urged the claims of the second, but all +agreed that Gamelyn might wait till his eldest brother chose to give +him a share of his father's lands. At last it was decided to divide +the inheritance between the two elder sons, and the knights returned +to the chamber where the brave old knight lay dying, and told him +their decision. He summoned up strength enough to protest against +their plan of distribution, and said: + + "'Nay, by St. Martin, I can yet bequeath + My lands to whom I wish: they still are mine. + Then hearken, neighbours, while I make my will. + To John, my eldest son, and heir, I leave + Five ploughlands, my dead father's heritage; + My second, Otho, ploughlands five shall hold, + Which my good right hand won in valiant strife; + All else I own, in lands and goods and wealth, + To Gamelyn, my youngest, I devise; + And I beseech you, for the love of God, + Forsake him not, but guard his helpless youth + And let him not be plundered of his wealth.'" + +Then Sir John, satisfied with having proclaimed his will, died with +Christian resignation, leaving his little son Gamelyn in the power of +the cruel eldest brother, now, in his turn, Sir John. + + +The Cruel Eldest Son + +Since the boy was a minor, the new knight, as natural guardian, +assumed the control of Gamelyn's land, vassals, education, and +nurture; and full evilly he discharged his duties, for he clothed and +fed him badly, and neglected his lands, so that his parks and houses, +his farms and villages, fell into ruinous decay. The boy, when he grew +older, noticed this and resented it, but did not realize the power in +his own broad limbs and mighty sinews to redress his wrongs, though by +the time he fully understood his injuries no man would dare to face +him in fight when he was angry, so strong a youth had he become. + + +Gamelyn Resists + +While Gamelyn, one day, walking in the hall, mused on the ruin of all +his inheritance, Sir John came blustering in, and, seeing him, called +out: "How now: is dinner ready?" Enraged at being addressed as if he +were a mere servant, he replied angrily: "Go and do your own baking; I +am not your cook." + +[Illustration: "Go and do your own baking!"] + +Sir John almost doubted the evidence of his ears. "What, my dear +brother, is that the way to answer? Thou hast never addressed me so +before!" + +"No," replied Gamelyn; "until now I have never considered all the +wrong you have done me. My parks are broken open, my deer are driven +off; you have deprived me of my armour and my steeds; all that my +father bequeathed to me is falling into ruin and decay. God's curse +upon you, false brother!" + +Sir John was now enraged beyond all measure, and shouted: "Stand +still, vagabond, and hold thy peace! What right hast thou to speak of +land or vassals? Thou shalt learn to be grateful for food and +raiment." + +"A curse upon him that calls me vagabond! I am no worse than +yourself; I am the son of a lady and a good knight." + + +Gamelyn Terrifies the Household + +In spite of all his anger, Sir John was a cautious man, with a prudent +regard for his own safety. He would not risk an encounter with +Gamelyn, but summoned his servants and bade them beat him well, till +he should learn better manners. But when the boy understood his +brother's intention he vowed that he would not be beaten alone--others +should suffer too, and Sir John not the least. Thereupon, leaping on +to the wall, he seized a pestle which lay there, and so boldly +attacked the timid servants, though they were armed with staves, that +he drove them in flight, and laid on furious strokes which quenched +the small spark of courage in them. Sir John had not even that small +amount of bravery: he fled to a loft and barred the door, while +Gamelyn cleared the hall with his pestle, and scoffed at the cowardly +grooms who fled so soon from the strife they had begun. When he sought +for his brother he could not see him at first, but afterwards +perceived his sorry countenance peeping from a window. "Brother," said +Gamelyn, "come a little nearer, and I will teach you how to play with +staff and buckler." + +"Nay, by St. Richard, I will not descend till thou hast put down that +pestle. Brother, be no more enraged, and I will make peace with thee. +I swear it by the grace of God!" + +"I was forced to defend myself," said Gamelyn, "or your menials would +have injured and degraded me: I could not let grooms beat a good +knight's son; but now grant me one boon, and we shall soon be +reconciled." + + +Sir John's Guile + +"Yes, certainly, brother; ask thy boon, and I will grant it readily. +But indeed I was only testing thee, for thou art so young that I +doubted thy strength and manliness. It was only a pretence of beating +that I meant." + +"This is my request," said the boy: "if there is to be peace between +us you must surrender to me all that my father bequeathed me while he +was alive." + +To this Sir John consented with apparent willingness, and even +promised to repair the decayed mansions and restore the lands and +farms to their former prosperity; but though he feigned content with +the agreement and kissed his brother with outward affection yet he was +inwardly meditating plans of treachery against the unsuspecting youth. + + +A Wrestling Match + +Shortly after this quarrel between the brothers a wrestling +competition was announced, the winner of which would become the owner +of a fine ram and a ring of gold, and Gamelyn determined to try his +powers. Accordingly he begged the loan of "a little courser" from Sir +John, who offered him his choice of all the steeds in the stable, and +then curiously questioned him as to his errand. The lad explained that +he wished to compete in the wrestling match, hoping to win honour by +bearing away the prize; then, springing on the beautiful courser that +was brought him ready saddled, he spurred his horse and rode away +merrily, while the false Sir John locked the gate behind him, praying +that he might get his neck broken in the contest. The boy rode along, +rejoicing in his youth and strength, singing as he went, till he drew +near the appointed place, and then he suddenly heard a man's voice +lamenting aloud and crying, "Wellaway! Alas!" and saw a venerable +yeoman wringing his hands. "Good man," said Gamelyn, "why art thou in +such distress? Can no man help thee?" + + +A Dreaded Champion + +"Alas!" said the yeoman. "Woe to the day on which I was born! The +champion wrestler here has overthrown my two stalwart sons, and unless +God help them they must die of their grievous hurts. I would give ten +pounds to find a man to avenge on him the injuries done to my dear +sons." + +"Good man, hold my horse while my groom takes my coat and shoes, and I +will try my luck and strength against this doughty champion." + +"Thank God!" said the yeoman. "I will do it at once; I will guard thy +coat and shoes and good steed safely--and may Jesus Christ speed thee +well!" + + +Gamelyn Enters + +When Gamelyn entered the ring, barefooted and stripped for wrestling, +all men gazed curiously at the rash youth who dared to challenge the +stalwart champion, and the great man himself, rising from the ground, +strolled across to meet Gamelyn and said haughtily: "Who is thy +father, and what is thy name? Thou art, forsooth, a young fool to come +here!" + +Gamelyn answered equally haughtily: "Thou knewest well my father while +he lived: he was Sir John of the Marches, and I am his youngest son, +Gamelyn." + +The champion replied: "Boy, I knew thy father well in his lifetime, +and I have heard of thee, and nothing good: thou hast always been in +mischief." + +"Now I am older thou shalt know me better," said Gamelyn. + + +Defeats the Champion + +The wrestling had lasted till late in the evening, and the moon was +shining on the scene when Gamelyn and the champion began their +struggle. The wrestler tried many wily tricks, but the boy was ready +for them all, and stood steady against all that his opponent could do. +Then, in his turn, he took the offensive, grasped his adversary round +the waist, and cast him so heavily to the ground that three ribs were +broken, and his left arm. Then the victor said mockingly: + +"Shall we count that a cast, or not reckon it?" + +"By heaven! whether it be one or no, any man in thy hand will never +thrive," said the champion painfully. + +The yeoman, who had watched the match with great anxiety, now broke +out with blessings: "Blessed be thou, young sir, that ever thou wert +born!" and now taunting the fallen champion, said: "It was young +'Mischief' who taught thee this game." + +"He is master of us all," said the champion. "In all my years of +wrestling I have never been mishandled so cruelly." + +Now the victor stood in the ring, ready for more wrestling, but no man +would venture to compete with him, and the two judges who kept order +and awarded the prizes bade him retire, for no other competitor could +be found to face him. + +But he was a little disappointed at this easy victory. "Is the fair +over? Why, I have not half sold my wares," he said. + +The champion was still capable of grim jesting. "Now, as I value my +life, any purchaser of your wares is a fool; you sell so dearly." + +"Not at all," broke in the yeoman; "you have bought your share full +cheap, and made a good bargain." + + +He Wins the Prizes + +While this short conversation had been going on the judges had +returned to their seats, and formally awarded the prize to Gamelyn, +and now came to him, bearing the ram and the ring for his acceptance. + +Gamelyn took them gladly, and went home the next morning, followed by +a cheering crowd of admirers; but when the cowardly Sir John saw the +people he bolted the castle doors against his more favourite and +successful brother. + + +He Overcomes his Brother's Servants + +The porter, obeying his master's commands, refused Gamelyn entrance; +and the youth, enraged at this insult, broke down the door with one +blow, caught the fleeing porter, and flung him down the well in the +courtyard. His brother's servants fled from his anger, and the crowd +that had accompanied him swarmed into courtyard and hall, while the +knight took refuge in a little turret. + +"Welcome to you all," said Gamelyn. "We will be masters here and ask +no man's leave. Yesterday I left five tuns of wine in the cellar; we +will drain them dry before you go. If my brother objects (as he well +may, for he is a miser) I will be butler and caterer and manage the +whole feast. Any person who dares to object may join the porter in the +well." + +Naturally no objections were raised, and Gamelyn and his friends held +high revel for a week, while Sir John lay hidden in his turret, +terrified at the noise and revelry, and dreading what his brother +might do to him now he had so great a following. + + +A Reckoning with Sir John + +However, the guests departed quietly on the eighth day, leaving +Gamelyn alone, and very sorrowful, in the hall where he had held high +revel. As he stood there, musing sadly, he heard a timid footstep, and +saw his brother creeping towards him. When he had attracted Gamelyn's +attention he spoke out loudly: "Who made thee so bold as to destroy +all my household stores?" + +"Nay, brother, be not wroth," said the youth quietly. "If I have used +anything I have paid for it fully beforehand. For these sixteen years +you have had full use and profit of fifteen good ploughlands which my +father left me; you have also the use and increase of all my cattle +and horses; and now all this past profit I abandon to you, in return +for the expense of this feast of mine." + +Then said the treacherous Sir John: "Hearken, my dear brother: I have +no son, and thou shalt be my heir--I swear by the holy St. John." + +"In faith," said Gamelyn, "if that be the case, and if this offer be +made in all sincerity, may God reward you!" for it was impossible for +his generous disposition to suspect his brother of treachery and to +fathom the wiles of a crafty nature; hence it happened that he was so +soon and easily beguiled. + + +Gamelyn Allows Himself to be Chained + +Sir John hesitated a moment, and then said doubtfully: "There is one +thing I must tell you, Gamelyn. When you threw my porter into the well +I swore in my wrath that I would have you bound hand and foot. That is +impossible now without your consent, and I must be forsworn unless you +will let yourself be bound for a moment, as a mere form, just to save +me from the sin of perjury." + +So sincere Sir John seemed, and so simple did the whole thing appear, +that Gamelyn consented at once. "Why, certainly, brother, you shall +not be forsworn for my sake." So he sat down, and the servants bound +him hand and foot; and then Sir John looked mockingly at him as he +said: "So now, my fine brother, I have you caught at last." Then he +bade them bring fetters and rivet them on Gamelyn's limbs, and chain +him fast to a post in the centre of the hall. Then he was placed on +his feet with his back to the post and his hands manacled behind him, +and as he stood there the false brother told every person who entered +that Gamelyn had suddenly gone mad, and was chained for safety's sake, +lest he should do himself or others some deadly hurt. For two long +days and nights he stood there bound, with no food or drink, and grew +faint with hunger and weariness, for his fetters were so tight that he +could not sit or lie down; bitterly he lamented the carelessness which +made him fall such an easy prey to his treacherous brother's designs. + + +Adam Spencer to the Rescue + +When all others had left the hall Gamelyn appealed to old Adam +Spencer, the steward of the household, a loyal old servant who had +known Sir John of the Marches, and had watched the boy grow up. "Adam +Spencer," quoth he, "unless my brother is minded to slay me, I am kept +fasting too long. I beseech thee, for the great love my father bore +thee, get the keys and release me from my bonds. I will share all my +free land with thee if thou wilt help me in this distress." + +The poor old servant was greatly perplexed. He knew not how to +reconcile his grateful loyalty to his dead master with the loyalty due +to his present lord, and he said doubtfully: "I have served thy +brother for sixteen years, and if I release thee now he will +rightly call me a traitor." "Ah, Adam! thou wilt find him a false +rogue at the last, as I have done. Release me, dear friend Adam, and I +will be true to my agreement, and will keep my covenant to share my +land with thee." By these earnest words the steward was persuaded, +and, waiting till Sir John was safely in bed, managed to obtain +possession of the keys and release Gamelyn, who stretched his arms and +legs and thanked God for his liberty. "Now," said he, "if I were but +well fed no one in this house should bind me again to-night." So Adam +took him to a private room and set food before him; eagerly he ate and +drank till his hunger was satisfied and he began to think of revenge. +"What is your advice, Adam? Shall I go to my brother and strike off +his head? He well merits it." + + +A Plan of Escape + +"No," answered Adam, "I know a better plan than that. Sir John is to +give a great feast on Sunday to many Churchmen and prelates; there +will be present a great number of abbots and priors and other holy +men. Do you stand as if bound by your post in the hall, and beseech +them to release you. If they will be surety for you, your liberty will +be gained with no blame to me; if they all refuse, you shall cast +aside the unlocked chains, and you and I, with two good staves, can +soon win your freedom. Christ's curse on him who fails his comrade!" + +"Yes," quoth Gamelyn, "evil may I thrive if I fail in my part of the +bargain! But if we must needs help them to do penance for their sins, +you must warn me, brother Adam, when to begin." + +"By St. Charity, master, I will give you good warning. When I wink at +you be ready to cast away your fetters at once and come to me." + +"This is good advice of yours, Adam, and blessings on your head. If +these haughty Churchmen refuse to be surety for me I will give them +good strokes in payment." + + +A Great Feast + +Sunday came, and after mass many guests thronged to the feast in the +great hall; they all stared curiously at Gamelyn as he stood with his +hands behind him, apparently chained to his post, and Sir John +explained sadly that he, after slaying the porter and wasting the +household stores, had gone mad, and was obliged to be chained, for his +fury was dangerous. The servants carried dainty dishes round the +table, and beakers of rich wines, but though Gamelyn cried aloud that +he was fasting no food was brought to him. Then he spoke pitifully and +humbly to the noble guests: "Lords, for Christ's sake help a poor +captive out of prison." But the guests were hard-hearted, and answered +cruelly, especially the abbots and priors, who had been deceived by +Sir John's false tales. So harshly did they reply to the youth's +humble petition that he grew angry. "Oh," said he, "that is all the +answer I am to have to my prayer! Now I see that I have no friends. +Cursed be he that ever does good to abbot or prior!" + +[Illustration: "Lords, for Christ's sake help poor Gamelyn out of +prison!"] + + +The Banquet Disturbed + +Adam Spencer, busied about the removal of the cloth, looked anxiously +at Gamelyn, and saw how angry he grew. He thought little more of his +service, but, making a pretext to go to the pantry, brought two good +oak staves, and stood them beside the hall door. Then he winked +meaningly at Gamelyn, who with a sudden shout flung off his chains, +rushed to the hall door, seized a staff, and began to lay about him +lustily, whirling his weapon as lightly as if it had been a holy +water sprinkler. There was a dreadful commotion in the hall, for the +portly Churchmen tried to escape, but the mere laymen loved Gamelyn, +and drew aside to give him free play, so that he was able to scatter +the prelates. Now he had no pity on these cruel Churchmen, as they had +been without pity for him; he knocked them over, battered them, broke +their arms and legs, and wrought terrible havoc among them; and during +this time Adam Spencer kept the door so that none might escape. He +called aloud to Gamelyn to respect the sanctity of men of Holy Church +and shed no blood, but if he should by chance break arms and legs +there would be no sacrilege, because no blood need be shed. + + +Sir John in Chains + +Thus Gamelyn worked his will, laying hands on monks and friars, and +sent them home wounded in carts and waggons, while some of them +muttered: "We were better at home, with mere bread and water, than +here where we have had such a sorry feast!" Then Gamelyn turned his +attention to his false brother, who had been unable to escape, seized +him by the neck, broke his backbone with one blow from his staff, and +thrust him, sitting, into the fetters that yet hung from the post +where Gamelyn had stood. "Sit there, brother, and cool thy blood," +said Gamelyn, as he and Adam sat down to a feast, at which the +servants waited on them eagerly, partly from love and partly from +fear. + + +The Sheriff's Men Appear + +Now the sheriff happened to be only five miles away, and soon heard +the news of this disturbance, and how Gamelyn and Adam had broken the +king's peace; and, as his duty was, he determined to arrest the +law-breakers. Twenty-four of his best men were sent to the castle to +gain admittance and arrest Gamelyn and his steward; but the new +porter, a devoted adherent of Gamelyn, denied them entrance till he +knew their errand; when they refused to tell it, he sent a servant to +rouse Gamelyn and warn him that the sheriff's men stood before the +gate. + + "Then answered Gamelyn: 'Good porter, go; + Delay my foes with fair speech at the gate + Till I relieve thee with some cunning wile. + If I o'erlive this strait, I will requite + Thy truth and loyalty. Adam,' quoth he, + 'Our foes are on us, and we have no friend-- + The sheriff's men surround us, and have sworn + A mighty oath to take us: we must go + Whither our safety calls us.' He replied: + 'Go where thou wilt, I follow to the last + Or die forlorn: but this proud sheriffs troop + Will flee before our onset, to the fens.'" + + +The Sheriff Arrives + +As Gamelyn and Adam looked round for weapons the former saw a +cart-staff, a stout post used for propping up the shafts; this he +seized, and ran out at the little postern gate, followed by Adam with +another staff. They caught the sheriff's twenty-four bold men in the +rear, and when Gamelyn had felled three, and Adam two, the rest took +to their heels. "What!" said Adam as they fled. "Drink a draught of my +good wine! I am steward here." "Nay," they shouted back; "such wine as +yours scatters a man's brains far too thoroughly." Now this little +fray was hardly ended before the sheriff came in person with a great +troop. Gamelyn knew not what to do, but Adam again had a plan ready. +"Let us stay no longer, but go to the greenwood: there we shall at +least be at liberty." The advice suited Gamelyn, and each drank a +draught of wine, mounted his steed, and lightly rode away, leaving +the empty nest for the sheriff, with no eggs therein. However, that +officer dismounted, entered the hall, and found Sir John fettered and +nearly dying. He released him, and summoned a leech, who healed his +grievous wound, and enabled him to do more mischief. + + +Gamelyn Goes to the Greenwood + +Meanwhile Adam wandered with Gamelyn in the greenwood, and found it +very hard work, with little food. He complained aloud to his young +lord: + + "'Would I were back in mine old stewardship-- + Full blithe were I, the keys to bear and keep! + I like not this wild wood, with wounding thorns, + And nought of food or drink, or restful ease.' + 'Ah! Adam,' answered Gamelyn, 'in sooth + Full many a good man's son feels bitter woe! + Then cheer thee, Adam.'" + +[Illustration: "Then cheer thee, Adam"] + +As they spoke sadly together Gamelyn heard men's voices near by, and, +looking through the bushes, saw seven score young men, sitting round a +plentiful feast, spread on the green grass. He rejoiced greatly, +bidding Adam remember that "Boot cometh after bale," and pointing out +to him the abundance of provisions near at hand. Adam longed for a +good meal, for they had found little to eat since they came to the +greenwood. At that moment the master-outlaw saw them in the underwood, +and bade his young men bring to him these new guests whom God had +sent: perchance, he said, there were others besides these two. The +seven bold youths who started up to do his will cried to the two +new-comers: "Yield and hand us your bows and arrows!" "Much sorrow may +he have who yields to you," cried Gamelyn. "Why, with five more ye +would be only twelve, and I could fight you all." When the outlaws +saw how boldly he bore himself they changed their tone, and said +mildly: "Come to our master, and tell him thy desire." "Who is your +master?" quoth Gamelyn. "He is the crowned king of the outlaws," quoth +they; and the two strangers were led away to the chief. + +The master-outlaw, sitting on a rustic throne, with a crown of +oak-leaves on his head, asked them their business, and Gamelyn +replied: "He must needs walk in the wood who may not walk in the town. +We are hungry and faint, and will only shoot the deer for food, for we +are hard bestead and in great danger." + + +Gamelyn Joins the Outlaws + +The outlaw leader had pity on their distress, and gave them food; and +as they ate ravenously the outlaws whispered one to another: "This is +Gamelyn!" "This is Gamelyn!" Understanding all the evils that had +befallen him, their leader soon made Gamelyn his second in command; +and when after three weeks the outlaw king was pardoned and allowed to +return home, Gamelyn was chosen to succeed him and was crowned king of +the outlaws. So he dwelt merrily in the forest, and troubled not +himself about the world outside. + + +The Law at Work + +Meanwhile the treacherous Sir John had recovered, and in due course +had become sheriff, and indicted his brother for felony. As Gamelyn +did not appear to answer the indictment he was proclaimed an outlaw +and wolf's-head, and a price was set upon his life. Now his bondmen +and vassals were grieved at this, for they feared the cruelty of the +wicked sheriff; they therefore sent messengers to Gamelyn to tell him +the ill news, and deprecate his wrath. The youth's anger rose at the +tidings, and he promised to come and beard Sir John in his hall and +protect his own tenants. + + +Gamelyn Arrested + +It was certainly a stroke of rash daring thus to venture into the +county where his brother was sheriff, but he strode boldly into the +moot-hall, with his hood thrown back, so that all might recognise him, +and cried aloud: "God save all you lordings here present! But, thou +broken-backed sheriff, evil mayst thou thrive! Why hast thou done me +such wrong and disgrace as to have me indicted and proclaimed an +outlaw?" Sir John did not hesitate to use his legal powers, but, +seeing his brother was quite alone, had him arrested and cast into +prison, whence it was his intention that only death should release +him. + + +Otho as Surety + +All these years the second brother, Otho, had lived quietly on his own +lands and taken no heed of the quarrels of the two others; but now, +when news came to him of Sir John's deadly hatred to their youngest +brother, and Gamelyn's desperate plight, he was deeply grieved, roused +himself from his peaceful life, and rode to see if he could help his +brother. First he besought Sir John's mercy for the prisoner, for the +sake of brotherhood and family love; but he only replied that Gamelyn +must stay imprisoned till the justice should hold the next assize. +Then Otho offered to be bail, if only his young brother might be +released from his bonds and brought from the dismal dungeon where he +lay. To this Sir John finally consented, warning Otho that if the +accused failed to appear before the justice he himself must suffer the +penalty for the breach of bail. "I agree," said Otho. "Have him +released at once, and deliver him to me." Then Gamelyn was set free +on his brother's surety, and the two rode home to Otho's house, +talking sadly of all that had befallen, and how Gamelyn had become +king of the outlaws. The next morning Gamelyn asked Otho's permission +to go to the greenwood and see how his young men fared but Otho +pointed out so clearly how dreadful would be the consequences to him +if he did not return that the young man vowed: + + "'I swear by James, the mighty saint of Spain, + That I will not desert thee, nor will fail + To stand my trial on the appointed day, + If God Almighty give me strength and health + And power to keep my vow. I will be there, + That I may show what bitter hate Sir John, + My cruel brother, holds against me.'" + + +Gamelyn Goes to the Woods + +Thereupon Otho bade him go. "God shield thee from shame! Come when +thou seest it is the right time, and save us both from blame and +reproach." So Gamelyn went gaily to the merry greenwood, and found his +company of outlaws; and so much had they to tell of their work in his +absence, and so much had he to relate of his adventures, that time +slipped by, and he soon fell again into his former mode of life, and +his custom of robbing none but Churchmen, fat abbots and priors, monks +and canons, so that all others spoke good of him, and called him the +"courteous outlaw." + + +The Term Expires + +Gamelyn stood one day looking out over the woods and fields, and it +suddenly came to his mind with a pang of self-reproach that he had +forgotten his promise to Otho, and the day of the assize was very +near. He called his young men (for he had learned not to trust +himself to the honour or loyalty of his brother the sheriff), and +bade them prepare to accompany him to the place of assize, sending +Adam on as a scout to learn tidings. Adam returned in great haste, +bringing sad news. The judge was in his place, a jury empanelled to +condemn Gamelyn to death, bribed thereto by the wicked sheriff, and +Otho was fettered in the gaol in place of his brother. The news +enraged Gamelyn, but Adam Spencer was even more infuriated; he would +gladly have held the doors of the moot-hall and slain every person +inside except Otho; but his master's sense of justice was too strong +for that. "Adam," he said, "we will not do so, but will slay the +guilty and let the innocent escape. I myself will have some +conversation with the justice in the hall; and meanwhile do ye, my +men, hold the doors fast. I will make myself justice to-day, and thou, +Adam, shalt be my clerk. We will give sentence this day, and God speed +our new work!" All his men applauded this speech and promised him +obedience, and the troop of outlaws hastened to surround the hall. + + +Gamelyn in the Court + +Once again Gamelyn strode into the moot-hall in the midst of his +enemies, and was recognised by all. He released Otho, who said gently: +"Brother, thou hast nearly overstayed the time; the sentence has been +given against me that I shall be hanged." + +"Brother," said Gamelyn, "this day shall thy foes and mine be hanged: +the sheriff, the justice, and the wicked jurors." Then Gamelyn turned +to the judge, who sat as if paralysed in his seat of judgment, and +said: + + "'Come from the seat of justice: all too oft + Hast thou polluted law's clear stream with wrong; + Too oft hast taken reward against the poor; + Too oft hast lent thine aid to villainy, + And given judgment 'gainst the innocent. + Come down and meet thine own meed at the bar, + While I, in thy place, give more rightful doom + And see that justice dwells in law for once.'" + +[Illustration: "Come from the seat of justice"] + + +A Scene + +The justice sat still, dumb with astonishment, and Gamelyn struck him +fiercely, cut his cheek, and threw him over the bar so that his arm +broke; and no man durst withstand the outlaw, for fear of his company +standing at the doors. The youth sat down in the judge's seat, with +Otho beside him, and Adam in the clerk's desk; and he placed in the +dock the false sheriff, the justice, and the unjust jurors, and +accused them of wrong and attempted murder. In order to keep up the +forms of law, he empanelled a jury of his own young men, who brought +in a verdict of "Guilty," and the prisoners were all condemned to +death and hanged out of hand, though the false sheriff attempted to +appeal to the brotherly affection of which he had shown so little. + + +Honour from the King + +After this high-handed punishment of their enemies Gamelyn and his +brother went to lay their case before King Edward, and he forgave +them, in consideration of all the wrongs and injuries Gamelyn had +suffered; and before they returned to their distant county the king +made Otho sheriff of the county, and Gamelyn chief forester of all his +free forests; his band of outlaws were all pardoned, and the king gave +them posts according to their capabilities. Now Gamelyn and his +brother settled down to a happy, peaceful life. Otho, having no son, +made Gamelyn his heir, and the latter married a beauteous lady, and +lived with her in joy till his life's end. + + + + +CHAPTER XI: WILLIAM OF CLOUDESLEE + + +Introduction + +The outlaw of mediæval England has always possessed a potent charm for +the minds of less rebellious persons. No doubt now the attraction has +somewhat waned, for in the exploration of distant lands and the study +of barbaric tribes men can find that breadth of outlook, that escape +from narrow conventionalities, which they could formerly gain only by +the cult of the "noble outlaw." The romance of life for many a worthy +citizen must have been found in secret sympathy with Robin Hood and +his merry band of banished men, robbing the purse-proud to help the +needy and gaily defying law and authority. + +To the poor, however, the outlaw was something more than an easy +entrance to the realms of romance; he was a real embodiment of the +spirit of liberty. Of all the unjust laws which the Norman conquerors +laid upon England, perhaps the most bitterly resented were the forest +laws, and resistance to them was the most popular form of national +independence. Hence it follows that we find outlaw heroes popular very +early in our history--heroes who stand in the mind of the populace for +justice and true liberty against the oppressive tyranny of subordinate +officials, and who are always taken into favour by the king, the fount +of true justice. + + +Famous Outlaws + +There is some slight tinge of the "outlaw hero" in Hereward, but the +outlaw period of that patriot's life is but an episode in his defence +of England against William the Norman. There is a fully developed +outlaw hero, the ideal of the type, in Robin Hood, but he has been +somewhat idealized and ennobled by being transformed into a banished +Earl of Huntingdon. Less known, but equally heroic, is William of +Cloudeslee, the William Tell of England, whose fame is that of a good +yeoman, a good archer, and a good patriot. + + +The Outlaws + +In the green forest of Englewood, in the "North Countree," not far +from the fortified town of Carlisle, dwelt a merry band of outlaws. +They were not evildoers, but sturdy archers and yeomen, whose outlawry +had been incurred only for shooting the king's deer. Indeed, to most +men of that time--that is, to most men who were not in the royal +service--the shooting of deer, and the pursuit of game in general, +were not only venial offences, but the most natural thing in life. The +royal claim to exclusive hunting in the vast forests of Epping, +Sherwood, Needwood, Barnesdale, Englewood, and many others seemed +preposterous to the yeomen who lived on the borders of the forests, +and they took their risks and shot the deer and made venison pasty, +convinced that they were wronging no one and risking only their own +lives. They had the help and sympathy of many a man who was himself a +law-abiding citizen, as well as the less understanding help of the +town mob and the labourers in the country. + + +The Leaders + +While the outlaws of merry Sherwood recognised no chief but Robin Hood +and no foe but the Sheriff of Nottingham, the outlaws of Englewood +were under the headship of three famous archers, brothers-in-arms +sworn to stand by each other, but not brothers in blood. Their names +were Adam Bell, William of Cloudeslee, and Clym of the Cleugh; and of +the three William of Cloudeslee alone was married. His wife, fair +Alice of Cloudeslee, dwelt in a strong house within the walls of +Carlisle, with her three children, for they were not included in +William's outlawry. It was possible thus for her to send her husband +warning of any attack planned by the Sheriff of Carlisle on the +outlaws, and she had saved him and his comrades from surprise already. + + +William Goes to Carlisle + +When the blithe spring had come, and the forest was beautiful with its +fresh green leaves, William began to long for his home and family; he +had not ventured into Carlisle for some time, and it was more than six +months since he had seen his wife's face. Little wonder was it, then, +that he announced his intention of visiting his home, at the risk of +capture by his old enemy the Sheriff. In vain his comrades dissuaded +him from the venture. Adam Bell was especially urgent in his advice +that William should remain in the greenwood. + +"You shall not go to Carlisle, brother, by my advice, nor with my +consent. If the sheriff or the justice should know that you are in the +town short would be your shrift and soon your span of life would end. +Stay with us, and we will fetch you tidings of your wife." + +William replied: "Nay, I must go myself; I cannot rest content with +tidings only. If all is well I will return by prime to-morrow, and if +I fail you at that hour you may be sure I am taken or slain; and I +pray you guard well my family, if that be so." + +Taking leave of his brother outlaws, William made his way unobserved +into the town and came to his wife's dwelling. It was closely shut, +with doors strongly bolted, and he was forced to knock long on the +window before his wife opened the shutter to see who was the +importunate visitor. + +"Let me in quickly, my own Alice," he said. "I have come to see you +and my three children. How have you fared this long time?" + +"Alas!" she replied, hurriedly admitting him, and bolting the door +again, "why have you come now, risking your dear life to gain news of +us? Know you not that this house has been watched for more than six +months, so eager are the sheriff and the justice to capture and hang +you? I would have come to you in the forest, or sent you word of our +welfare. I fear--oh, how I fear!--lest your coming be known!" + + +The Old Woman's Treachery + +"Now that I am here, let us make merry," quoth William. "No man has +seen me enter, and I would fain enjoy my short stay with you and my +children, for I must be back in the forest by prime to-morrow. Can you +not give a hungry outlaw food and drink?" + +Then Dame Alice bustled about and prepared the best she had for her +husband; and when all was ready a very happy little family sat down to +the meal, husband and wife talking cheerily together, while the +children watched in wondering silence the father who had been away so +long and came to them so seldom. + +There was one inmate of the house who saw in William's return a means +of making shameful profit. She was an old bedridden woman, apparently +paralysed, whom he had rescued from utter poverty seven years before. +During all that time she had lain on a bed near the fire, had shared +all the life of the family, and had never once moved from her couch. +Now, while husband and wife talked together and the darkness deepened +in the room, this old impostor slipped from her bed and glided +stealthily out of the house. + + +News Brought to the Sheriff + +It happened that the king's assize was being held just then in +Carlisle, and the sheriff and his staunch ally the justice were +sitting together in the Justice Hall. Thither this treacherous old +woman hurried with all speed and pushed into the hall, forcing her way +through the crowd till she came near the sheriff. "Ha! what would you, +good woman?" asked he, surprised. "Sir, I bring tidings of great +value." "Tell your tidings, and I shall see if they be of value or no. +If they are I will reward you handsomely." "Sir, this night William of +Cloudeslee has come into Carlisle, and is even now in his wife's +house. He is all alone, and you can take him easily. Now what will you +pay me, for I am sure this news is much to you?" "You say truth, good +woman. That bold outlaw is the worst of all who kill the king's deer +in his forest of Englewood, and if I could but catch him I should be +well content. Dame, you shall not go without a recompense for your +journey here and for your loyalty." The sheriff then bade his men give +the old woman a piece of scarlet cloth, dyed in grain, enough for a +gown, and the treacherous hag hid the gift under her cloak, hastened +away to Alice's house, and slipped unperceived into her place again, +hiding the scarlet cloth under the bed-coverings. + + +The Hue and Cry + +Immediately he had heard of Cloudeslee's presence in Carlisle the +sheriff sent out the hue and cry, and with all speed raised the whole +town, for though none hated the outlaws men dared not refuse to obey +the king's officer. The justice, too, joined the sheriff in the +congenial task of capturing an outlaw whose condemnation was already +pronounced. With all the forces at their disposal, sheriff and justice +took their way towards the house where William and Alice unconscious +of the danger besetting them, still talked lovingly together. + +Suddenly the outlaw's ears, sharpened by woodcraft and by constant +danger, heard a growing noise coming nearer and nearer. He knew the +sound of the footsteps of many people, and among the casual shuffling +of feet recognised the ominous tramp of soldiers. + +"Wife, we are betrayed," cried William. "Hither comes the sheriff to +take me." + + +The Siege of the House + +Alice ran quickly up to her bedchamber and opened a window looking to +the back, and saw, to her despair, that soldiers beset the house on +every side and filled all the neighbouring streets. Behind them +pressed a great throng of citizens, who seemed inclined to leave the +capture of the outlaw to the guard. At the same moment William from +the front called to his wife that the sheriff and justice were +besieging the house on that side. + +"Alas! dear husband, what shall we do?" cried Alice. "Accursed be all +treason! But who can have betrayed you to your foes? Go into my +bedchamber, dear William, and defend yourself there, for it is the +strongest room in the house. The children and I will go with you, and +I will guard the door while you defend the windows." + +The plan was speedily carried out, and while William took his stand by +the window Alice seized a pole-axe and stationed herself by the door. +"No man shall enter this door alive while I live," said she. + + +The Attack + +From the window Cloudeslee could perceive his mortal enemies the +justice and the sheriff; and drawing his good longbow, he shot with +deadly aim fair at the breast of the justice. It was well for the +latter then that he wore a suit of good chain-mail under his robes; +the arrow hit his breast and split in three on the mail. + +"Beshrew the man that clad you with that mail coat! You would have +been a dead man now if your coat had been no thicker than mine," said +William. + +"Yield yourself, Cloudeslee, and lay down your bow and arrows," said +the justice. "You cannot escape, for we have you safe." + +"Never shall my husband yield; it is evil counsel you give," exclaimed +the brave wife from her post at the door. + + +The House is Burnt + +The sheriff, who grew more angered as the hours passed on and +Cloudeslee was not taken, now cried aloud: "Why do we waste time +trifling here? The man is an outlaw and his life is forfeit. Let us +burn him and his house, and if his wife and children will not leave +him they shall all burn together, for it is their own choice." + +This cruel plan was soon carried out. Fire was set to the door and +wooden shutters, and the flames spread swiftly; the smoke rolled up in +thick clouds into the lofty bedchamber, where the little children, +crouching on the ground, began to weep for fear. + +"Alas! must we all die?" cried fair Alice, grieving for her children. + +William opened the window and looked out, but there was no chance of +escape; his foes filled every street and lane around the house. +"Surely they will spare my wife and babes," he thought; and, tearing +the sheets from the bed, he made a rope, with which he let down to the +ground his children, and last of all his weeping wife. + +He called aloud to the sheriff: "Sir Sheriff, here have I trusted to +you my chief treasures. For God's sake do them no harm, but wreak all +your wrath on me!" + +Gentle hands received Alice and her babes, and friendly citizens led +them from the press; but Alice went reluctantly, in utter grief, +knowing that her husband must be burnt with his house or taken by his +foes; but for her children she would have stayed with him. William +continued his wonderful archery, never missing his aim, till all his +arrows were spent, and the flames came so close that his bowstring was +burnt in two. Great blazing brands came falling upon him from the +burning roof, and the floor was hot beneath his feet. "An evil death +is this!" thought he. "Better it were that I should take sword and +buckler and leap down amid my foes and so die, striking good blows in +the throng of enemies, than stay here and let them see me burn." + +[Illustration: "William continued his wonderful archery"] + +Thereupon he leaped lightly down, and fought so fiercely that he +nearly escaped through the throng, for the worthy citizens of Carlisle +were not anxious to capture him; but the soldiers, urged by the +sheriff and justice, threw doors and windows upon him, hampered his +blows, and seized and bound him, and cast him into a deep dungeon. + + +The Sheriff Gives Sentence + +"Now, William of Cloudeslee," quoth the sheriff, "you shall be hanged +with speed, as soon as I can have a new gallows made. So noted an +outlaw merits no common gibbet; a new one is most fitting. +To-morrow at prime you shall die. There is no hope of rescue, for the +gates of the town shall be shut. Your dear friends, Adam Bell and Clym +of the Cleugh, would be helpless to save you, though they brought a +thousand more like themselves, or even all the devils in Hell." + +Early next morning the justice arose, went to the soldiers who guarded +the gates, and forbade them to open till the execution was over; then +he went to the market-place and superintended the erection of a +specially lofty gallows, beside the pillory. + + +News is Brought to the Greenwood + +Among the crowd who watched the gallows being raised was a little lad, +the town swineherd, who asked a bystander the meaning of the new +gibbet. + +"It is put up to hang a good yeoman, William of Cloudeslee, more's the +pity! He has done no wrong but kill the King's deer, and that merits +not hanging. It is a foul shame that such injustice can be wrought in +the king's name." + +The little lad had often met William of Cloudeslee in the forest, and +had carried him messages from his wife; William had given the boy many +a dinner of venison, and now he determined to help his friend if he +could. The gates were shut and no man could pass out, but the boy +stole along the wall till he found a crevice, by which he clambered +down outside. Then he hastened to the forest of Englewood, and met +Adam Bell and Clym of the Cleugh. + +"Come quickly, good yeomen; ye tarry here too long. While you are at +ease in the greenwood your friend, William of Cloudeslee, is taken, +condemned to death, and ready to be hanged. He needs your help this +very hour." + +Adam Bell groaned. "Ah! if he had but taken our advice he would have +been here in safety with us now. In the greenwood there is no sorrow +or care, but when William went to the town he was running into +trouble." Then, bending his bow, he shot with unerring aim a hart, +which he gave to the lad as recompense for his labour and goodwill. + + +The Outlaws Go to Carlisle + +"Come," said Clym to Adam Bell, "let us tarry no longer, but take our +bows and arrows and see what we can do. By God's grace we will rescue +our brother, though we may abide it full dearly ourselves. We will go +to Carlisle without delay." + +The morning was fair as the two yeomen strode from the deep green +shades of Englewood Forest along the hard white road leading to +Carlisle Town. They were in time as yet, but when they drew near the +wall they were amazed to see that no entrance or exit was possible; +the gates were shut fast. + +Stepping back into the green thickets beside the road, the two outlaws +consulted together. Adam Bell was for a valiant attempt to storm the +gate, but Clym suddenly bethought him of a wiser plan. + + +Clym's Stratagem + +Said he: "Let us pretend to be messengers from the king, with urgent +letters to the justice. Surely that should win us admission. But alas! +I forgot. How can we bear out our pretence, for I am no learned clerk. +I cannot write." + +Quoth Adam Bell: "I can write a good clerkly hand. Wait one instant +and I will speedily have a letter written; then we can say we have the +king's seal. The plan will do well enough, for I hold the gate-keeper +no learned clerk, and this will deceive him." + +[Illustration: Adam Bell writes the letter] + +Indeed, the letter which he quickly wrote and folded and sealed was +very well and clearly written, and addressed to the Justice of +Carlisle. Then the two bold outlaws hastened up the road and thundered +on the town gates. + + +They Enter the Town + +So long and loud they knocked that the warder came in great wrath, +demanding who dared to make such clamour. + +Adam Bell replied: "We are two messengers come straight from our lord +the king." Clym of the Cleugh added: "We have a letter for the justice +which we must deliver into his own hands. Let us in speedily to +perform our errand, for we must return to the king in haste." + +"No," the warder replied, "that I cannot do. No man may enter these +gates till a false thief and outlaw be safely hanged. He is William of +Cloudeslee, who has long deserved death." + +Now Clym saw that matters were becoming desperate, and time was +passing too quickly, so he adopted a more violent tone. "Ah, rascal, +scoundrel, madman!" quoth he. "If we be delayed here any longer thou +shalt be hanged for a false thief! To keep the king's messengers +waiting thus! Canst thou not see the king's seal? Canst thou not read +the address of the royal letter? Ah, blockhead, thou shalt dearly +abide this delay when my lord knows thereof." + +Thus speaking, he flourished the forged letter, with its false seal, +in the porter's face; and the man, seeing the seal and the writing, +believed what was told him. Reverently he took off his hood and bent +the knee to the king's messengers, for whom he opened wide the gates, +and they entered, walking warily. + + +They Keep the Gates + +"At last we are within Carlisle walls, and glad thereof are we," said +Adam Bell, "but when and how we shall go out again Christ only knows, +who harrowed Hell and brought out its prisoners." + +"Now if we had the keys ourselves we should have a good chance of +life," said Clym, "for then we could go in and out at our own will." +"Let us call the warder," said Adam. When he came running at their +call both the yeomen sprang upon him, flung him to the ground, bound +him hand and foot, and cast him into a dark cell, taking his bunch of +keys from his girdle. Adam laughed and shook the heavy keys. "Now I am +gate-ward of merry Carlisle. See, here are my keys. I think I shall be +the worst warder they have had for three hundred years. Let us bend +our bows and hold our arrows ready, and walk into the town to deliver +our brother." + + +The Fight in the Market-place + +When they came to the market-place they found a dense crowd of +sympathizers watching pityingly the hangman's cart, in which lay +William of Cloudeslee, bound hand and foot, with a rope round his +neck. The sheriff and the justice stood near the gallows, and +Cloudeslee would have been hanged already, but that the sheriff was +hiring a man to measure the outlaw for his grave. "You shall have the +dead man's clothes, good fellow, if you make his grave," said he. + +Cloudeslee's courage was still undaunted. "I have seen as great a +marvel ere now," quoth he, "as that a man who digs a grave for another +may lie in it himself, in as short a time as from now to prime." + +"You speak proudly, my fine fellow, but hanged you shall be, if I do +it with my own hand," retorted the sheriff furiously. + +Now the cart moved a little nearer to the scaffold, and William was +raised up to be ready for execution. As he looked round the dense mass +of faces his keen sight soon made him aware of his friends. Adam Bell +and Clym of the Cleugh stood at one corner of the market-place with +arrow on string, and their deadly aim bent at the sheriff and justice, +whose horses raised them high above the murmuring throng. Cloudeslee +showed no surprise, but said aloud: "Lo! I see comfort, and hope to +fare well in my journey. Yet if I might have my hands free I would +care little what else befell me." + + +The Rescue + +Now Adam said quietly to Clym: "Brother, do you take the justice, and +I will shoot the sheriff. Let us both loose at once and leave them +dying. It is an easy shot, though a long one." + +Thus, while the sheriff yet waited for William to be measured for his +grave, suddenly men heard the twang of bowstrings and the whistling +flight of arrows through the air, and at the same moment both sheriff +and justice fell writhing from their steeds, with the grey goose +feathers standing in their breasts. All the bystanders fled from the +dangerous neighbourhood, and left the gallows, the fatal cart, and the +mortally wounded officials alone. The two bold outlaws rushed to +release their comrade, cut his bonds, and lifted him to his feet. +William seized an axe from a soldier and pursued the fleeing guard, +while his two friends with their deadly arrows slew a man at each +shot. + + +The Mayor of Carlisle + +When the arrows were all used Adam Bell and Clym of the Cleugh threw +away their bows and took to sword and buckler. The fight continued +till midday for in the narrow streets the three comrades protected +each other, and drew gradually towards the gate. Adam Bell still +carried the keys at his girdle, and they could pass out easily if they +could but once reach the gateway. By this time the whole town was in a +commotion; again the hue and cry had been raised against the outlaws, +and the Mayor of Carlisle came in person with a mighty troop of armed +citizens, angered now at the fighting in the streets of the town. + +The three yeomen retreated as steadily as they could towards the gate, +but the mayor followed valiantly armed with a pole-axe, with which he +clove Cloudeslee's shield in two. He soon perceived the object of the +outlaws, and bade his men guard the gates well, so that the three +should not escape. + + +The Escape from Carlisle + +Terrible was the din in the town now, for trumpets blew, church-bells +were rung backward, women bewailed their dead in the streets, and over +all resounded the clash of arms, as the fighting drew nigh the gate. +When the gatehouse came in sight the outlaws were fighting +desperately, with diminishing strength, but the thought of safety +outside the walls gave them force to make one last stand. With backs +to the gate and faces to the foe, Adam and Clym and William made a +valiant onslaught on the townsfolk, who fled in terror, leaving a +breathing-space in which Adam Bell turned the key, flung open the +great ponderous gate, and flung it to again, when the three had passed +through. + +[Illustration: The fight at the gate] + + +Adam and the Keys + +As Adam locked the door they could hear inside the town the +hurrying footsteps of the rallying citizens, whose furious attack on +the great iron-studded door came too late. The door was locked, and +the three friends stood in safety outside, with their pleasant forest +home within easy reach. The change of feeling was so intense that Adam +Bell, always the man to seize the humorous point of a situation, +laughed lightly. He called through the barred wicket: + +"Here are your keys. I resign my office as warder--one half-day's work +is enough for me; and as I have resigned, and the former gate-ward is +somewhat damaged and has disappeared, I advise you to find a new one. +Take your keys, and much good may you get from them. Next time I +advise you not to stop an honest yeoman from coming to see his own +wife and have a chat with her." + +Thereupon he flung the keys over the gate on the heads of the crowd, +and the three brethren slipped away into the forest to their own +haunts, where they found fresh bows and arrows in such abundance that +they longed to be back in fair Carlisle with their foes before them. + + +William of Cloudeslee and his Wife Meet + +While they were yet discussing all the details of the rescue they +heard a woman's pitiful lament and the crying of little children. +"Hark!" said Cloudeslee, and they all heard in the silence the words +she said. It was William's wife, and she cried: "Alas! why did I not +die before this day? Woe is me that my dear husband is slain! He is +dead, and I have no friend to lament with me. If only I could see his +comrades and tell what has befallen him my heart would be eased of +some of its pain." + +William, as he listened, was deeply touched, and walked gently to +fair Alice, as she hid her face in her hands and wept. "Welcome, wife, +to the greenwood!" quoth he. "By heaven, I never thought to see you +again when I lay in bonds last night." Dame Alice sprang up most +joyously. "Oh, all is well with me now you are here; I have no care or +woe." "For that you must thank my dear brethren, Adam and Clym," said +he; and Alice began to load them with her thanks, but Adam cut short +the expression of her gratitude. "No need to talk about a little +matter like that," he said gruffly. "If we want any supper we had +better kill something, for the meat we must eat is yet running wild." + +With three such good archers game was easily shot and a merry meal was +quickly prepared in the greenwood, and all joyfully partook of venison +and other dainties. Throughout the repast William devotedly waited on +his wife with deepest love and reverence, for he could not forget how +she had defended him and risked her life to stand by him. + + +William's Proposed Visit to London + +When the meal was over, and they reclined on the green turf round the +fire, William began thoughtfully: + +"It is in my mind that we ought speedily to go to London and try to +win our pardon from the king. Unless we approach him before news can +be brought from Carlisle he will assuredly slay us. Let us go at once, +leaving my dear wife and my two youngest sons in a convent here; but I +would fain take my eldest boy with me. If all goes well he can bring +good news to Alice in her nunnery, and if all goes ill he shall bring +her my last wishes. But I am sure I am not meant to die by the law." +His brethren approved the plan, and they took fair Alice and her two +youngest children to the nunnery, and then the three famous archers +with the little boy of seven set out at their best speed for London, +watching the passers-by carefully, that no news of the doings in +Carlisle should precede them to the king. + + +Outlaws in the Royal Palace + +The three yeomen, on arriving in London, made their way at once to the +king's palace, and walked boldly into the hall, regardless of the +astonished and indignant shouts of the royal porter. He followed them +angrily into the hall, and began reproaching them and trying to induce +them to withdraw, but to no purpose. Finally an usher came and said: +"Yeomen, what is your wish? Pray tell me, and I will help you if I +can; but if you enter the king's presence thus unmannerly you will +cause us to be blamed. Tell me now whence you come." + +William fearlessly answered: "Sir, we will tell the truth without +deceit. We are outlaws from the king's forests, outlawed for killing +the king's deer, and we come to beg for pardon and a charter of peace, +to show to the sheriff of our county." + + +The King and the Outlaws + +The usher went to an inner room and begged to know the king's will, +whether he would see these outlaws or not. The king was interested in +these bold yeomen, who dared to avow themselves law-breakers, and bade +men bring them to audience with him. The three comrades, with the +little boy, on being introduced into the royal presence, knelt down +and held up their hands, beseeching pardon for their offences. + +"Sire, we beseech your pardon for our breach of your laws. We are +forest outlaws, who have slain your fallow deer in many parts of your +royal forests." "Your names? Tell me at once," said the king. "Adam +Bell, Clym of the Cleugh, and William of Cloudeslee," they replied. + +The king was very wrathful. "Are you those bold robbers of whom men +have told me? Do you now dare to come to me for pardon? On mine honour +I vow that you shall all three be hanged without mercy, as I am +crowned king of this realm of England. Arrest them and lay them in +bonds." There was no resistance possible, and the yeomen submitted +ruefully to their arrest. Adam Bell was the first to speak. "As I hope +to thrive, this game pleases me not at all," he said. "Sire, of your +mercy, we beg you to remember that we came to you of our own free +will, and to let us pass away again as freely. Give us back our +weapons and let us have free passage till we have left your palace; we +ask no more; we shall never ask another favour, however long we live." + +The king was obdurate, however; he only replied: "You speak proudly +still, but you shall all three be hanged." + + +The Queen Intercedes + +The queen, who was sitting beside her husband, now spoke for the first +time. "Sire, it were a pity that such good yeomen should die, if they +might in any wise be pardoned." "There is no pardon," said the king. +She then replied: "My lord, when I first left my native land and came +into this country as your bride you promised to grant me at once the +first boon I asked. I have never needed to ask one until to-day, but +now, sire, I claim one, and I beg you to grant it." "With all my +heart; ask your boon, and it shall be yours willingly." "Then, I pray +you, grant me the lives of these good yeomen." "Madam, you might have +had half my kingdom, and you ask a worthless trifle." "Sire, it seems +not worthless to me; I beg you to keep your promise." "Madam, it vexes +me that you have asked so little; yet since you will have these three +outlaws, take them." The queen rejoiced greatly. "Many thanks, my lord +and husband. I will be surety for them that they shall be true men +henceforth. But, good my lord, give them a word of comfort, that they +may not be wholly dismayed by your anger." + + +News Comes to the King + +The king smiled at his wife. "Ah, madam! you will have your own way, +as all women will. Go, fellows, wash yourselves, and find places at +the tables, where you shall dine well enough, even if it be not on +venison pasty from the king's own forests." + +The outlaws did reverence to the king and queen, and found seats with +the king's guard at the lower tables in the hall. They were still +satisfying their appetites when a messenger came in haste to the king; +and the three North Countrymen looked at one another uneasily, for +they knew the man was from Carlisle. The messenger knelt before the +king and presented his letters. "Sire, your officers greet you well." + +"How fare they? How does my valiant sheriff? And the prudent justice? +Are they well?" + +"Alas! my lord, they have been slain, and many another good officer +with them." + +"Who hath done this?" questioned the king angrily. + +"My lord, three bold outlaws, Adam Bell, Clym of the Cleugh, and +William of Cloudeslee." + +"What! these three whom I have just pardoned? Ah, sorely I repent that +I forgave them! I would give a thousand pounds if I could have them +hanged all three; but I cannot." + + +The King's Test + +As the king read the letters his anger and surprise increased. It +seemed impossible that three men should overawe a whole town, should +slay sheriff, justice, mayor, and nearly every official in the town, +forge a royal letter with the king's seal, and then lock the gates and +escape safely. There was no doubt of the fact, and the king raged +impotently against his own foolish mercy in giving them a free pardon. +It had been granted, however, and he could do nought but grieve over +the ruin they had wrought in Carlisle. At last he sprang up, for he +could endure the banquet no longer. + +"Call my archers to go to the butts," he commanded. "I will see these +bold outlaws shoot, and try if their archery is so fine as men say." + +Accordingly the king's archers and the queen's archers arrayed +themselves, and the three yeomen took their bows and looked well to +their silken bowstrings; and then all made their way to the butts +where the targets were set up. The archers shot in turn, aiming at an +ordinary target, but Cloudeslee soon grew weary of this childish +sport, and said aloud: "I shall never call a man a good archer who +shoots at a target as large as a buckler. We have another sort of butt +in my country, and that is worth shooting at." + + +William of Cloudeslee's Archery + +"Make ready your own butts," the king commanded, and the three outlaws +went to a bush in a field close by and returned bearing hazel-rods, +peeled and shining white. These rods they set up at four hundred +yards apart, and, standing by one, they said to the king: "We should +account a man a fair archer if he could split one wand while standing +beside the other." "It cannot be done; the feat is too great," +exclaimed the king. "Sire, I can easily do it," quoth Cloudeslee, and, +taking aim very carefully, he shot, and the arrow split the wand in +two. "In truth," said the king, "you are the best archer I have ever +seen. Can you do greater wonders?" "Yes," quoth Cloudeslee, "one thing +more I can do, but it is a more difficult feat. Nevertheless I will +try it, to show you our North Country shooting." "Try, then," the king +replied; "but if you fail you shall be hanged without mercy, because +of your boasting." + + +Cloudeslee Shoots the Apple from his Son's Head + +Now Cloudeslee stood for a few moments as if doubtful of himself, and +the South Country archers watched him, hoping for a chance to retrieve +their defeat, when William suddenly said: "I have a son, a dear son, +seven years of age. I will tie him to a stake and place an apple on +his head. Then from a distance of a hundred and twenty yards I will +split the apple in two with a broad arrow." "By heaven!" the king +cried, "that is a dreadful feat. Do as you have said, or by Him who +died on the Cross I will hang you high. Do as you have said, but if +you touch one hair of his head, or the edge of his gown, I will hang +you and your two companions." "I have never broken my pledged word," +said the North Country bowman, and he at once made ready for the +terrible trial. The stake was set in the ground, the boy tied to it, +with his face turned from his father, lest he should give a start and +destroy his aim. Cloudeslee then paced the hundred and twenty yards, +anxiously felt his string, bent his bow, chose his broadest arrow, and +fitted it with care. + +[Illustration: William of Cloudeslee and his son] + + +The Last Shot + +It was an anxious moment. The throng of spectators felt sick with +expectation, and many women wept and prayed for the father and his +innocent son. But Cloudeslee showed no fear. He addressed the crowd +gravely: "Good folk, stand all as still as may be. For such a shot a +man needs a steady hand, and your movements may destroy my aim and +make me slay my son. Pray for me." + +Then, in an unbroken silence of breathless suspense, the bold marksman +shot, and the apple fell to the ground, cleft into two absolutely +equal halves. A cheer from every spectator burst forth deafeningly, +and did not die down till the king beckoned for silence. + + +The King and Queen Show Favour + +"God forbid that I should ever be your target," quoth he. "You shall +be my chief forester in the North Country, with daily wage, and daily +right of killing venison; your two brethren shall become yeomen of my +guard, and I will advance the fortunes of your family in every way." + +The queen smiled graciously upon William, and she bestowed a pension +upon him, and bade him bring his wife, fair Alice, to court, to take +up the post of chief woman of the bedchamber to the royal children. + +Overwhelmed with these favours, the three yeomen became conscious of +their own offences, more than they had told to the royal pair; their +awakened consciences sent them to a holy bishop, who heard their +confessions, gave them penance and bade them live well for the +future, and then absolved them. When they had returned to Englewood +Forest and had broken up the outlaw band they came back to the royal +court, and spent the rest of their lives in great favour with the king +and queen. + + + + +CHAPTER XII: BLACK COLIN OF LOCH AWE + + +Introduction + +In considering the hero-myths of Scotland we are at once confronted +with two difficulties. The first, and perhaps the greater, is this, +that the only national heroes of Lowland Scotland are actual +historical persons, with very little of the mythical character about +them. The mention of Scottish heroes at once suggests Sir William +Wallace, Robert Bruce, the Black Douglas, Sir Andrew Barton, and many +more, whose exploits are matter of serious chronicle and sober record +rather than subject of tradition and myth. These warriors are too much +in reach of the fierce white searchlight of historic inquiry to be +invested with mythical interest or to show any developments of ancient +legend. + +The second difficulty is of a different nature, and yet almost equally +perplexing. In the old ballads and poems of the Gaelic Highlands there +are mythical heroes in abundance, such as Fingal and Ossian, Comala, +and a host of shadowy chieftains and warriors, but they are not +distinctively Scotch. They are only Highland Gaelic versions of the +Irish Gaelic hero-legends, Scotch embodiments of Finn and Oisin, whose +real home was in Ireland, and whose legends were carried to the +Western Isles and the Highlands by conquering tribes of Scots from +Erin. These heroes are at bottom Irish, the champions of the Fenians +and of the Red Branch, and in the Scotch legends they have lost much +of their original beauty and chivalry. + + +The Highland Clans + +It is rather in the private history of the country, as it were, than +in its national records that we are likely to find a hero who will +have something of the mythical in his story, something of the romance +of the Middle Ages. The wars and jealousies of the clans, the +adventures of a chief among hostile tribesmen, the raids and forays, +the loves and hatreds of rival families, form a good background for a +romantic legend; and such a legend occurs in the story of Black Colin +of Loch Awe, a warrior of the great Campbell clan in the fourteenth +century. The tale is common in one form or another to all European +lands where the call of the Crusades was heard, and the romantic +Crusading element has to a certain extent softened the occasionally +ferocious nature of Highland stories in general, so that there is no +bloodthirsty vengeance, no long blood-feud, to be recorded of Black +Colin Campbell. + + +The Knight of Loch Awe + +During the wars between England and Scotland in the reigns of Edward +I. and Edward II. one of the chief leaders in the cause of Scottish +independence was Sir Nigel Campbell. The Knight of Loch Awe, as he was +generally called, was a schoolfellow and comrade of Sir William +Wallace, and a loyal and devoted adherent of Robert Bruce. In return +for his services in the war of independence Bruce rewarded him with +lands belonging to the rebellious MacGregors, including Glenurchy, the +great glen at the head of Loch Awe through which flows the river +Orchy. It was a wild and lonely district, and Sir Nigel Campbell had +much conflict before he finally expelled the MacGregors and settled +down peaceably in Glenurchy. There his son was born, and named Colin, +and as years passed he won the nickname of Black Colin, from his +swarthy complexion, or possibly from his character, which showed +tokens of unusual fierceness and determination. + + +Black Colin's Youth + +Sir Nigel Campbell, as all Highland chiefs did, sent his son to a +farmer's family for fosterage. The boy became a child of his +foster-family in every way; he lived on the plain food of the +clansmen, oatmeal porridge and oatcake, milk from the cows, and beef +from the herds; he ran and wrestled and hunted with his +foster-brothers, and learnt woodcraft and warlike skill, broadsword +play and the use of dirk and buckler, from his foster-father. More +than all, he won a devoted following in the clan, for a man's +foster-parents were almost dearer to him than his own father and +mother, and his foster-brethren were bound to fight and die for him, +and to regard him more than their own blood-relations. The +foster-parents of Black Colin were a farmer and his wife, Patterson by +name, living at Socach, in Glenurchy, and well and truly they +fulfilled their trust. + + +He Goes on Crusade + +In course of time Sir Nigel Campbell died, and Black Colin, his son, +became Knight of Loch Awe, and lord of all Glenurchy and the country +round. He was already noted for his strength and his dark complexion, +which added to his beauty in the eyes of the maidens, and he soon +found a lovely and loving bride. They dwelt on the Islet in Loch Awe, +and were very happy for a short time, but Colin was always restless, +because he would fain do great deeds of arms, and there was peace just +then in the land. + +At last one day a messenger arrived at the castle on the Islet bearing +tidings that another crusade was on foot. This messenger was a palmer +who had been in the Holy Land, and had seen all the holy places in +Jerusalem. He told Black Colin how the Saracens ruled the country, +and hindered men from worshipping at the sacred shrines; and he told +how he had come home by Rome, where the Pope had just proclaimed +another Holy War. The Pope had declared that his blessing would rest +on the man who should leave wife and home and kinsfolk, and go forth +to fight for the Lord against the infidel. As the palmer spoke Black +Colin became greatly moved by his words, and when the old man had made +an end he raised the hilt of his dirk and swore by the cross thereon +that he would obey the summons and go on crusade. + + +The Lady of Loch Awe + +Now Black Colin's wife was greatly grieved, and wept sorely, for she +was but young, and had been wedded no more than a year, and it seemed +to her hard that she must be left alone. She asked her husband: "How +far will you go on this errand?" "I will go as far as Jerusalem, if +the Pope bids me, when I have come to Rome," said he. "Alas! and how +long will you be away from me?" "That I know not, but it may be for +years if the heathen Saracens will not surrender the Holy Land to the +warriors of the Cross." "What shall I do during those long, weary +years?" asked she. "Dear love, you shall dwell here on the Islet and +be Lady of Glenurchy till I return again. The vassals and clansmen +shall obey you in my stead, and the tenants shall pay you their rents +and their dues, and in all things you shall hold my land for me." + + +The Token + +The Lady of Loch Awe sighed as she asked: "But if you die away in that +distant land how shall I know? What will become of me if at last such +woeful tidings should be brought?" + +"Wait for me seven years, dear wife," said Colin, "and if I do not +return before the end of that time you may marry again and take a +brave husband to guard your rights and rule the glen, for I shall be +dead in the Holy Land." + +[Illustration: "Wait for me seven years, dear wife"] + +"That I will never do. I will be the Lady of Glenurchy till I die, or +I will become the bride of Heaven and find peace for my sorrowing soul +in a nunnery. No second husband shall wed me and hold your land. But +give me now some token that we may share it between us; and you shall +swear that on your deathbed you will send it to me; so shall I know +indeed that you are no longer alive." + +"It shall be as you say," answered Black Colin, and he went to the +smith of the clan and bade him make a massive gold ring, on which +Colin's name was engraved, as well as that of the Lady of Loch Awe. +Then, breaking the ring in two, Colin gave to his wife the piece with +his name and kept the other piece, vowing to wear it near his heart +and only to part with it when he should be dying. In like manner she +with bitter weeping swore to keep her half of the ring, and hung it on +a chain round her neck; and so, with much grief and great mourning +from the whole clan, Black Colin and his sturdy following of Campbell +clansmen set out for the Holy Land. + + +The Journey + +Sadly at first the little band marched away from all their friends and +their homes; bagpipes played their loudest marching tunes, and plaids +fluttered in the breeze, and the men marched gallantly, but with heavy +hearts, for they knew not when they would return, and they feared +to find supplanters in their homes when they came back after many +years. Their courage rose, however, as the miles lengthened behind +them, and by the time they had reached Edinburgh and had taken ship at +Leith all was forgotten but the joy of fighting and the eager desire +to see Rome and the Pope, the Holy Land and the Holy Sepulchre. +Journeying up the Rhine, the Highland clansmen made their way through +Switzerland and over the passes of the Alps down into the pleasant +land of Italy, where the splendour of the cities surpassed their +wildest imaginations; and so they came at last, with many other bands +of Crusaders, to Rome. + + +The Crusade + +At Rome the Knight of Loch Awe was so fortunate as to have an audience +of the Pope himself, who was touched by the devotion which brought +these stern warriors so far from their home. Black Colin knelt in +reverence before the aged pontiff, whom he held in truth to be the +Vicar of Christ on earth, and received his blessing, and commands to +continue his journey to Rhodes, where the Knights of St. John would +give him opportunity to fight for the faith. The small band of +Campbells went on to Rhodes, and there took service with the Knights, +and won great praise from the Grand Master; but, though they fought +the infidel, and exalted the standard of the Cross above the Crescent, +Colin was still not at all satisfied. He left Rhodes after some years +with a much-diminished band, and made his way as a pilgrim to +Jerusalem. There he stayed until he had visited all the shrines in the +Holy Land and prayed at every sacred spot. By this time the seven +years of his proposed absence were ended, and he was still far from +his home and the dear glen by Loch Awe. + + +The Lady's Suitor + +While the seven years slowly passed away his sad and lonely wife dwelt +in the castle on the Islet, ruling her lord's clan in all gentle ways, +but fighting boldly when raiders came to plunder her clansmen. Yearly +she claimed her husband's dues and watched that he was not defrauded +of his rights. But though thus firm, she was the best help in trouble +that her clan ever had, and all blessed the name of the Lady of Loch +Awe. + +So fair and gentle a lady, so beloved by her clan, was certain to have +suitors if she were a widow, and even before the seven years had +passed away there were men who would gladly have persuaded her that +her husband was dead and that she was free. She, however, steadfastly +refused to hear a word of another marriage, saying: "When Colin parted +from me he gave me two promises, one to return, if possible, within +seven years, and the other to send me, on his deathbed, if he died +away from me, a sure token of his death. I have not yet waited seven +years, nor have I had the token of his death. I am still the wife of +Black Colin of Loch Awe." + +This steadfastness gradually daunted her suitors and they left her +alone, until but one remained, the Baron Niel MacCorquodale, whose +lands bordered on Glenurchy, and who had long cast covetous eyes on +the glen and its fair lady, and longed no less for the wealth she was +reputed to possess than for the power this marriage would give him. + + +The Baron's Plot + +When the seven years were over the Baron MacCorquodale sought the Lady +of Loch Awe again, wooing her for his wife. Again she refused, +saying, "Until I have the token of my husband's death I will be wife +to no other man." "And what is this token, lady?" asked the Baron, for +he thought he could send a false one. "I will never tell that," +replied the lady. "Do you dare to ask the most sacred secret between +husband and wife? I shall know the token when it comes." The Baron was +not a little enraged that he could not discover the secret, but he +determined to wed the lady and her wealth notwithstanding; accordingly +he wrote by a sure and secret messenger to a friend in Rome, bidding +him send a letter with news that Black Colin was assuredly dead, and +that certain words (which the Baron dictated) had come from him. + + +A Forged Letter + +One day the Lady of Loch Awe, looking out from her castle, saw the +Baron coming, and with him a palmer whose face was bronzed by Eastern +suns. She felt that the palmer would bring tidings, and welcomed the +Baron with his companion. "Lady, this palmer brings you sad news," +quoth the Baron. "Let him tell it, then," replied she, sick with fear. +"Alas! fair dame, if you were the wife of that gallant knight Colin of +Loch Awe, you are now his widow," said the palmer sadly, as he handed +her a letter. "What proof have you?" asked Black Colin's wife before +she read the letter. "Lady, I talked with the soldier who brought the +tidings," replied the stranger. + +The letter was written from Rome to "The Right Noble Dame the Lady of +Loch Awe," and told how news had come from Rhodes, brought by a man of +Black Colin's band, that the Knight of Loch Awe had been mortally +wounded in a fight against the Saracens. Dying, he had bidden his +clansmen return to their lady, but they had all perished but one, +fighting for vengeance against the infidels. This man, who had held +the dying Knight tenderly upon his knee, said that Colin bade his wife +farewell, bade her remember his injunction to wed again and find a +protector, gasped out, "Take her the token I promised; it is here," +and died; but the Saracens attacked the Christians again, drove them +back, and plundered the bodies of the slain, and when the one survivor +returned to search for the precious token there was none! The body was +stripped of everything of value, and the clansman wound it in the +plaid and buried it on the battlefield. + + +The Lady's Stratagem + +There seemed no reason for the lady to doubt this news, and her grief +was very real and sincere. She clad herself in mourning robes and +bewailed her lost husband, but yet she was not entirely satisfied, for +she still wore the broken half of the engraved ring on the chain round +her neck, and still the promised death-token had not come. The Baron +now pressed his suit with greater ardour than before, and the Lady of +Loch Awe was hard put to it to find reasons for refusing him. It was +necessary to keep him on good terms with the clan, for his lands +bordered on those of Glenurchy, and he could have made war on the +people in the glen quite easily, while the knowledge that their chief +was dead would have made them a broken clan. So the lady turned to +guile, as did Penelope of old in similar distress. "I will wed you, +now that my Colin is dead," she replied at last, "but it cannot be +immediately; I must first build a castle that will command the head of +Glenurchy and of Loch Awe. The MacGregors knew the best place for a +house, there on Innis Eoalan; there, where the ruins of MacGregor's +White House now stand, will I build my castle. When it is finished the +time of my mourning will be over, and I will fix the bridal day." With +this promise the Baron had perforce to be contented, and the castle +began to rise slowly at the head of Loch Awe; but its progress was not +rapid, because the lady secretly bade her men build feebly, and often +the walls fell down, so that the new castle was very long in coming to +completion. + + +Black Colin Hears the News + +In the meantime all who loved Black Colin grieved to know that the +Lady of Loch Awe would wed again, and his foster-mother sorrowed most +of all, for she felt sure that her beloved Colin was not dead. The +death-token had not been sent, and she sorely mistrusted the Baron +MacCorquodale and doubted the truth of the palmer's message. At last, +when the new castle was nearly finished and shone white in the rays of +the sun, she called one of her sons and bade him journey to Rome to +find the Knight of Loch Awe, if he were yet alive, and to bring sure +tidings of his death if he were no longer living. The young Patterson +set off secretly, and reached Rome in due course, and there he met +Black Colin, just returned from Jerusalem. The Knight had at last +realized that he had spent seven years away from his home, and that +now, in spite of all his haste, he might reach Glenurchy too late to +save his wife from a second marriage. He comforted himself, however, +with the thought that the token was still safe with him, and that his +wife would be loyal; great, therefore, was his horror when he met his +foster-brother and heard how the news of his death had been brought to +the glen. He heard also how his wife had reluctantly promised to marry +the Baron MacCorquodale, and had delayed her wedding by stratagem, +and he vowed that he would return to Glenurchy in time to spoil the +plans of the wicked baron. + + +Black Colin's Return + +Travelling day and night, Black Colin, with his faithful clansman, +came near to Glenurchy, and sent his follower on in advance to bring +back news. The youth returned with tidings that the wedding had been +fixed for the next day, since the castle was finished and no further +excuse for delay could be made. Then Colin's anger was greatly roused, +and he vowed that the Baron MacCorquodale, who had stooped to deceit +and forgery to gain his ends, should pay dearly for his baseness. +Bidding his young clansman show no sign of recognition when he +appeared, the Knight of Loch Awe sent him to the farm in the glen, +where the anxious foster-mother eagerly awaited the return of the +wanderer. When she saw her son appear alone she was plunged into +despair, for she concluded, not that Black Colin was dead, but that he +would return too late. When he, in the beggar's disguise which he +assumed, came down the Glen he saw the smoke from the castle on the +Islet, and said: "I see smoke from my house, and it is the smoke of a +wedding feast in preparation, but I pray God who sent us light and +love that I may reap the fruit of the love that is there." + + +The Foster-Mother's Recognition + +The Knight then went to his foster-mother's house, knocked at the +door, and humbly craved food and shelter, as a beggar. "Come in, good +man," quoth the mistress of the house; "sit down in the +chimney-corner, and you shall have your fill of oatcake and milk." +Colin sat down heavily, as if he were overwearied, and the farmer's +wife moved about slowly, putting before him what she had; and the +Knight saw that she did not recognise him, and that she had been +weeping quite recently. "You are sad, I can see," he said. "What is +the cause of your grief?" "I am not minded to tell that to a wandering +stranger," she replied. "Perhaps I can guess what it is," he +continued; "you have lost some dear friend, I think." "My loss is +great enough to give me grief," she answered, weeping. "I had a dear +foster-son, who went oversea to fight the heathen. He was dearer to me +than my own sons, and now news has come that he is dead in that +foreign land. And the Lady of Loch Awe, who was his wife, is to wed +another husband to-morrow. Long she waited for him, past the seven +years he was to be away, and now she would not marry again, but that a +letter has come to assure her of his death. Even yet she is fretting +because she has not had the token he promised to send her; and she +will only marry because she dare no longer delay." + +"What is this token?" asked Colin. "That I know not: she has never +told," replied the foster-mother; "but oh! if he were now here +Glenurchy would never fall under the power of Baron MacCorquodale." +"Would you know Black Colin if you were to see him?" the beggar asked +meaningly; and she replied: "I think I should, for though he has been +away for years, I nursed him, and he is my own dear fosterling." "Look +well at me, then, good mother of mine, for I am Colin of Loch Awe." + +The mistress of the farm seized the beggar-man by the arm, drew him +out into the light, and looked earnestly into his face; then, with a +scream of joy, she flung her arms around him, and cried: "O Colin! +Colin! my dear son, home again at last! Glad and glad I am to see you +here in time! Weary have the years been since my nursling went away, +but now you are home all will be well." And she embraced him and +kissed him and stroked his hair, and exclaimed at his bronzed hue and +his ragged attire. + + +The Foster-Mother's Plan + +At last Colin stopped her raptures. "Tell me, mother, does my wife +seem to wish for this marriage?" he asked; and his foster-mother +answered: "Nay, my son, she would not wed now but that, thinking you +are dead, she fears the Baron's anger if she continues to refuse him. +But if you doubt her heart, follow my counsel, and you shall be +assured of her will in this matter." "What do you advise?" asked he. +She answered: "Stay this night with me here, and to-morrow go in your +beggar's dress to the castle on the Islet. Stand with other beggars at +the door, and refuse to go until the bride herself shall bring you +food and drink. Then you can put your token in the cup the Lady of +Loch Awe will hand you, and by her behaviour you shall learn if her +heart is in this marriage or not." "Dear mother, your plan is good, +and I will follow it," quoth Colin. "This night I will rest here, and +on the morrow I will seek my wife." + + +The Beggar at the Wedding + +Early next day Colin arose, clad himself in the disguise of a sturdy +beggar, took a kindly farewell of his foster-mother, and made his way +to the castle. Early as it was, all the servants were astir, and the +whole place was in a bustle of preparation, while vagabonds of every +description hung round the doors, begging for food and money in honour +of the day. The new-comer acted much more boldly: he planted himself +right in the open doorway and begged for food and drink in such a +lordly tone that the servants were impressed by it, and one of them +brought him what he asked--oatcake and buttermilk--and gave it to him, +saying, "Take this and begone." Colin took the alms and drank the +buttermilk, but put the cake into his wallet, and stood sturdily right +in the doorway, so that the servants found it difficult to enter. +Another servant came to him with more food and a horn of ale, saying, +"Now take this second gift of food and begone, for you are in our way +here, and hinder us in our work." + + +The Beggar's Demand + +But he stood more firmly still, with his stout travelling-staff +planted on the threshold, and said: "I will not go." Then a third +servant approached, who said: "Go at once, or it will be the worse for +you. We have given you quite enough for one beggar. Leave quickly now, +or you will get us and yourself into trouble." The disguised Knight +only replied: "I will not go until the bride herself comes out to give +me a drink of wine," and he would not move, for all they could say. +The servants at last grew so perplexed that they went to tell their +mistress about this importunate beggar. She laughed as she said: "It +is not much for me to do on my last day in the old house," and she +bade a servant attend her to the door, bringing a large jug full of +wine. + + +The Token + +As the unhappy bride came out to the beggar-man he bent his head in +greeting, and she noticed his travel-stained dress and said: "You have +come from far, good man"; and he replied: "Yes, lady, I have seen many +distant lands." "Alas! others have gone to see distant lands and have +not returned," said she. "If you would have a drink from the hands of +the bride herself, I am she, and you may take your wine now"; and, +holding a bowl in her hands, she bade the servant fill it with wine, +and then gave it to Colin. "I drink to your happiness," said he, and +drained the bowl. As he gave it back to the lady he placed within it +the token, the half of the engraved ring. "I return it richer than I +took it, lady," said he, and his wife looked within and saw the token. + + +The Recognition + +Trembling violently, she snatched the tiny bit of gold from the bottom +of the bowl, which fell to the ground and broke at her feet, and then +she saw her own name engraved upon it. She looked long and long at the +token, and then, pulling a chain at her neck, drew out her half of the +ring with Colin's name engraved on it. "O stranger, tell me, is my +husband dead?" she asked, grasping the beggar's arm. "Dead?" he +questioned, gazing tenderly at her; and at his tone she looked +straight into his eyes and knew him. "My husband!" was all that she +could say, but she flung her arms around his neck and was clasped +close to his heart. The servants stood bewildered, but in a moment +their mistress had turned to them, saying, "Run, summon all the +household, bring them all, for this is my husband, Black Colin of Loch +Awe, come home to me again." When all in the castle knew it there was +great excitement and rejoicing, and they feasted bountifully, for the +wedding banquet had been prepared. + + +The Baron's Flight + +While the feast was in progress, and the happy wife sat by her +long-lost husband and held his hand, as though she feared to let him +leave her, a distant sound of bagpipes was heard, and the lady +remembered that the Baron MacCorquodale would be coming for his +wedding, which she had entirely forgotten in her joy. She laughed +lightly to herself, and, beckoning a clansman, bade him go and tell +the Baron that she would take no new husband, since her old one had +come back to her, and that there would be questions to be answered +when time served. The Baron MacCorquodale, in his wedding finery, with +a great party of henchmen and vassals and pipers blowing a wedding +march, had reached the mouth of the river which enters the side of +Loch Awe; the party had crossed the river, and were ready to take boat +across to the Islet, when they saw a solitary man rowing towards them +with all speed. "It is some messenger from my lady," said the Baron, +and he waited eagerly to hear the message. With dreadful consternation +he listened to the unexpected words as the clansman delivered them, +and then bade the pipers cease their music. "We must return; there +will be no wedding to-day, since Black Colin is home again," quoth he; +and the crestfallen party retraced their steps, quickening them more +and more as they thought of the vengeance of the long-lost chieftain; +but they reached their home in safety. + + +Castle Kilchurn + +In the meantime Colin had much to tell his wife of his adventures, and +to ask her of her life all these years. They told each other all, and +Colin saw the false letter that had been sent to the Lady of Loch Awe, +and guessed who had plotted this deceit. His anger grew against the +bad man who had wrought this wrong and had so nearly gained his end, +and he vowed that he would make the Baron dearly abide it. His wife +calmed his fury somewhat by telling him how she had waited even +beyond the seven years, and what stratagem she had used, and at last +he promised not to make war on the Baron, but to punish him in other +ways. + +"Tell me what you have done with the rents of Glenurchy these seven +years," said he. Then the happy wife replied: "With part I have lived, +with part I have guarded the glen, and with part have I made a cairn +of stones at the head of Loch Awe. Will you come with me and see it?" +And Colin went, deeply puzzled. When they came to the head of Loch +Awe, there stood the new castle, on the site of the old house of the +MacGregors; and the proud wife laughed as she said: "Do you like my +cairn of stones? It has taken long to build." Black Colin was much +pleased with the beautiful castle she had raised for him, and renamed +it Kilchurn Castle, which title it still keeps. True to his vow, he +took no bloody vengeance on the Baron MacCorquodale, but when a few +years after he fell into his power the Knight of Loch Awe forced him +to resign a great part of his lands to be united with those of +Glenurchy. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII: THE MARRIAGE OF SIR GAWAYNE + + +Introduction + +The heroes of chivalry, from Roland the noble paladin to Spenser's +Red-Cross Knight, have many virtues to uphold, and their +characteristics are as varied as are the races which adopted chivalry +and embodied it in their hero-myths. It is a far cry from the loyalty +of Roland, in which love for his emperor is the predominant +characteristic, to the tender and graceful reverence of Sir Calidore; +but mediæval Wales, which has preserved the Arthurian legend most free +from alien admixture, had a knight of courtesy quite equal to Sir +Calidore. Courage was one quality on the possession of which these +mediæval knights never prided themselves, because they could not +imagine life without courage, but gentle courtesy was, unhappily, +rare, and many a heroic legend is spoilt by the insolence of the hero +to people of lower rank. Again, the legends often look lightly on the +ill-treatment of maidens; yet the true hero is one who is never +tempted to injure a defenceless woman. Similarly, a broken oath to a +heathen or mere churl is excused as a trifling matter, but the ideal +hero sweareth and breaketh not, though it be to his own hindrance. + + +Sir Gawayne + +The true Knight of Courtesy is Sir Gawayne, King Arthur's nephew, who +in many ways overshadows his more illustrious uncle. It is remarkable +that the King Arthur of the mediæval romances is either a mere +ordinary conqueror or a secondary figure set in the background to +heighten the achievements of his more warlike followers. The latter is +the conception of Arthur which we find in this legend of the gentle +and courteous Sir Gawayne. + + +King Arthur Keeps Christmas + +One year the noble King Arthur was keeping his Christmas at Carlisle +with great pomp and state. By his side sat his lovely Queen Guenever, +the brightest and most beauteous bride that a king ever wedded, and +about him were gathered the Knights of the Round Table. Never had a +king assembled so goodly a company of valiant warriors as now sat in +due order at the Round Table in the great hall of Carlisle Castle, and +King Arthur's heart was filled with pride as he looked on his heroes. +There sat Sir Lancelot, not yet the betrayer of his lord's honour and +happiness, with Sir Bors and Sir Banier, there Sir Bedivere, loyal to +King Arthur till death, there surly Sir Kay, the churlish steward of +the king's household, and King Arthur's nephews, the young and gallant +Sir Gareth, the gentle and courteous Sir Gawayne, and the false, +gloomy Sir Mordred, who wrought King Arthur's overthrow. The knights +and ladies were ranged in their fitting degrees and ranks, the +servants and pages waited and carved and filled the golden goblets, +and the minstrels sang to their harps lays of heroes of the olden +time. + + +His Discontent + +Yet in the midst of all this splendour the king was ill at ease, for +he was a warlike knight and longed for some new adventure, and of late +none had been known. Arthur sat moodily among his knights and drained +the wine-cup in silence, and Queen Guenever, gazing at her husband, +durst not interrupt his gloomy thoughts. At last the king raised his +head, and, striking the table with his hand, exclaimed fiercely: "Are +all my knights sluggards or cowards, that none of them goes forth to +seek adventures? You are better fitted to feast well in hall than +fight well in field. Is my fame so greatly decayed that no man cares +to ask for my help or my support against evildoers? I vow here, by the +boar's head and by Our Lady, that I will not rise from this table till +some adventure be undertaken." "Sire, your loyal knights have gathered +round you to keep the holy Yuletide in your court," replied Sir +Lancelot; and Sir Gawayne said: "Fair uncle, we are not cowards, but +few evildoers dare to show themselves under your rule; hence it is +that we seem idle. But see yonder! By my faith, now cometh an +adventure." + + +The Damsel's Request + +Even as Sir Gawayne spoke a fair damsel rode into the hall, with +flying hair and disordered dress, and, dismounting from her steed, +knelt down sobbing at Arthur's feet. She cried aloud, so that all +heard her: "A boon, a boon, King Arthur! I beg a boon of you!" "What +is your request?" said the king, for the maiden was in great distress, +and her tears filled his heart with pity. "What would you have of me?" +"I cry for vengeance on a churlish knight, who has separated my love +from me." "Tell your story quickly," said King Arthur; and all the +knights listened while the lady spoke. + +"I was betrothed to a gallant knight," she said, "whom I loved dearly, +and we were entirely happy until yesterday. Then as we rode out +together planning our marriage we came, through the moorland ways, +unnoticing, to a fair lake, Tarn Wathelan, where stood a great castle, +with streamers flying, and banners waving in the wind. It seemed a +strong and goodly place, but alas! it stood on magic ground, and +within the enchanted circle of its shadow an evil spell fell on every +knight who set foot therein. As my love and I looked idly at the +mighty keep a horrible and churlish warrior, twice the size of mortal +man, rushed forth in complete armour; grim and fierce-looking he was, +armed with a huge club, and sternly he bade my knight leave me to him +and go his way alone. Then my love drew his sword to defend me, but +the evil spell had robbed him of all strength, and he could do nought +against the giant's club; his sword fell from his feeble hand, and the +churlish knight, seizing him, caused him to be flung into a dungeon. +He then returned and sorely ill-treated me, though I prayed for mercy +in the name of chivalry and of Mary Mother. At last, when he set me +free and bade me go, I said I would come to King Arthur's court and +beg a champion of might to avenge me, perhaps even the king himself. +But the giant only laughed aloud. 'Tell the foolish king,' quoth he, +'that here I stay his coming, and that no fear of him shall stop my +working my will on all who come. Many knights have I in prison, some +of them King Arthur's own true men; wherefore bid him fight with me, +if he will win them back.' Thus, laughing and jeering loudly at you, +King Arthur, the churlish knight returned to his castle, and I rode to +Carlisle as fast as I could." + + +King Arthur's Vow + +When the lady had ended her sorrowful tale all present were greatly +moved with indignation and pity, but King Arthur felt the insult most +deeply. He sprang to his feet in great wrath, and cried aloud: "I vow +by my knighthood, and by the Holy Rood, that I will go forth to find +that proud giant, and will never leave him till I have overcome him." +The knights applauded their lord's vow, but Queen Guenever looked +doubtfully at the king, for she had noticed the damsel's mention of +magic, and she feared some evil adventure for her husband. The damsel +stayed in Carlisle that night, and in the morning, after he had heard +Mass, and bidden farewell to his wife, King Arthur rode away. It was a +lonely journey to Tarn Wathelan, but the country was very beautiful, +though wild and rugged, and the king soon saw the little lake gleaming +clear and cold below him, while the enchanted castle towered up above +the water, with banners flaunting defiantly in the wind. + + +The Fight + +The king drew his sword Excalibur and blew a loud note on his bugle. +Thrice his challenge note resounded, but brought no reply, and then he +cried aloud: "Come forth, proud knight! King Arthur is here to punish +you for your misdeeds! Come forth and fight bravely. If you are +afraid, then come forth and yield yourself my thrall." + +[Illustration: "The King blew a loud note on his bugle"] + +The churlish giant darted out at the summons, brandishing his massive +club, and rushed straight at King Arthur. The spell of the enchanted +ground seized the king at that moment, and his hand sank down. Down +fell his good sword Excalibur, down fell his shield, and he found +himself ignominiously helpless in the presence of his enemy. + + +The Ransom + +Now the giant cried aloud: "Yield or fight, King Arthur; which will +you do? If you fight I shall conquer you, for you have no power to +resist me; you will be my prisoner, with no hope of ransom, will lose +your land and spend your life in my dungeon with many other brave +knights. If you yield I will hold you to ransom, but you must swear +to accept the terms I shall offer." + +"What are they," asked King Arthur. The giant replied: "You must swear +solemnly, by the Holy Rood, that you will return here on New Year's +Day and bring me a true answer to the question, 'What thing is it that +all women most desire?' If you fail to bring the right answer your +ransom is not paid, and you are yet my prisoner. Do you accept my +terms?" The king had no alternative: so long as he stood on the +enchanted ground his courage was overborne by the spell and he could +only hold up his hand and swear by the Sacred Cross and by Our Lady +that he would return, with such answers as he could obtain, on New +Year's Day. + + +The King's Search + +Ashamed and humiliated, the king rode away, but not back to +Carlisle--he would not return home till he had fulfilled his task; so +he rode east and west and north and south, and asked every woman and +maid he met the question the churlish knight had put to him. "What is +it all women most desire?" he asked, and all gave him different +replies: some said riches, some splendour, some pomp and state; others +declared that fine attire was women's chief delight, yet others voted +for mirth or flattery; some declared that a handsome lover was the +cherished wish of every woman's heart; and among them all the king +grew quite bewildered. He wrote down all the answers he received, and +sealed them with his own seal, to give to the churlish knight when he +returned to the Castle of Tarn Wathelan; but in his own heart King +Arthur felt that the true answer had not yet been given to him. He was +sad as he turned and rode towards the giant's home on New Year's Day, +for he feared to lose his liberty and lands, and the lonely journey +seemed much more dreary than it had before, when he rode out from +Carlisle so full of hope and courage and self-confidence. + + +The Loathly Lady + +Arthur was riding mournfully through a lonely forest when he heard a +woman's voice greeting him: "God save you, King Arthur! God save and +keep you!" and he turned at once to see the person who thus addressed +him. He saw no one at all on his right hand, but as he turned to the +other side he perceived a woman's form clothed in brilliant scarlet; +the figure was seated between a holly-tree and an oak, and the berries +of the former were not more vivid than her dress, and the brown leaves +of the latter not more brown and wrinkled than her cheeks. At first +sight King Arthur thought he must be bewitched--no such nightmare of a +human face had ever seemed to him possible. Her nose was crooked and +bent hideously to one side, while her chin seemed to bend to the +opposite side of her face; her one eye was set deep under her beetling +brow, and her mouth was nought but a gaping slit. Round this awful +countenance hung snaky locks of ragged grey hair, and she was deadly +pale, with a bleared and dimmed blue eye. The king nearly swooned when +he saw this hideous sight, and was so amazed that he did not answer +her salutation. The loathly lady seemed angered by the insult: "Now +Christ save you, King Arthur! Who are you to refuse to answer my +greeting and take no heed of me? Little of courtesy have you and your +knights in your fine court in Carlisle if you cannot return a lady's +greeting. Yet, Sir King, proud as you are, it may be that I can help +you, loathly though I be; but I will do nought for one who will not be +courteous to me." + + +The Lady's Secret + +King Arthur was ashamed of his lack of courtesy, and tempted by the +hint that here was a woman who could help him. "Forgive me, lady," +said he; "I was sorely troubled in mind, and thus, and not for want of +courtesy, did I miss your greeting. You say that you can perhaps help +me; if you would do this, lady, and teach me how to pay my ransom, I +will grant anything you ask as a reward." The deformed lady said: +"Swear to me, by Holy Rood, and by Mary Mother, that you will grant me +whatever boon I ask, and I will help you to the secret. Yes, Sir King, +I know by secret means that you seek the answer to the question, 'What +is it all women most desire?' Many women have given you many replies, +but I alone, by my magic power, can give you the right answer. This +secret I will tell you, and in truth it will pay your ransom, when you +have sworn to keep faith with me." "Indeed, O grim lady, the oath I +will take gladly," said King Arthur; and when he had sworn it, with +uplifted hand, the lady told him the secret, and he vowed with great +bursts of laughter that this was indeed the right answer. + + +The Ransom + +When the king had thoroughly realized the wisdom of the answer he rode +on to the Castle of Tarn Wathelan, and blew his bugle three times. As +it was New Year's Day, the churlish knight was ready for him, and +rushed forth, club in hand, ready to do battle. "Sir Knight," said the +king, "I bring here writings containing answers to your question; they +are replies that many women have given, and should be right; these I +bring in ransom for my life and lands." The churlish knight took the +writings and read them one by one, and each one he flung aside, till +all had been read; then he said to the king: "You must yield yourself +and your lands to me, King Arthur, and rest my prisoner; for though +these answers be many and wise, not one is the true reply to my +question; your ransom is not paid, and your life and all you have is +forfeit to me." "Alas! Sir Knight," quoth the king, "stay your hand, +and let me speak once more before I yield to you; it is not much to +grant to one who risks life and kingdom and all. Give me leave to try +one more reply." To this the giant assented, and King Arthur +continued: "This morning as I rode through the forest I beheld a lady +sitting, clad in scarlet, between an oak and a holly-tree; she says, +'All women will have their own way, and this is their chief desire.' +Now confess that I have brought the true answer to your question, and +that I am free, and have paid the ransom for my life and lands." + + +The Price of the Ransom + +The giant waxed furious with rage, and shouted: "A curse upon that +lady who told you this! It must have been my sister, for none but she +knew the answer. Tell me, was she ugly and deformed?" When King Arthur +replied that she was a loathly lady, the giant broke out: "I vow to +heaven that if I can once catch her I will burn her alive; for she has +cheated me of being King of Britain. Go your ways, Arthur; you have +not ransomed yourself, but the ransom is paid and you are free." + +Gladly the king rode back to the forest where the loathly lady awaited +him, and stopped to greet her. "I am free now, lady, thanks to you! +What boon do you ask in reward for your help? I have promised to +grant it you, whatever it may be." "This is my boon King Arthur, that +you will bring some young and courteous knight from your court in +Carlisle to marry me, and he must be brave and handsome too. You have +sworn to fulfil my request, and you cannot break your word." These +last words were spoken as the king shook his head and seemed on the +point of refusing a request so unreasonable; but at this reminder he +only hung his head and rode slowly away, while the unlovely lady +watched him with a look of mingled pain and glee. + + +King Arthur's Return + +On the second day of the new year King Arthur came home to Carlisle. +Wearily he rode along and dismounted at the castle, and wearily he +went into his hall, where sat Queen Guenever. She had been very +anxious during her husband's absence, for she dreaded magic arts, but +she greeted him gladly and said: "Welcome, my dear lord and king, +welcome home again! What anxiety I have endured for you! But now you +are here all is well. What news do you bring, my liege? Is the +churlish knight conquered? Where have you had him hanged, and where is +his head? Placed on a spike above some town-gate? Tell me your +tidings, and we will rejoice together." King Arthur only sighed +heavily as he replied: "Alas! I have boasted too much; the churlish +knight was a giant who has conquered me, and set me free on +conditions." "My lord, tell me how this has chanced." "His castle is +an enchanted one, standing on enchanted ground, and surrounded with a +circle of magic spells which sap the bravery from a warrior's mind and +the strength from his arm. When I came on his land and felt the power +of his mighty charms, I was unable to resist him, but fell into his +power, and had to yield myself to him. He released me on condition +that I would fulfil one thing which he bade me accomplish, and this I +was enabled to do by the help of a loathly lady; but that help was +dearly bought, and I cannot pay the price myself." + + +Sir Gawayne's Devotion + +By this time Sir Gawayne, the king's favourite nephew, had entered the +hall, and greeted his uncle warmly; then, with a few rapid questions, +he learnt the king's news, and saw that he was in some distress. "What +have you paid the loathly lady for her secret, uncle?" he asked. +"Alas! I have paid her nothing; but I promised to grant her any boon +she asked, and she has asked a thing impossible." "What is it?" asked +Sir Gawayne. "Since you have promised it, the promise must needs be +kept. Can I help you to perform your vow?" "Yes, you can, fair nephew +Gawayne, but I will never ask you to do a thing so terrible," said +King Arthur. "I am ready to do it, uncle, were it to wed the loathly +lady herself." "That is what she asks, that a fair young knight should +marry her. But she is too hideous and deformed; no man could make her +his wife." "If that is all your grief," replied Sir Gawayne, "things +shall soon be settled; I will wed this ill-favoured dame, and will be +your ransom." "You know not what you offer," answered the king. "I +never saw so deformed a being. Her speech is well enough, but her face +is terrible, with crooked nose and chin, and she has only one eye." +"She must be an ill-favoured maiden; but I heed it not," said Sir +Gawayne gallantly, "so that I can save you from trouble and care." +"Thanks, dear Gawayne, thanks a thousand times! Now through your +devotion I can keep my word. To-morrow we must fetch your bride from +her lonely lodging in the greenwood; but we will feign some pretext +for the journey. I will summon a hunting party, with horse and hound +and gallant riders, and none shall know that we go to bring home so +ugly a bride." "Gramercy, uncle," said Sir Gawayne. "Till to-morrow I +am a free man." + + +The Hunting Party + +The next day King Arthur summoned all the court to go hunting in the +greenwood close to Tarn Wathelan; but he did not lead the chase near +the castle: the remembrance of his defeat and shame was too strong for +him to wish to see the place again. They roused a noble stag and +chased him far into the forest, where they lost him amid close +thickets of holly and yew interspersed with oak copses and hazel +bushes--bare were the hazels, and brown and withered the clinging oak +leaves, but the holly looked cheery, with its fresh green leaves and +scarlet berries. Though the chase had been fruitless, the train of +knights laughed and talked gaily as they rode back through the forest, +and the gayest of all was Sir Gawayne; he rode wildly down the forest +drives, so recklessly that he drew level with Sir Kay, the churlish +steward, who always preferred to ride alone. Sir Lancelot, Sir +Stephen, Sir Banier, and Sir Bors all looked wonderingly at the +reckless youth; but his younger brother, Gareth, was troubled, for he +knew all was not well with Gawayne, and Sir Tristram, buried in his +love for Isolde, noticed nothing, but rode heedlessly wrapped in sad +musings. + + +Sir Kay and the Loathly Lady + +Suddenly Sir Kay reined up his steed, amazed; his eye had caught the +gleam of scarlet under the trees, and as he looked he became aware of +a woman, clad in a dress of finest scarlet, sitting between a +holly-tree and an oak. "Good greeting to you, Sir Kay," said the lady, +but the steward was too much amazed to answer. Such a face as that of +the lady he had never even imagined, and he took no notice of her +salutation. By this time the rest of the knights had joined him, and +they all halted, looking in astonishment on the misshapen face of the +poor creature before them. It seemed terrible that a woman's figure +should be surmounted by such hideous features, and most of the knights +were silent for pity's sake; but the steward soon recovered from his +amazement, and his rude nature began to show itself. The king had not +yet appeared, and Sir Kay began to jeer aloud. "Now which of you would +fain woo yon fair lady?" he asked. "It takes a brave man, for methinks +he will stand in fear of any kiss he may get, it must needs be such an +awesome thing. But yet I know not; any man who would kiss this +beauteous damsel may well miss the way to her mouth, and his fate is +not quite so dreadful after all. Come, who will win a lovely bride!" +Just then King Arthur rode up, and at sight of him Sir Kay was silent; +but the loathly lady hid her face in her hands, and wept that he +should pour such scorn upon her. + + +The Betrothal + +Sir Gawayne was touched with compassion for this uncomely woman alone +among these gallant and handsome knights, a woman so helpless and +ill-favoured, and he said: "Peace, churl Kay, the lady cannot help +herself; and you are not so noble and courteous that you have the +right to jeer at any maiden; such deeds do not become a knight of +Arthur's Round Table. Besides, one of us knights here must wed this +unfortunate lady." "Wed her?" shouted Kay. "Gawayne, you are mad!" "It +is true, is it not, my liege?" asked Sir Gawayne, turning to the king; +and Arthur reluctantly gave token of assent, saying, "I promised her +not long since, for the help she gave me in a great distress, that I +would grant her any boon she craved, and she asked for a young and +noble knight to be her husband. My royal word is given, and I will +keep it; therefore have I brought you here to meet her." Sir Kay burst +out with, "What? Ask me perchance to wed this foul quean? I'll none of +her. Where'er I get my wife from, were it from the fiend himself, this +hideous hag shall never be mine." "Peace, Sir Kay," sternly said the +king; "you shall not abuse this poor lady as well as refuse her. Mend +your speech, or you shall be knight of mine no longer." Then he turned +to the others and said: "Who will wed this lady and help me to keep my +royal pledge? You must not all refuse, for my promise is given, and +for a little ugliness and deformity you shall not make me break my +plighted word of honour." As he spoke he watched them keenly, to see +who would prove sufficiently devoted, but the knights all began to +excuse themselves and to depart. They called their hounds, spurred +their steeds, and pretended to search for the track of the lost stag +again; but before they went Sir Gawayne cried aloud: "Friends, cease +your strife and debate, for I will wed this lady myself. Lady, will +you have me for your husband?" Thus saying, he dismounted and knelt +before her. + + +The Lady's Words + +The poor lady had at first no words to tell her gratitude to Sir +Gawayne, but when she had recovered a little she spoke: "Alas! Sir +Gawayne, I fear you do but jest. Will you wed with one so ugly and +deformed as I? What sort of wife should I be for a knight so gay and +gallant, so fair and comely as the king's own nephew? What will Queen +Guenever and the ladies of the Court say when you return to Carlisle +bringing with you such a bride? You will be shamed, and all through +me." Then she wept bitterly, and her weeping made her seem even more +hideous; but King Arthur, who was watching the scene, said: "Lady, I +would fain see that knight or dame who dares mock at my nephew's +bride. I will take order that no such unknightly discourtesy is shown +in my court," and he glared angrily at Sir Kay and the others who had +stayed, seeing that Sir Gawayne was prepared to sacrifice himself and +therefore they were safe. The lady raised her head and looked keenly +at Sir Gawayne, who took her hand, saying: "Lady, I will be a true and +loyal husband to you if you will have me; and I shall know how to +guard my wife from insult. Come, lady, and my uncle will announce the +betrothal." Now the lady seemed to believe that Sir Gawayne was in +earnest, and she sprang to her feet, saying: "Thanks to you! A +thousand thanks, Sir Gawayne, and blessings on your head! You shall +never rue this wedding, and the courtesy you have shown. Wend we now +to Carlisle." + + +The Journey to Carlisle + +A horse with a side-saddle had been brought for Sir Gawayne's bride, +but when the lady moved it became evident that she was lame and halted +in her walk, and there was a slight hunch on her shoulders. Both of +these deformities showed little when she was seated, but as she moved +the knights looked at one another, shrugged their shoulders and pitied +Sir Gawayne, whose courtesy had bound him for life to so deformed a +wife. Then the whole train rode away together, the bride between King +Arthur and her betrothed, and all the knights whispering and sneering +behind them. Great was the excitement in Carlisle to see that ugly +dame, and greater still the bewilderment in the court when they were +told that this loathly lady was Sir Gawayne's bride. + + +The Bridal + +Only Queen Guenever understood, and she showed all courtesy to the +deformed bride, and stood by her as her lady-of-honour when the +wedding took place that evening, while King Arthur was groomsman to +his nephew. When the long banquet was over, and bride and bridegroom +no longer need sit side by side, the tables were cleared and the hall +was prepared for a dance, and then men thought that Sir Gawayne would +be free for a time to talk with his friends; but he refused. "Bride +and bridegroom must tread the first dance together, if she wishes it," +quoth he, and offered his lady his hand for the dance. "I thank you, +sweet husband," said the grim lady as she took it and moved forward to +open the dance with him; and through the long and stately measure that +followed, so perfect was his dignity, and the courtesy and grace with +which he danced, that no man dreamt of smiling as the deformed lady +moved clumsily through the figures of the dance. + + +Sir Gawayne's Bride + +At last the long evening was over, the last measure danced, the last +wine-cup drained, the bride escorted to her chamber, the lights out, +the guests separated in their rooms, and Gawayne was free to think of +what he had done, and to consider how he had ruined his whole hope of +happiness. He thought of his uncle's favour, of the poor lady's +gratitude, of the blessing she had invoked upon him, and he determined +to be gentle with her, though he could never love her as his wife. He +entered the bride-chamber with the feeling of a man who has made up +his mind to endure, and did not even look towards his bride, who sat +awaiting him beside the fire. Choosing a chair, he sat down and looked +sadly into the glowing embers and spoke no word. + +"Have you no word for me, husband? Can you not even give me a glance?" +asked the lady, and Sir Gawayne turned his eyes to her where she sat; +and then he sprang up in amazement, for there sat no loathly lady, no +ugly and deformed being, but a maiden young and lovely, with black +eyes and long curls of dark hair, with beautiful face and tall and +graceful figure. "Who are you, maiden?" asked Sir Gawayne; and the +fair one replied: "I am your wife, whom you found between the oak and +the holly-tree, and whom you wedded this night." + + +Sir Gawayne's Choice + +"But how has this marvel come to pass?" asked he, wondering, for the +fair maiden was so lovely that he marvelled that he had not known her +beauty even under that hideous disguise. "It is an enchantment to +which I am in bondage," said she. "I am not yet entirely free from it, +but now for a time I may appear to you as I really am. Is my lord +content with his loving bride?" asked she, with a little smile, as she +rose and stood before him. "Content!" he said, as he clasped her in +his arms. "I would not change my dear lady for the fairest dame in +Arthur's court, not though she were Queen Guenever herself. I am the +happiest knight that lives, for I thought to save my uncle and help a +hapless lady, and I have won my own happiness thereby. Truly I shall +never rue the day when I wedded you, dear heart." Long they sat and +talked together, and then Sir Gawayne grew weary, and would fain have +slept, but his lady said: "Husband, now a heavy choice awaits you. I +am under the spell of an evil witch, who has given me my own face and +form for half the day, and the hideous appearance in which you first +saw me for the other half. Choose now whether you will have me fair by +day and ugly by night, or hideous by day and beauteous by night. The +choice is your own." + + +The Dilemma + +Sir Gawayne was no longer oppressed with sleep; the choice before him +was too difficult. If the lady remained hideous by day he would have +to endure the taunts of his fellows; if by night, he would be unhappy +himself. If the lady were fair by day other men might woo her, and he +himself would have no love for her; if she were fair to him alone, his +love would make her look ridiculous before the court and the king. +Nevertheless, acting on the spur of the moment, he spoke: "Oh, be fair +to me only--be your old self by day, and let me have my beauteous wife +to myself alone." "Alas! is that your choice?" she asked. "I only must +be ugly when all are beautiful, I must be despised when all other +ladies are admired; I am as fair as they, but I must seem foul to all +men. Is this your love, Sir Gawayne?" and she turned from him and +wept. Sir Gawayne was filled with pity and remorse when he heard her +lament, and began to realize that he was studying his own pleasure +rather than his lady's feelings, and his courtesy and gentleness again +won the upper hand. "Dear love, if you would rather that men should +see you fair, I will choose that, though to me you will be always +as you are now. Be fair before others and deformed to me alone, and +men shall never know that the enchantment is not wholly removed." + + +Sir Gawayne's Decision + +Now the lady looked pleased for a moment, and then said gravely: "Have +you thought of the danger to which a young and lovely lady is exposed +in the court? There are many false knights who would woo a fair dame, +though her husband were the king's favourite nephew; and who can +tell?--one of them might please me more than you. Sure I am that many +will be sorry they refused to wed me when they see me to-morrow morn. +You must risk my beauty under the guard of my virtue and wisdom, if +you have me young and fair." She looked merrily at Sir Gawayne as she +spoke; but he considered seriously for a time, and then said: "Nay, +dear love, I will leave the matter to you and your own wisdom, for you +are wiser in this matter than I. I remit this wholly unto you, to +decide according to your will. I will rest content with whatsoever you +resolve." + + +The Lady's Story + +Now the fair lady clapped her hands lightly, and said: "Blessings on +you, dear Gawayne, my own dear lord and husband! Now you have released +me from the spell completely, and I shall always be as I am now, fair +and young, till old age shall change my beauty as he doth that of all +mortals. My father was a great duke of high renown who had but one son +and one daughter, both of us dearly beloved, and both of goodly +appearance. When I had come to an age to be married my father +determined to take a new wife, and he wedded a witch-lady. She +resolved to rid herself of his two children, and cast a spell upon us +both, whereby I was transformed from a fair lady into the hideous +monster whom you wedded, and my gallant young brother into the +churlish giant who dwells at Tarn Wathelan. She condemned me to keep +that awful shape until I married a young and courtly knight who would +grant me all my will. You have done all this for me, and I shall be +always your fond and faithful wife. My brother too is set free from +the spell, and he will become again one of the truest and most gentle +knights alive, though none can excel my own true knight, Sir Gawayne." + +[Illustration: "Now you have released me from the spell completely"] + + +The Surprise of the Knights + +The next morning the knight and his bride descended to the great hall, +where many knights and ladies awaited them, the former thinking +scornfully of the hideous hag whom Gawayne had wedded, the latter +pitying so young and gallant a knight, tied to a lady so ugly. But +both scorn and pity vanished when all saw the bride. "Who is this fair +dame?" asked Sir Kay. "Where have you left your ancient bride?" asked +another, and all awaited the answer in great bewilderment. "This is +the lady to whom I was wedded yester evening," replied Sir Gawayne. +"She was under an evil enchantment, which has vanished now that she +has come under the power of a husband, and henceforth my fair wife +will be one of the most beauteous ladies of King Arthur's court. +Further, my lord King Arthur, this fair lady has assured me that the +churlish knight of Tarn Wathelan, her brother, was also under a spell, +which is now broken, and he will be once more a courteous and gallant +knight, and the ground on which his fortress stands will have +henceforth no magic power to quell the courage of any knight alive. +Dear liege and uncle, when I wedded yesterday the loathly lady I +thought only of your happiness, and in that way I have won my own +lifelong bliss." + +King Arthur's joy at his nephew's fair hap was great for he had +grieved sorely over Gawayne's miserable fate, and Queen Guenever +welcomed the fair maiden as warmly as she had the loathly lady, and +the wedding feast was renewed with greater magnificence, as a fitting +end to the Christmas festivities. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV: KING HORN + + +Introduction + +Among the hero-legends which are considered to be of native English +growth and to have come down to us from the times of the Danish +invasions is the story of King Horn; but although "King Horn," like +"Havelok the Dane," was originally a story of Viking raids, it has +been so altered that the Norse element has been nearly obliterated. In +all but the bare circumstances of the tale, "King Horn" is a romance +of chivalry, permeated with the Crusading spirit, and reflecting the +life and customs of the thirteenth century, instead of the more +barbarous manners of the eighth or ninth centuries. The hero's desire +to obtain knighthood and do some deed worthy of the honour, the +readiness to leave his betrothed for long years at the call of honour +or duty, the embittered feeling against the Saracens, are all typical +of the romance of the Crusades. Another curious point which shows a +later than Norse influence is the wooing of the reluctant youth by the +princess, of which there are many instances in mediæval literature; it +reveals a consciousness of feudal rank which did not exist in early +times, and a certain recognition of the privileges of royal birth +which were not granted before the days of romantic chivalry. King Horn +himself is a hero of the approved chivalric type, whose chief +distinguishing feature is his long indifference to the misfortunes of +the sorely-tried princess to whom he was betrothed. + + +The Royal Family of Suddene + +There once lived and ruled in the pleasant land of Suddene a noble +king named Murry, whose fair consort, Queen Godhild, was the most +sweet and gentle lady alive, as the king was a pattern of all +knightly virtues. This royal pair had but one child, a son, named +Horn, now twelve years old, who had been surrounded from his birth +with loyal service and true devotion. He had a band of twelve chosen +companions with whom he shared sports and tasks, pleasures and griefs, +and the little company grew up well trained in chivalrous exercises +and qualities. Childe Horn had his favourites among the twelve. Athulf +was his dearest friend, a loving and devoted companion; and next to +him in Horn's affection stood Fikenhild, whose outward show of love +covered his inward envy and hatred. In everything these two were +Childe Horn's inseparable comrades, and it seemed that an equal bond +of love united the three. + + +The Saracen Invasion + +One day as King Murry was riding over the cliffs by the sea with only +two knights in attendance he noticed some unwonted commotion in a +little creek not far from where he was riding, and he at once turned +his horse's head in that direction and galloped down to the shore. On +his arrival in the small harbour he saw fifteen great ships of strange +build, and their crews, Saracens all armed for war, had already +landed, and were drawn up in warlike array. The odds against the king +were terrible, but he rode boldly to the invaders and asked: "What +brings you strangers here? Why have you sought our land?" A Saracen +leader, gigantic of stature, spoke for them all and replied: "We are +here to win this land to the law of Mahomet and to drive out the +Christian law. We will slay all the inhabitants that believe on +Christ. Thou thyself shalt be our first conquest, for thou shalt not +leave this place alive." Thereupon the Saracens attacked the little +band, and though the three Christians fought valiantly they were soon +slain. The Saracens then spread over the land, slaying, burning, and +pillaging, and forcing all who loved their lives to renounce the +Christian faith and become followers of Mahomet. When Queen Godhild +heard of her husband's death and saw the ruin of her people she fled +from her palace and all her friends and betook herself to a solitary +cave, where she lived unknown and undiscovered, and continued her +Christian worship while the land was overrun with pagans. Ever she +prayed that God would protect her dear son, and bring him at last to +his father's throne. + +[Illustration: Queen Godhild prays ever for her son Horn] + + +Horn's Escape + +Soon after the king's death the Saracens had captured Childe Horn and +his twelve comrades, and the boys were brought before the pagan emir. +They would all have been slain at once or flayed alive, but for the +beauty of Childe Horn, for whose sake their lives were spared. The old +emir looked keenly at the lads, and said: "Horn, thou art a bold and +valiant youth, of great stature for thine age, and of full strength, +yet I know thou hast not yet reached thy full growth. If we release +thee with thy companions, in years to come we shall dearly rue it, for +ye will become great champions of the Christian law and will slay many +of us. Therefore ye must die. But we will not slay you with our own +hands, for ye are noble lads, and shall have one feeble chance for +your lives. Ye shall be placed in a boat and driven out to sea, and if +ye all are drowned we shall not grieve overmuch. Either ye must die or +we, for I know we shall dearly abide your king's death if ye youths +survive." Thereupon the lads were all taken to the shore, and, weeping +and lamenting, were thrust into a rudderless boat, which was towed +out to sea and left helpless. + + +Arrival in Westernesse + +The other boys sat lamenting and bewailing their fate, but Childe +Horn, looking round the boat, found a pair of oars, and as he saw that +the boat was in the grasp of some strong current he rowed in the same +direction, so that the boat soon drifted out of sight of land. The +other lads were a dismal crew, for they thought their death was +certain, but Horn toiled hard at his rowing all night, and with the +dawn grew so weary that he rested for a little on his oars. When the +rising sun made things clear, and he could see over the crests of the +waves, he stood up in the boat and uttered a cry of joy. "Comrades," +cried he, "dear friends, I see land not far away. I hear the sweet +songs of birds and see the soft green grass. We have come to some +unknown land and have saved our lives." Then Athulf took up the glad +tidings and began to cheer the forlorn little crew, and under Horn's +skilful guidance the little boat grounded gently and safely on the +sands of Westernesse. The boys sprang on shore, all but Childe Horn +having no thought of the past night and the journey; but he stood by +the boat, looking sadly at it. + + +Farewell to the Boat + + "'Boat,' quoth he, 'which hast borne me on my way, + Have thou good days beside a summer sea! + May never wave prevail to sink thee deep! + Go, little boat, and when thou comest home + Greet well my mother, mournful Queen Godhild; + Tell her, frail skiff, her dear son Horn is safe. + Greet, too, the pagan lord, Mahomet's thrall, + The bitter enemy of Jesus Christ, + And bid him know that I am safe and well. + Say I have reached a land beyond the sea, + Whence, in God's own good time, I will return + Then he shall feel my vengeance for my sire.'" + +Then sorrowfully he pushed the boat out into the ocean, and the ebbing +tide bore it away, while Horn and his companions set their faces +resolutely towards the town they could see in the distance. + + +King Ailmar and Childe Horn + +As the little band were trudging wearily towards the town they saw a +knight riding towards them, and when he came nearer they became aware +that he must be some noble of high rank. When he halted and began to +question them, Childe Horn recognised by his tone and bearing that +this must be the king. So indeed it was, for King Ailmar of +Westernesse was one of those noble rulers who see for themselves the +state of their subjects and make their people happy by free, +unrestrained intercourse with them. When the king saw the forlorn +little company he said: "Whence are ye, fair youths, so strong and +comely of body? Never have I seen so goodly a company of thirteen +youths in the realm of Westernesse. Tell me whence ye come, and what +ye seek." Childe Horn assumed the office of spokesman, for he was +leader by birth, by courage, and by intellect. "We are lads of noble +families in Suddene, sons of Christians and of men of lofty station. +Pagans have taken the land and slain our parents, and we boys fell +into their hands. These heathen have slain and tortured many Christian +men, but they had pity upon us, and put us into an old boat with no +sail or rudder. So we drifted all night, until I saw your land at +dawn, and our boat came to the shore. Now we are in your power, and +you may do with us what you will, but I pray you to have pity on us +and to feed us, that we may not perish utterly." + + +Ailmar's Decision + +King Ailmar was touched as greatly by the simple boldness of the +spokesman as by the hapless plight of the little troop, and he +answered, smiling: "Thou shalt have nought but help and comfort, fair +youth. But, I pray thee, tell me thy name." Horn answered readily: +"King, may all good betide thee! I am named Horn, and I have come +journeying in a boat on the sea--now I am here in thy land." King +Ailmar replied: "Horn! That is a good name: mayst thou well enjoy it. +Loud may this Horn sound over hill and dale till the blast of so +mighty a Horn shall be heard in many lands from king to king, and its +beauty and strength be known in many countries. Horn, come thou with +me and be mine, for I love thee and will not forsake thee." + + +Childe Horn at Court + +The king rode home, and all the band of stranger youths followed him +on foot, but for Horn he ordered a horse to be procured, so that the +lad rode by his side; and thus they came back to the court. When they +entered the hall he summoned his steward, a noble old knight named +Athelbrus, and gave the lads in charge to him, saying, "Steward, take +these foundlings of mine, and train them well in the duties of pages, +and later of squires. Take especial care with the training of Childe +Horn, their chief; let him learn all thy knowledge of woodcraft and +fishing, of hunting and hawking, of harping and singing; teach him how +to carve before me, and to serve the cup solemnly at banquets; make +him thy favourite pupil and train him to be a knight as good as +thyself. His companions thou mayst put into other service, but Horn +shall be my own page, and afterwards my squire." Athelbrus obeyed the +king's command, and the thirteen youths soon found themselves set to +learn the duties of court life, and showed themselves apt scholars, +especially Childe Horn, who did his best to satisfy the king and his +steward on every point. + + +The Princess Rymenhild + +When Childe Horn had been at court for six years, and was now a +squire, he became known to all courtiers, and all men loved him for +his gentle courtesy and his willingness to do any service. King Ailmar +made no secret of the fact that Horn was his favourite squire, and the +Princess Rymenhild, the king's fair daughter, loved him with all her +heart. She was the heir to the throne, and no man had ever gainsaid +her will, and now it seemed to her unreasonable that she should not be +allowed to wed a good and gallant youth whom she loved. It was +difficult for her to speak alone with him, for she had six maiden +attendants who waited on her continually, and Horn was engaged with +his duties either in the hall, among the knights, or waiting on the +king. The difficulties only seemed to increase her love, and she grew +pale and wan, and looked miserable. It seemed to her that if she +waited longer her love would never be happy, and in her impatience she +took a bold step. + + +Athelbrus Deceives the Princess + +She kept her chamber, called a messenger, and said to him: "Go quickly +to Athelbrus the steward, and bid him come to me at once. Tell him to +bring with him the squire Childe Horn, for I am lying ill in my room, +and would be amused. Say I expect them quickly, for I am sad in mind, +and have need of cheerful converse." The messenger bowed, and, +withdrawing, delivered the message exactly as he had received it to +Athelbrus, who was much perplexed thereby. He wondered whence came +this sudden illness, and what help Childe Horn could give. It was an +unusual thing for the squire to be asked into a lady's bower, and +still more so into that of a princess, and Athelbrus had already felt +some suspicion as to the sentiments of the royal lady towards the +gallant young squire. Considering all these things, the cautious +steward deemed it safer not to expose young Horn to the risks that +might arise from such an interview, and therefore induced Athulf to +wait upon the princess and to endeavour to personate his more +distinguished companion. The plan succeeded beyond expectation in the +dimly lighted room, and the infatuated princess soon startled the +unsuspecting squire by a warm and unreserved declaration of her +affection. Recovering from his natural amazement, he modestly +disclaimed a title to the royal favour and acknowledged his identity. + +On discovering her mistake the princess was torn by conflicting +emotions, but finally relieved the pressure of self-reproach and the +confusion of maiden modesty by overwhelming the faithful steward with +denunciation and upbraiding, until at last, in desperation, the poor +man promised, against his better judgment, to bring about a meeting +between his love-lorn mistress and the favoured squire. + + +Athelbrus Summons Horn + +When Rymenhild understood that Athelbrus would fulfil her desire she +was very glad and joyous; her sorrow was turned into happy +expectation, and she looked kindly upon the old steward as she said: +"Go now quickly, and send him to me in the afternoon. The king will +go to the wood for sport and pastime, and Horn can easily remain +behind; then he can stay with me till my father returns at eve. No one +will betray us; and when I have met my beloved I care not what men may +say." + +Then the steward went down to the banqueting-hall, where he found +Childe Horn fulfilling his duties as cup-bearer, pouring out and +tasting the red wine in the king's golden goblet. King Ailmar asked +many questions about his daughter's health, and when he learnt that +her malady was much abated he rose in gladness from the table and +summoned his courtiers to go with him into the greenwood. Athelbrus +bade Horn tarry, and when the gay throng had passed from the hall the +steward said gravely: "Childe Horn, fair and courteous, my beloved +pupil, go now to the bower of the Princess Rymenhild, and stay there +to fulfil all her commands. It may be thou shalt hear strange things, +but keep rash and bold words in thy heart, and let them not be upon +thy tongue. Horn, dear lad, be true and loyal now, and thou shalt +never repent it." + + +Horn and Rymenhild + +Horn listened to this unusual speech with great astonishment, but, +since Sir Athelbrus spoke so solemnly, he laid all his words to heart, +and thus, marvelling greatly, departed to the royal bower. When he had +knocked at the door, and had been bidden to come in, entering, he +found Rymenhild sitting in a great chair, intently regarding him as he +came into the room. He knelt down to make obeisance to her, and kissed +her hand, saying, "Sweet be thy life and soft thy slumbers, fair +Princess Rymenhild! Well may it be with thy gentle ladies of honour! I +am here at thy command, lady, for Sir Athelbrus the steward, bade me +come to speak with thee. Tell me thy will, and I will fulfil all thy +desires." She arose from her seat, and, bending towards him as he +knelt, took him by the hand and lifted him up, saying, "Arise and sit +beside me, Childe Horn, and we will drink this cup of wine together." +In great astonishment the youth did as the princess bade, and sat +beside her, and soon, to his utter amazement, Rymenhild avowed her +love for him, and offered him her hand. "Have pity on me, Horn, and +plight me thy troth, for in very truth I love thee, and have loved +thee long, and if thou wilt I will be thy wife." + + +Horn Refuses the Princess + +Now Horn was in evil case, for he saw full well in what danger he +would place the princess, Sir Athelbrus, and himself if he accepted +the proffer of her love. He knew the reason of the steward's warning, +and tried to think what he might say to satisfy the princess and yet +not be disloyal to the king. At last he replied: "Christ save and keep +thee, my lady Rymenhild, and give thee joy of thy husband, whosoever +he may be! I am too lowly born to be worthy of such a wife; I am a +mere foundling, living on thy father's bounty. It is not in the course +of nature that such as I should wed a king's daughter, for there can +be no equal match between a princess and a landless squire." + +Rymenhild was so disheartened and ashamed at this reply to her loving +appeal that her colour changed, she turned deadly pale, began to sigh, +flung her arms out wildly, and fell down in a swoon. Childe Horn +lifted her up, full of pity for her deep distress, and began to +comfort her and try to revive her. As he held her in his arms he +kissed her often, and said: + + "'Lady, dear love, take comfort and be strong! + For I will yield me wholly to thy guidance + If thou wilt compass one great thing for me. + Plead with King Ailmar that he dub me knight, + That I may prove me worthy of thy love. + Soon shall my knighthood be no idle dream, + And I will strive to do thy will, dear heart.'" + +Now at these words Rymenhild awoke from her swoon, and made him repeat +his promise. She said: "Ah! Horn, that shall speedily be done. Ere the +week is past thou shalt be Sir Horn, for my father loves thee, and +will grant the dignity most willingly to one so dear to him. Go now +quickly to Sir Athelbrus, give him as a token of my gratitude this +golden goblet and this ring; pray him that he persuade the king to dub +thee knight. I will repay him with rich rewards for his gentle +courtesy to me. May Christ help him to speed thee in thy desires!" +Horn then took leave of Rymenhild with great affection, and found +Athelbrus, to whom he delivered the gifts and the princess's message, +which the steward received with due reverence. + + +Horn Becomes a Knight + +This plan seemed to Athelbrus very good, for it raised Horn to be a +member of the noble Order of Knights, and would give him other chances +of distinguishing himself. Accordingly he went to the king as he sat +over the evening meal, and spoke thus: "Sir King, hear my words, for I +have counsel for thee. To-morrow is the festival of thy birth, and the +whole realm of Westernesse must rejoice in its master's joy. Wear thou +thy crown in solemn state, and I think it were nought amiss if thou +shouldst knight young Horn, who will become a worthy defender of thy +throne." "That were well done," said King Ailmar. "The youth pleases +me, and I will knight him with my own sword. Afterwards he shall +knight his twelve comrades the same day." + +The next day the ceremony of knighting was performed with all +solemnity, and at its close a great banquet was prepared and all men +made merry. But Princess Rymenhild was somewhat sad. She could not +descend to the hall and take her customary place, for this was a feast +for knights alone, and she would not be without her betrothed one +moment longer, so she sent a messenger to fetch Sir Horn to her bower. + + +Horn and Athulf Go to Rymenhild + +Now that Horn was a newly dubbed knight he would not allow the +slightest shadow of dishonour to cloud his conduct; accordingly, when +he obeyed Rymenhild's summons he was accompanied by Athulf. "Welcome, +Sir Horn and Sir Athulf," she cried, holding out her hands in +greeting. "Love, now that thou hast thy will, keep thy plighted word +and make me thy wife; release me from my anxiety and do as thou hast +said." + + "'Dear Rymenhild, hold thou thyself at peace,' + Quoth young Sir Horn; 'I will perform my vow. + But first I must ride forth to prove my might; + Must conquer hardships, and my own worse self, + Ere I can hope to woo and wed my bride. + We are but new-fledged knights of one day's growth, + And yet we know the custom of our state + Is first to fight and win a hero's name, + Then afterwards to win a lady's heart. + This day will I do bravely for thy love + And show my valour and my deep devotion + In prowess 'gainst the foes of this thy land. + If I come back in peace, I claim my wife.'" + +Rymenhild protested no longer, for she saw that where honour was +concerned Horn was inflexible. "My true knight," said she, "I must in +sooth believe thee, and I feel that I may. Take this ring engraved +with my name, wrought by the most skilled worker of our court, and +wear it always, for it has magic virtues. The gems are of such saving +power that thou shalt fear no strokes in battle, nor ever be cast down +if thou gaze on this ring and think of thy love. Athulf, too, shall +have a similar ring. And now, Horn, I commend thee to God, and may +Christ give thee good success and bring thee back in safety!" + + +Horn's First Exploit + +After taking an affectionate farewell of Rymenhild, Horn went down to +the hall, and, seeing all the other new-made knights going in to the +banquet, he slipped quietly away and betook himself to the stables. +There he armed himself secretly and mounted his white charger, which +pranced and reared joyfully as he rode away; and Horn began to sing +for joy of heart, for he had won his chief desire, and was happy in +the love of the king's daughter. As he rode by the shore he saw a +stranger ship drawn up on the beach, and recognised the banner and +accoutrements of her Saracen crew, for he had never forgotten the +heathens who had slain his father. "What brings you here?" he asked +angrily, and as fearlessly as King Murry had done, and received the +same answer: "We will conquer this land and slay the inhabitants." +Then Horn's anger rose, he gripped his sword, and rushed boldly at the +heathens, and slew many of them, striking off a head at each blow. The +onslaught was so sudden that the Saracens were taken by surprise at +first, but then they rallied and surrounded Horn, so that matters +began to look dangerous for him. Then he remembered the betrothal +ring, and looked on it, thinking earnestly of Rymenhild, his dear +love, and such courage came to him that he was able to defeat the +pagans and slay their leader. The others, sorely wounded--for none +escaped unhurt--hurried on board ship and put to sea, and Horn, +bearing the Saracen leader's head on his sword's point, rode back to +the royal palace. Here he related to King Ailmar this first exploit of +his knighthood, and presented the head of the foe to the king, who +rejoiced greatly at Horn's valour and success. + +[Illustration: Horn kills the Saracen leader] + + +Rymenhild's Dream + +The next day the king and all the court rode out hunting, but Horn +made an excuse to stay behind with the princess, and the false and +wily Fikenhild was also left at home, and he crept secretly to +Rymenhild's bower to spy on her. She was sitting weeping bitterly when +Sir Horn entered. He was amazed. "Love, for mercy's sake, why weepest +thou so sorely?" he asked; and she replied: "I have had a mournful +dream. I dreamt that I was casting a net and had caught a great fish, +which began to burst the net. I greatly fear that I shall lose my +chosen fish." Then she looked sadly at Horn. But the young knight was +in a cheery mood, and replied: "May Christ and St. Stephen turn thy +dream to good! If I am thy fish, I will never deceive thee nor do +aught to displease thee, and hereto I plight thee my troth. But I +would rather interpret thy dream otherwise. This great fish which +burst thy net is some one who wishes us ill, and will do us harm +soon." Yet in spite of Horn's brave words it was a sad betrothal, for +Rymenhild wept bitterly, and her lover could not stop her tears. + + +Fikenhild's False Accusation + +Fikenhild had listened to all their conversation with growing envy +and anger, and now he stole away silently, and met King Ailmar +returning from the chase. + + "'King Ailmar,' said the false one, 'see, I bring + A needed warning, that thou guard thyself, + For Horn will take thy life; I heard him vow + To slay thee, or by sword or fire, this night. + If thou demand what cause of hate he has, + Know that the villain wooes thine only child, + Fair Rymenhild, and hopes to wear thy crown. + E'en now he tarries in the maiden's bower, + As he has often done, and talks with her + With guileful tongue, and cunning show of love. + Unless thou banish him thou art not safe + In life or honour, for he knows no law.'" + +The king at first refused to believe the envious knight's report, but, +going to Rymenhild's bower, he found apparent confirmation, for Horn +was comforting the princess, and promising to wed her when he should +have done worthy feats of arms. The king's wrath knew no bounds, and +with words of harsh reproach he banished Horn at once, on pain of +death. The young knight armed himself quickly and returned to bid +farewell to his betrothed. + + +Horn's Banishment + +"Dear heart," said he, "now thy dream has come true, and thy fish must +needs break the net and be gone. The enemy whom I foreboded has +wrought us woe. Farewell, mine own dear Rymenhild; I may no longer +stay, but must wander in alien lands. If I do not return at the end of +seven years take thyself a husband and tarry no longer for me. And now +take me in your arms and kiss me, dear love, ere I go!" So they kissed +each other and bade farewell, and Horn called to him his comrade +Athulf, saying, "True and faithful friend, guard well my dear love. +Thou hast never forsaken me; now do thou keep Rymenhild for me." Then +he rode away, and, reaching the haven, hired a good ship and sailed +for Ireland, where he took service with King Thurston, under the name +of Cuthbert. In Ireland he became sworn brother to the king's two +sons, Harold and Berild, for they loved him from the first moment they +saw him, and were in no way jealous of his beauty and valour. + + +Horn Slays the Giant Emir + +When Christmas came, and King Thurston sat at the banquet with all his +lords, at noontide a giant strode into the hall, bearing a message of +defiance. He came from the Saracens, and challenged any three Irish +knights to fight one Saracen champion. If the Irish won the pagans +would withdraw from Ireland; if the Irish chiefs were slain the +Saracens would hold the land. The combat was to be decided the next +day at dawn. King Thurston accepted the challenge, and named Harold, +Berild, and Cuthbert (as Horn was called) as the Christian champions, +because they were the best warriors in Ireland; but Horn begged +permission to speak, and said: "Sir King, it is not right that one man +should fight against three, and one heathen hound think to resist +three Christian warriors. I will fight and conquer him alone, for I +could as easily slay three of them." At last the king allowed Horn to +attempt the combat alone, and spent the night in sorrowful musing on +the result of the contest, while Horn slept well and arose and armed +himself cheerily. He then aroused the king, and the Irish troop rode +out to a fair and level green lawn, where they found the emir with +many companions awaiting them. The combat began at once, and Horn gave +blows so mighty that the pagan onlookers fell swooning through very +fear, till Horn said: "Now, knights, rest for a time, if it pleases +you." Then the Saracens spoke together, saying aloud that no man had +ever so daunted them before except King Murry of Suddene. + +This mention of his dead father aroused Horn, who now realized that he +saw before him his father's murderers. His anger was kindled, he +looked at his ring and thought of Rymenhild, and then, drawing his +sword again, he rushed at the heathen champion. The giant fell pierced +through the heart, and his companions fled to their ships, hotly +pursued by Horn and his company. Much fighting there was, and in the +hot strife near the ships the king's two sons, Harold and Berild, were +both slain. + + +Horn Refuses the Throne + +Sadly they were laid on a bier and brought back to the palace, their +sorrowful father lamenting their early death; and when he had wept his +fill the mournful king came into the hall where all his knights +silently awaited him. Slowly he came up to Horn as he sat a little +apart from the rest, and said: "Cuthbert, wilt thou fulfil my desire? +My heirs are slain, and thou art the best knight in Ireland for +strength and beauty and valour; I implore thee to wed Reynild, my only +daughter (now, alas! my only child), and to rule my realm. Wilt thou +do so, and lift the burden of my cares from my weary shoulders?" But +Horn replied: "O Sir King, it were wrong for me to receive thy fair +daughter and heir and rule thy realm, as thou dost offer. I shall do +thee yet better service, my liege, before I die; and I know that thy +grief will change ere seven years have passed away. When that time is +over, Sir King, give me my reward: thou shalt not refuse me thy +daughter when I desire her." To this King Thurston agreed, and Horn +dwelt in Ireland for seven years, and sent no word or token to +Rymenhild all the time. + + +Rymenhild's Distress + +In the meantime Princess Rymenhild was in great perplexity and +trouble, for a powerful ruler, King Modi of Reynes, wooed her for his +wife, and her own betrothed sent her no token of his life or love. Her +father accepted the new suitor for her hand, and the day of the +wedding was fixed, so that Rymenhild could no longer delay her +marriage. In her extremity she besought Athulf to write letters to +Horn, begging him to return and claim his bride and protect her; and +these letters she delivered to several messengers, bidding them search +in all lands until they found Sir Horn and gave the letters into his +own hand. Horn knew nought of this, till one day in the forest he met +a weary youth, all but exhausted, who told how he had sought Horn in +vain. When Horn declared himself, the youth broke out into loud +lamentations over Rymenhild's unhappy fate, and delivered the letter +which explained all her distress. Now it was Horn's turn to weep +bitterly for his love's troubles, and he bade the messenger return to +his mistress and tell her to cease her tears, for Horn would be there +in time to rescue her from her hated bridegroom. The youth returned +joyfully, but as his boat neared the shore of Westernesse a storm +arose and the messenger was drowned; so that Rymenhild, opening her +tower door to look for expected succour, found her messenger lying +dead at the foot of the tower, and felt that all hope was gone. She +wept and wrung her hands, but nothing that she could do would avert +the evil day. + + +Horn and King Thurston + +As soon as Horn had read Rymenhild's letter he went to King Thurston +and revealed the whole matter to him. He told of his own royal +parentage, his exile, his knighthood, his betrothal to the princess, +and his banishment; then of the death of the Saracen leader who had +slain King Murry, and the vengeance he had taken. Then he ended: + + "'King Thurston, be thou wise, and grant my boon; + Repay the service I have yielded thee; + Help me to save my princess from this woe. + I will take counsel for fair Reynild's fate, + For she shall wed Sir Athulf, my best friend, + My truest comrade and my doughtiest knight. + If ever I have risked my life for thee + And proved myself in battle, grant my prayer.'" + +To this the king replied: "Childe Horn, do what thou wilt." + + +Horn Returns on the Wedding-day + +Horn at once invited Irish knights to accompany him to Westernesse to +rescue his love from a hateful marriage, and many came eagerly to +fight in the cause of the valiant Cuthbert who had defended Ireland +for seven years. Thus it was with a goodly company that Horn took +ship, and landed in King Ailmar's realm; and he came in a happy hour, +for it was the wedding-day of Princess Rymenhild and King Modi of +Reynes. The Irish knights landed and encamped in a wood, while Horn +went on alone to learn tidings. Meeting a palmer, he asked the news, +and the palmer replied: "I have been at the wedding of Princess +Rymenhild, and a sad sight it was, for the bride was wedded against +her will, vowing she had a husband though he is a banished man. She +would take no ring nor utter any vows; but the service was read, and +afterwards King Modi took her to a strong castle, where not even a +palmer was given entrance. I came away, for I could not endure the +pity of it. The bride sits weeping sorely, and if report be true her +heart is like to break with grief." + + +Horn Is Disguised as a Palmer + +"Come, palmer," said Horn, "lend me your cloak and scrip. I must see +this strange bridal, and it may be I shall make some there repent of +the wrong they have done to a helpless maiden. I will essay to enter." +The change was soon made, and Horn darkened his face and hands as if +bronzed with Eastern suns, bowed his back, and gave his voice an old +man's feebleness, so that no man would have known him; which done, he +made his way to King Modi's new castle. Here he begged admittance for +charity's sake, that he might share the broken bits of the wedding +feast; but he was churlishly refused by the porter, who would not be +moved by any entreaties. At last Horn lost all patience, and broke +open the door, and threw the porter out over the drawbridge into the +moat; then, once more assuming his disguise, he made his way into the +hall and sat down in the beggars' row. + + +The Recognition + +Rymenhild was weeping still, and her stern husband seemed only angered +by her tears. Horn looked about cautiously, but saw no sign of Athulf, +his trusted comrade; for he was at this time eagerly looking for his +friend's coming from the lofty watch-tower, and lamenting that he +could guard the princess no longer. At last, when the banquet was +nearly over, Rymenhild rose to pour out wine for the guests, as the +custom was then; and she bore a horn of ale or wine along the benches +to each person there. Horn, sitting humbly on the ground, called out: +"Come, courteous Queen, turn to me, for we beggars are thirsty folk." +Rymenhild smiled sadly, and, setting down the horn, filled a bowl with +brown ale, for she thought him a drunkard. "Here, drink this, and more +besides, if thou wilt; I never saw so bold a beggar," she said. But +Horn refused. He handed the bowl to the other beggars, and said: +"Lady, I will drink nought but from a silver cup, for I am not what +you think me. I am no beggar, but a fisher, come from afar to fish at +thy wedding feast. My net lies near by, and has lain there for seven +years, and I am come to see if it has caught any fish. Drink to me, +and drink to Horn from thy horn, for far have I journeyed." + +When the palmer spoke of fishing, and his seven-year-old net, +Rymenhild felt cold at heart; she did not recognise him, but wondered +greatly when he bade her drink "to Horn." She filled her cup and gave +it to the palmer, saying, "Drink thy fill, and then tell me if thou +hast ever seen Horn in thy wanderings." As the palmer drank, he +dropped his ring into the cup; then he returned it to Rymenhild, +saying, "Queen, seek out what is in thy draught." She said nothing +then, but left the hall with her maidens and went to her bower, where +she found the well-remembered ring she had given to Horn in token of +betrothal. Greatly she feared that Horn was dead, and sent for the +palmer, whom she questioned as to whence he had got the ring. + + +Horn's Stratagem + +Horn thought he would test her love for him, since she had not +recognised him, so he replied: "By St. Giles, lady, I have wandered +many a mile, far into realms of the West, and there I found Sir Horn +ready prepared to sail home to your land. He told me that he planned +to reach the realm of Westernesse in time to see you before seven +years had passed, and I embarked with him. The winds were favourable +and we had a quick voyage, but, alas! he fell ill and died. When he +lay dying he begged me piteously, 'Take this ring, from which I have +never been parted, to my dear lady Rymenhild,' and he kissed it many +times and pressed it to his breast. May God give his soul rest in +Paradise!" + +When Rymenhild heard those terrible tidings she sighed deeply and +said: "O heart, burst now, for thou shalt never more have Horn, for +love of whom thou hast been tormented so sorely!" Then she fell upon +her bed, and grasped the dagger which she had concealed there; for if +Horn did not come in time she had planned to slay both her hateful +lord and herself that very night. Now, in her misery, she set the +dagger to her heart, and would have slain herself at once, had not the +palmer interrupted her. Rushing forward, he exclaimed: "Dear Queen and +lady, I am Horn, thine own true love. Dost thou not recognise me? I am +Childe Horn of Westernesse. Take me in thy arms, dear love, and kiss +me welcome home." As Rymenhild stared incredulously at him, letting +the dagger fall from her trembling hand, he hurriedly cast away his +disguise, brushed off the disfiguring stain he had put on his cheeks, +and stood up straight and strong, her own noble knight and lover. What +joy they had together! How they told each other of all their +adventures and troubles, and how they embraced and kissed each other! + + +Horn Slays King Modi + +When their joy had become calmer, Horn said to his lady: "Dear +Rymenhild, I must leave thee now, and return to my knights, who are +encamped in the forest. Within an hour I will return to the feast and +give the king and his guests a stern lesson." Then he flung away the +palmer's cloak, and went forth in knightly array; while the princess +went up to the watch-tower, where Athulf still scanned the sea for +some sign of Horn's coming. Rymenhild said: "Sir Athulf, true friend, +go quickly to Horn, for he has arrived, and with him he brings a great +army." The knight gladly hastened to the courtyard, mounted his steed, +and soon overtook Horn. They were greatly rejoiced to meet again, and +had much to tell each other and to plan for that day's work. + +In the evening Horn and his army reached the castle, where they found +the gates undone for them by their friends within, and in a short but +desperate conflict King Modi and all the guests at the banquet were +slain, except Rymenhild, her father, and Horn's twelve comrades. Then +a new wedding was celebrated, for King Ailmar durst not refuse his +daughter to the victor, and the bridal was now one of real rejoicing, +though the king was somewhat bitter of mood. + + +Horn's Departure + +When the hours wore on to midnight, Horn, sitting beside his bride, +called for silence in the hall, and addressed the king thus: "Sir +King, I pray thee listen to my tale, for I have much to say and much +to explain. My name is in sooth Horn, and I am the son of King Murry +of Suddene, who was slain by the Saracens. Thou didst cherish me and +give me knighthood, and I proved myself a true knight on the very day +when I was dubbed. Thou didst love me then, but evil men accused me to +thee and I was banished. For seven years I have lived in a strange +land; but now that I have returned, I have won thy fair daughter as +my bride. But I cannot dwell here in idleness while the heathen hold +my father's land. I vow by the Holy Rood that I will not rest, and +will not claim my wife, until I have purified Suddene from the infidel +invaders, and can lay its crown at Rymenhild's feet. Do thou, O King, +guard well my wife till my return." + +The king consented to this proposal, and, in spite of Rymenhild's +grief, Horn immediately bade her farewell, and with his whole army +embarked for Suddene, this time accompanied by Athulf, but leaving the +rest of his comrades for the protection of his wife. + + +The Apostate Knight + +The wind blew fair for Suddene, and the fleet reached the port. The +warriors disembarked, and marched inland, to encamp for the night in a +wood, where they could be hidden. Horn and Athulf set out at midnight +to endeavour to obtain news of the foe, and soon found a solitary +knight sleeping. They awoke him roughly, saying, "Knight, awake! Why +sleepest thou here? What dost thou guard?" The knight sprang lightly +from the ground, saw their faces and the shining crosses on their +shields, and cast down his eyes in shame, saying, "Alas! I have served +these pagans against my will. In time gone by I was a Christian, but +now I am a coward renegade, who forsook his God for fear of death at +the hands of the Saracens! I hate my infidel masters, but I fear them +too, and they have forced me to guard this district and keep watch +against Horn's return. If he should come to his own again how glad I +should be! These infidels slew his father, and drove him into exile, +with his twelve comrades, among whom was my own son, Athulf, who loved +the prince as his own life. If the prince is yet alive, and my son +also, God grant that I may see them both again! Then would I joyfully +die." + + +The Recognition + +Horn answered quickly: "Sir Knight, be glad and rejoice, for here are +we, Horn and Athulf, come to avenge my father and retake my realm from +the heathen." Athulf's father was overcome with joy and shame; he +hardly dared to embrace his son, yet the bliss of meeting was so great +that he clasped Athulf in his arms and prayed his forgiveness for the +disgrace he had brought upon him. The two young knights said nothing +of his past weakness, but told him all their own adventures, and at +last he said: "What is your true errand hither? Can you two alone slay +the heathen? Dear Childe Horn, what joy this will be to thy mother +Godhild, who still lives in a solitary retreat, praying for thee and +for the land!" Horn broke in on his speech with "Blessed be the hour +when I returned! Thank God that my mother yet lives! We are not alone, +but I have an army of valiant Irish warriors, who will help me to +regain my realm." + + +The Reconquest of Suddene + +Now the king blew his horn, and his host marched out from the wood and +prepared to attack the Saracens. The news soon spread that Childe Horn +had returned, and many men who had accepted the faith of Mahomet for +fear of death now threw off the hated religion, joined the true king's +army, and were rebaptized. The war was not long, for the Saracens had +made themselves universally hated, and the inhabitants rose against +them; so that in a short time the country was purged of the infidels, +who were slain or fled to other lands. Then Horn brought his mother +from her retreat, and together they purified the churches which had +been desecrated, and restored the true faith. When the land of Suddene +was again a Christian realm King Horn was crowned with solemn rites, +and a great coronation feast was held, which lasted too long for +Horn's true happiness. + + +Fikenhild Imprisons Rymenhild + +During Horn's absence from Westernesse, his comrades watched carefully +over Rymenhild; but her father, who was growing old, had fallen much +under the influence of the plausible Fikenhild. From the day when +Fikenhild had falsely accused Horn to the king, Ailmar had held him in +honour as a loyal servant, and now he had such power over the old +ruler that when he demanded Rymenhild's hand in marriage, saying that +Horn was dead in Suddene, the king dared not refuse, and the princess +was bidden to make ready for a new bridal. For this day Fikenhild had +long been prepared; he had built a massive fortress on a promontory, +which at high tide was surrounded by the sea, but was easy of access +at the ebb; thither he now led the weeping princess, and began a +wedding feast which was to last all day, and to end only with the +marriage ceremony at night. + + +Horn's Dream + +That same night, before the feast, King Horn had a terrible dream. He +thought he saw his wife taken on board ship; soon the ship began to +sink, and Rymenhild held out her hands for rescue, but Fikenhild, +standing in safety on shore, beat her back into the waves with his +sword. With the agony of the sight Horn awoke, and, calling his +comrade Athulf, said: "Friend, we must depart to-day. My wife is in +danger from false Fikenhild, whom I have trusted too much. Let us +delay no longer, but go at once. If God will, I hope to release her, +and to punish Fikenhild. God grant we come in time!" With some few +chosen knights, King Horn and Athulf set out, and the ship drove +darkling through the sea, they knew not whither. All the night they +drifted on, and in the morning found themselves beneath a newly built +castle, which none of them had seen before. + + +Horn's Disguise + +While they were seeking to moor their boat to the shore, one of the +castle windows looking out to sea opened, and they saw a knight +standing and gazing seaward, whom they speedily recognised; it was +Athulf's cousin, Sir Arnoldin, one of the twelve comrades, who had +accompanied the princess thither in the hope that he might yet save +her from Fikenhild; he was now looking, as a forlorn hope, over the +sea, though he believed Horn was dead. His joy was great when he saw +the knights, and he came out to them and speedily told them of +Rymenhild's distress and the position of affairs in the castle. King +Horn was not at a loss for an expedient even in this distress. He +quickly disguised himself and a few of his comrades as minstrels, +harpers, fiddlers, and jugglers. Then, rowing to the mainland, he +waited till low tide, and made his way over the beach to the castle, +accompanied by his disguised comrades. Outside the castle walls they +began to play and sing, and Rymenhild heard them, and, asking what the +sounds were, gave orders that the minstrels should be admitted. They +sat on benches low down the hall, tuning their harps and fiddles and +watching the bride, who seemed unhappy and pale. When Horn sang a lay +of true love and happiness, Rymenhild swooned for grief, and the +king was touched to the heart with bitter remorse that he had tried +her constancy so long, and had allowed her to endure such hardships +and misery for his sake. + +[Illustration: Horn and his followers disguised as minstrels] + + +Death of Fikenhild + +King Horn now glanced down and saw the ring of betrothal on his +finger, where he had worn it ever, except that fateful day when he had +given it as a token of recognition to Rymenhild. He thought of his +wife's sufferings, and his mind was made up. Springing from the +minstrels' bench, he strode boldly up the hall, throwing off his +disguise, and, shouting, "I am King Horn! False Fikenhild, thou shalt +die!" he slew the villain in the midst of his men. Horn's comrades +likewise flung off their disguise, and soon overpowered the few of the +household who cared to fight in their dead master's cause. The castle +was taken for King Ailmar, who was persuaded to nominate Sir Arnoldin +his heir, and the baronage of Westernesse did homage to him as the +next king. Horn and his fair wife begged the good old steward Sir +Athelbrus to go with them to Suddene, and on the way they touched at +Ireland, where Reynild, the king's fair daughter, was induced to look +favourably on Sir Athulf and accept him for her husband. The land of +King Modi, which had now no ruler, was committed to the care of Sir +Athelbrus, and Horn and Rymenhild at last reached Suddene, where the +people received their fair queen with great joy, and where they dwelt +in happiness till their lives' end. + + + + +CHAPTER XV: ROBIN HOOD + + +Introduction + +England during the twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth centuries was +slowly taught the value of firm administrative government. In Saxon +England, the keeping of the peace and the maintenance of justice had +been left largely to private and family enterprise and to local and +trading communities. In Norman England, the royal authority was +asserted throughout the kingdom, though as yet the king had to depend +in large measure upon the co-operation of his barons and the help of +the burghers to supply the lack of a standing army and an adequate +police. Under the Plantagenets, the older chivalry was slowly breaking +up, and a new, wealthy burgher and trading community was rapidly +gaining influence in the land; whilst the clergy, corrupted by excess +of wealth and power, had strained, almost to breaking, the controlling +force of religion. It was therefore natural that in these latter days +a class of men should arise to avail themselves of the unique +opportunities of the time--men who, loving liberty and hating +oppression, took the law into their own hands and executed a rough and +ready justice between the rich and the poor which embodied the best +traditions of knight-errantry, whilst they themselves lived a free and +merry life on the tolls they exacted from their wealthy victims. Such +a man may well have been the original Robin Hood, a man who, when once +he had captured the popular imagination, soon acquired heroic +reputation and was credited with every daring deed and every +magnanimous action in two centuries of 'freebooting.' + + +Robin Hood Seeks a Guest + +At one time Robin Hood lived in the noble forest of Barnesdale, in +Yorkshire. He had but few of his merry men with him, for his +headquarters were in the glorious forest of Sherwood. Just now, +however, the Sheriff of Nottinghamshire was less active in his +endeavours to put down the band of outlaws, and the leader had +wandered farther north than usual. Robin's companions were his three +dearest comrades and most loyal followers, Little John (so called +because of his great stature), Will Scarlet, Robin's cousin, and Much, +the miller's son. These three were all devoted to their leader, and +never left his side, except at such times as he sent them away on his +business. + +On this day Robin was leaning against a tree, lost in thought, and his +three followers grew impatient; they knew that before dinner could be +served there were the three customary Masses to hear, and their leader +gave no sign of being ready for Mass. Robin always heard three Masses +before his dinner, one of the Father, one of the Holy Spirit, and the +last of Our Lady, who was his patron saint and protector. As the three +yeomen were growing hungry, Little John ventured to address him. +"Master, it would do you good if you would dine early to-day, for you +have fasted long." Robin aroused himself and smiled. "Ah, Little John, +methinks care for thine own appetite hath a share in that speech, as +well as care for me. But in sooth I care not to dine alone. I would +have a stranger guest, some abbot or bishop or baron, who would pay us +for our hospitality. I will not dine till a guest be found, and I +leave it to you three to find him." Robin turned away, laughing at the +crestfallen faces of his followers, who had not counted on such a +vague commission; but Little John, quickly recovering himself, called +to him: "Master, tell us, before we leave you, where we shall meet, +and what sort of people we are to capture and bring to you in the +greenwood." + + +The Outlaws' Rules + +"You know that already," said their master. "You are to do no harm to +women, nor to any company in which a woman is travelling; this is in +honour of our dear Lady. You are to be kind and gentle to husbandmen +and toilers of all degrees, to worthy knights and yeomen, to gallant +squires, and to all children and helpless people; but sheriffs +(especially him of Nottingham), bishops, and prelates of all kinds, +and usurers in Church and State, you may regard as your enemies, and +may rob, beat, and despoil in any way. Meet me with your guest at our +great trysting oak in the forest, and be speedy, for dinner must wait +until the visitor has arrived." "Now may God send us a suitable +traveller soon," said Little John, "for I am hungry for dinner now." +"So am I," said each of the others, and Robin laughed again. "Go ye +all three, with bows and arrows in hand, and I will stay alone at the +trysting tree and await your coming. As no man passes this way, you +can walk up to the willow plantation and take your stand on Watling +Street; there you will soon meet with likely travellers, and I will +accept the first who appears. I will find means to have dinner ready +against your return, and we will hope that our visitor's generosity +will compensate us for the trouble of cooking his dinner." + + +Robin Hood's Guest + +The three yeomen, taking their longbows in hand and arrows in their +belts, walked up through the willow plantation to a place on Watling +Street where another road crossed it; but there was no one in sight. +As they stood with bows in hand, looking towards the forest of +Barnesdale, they saw in the distance a knight riding in their +direction. As he drew nearer they were struck by his appearance, for +he rode as a man who had lost all interest in life; his clothes were +disordered, he looked neither to right nor left, but drooped his head +sadly, while one foot hung in the stirrup and the other dangled +slackly in the air. The yeomen had never seen so doleful a rider; but, +sad as he was, this was a visitor and must be taken to Robin; +accordingly Little John stepped forward and caught the horse by the +bridle. + +[Illustration: "Little John caught the horse by the bridle"] + + +Little John Escorts the Knight + +The knight raised his head and looked blankly at the outlaw, who at +once doffed his cap, saying, "Welcome, Sir Knight! I give you, on my +master's behalf, a hearty welcome to the greenwood. Gentle knight, +come now to my master, who hath waited three hours, fasting, for your +approach before he would dine. Dinner is prepared, and only tarries +your courteous appearance." The stranger knight seemed to consider +this address carefully, for he sighed deeply, and then said: "I cry +thee mercy, good fellow, for the delay, though I wot not how I am the +cause thereof. But who is thy master?" Little John replied: "My +master's name is Robin Hood, and I am sent to guide you to him." The +knight said: "So Robin Hood is thy leader? I have heard of him, and +know him to be a good yeoman; therefore I am ready to accompany thee, +though, in good sooth, I had intended to eat my midday meal at Blythe +or Doncaster to-day. But it matters little where a broken man dines!" + + +Robin Hood's Feast + +The three yeomen conducted the knight along the forest ways to the +trysting oak where Robin awaited them. As they went they observed +that the knight was weeping silently for some great distress, but +their courtesy forbade them to make any show of noticing his grief. +When the appointed spot was reached, Robin stepped forward and +courteously greeted his guest, with head uncovered and bended knee, +and welcomed him gladly to the wild greenwood. "Welcome, Sir Knight, +to our greenwood feast! I have waited three hours for a guest, and now +Our Lady has sent you to me we can dine, after we have heard Mass." +The knight said nothing but, "God save you, good Robin, and all your +merry men"; and then very devoutly they heard the three Masses, sung +by Friar Tuck. By this time others of the outlaw band had appeared, +having returned from various errands, and a gay company sat down to a +banquet as good as any the knight had ever eaten. + + +Robin Converses with the Knight + +There was abundance of good things--venison and game of all kinds, +swans and river-fowl and fish, with bread and good wine. Every one +seemed joyous, and merry jests went round that jovial company, till +even the careworn guest began to smile, and then to laugh outright. At +this Robin was well pleased, for he saw that his visitor was a good +man, and was glad to have lifted the burden of his care, even if only +for a few minutes; so he smiled cheerfully at the knight and said: "Be +merry, Sir Knight, I pray, and eat heartily of our food, for it is +with great goodwill that we offer it to you." "Thanks, good Robin," +replied the knight. "I have enjoyed my dinner to-day greatly; for +three weeks I have not had so good a meal. If I ever pass by this way +again I will do my best to repay you in kind; as good a dinner will I +try to provide as you have given me." + + +Robin Demands Payment + +The outlaw chief seemed to be affronted by this suggestion, and +replied, with a touch of pride in his manner: "Thanks for your +proffer, Sir Knight, but, by Heaven! no man has ever yet deemed me a +glutton. While I eat one dinner I am not accustomed to look eagerly +for another--one is enough for me. But as for you, my guest, I think +it only fitting that you should pay before you go; a yeoman was never +meant to pay for a knight's banquet." The knight blushed, and looked +confused for a moment, and then said: "True, Robin, and gladly would I +reward you for my entertainment, but I have no money worth offering; +even all I have would not be worthy of your acceptance, and I should +be shamed in your eyes, and those of your men." + +[Illustration: "I have no money worth offering"] + + +The Knight's Poverty + +"Is that the truth?" asked Robin, making a sign to Little John, who +arose, and, going to the knight's steed, unstrapped a small coffer, +which he brought back and placed before his master. "Search it, Little +John," said he, and "You, sir, tell me the very truth, by your honour +as a belted knight." "It is truth, on my honour, that I have but ten +shillings," replied the knight, "and if Little John searches he will +find no more." "Open the coffer," said Robin, and Little John took it +away to the other side of the trysting oak, where he emptied its +contents on his outspread cloak, and found exactly ten shillings. +Returning to his master, who sat at his ease, drinking and gaily +conversing with his anxious guest, Little John whispered: "The knight +has told the truth," and thereupon Robin exclaimed aloud: "Sir Knight, +I will not take one penny from you; you may rather borrow of me if +you have need of more money, for ten shillings is but a miserable sum +for a knight. But tell me now, if it be your pleasure, how you come to +be in such distress." As he looked inquiringly at the stranger, whose +blush had faded once, only to be renewed as he found his word of +honour doubted, he noticed how thin and threadbare were his clothes +and how worn his russet leather shoes; and he was grieved to see so +noble-seeming a man in such a plight. + + +The Knight's Story + +Yet Robin meant to fathom the cause of the knight's trouble, for then, +perhaps, he would be able to help him, so he continued pitilessly: +"Tell me just one word, which I will keep secret from all other men: +were you driven by compulsion to take up knighthood, or urged to beg +it by reason of the ownership of some small estate; or have you wasted +your old inheritance with fines for brawling and strife, or in +gambling and riotousness, or in borrowing at usury? All of these are +fatal to a good estate." + +The knight replied: "Alas! good Robin, none of these hath been my +undoing. My ancestors have all been knights for over a hundred years, +and I have not lived wastefully, but soberly and sparely. As short a +time ago as last year I had over four hundred pounds saved, which I +could spend freely among my neighbours, and my income was four hundred +pounds a year, from my land; but now my only possessions are my wife +and children. This is the work of God's hand, and to Him I commit me +to amend my estate in His own good time." + + +How the Money was Lost + +"But how have you so soon lost this great wealth?" asked Robin +incredulously; and the knight replied sadly: "Ah, Robin, you have no +son, or you would know that a father will give up all to save his +first-born. I have one gallant son, and when I went on the Crusade +with our noble Prince Edward I left him at home to guard my lands, for +he was twenty years old, and was a brave and comely youth. When I +returned, after two years' absence, it was to find him in great +danger, for in a public tournament he had slain in open fight a knight +of Lancashire and a bold young squire. He would have died a shameful +death had I not spent all my ready money and other property to save +him from prison, for his enemies were mighty and unjust; and even that +was not enough, for I was forced to mortgage my estates for more +money. All my land lies in pledge to the abbot of St. Mary's Abbey, in +York, and I have no hope to redeem it. I was riding to York when your +men found me." + + +The Sum Required + +"For what sum is your land pledged?" asked the master-outlaw; and the +knight replied: "The Abbot lent me four hundred pounds, though the +value of the land is far beyond that." "What will you do if you fail +to redeem your land?" asked Robin. "I shall leave England at once, and +journey once more to Jerusalem, and tread again the sacred Hill of +Calvary, and never more return to my native land. That will be my +fate, for I see no likelihood of repaying the loan, and I will not +stay to see strangers holding my father's land. Farewell, my friend +Robin, farewell to you all! Keep the ten shillings; I would have paid +more if I could, but that is the best I can give you." "Have you no +friends at home?" asked Robin; and the knight said: "Many friends I +thought I had, sir. They were very kind and helpful in my days of +prosperity, when I did not need them; now they will not know me, so +much has my poverty seemed to alter my face and appearance." + + +Robin Offers a Loan + +This pitiful story touched the hearts of the simple and kindly +outlaws; they wept for pity, and cared not to hide their tears from +each other, until Robin made them all pledge their guest in bumpers of +good red wine. Then their chief asked, as if continuing his own train +of thought: "Have you any friends who will act as sureties for the +repayment of the loan?" "None at all," replied the knight hopelessly, +"but God Himself, who suffered on the Tree for us." This last reply +angered Robin, who thought it savoured too much of companionship with +the fat and hypocritical monks whom he hated, and he retorted sharply: +"No such tricks for me! Do you think I will take such a surety, or +even one of the saints, in return for good solid gold? Get some more +substantial surety, or no gold shall you have from me. I cannot afford +to waste my money." + + +The Knight Offers Surety + +The knight replied, sighing heavily: "If you will not take these I +have no earthly surety to offer; and in Heaven there is only our dear +Lady. I have served her truly, and she has never failed me till now, +when her servant, the abbot, is playing me so cruel a trick." "Do you +give Our Lady as your surety?" said Robin Hood. "I would take her bond +for any sum, for throughout all England you could find no better +surety than our dear Lady, who has always been gracious to me. She is +enough security. Go, Little John, to my treasury and bring me four +hundred pounds, well counted, with no false or clipped coin therein." + + +Robin Hood's Gifts + +Little John, accompanied by Much, the careful treasurer of the band, +went quickly to the secret place where the master-outlaw kept his +gold. Very carefully they counted out the coins, testing each, to see +that it was of full weight and value. Then, on the suggestion of +Little John, they provided the knight with new clothing, even to boots +and spurs, and finally supplied him with two splendid horses, one for +riding and one to carry his baggage and the coffer of gold. + +The guest watched all these preparations with bewildered eyes, and +turned to Robin, crying, "Why have you done all this for me, a perfect +stranger?" "You are no stranger, but Our Lady's messenger. She sent +you to me, and Heaven grant you may prove true." + + +The Bond of Repayment + +"God grant it," echoed the knight. "But, Robin, when shall I repay +this loan, and where? Set me a day, and I will keep it." "Here," +replied the outlaw, "under this greenwood tree, and in a twelvemonth's +time; so will you have time to regain your friends and gather your +rents from your redeemed lands. Now farewell, Sir Knight; and since it +is not meet for a worthy knight to journey unattended, I will lend you +also my comrade, Little John, to be your squire, and to do you yeoman +service, if need be." The knight bade farewell to Robin and his +generous followers, and was turning to ride away, when he suddenly +stopped and addressed the master-outlaw: "In faith, good Robin, I had +forgotten one thing. You know not my name. I am Sir Richard of the +Lea, and my land lies in Uterysdale." "As for that," said Robin Hood, +"I trouble not myself. You are Our Lady's messenger; that is enough +for me." So Sir Richard rode gladly away, blessing the generous outlaw +who lent him money to redeem his land, and a stout yeoman to defend +the loan. + + +Sir Richard's Journey + +As the knight and his new servant rode on, Sir Richard called to his +man, saying, "I must by all means be in York to-morrow, to pay the +abbot of St. Mary's four hundred pounds; if I fail of my day I shall +lose my land and lordship for ever"; and Little John answered: "Fear +not, master; we will surely be there in time enough." Then they rode +on, and reached York early on the last day of the appointed time. + + +The Abbot and Prior of St. Mary's + +In the meantime the abbot of St. Mary's was counting that Sir +Richard's lands were safely his; he had no pity for the poor unlucky +knight, but rather exulted in the legal cruelty which he could +inflict. Very joyfully he called aloud, early that morn: "A +twelvemonth ago to-day we lent four hundred pounds to a needy knight, +Sir Richard of the Lea, and unless he comes by noon to-day to repay +the money he will lose all his land and be disinherited, and our abbey +will be the richer by a fat estate, worth four hundred pounds a year. +Our Lady grant that he keep not his day." "Shame on you!" cried the +prior. "This poor knight may be ill, or beyond the sea; he may be in +hunger and cold as well as poverty, and it will be a foul wrong if you +declare his land forfeit." + +"This is the set day," replied the abbot, "and he is not here." "You +dare not escheat his estates yet," replied the prior stubbornly. "It +is too early in the day; until noon the lands are still Sir Richard's, +and no man shall take them ere the clock strikes. Shame on your +conscience and your greed, to do a good knight such foul wrong! I +would willingly pay a hundred pounds myself to prevent it." + +"Beshrew your meddlesome temper!" cried the abbot. "You are always +crossing me! But I have with me the Lord Chief Justice, and he will +declare my legal right." Just at that moment the high cellarer of the +abbey entered to congratulate the abbot on Sir Richard's absence. "He +is dead or ill, and we shall have the spending of four hundred pounds +a year," quoth he. + + +Sir Richard Returns + +On his arrival Sir Richard had quietly gone round to his old tenants +in York, and had a goodly company of them ready to ride with him, but +he was minded to test the charity and true religion of the abbot, and +bade his followers assume pilgrims' robes. Thus attired, the company +rode to the abbey gate, where the porter recognised Sir Richard, and +the news of his coming, carried to the abbot and justice, caused them +great grief; but the prior rejoiced, hoping that a cruel injustice +would be prevented. As they dismounted the porter loudly called grooms +to lead the horses into the stable and have them relieved of their +burdens, but Sir Richard would not allow it, and left Little John to +watch over them at the abbey portal. + + +The Abbot and Sir Richard + +Then Sir Richard came humbly into the hall, where a great banquet was +in progress, and knelt down in courteous salutation to the abbot and +his guests; but the prelate, who had made up his mind what conduct to +adopt, greeted him coldly, and many men did not return his salutation +at all. Sir Richard spoke aloud: "Rejoice, Sir Abbot, for I am come to +keep my day." "That is well," replied the monk, "but hast thou brought +the money?" "No money have I, not one penny," continued Sir Richard +sadly. "Pledge me in good red wine, Sir Justice," cried the abbot +callously; "the land is mine. And what dost thou here, Sir Richard, a +broken man, with no money to pay thy debt?" "I am come to beg you to +grant me a longer time for repayment." "Not one minute past the +appointed hour," said the exultant prelate. "Thou hast broken pledge, +and thy land is forfeit." + +[Illustration: "Sir Richard knelt in courteous salutation"] + + +Sir Richard Implores the Justice + +Still kneeling, Sir Richard turned to the justice and said: "Good Sir +Justice, be my friend and plead for me." "No," he replied, "I hold to +the law, and can give thee no help." "Gentle abbot, have pity on me, +and let me have my land again, and I will be the humble servant of +your monastery till I have repaid in full your four hundred pounds." +Then the cruel prelate swore a terrible oath that never should the +knight have his land again, and no one in the hall would speak for +him, kneeling there poor, friendless, and alone; so at last he began +to threaten violence. "Unless I have my land again," quoth he, "some +of you here shall dearly abide it. Now may I see the poor man has no +friends, for none will stand by me in my need." + + +The Justice Suggests a Compromise + +The hint of violence made the abbot furiously angry, and, secure in +his position and the support of the justice, he shouted loudly: "Out, +thou false knight! Out of my hall!" Then at last Sir Richard rose to +his feet in just wrath. "Thou liest, Sir Abbot; foully thou liest! I +was never a false knight. In joust and tourney I have adventured as +far and as boldly as any man alive. There is no true courtesy in thee, +abbot, to suffer a knight to kneel so long." The quarrel now seemed so +serious that the justice intervened, saying to the angry prelate, +"What will you give me if I persuade him to sign a legal deed of +release? Without it you will never hold this land in peace." "You +shall have a hundred pounds for yourself," said the abbot, and the +justice nodded in token of assent. + + +Sir Richard Pays the Money + +Now Sir Richard thought it was time to drop the mask, for noon was +nigh, and he would not risk his land again. Accordingly he cried: +"Nay, but not so easily shall ye have my lands. Even if you were to +pay a thousand pounds more you should not hold my father's estate. +Have here your money back again"; and, calling for Little John, he +bade him bring into the hall his coffer with the bags inside. Then he +counted out on the table four hundred good golden pounds, and said +sternly: "Abbot, here is your money again. Had you but been courteous +to me I would have rewarded you well; now take your money, give me a +quittance, and I will take my lands once more. Ye are all witnesses +that I have kept my day and have paid in full." Thereupon Sir Richard +strode haughtily out of the hall, and rode home gladly to his +recovered lands in Uterysdale, where he and his family ever prayed for +Robin Hood. The abbot of St. Mary's was bitterly enraged, for he had +lost the fair lands of Sir Richard of the Lea and had received a bare +four hundred pounds again. As for Little John, he went back to the +forest and told his master the whole story, to Robin Hood's great +satisfaction, for he enjoyed the chance of thwarting the schemes of a +wealthy and usurious prelate. + + +Sir Richard Sets Out to Repay the Loan + +When a year had passed all but a few days, Sir Richard of the Lea said +to his wife: "Lady, I must shortly go to Barnesdale to repay Robin +Hood the loan which saved my lands, and would fain take him some small +gift in addition; what do you advise?" "Sir Richard, I would take a +hundred bows of Spanish yew and a hundred sheaves of arrows, +peacock-feathered, or grey-goose-feathered; methinks that will be to +Robin a most acceptable gift." + +Sir Richard followed his wife's advice, and on the morning of the +appointed day set out to keep his tryst at the outlaws' oak in +Barnesdale, with the money duly counted, and the bows and arrows for +his present to the outlaw chief. + + +The Wrestling + +As he rode, however, at the head of his troop he passed through a +village where there was a wrestling contest, which he stayed to watch. +He soon saw that the victorious wrestler, who was a stranger to the +village, would be defrauded of his well-earned prize, which consisted +of a white bull, a noble charger gaily caparisoned, a gold ring, a +pipe of wine, and a pair of embroidered gloves. This seemed so wrong +to Sir Richard that he stayed to defend the right, for love of Robin +Hood and of justice, and kept the wrestling ring in awe with his +well-appointed troop of men, so that the stranger was allowed to claim +his prize and carry it off. Sir Richard, anxious not to arouse the +hostility of the villagers, bought the pipe of wine from the winner, +and, setting it abroach, allowed all who would to drink; and so, in a +tumult of cheers and blessings, he rode away to keep his tryst. By +this time, however, it was nearly three in the afternoon, and he +should have been there at twelve. He comforted himself with the +thought that Robin would forgive the delay, for the sake of its cause, +and so rode on comfortably enough at the head of his gallant company. + + +Robin's Impatience + +In the meantime Robin had waited patiently at the trysting tree till +noon, but when the hour passed and Sir Richard had not appeared he +began to grow impatient. "Master, let us dine," said Little John. "I +cannot; I fear Our Lady is angered with me, for she has not sent me my +money," returned the leader; but his follower replied: "The money is +not due till sunset, master, and Our Lady is true, and so is Sir +Richard; have no fear." "Do you three walk up through the willow +plantation to Watling Street, as you did last year, and bring me a +guest," said Robin Hood. "He may be a messenger, a minstrel, a poor +man, but he will come in God's name." + + +The Monks Approach + +Again the three yeomen, Little John, Will Scarlet, and Much the +miller's son, took bow in hand and set out for Watling Street; but +this time they had not long to wait, for they at once saw a little +procession approaching. Two black monks rode at the head; then +followed seven sumpter-mules and a train of fifty-two men, so that the +clerics rode in almost royal state. "Seest thou yon monks?" said +Little John. "I will pledge my soul that they have brought our pay." +"But they are fifty-four, and we are but three," said Scarlet. "Unless +we bring them to dinner we dare not face our master," cried Little +John. "Look well to your bows, your strings and arrows, and have stout +hearts and steady hands. I will take the foremost monk, for life or +death." + + +The Capture of the Black Monk + +The three outlaws stepped out into the road from the shelter of the +wood; they bent their bows and held their arrows on the string, and +Little John cried aloud: "Stay, churlish monk, or thou goest to thy +death, and it will be on thine own head! Evil on thee for keeping our +master fasting so long." "Who is your master?" asked the bewildered +monk; and Little John replied: "Robin Hood." The monk tossed his head. +"He is a foul thief," cried he, "and will come to a bad end. I have +heard no good of him all my days." So speaking, he tried to ride +forward and trample down the three yeomen; but Little John cried: +"Thou liest, churlish monk, and thou shalt rue the lie. He is a good +yeoman of this forest, and has bidden thee to dine with him this day"; +and Much, drawing his bow, shot the monk to the heart, so that he fell +to the ground dead. The other black monk was taken, but all his +followers fled, except a little page, and a groom who tended the +sumpter-mules; and thus, with Little John's help and guidance, the +panic-stricken cleric and his train of baggage were brought to Robin +under the trysting tree. + +[Illustration: "Much shot the monk to the heart"] + + +The Outlaws' Feast + +Robin Hood doffed his cap and greeted his guest with all courtesy, but +the monk would not reply, and Little John's account of their meeting +made it evident that he was a churlish and unwilling guest. However, +he was obliged to celebrate the three usual Masses, was given water +for his ablutions before the banquet, and then when the whole +fellowship was assembled he was set in the place of honour at the +feast, and reverently served by Robin himself. "Be of good cheer, Sir +Monk," said Robin. "Where is your abbey when you are at home, and who +is your patron saint?" "I am of St. Mary's Abbey, in York, and, simple +though I be, I am the high cellarer." + + +The High Cellarer and the Suretyship + +"For Our Lady's sake," said Robin, "we will give this monk the best of +cheer. Drink to me, Sir Monk; the wine is good. But I fear Our Lady is +wroth with me, for she has not sent me my money." "Fear not, master," +returned Little John; "this monk is her cellarer, and no doubt she has +made him her messenger and he carries our money with him." "That is +likely," replied Robin. "Sir Monk, Our Lady was surety for a little +loan between a good knight and me, and to-day the money was to be +repaid. If you have brought it, pay it to me now, and I will thank you +heartily." The monk was quite amazed, and cried aloud: "I have never +heard of such a suretyship"; and as he spoke he looked so anxiously at +his sumpter-mules that Robin guessed there was gold in their +pack-saddles. + + +The Monk is Searched + +Accordingly the leader feigned sudden anger. "Sir Monk, how dare you +defame our dear Lady? She is always true and faithful, and as you say +you are her servant, no doubt she has made you her messenger to bring +my money. Tell me truly how much you have in your coffers, and I will +thank you for coming so punctually." The monk replied: "Sir, I have +only twenty marks in my bags"; to which Robin answered: "If that be +all, and you have told the truth I will not touch one penny; rather +will I lend you some if you need it; but if I find more, I will leave +none, Sir Monk, for a religious man should have no silver to spend in +luxury." Now the monk looked very greatly alarmed, but he dared make +no protest, as Little John began to search his bags and coffers. + + +Success of the Search + +When Little John opened the first coffer he emptied its contents, as +before, into his cloak, and counted eight hundred pounds, with which +he went to Robin Hood, saying, "Master, the monk has told the truth; +here are twenty marks of his own, and eight hundred pounds which Our +Lady has sent you in return for your loan." When Robin heard that he +cried to the miserable monk: "Did I not say so, monk? Is not Our Lady +the best surety a man could have? Has she not repaid me twice? Go back +to your abbey and say that if ever St. Mary's monks need a friend they +shall find one in Robin Hood." + + +The Monk Departs + +"Where were you journeying?" asked the outlaw leader. "To settle +accounts with the bailiffs of our manors," replied the cellarer; but +he was in truth journeying to London, to obtain powers from the king +against Sir Richard of the Lea. Robin thought for a moment, and then +said: "Ah, then we must search your other coffer," and in spite of the +cellarer's indignant protests he was deprived of all the money that +second coffer contained. Then he was allowed to depart, vowing +bitterly that a dinner in Blythe or Doncaster would have cost him much +less dear. + + +Sir Richard Arrives + +Late that afternoon Sir Richard of the Lea and his little company +arrived at the trysting tree, and full courteously the knight greeted +his deliverer and apologised for his delay. Robin asked of his +welfare, and the knight told of his protection of the poor wrestler, +for which Robin thanked him warmly. When he would fain have repaid the +loan the generous outlaw refused to accept the money, though he took +with hearty thanks the bows and arrows. In answer to the knight's +inquiries, Robin said that he had been paid the money twice over +before he came; and he told, to his debtor's great amusement, the +story of the high cellarer and his eight hundred pounds, and +concluded: "Our Lady owed me no more than four hundred pounds, and she +now gives you, by me, the other four hundred. Take them, with her +blessing, and if ever you need more come to Robin Hood." + +So Sir Richard returned to Uterysdale, and long continued to use his +power to protect the bold outlaws, and Robin Hood dwelt securely in +the greenwood, doing good to the poor and worthy, but acting as a +thorn in the sides of all oppressors and tyrants. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI: HEREWARD THE WAKE + + +Introduction + +In dealing with hero-legends and myths we are sometimes confronted +with the curious fact that a hero whose name and date can be +ascertained with exactitude has yet in his story mythological elements +which seem to belong to all the ages. This anomaly arises chiefly from +the fact that the imagination of a people is a myth-making thing, and +that the more truly popular the hero the more likely he is to become +the centre of a whole cycle of myths, which are in different ages +attached to the heroes of different periods. The folk-lore of +primitive races is a great storehouse whence a people can choose tales +and heroic deeds to glorify its own national hero, careless that the +same tales and deeds have done duty for other peoples and other +heroes. Hence it happens that Hereward the Saxon, a patriot hero as +real and actual as Wellington or Nelson, whose deeds were recorded in +prose and verse within forty years of his death, was even then +surrounded by a cloud of romance and mystery, which hid in vagueness +his family, his marriage, and even his death. + + +The Saxon Patriot + +Hereward was, naturally, the darling hero of the Saxons, and for the +patriotism of his splendid defence of Ely they forgave his final +surrender to William the Norman; then they attributed to him all the +virtues supposed to be inherent in the free-born, and all the glorious +valour on which the English prided themselves; and, lastly, they +surrounded his death with a halo of desperate fighting, and made his +last conflict as wonderful as that of Roland at Roncesvalles. If +Roland is the ideal of Norman feudal chivalry, Hereward is equally +the ideal of Anglo-Saxon sturdy manliness and knighthood, and it seems +fitting that the Saxon ideal in the individual should go down before +the representatives, however unworthy, of a higher ideal. + + +Leofric of Mercia + +When the weak but saintly King Edward the Confessor nominally ruled +all England the land was divided into four great earldoms, of which +Mercia and Kent were held by two powerful rivals. Leofric of Mercia +and Godwin of Kent were jealous not only for themselves, but for their +families, of each other's power and wealth, and the sons of Leofric +and of Godwin were ever at strife, though the two earls were now old +and prudent men, whose wars were fought with words and craft, not with +swords. The wives of the two great earls were as different as their +lords. The Lady Gytha, Godwin's wife, of the royal Danish race, was +fierce and haughty, a fit helpmeet for the ambitious earl who was to +undermine the strength of England by his efforts to win kingly power +for his children. But the Lady Godiva, Leofric's beloved wife, was a +gentle, pious, loving woman, who had already won an almost saintly +reputation for sympathy and pity by her sacrifice to save her +husband's oppressed citizens at Coventry, where her pleading won +relief for them from the harsh earl on the pitiless condition of her +never-forgotten ride. Happily her gentle self-suppression awoke a +nobler spirit in her husband, and enabled him to play a worthier part +in England's history. She was in entire sympathy with the religious +aspirations of Edward the Confessor, and would gladly have seen one of +her sons become a monk, perhaps to win spiritual power and a saintly +reputation like those of the great Dunstan. + +[Illustration: "Her pleading won relief for them"] + + +Hereward's Youth + +For this holy vocation she fixed on her second son, Hereward, a wild, +wayward lad, with long golden curls, eyes of different colours, one +grey, one blue, great breadth and strength of limb, and a wild and +ungovernable temper which made him difficult of control. This reckless +lad the Lady Godiva vainly tried to educate for the monkish life, but +he utterly refused to adopt her scheme, would not master any but the +barest rudiments of learning, and spent his time in wrestling, boxing, +fighting and all manly exercises. Despairing of making him an +ecclesiastic, his mother set herself to inspire him with a noble ideal +of knighthood, but his wildness and recklessness increased with his +years, and often his mother had to stand between the riotous lad and +his father's deserved anger. + + +His Strength and Leadership + +When he reached the age of sixteen or seventeen he became the terror +of the Fen Country, for at his father's Hall of Bourne he gathered a +band of youths as wild and reckless as himself, who accepted him for +their leader, and obeyed him implicitly, however outrageous were his +commands. The wise Earl Leofric, who was much at court with the +saintly king, understood little of the nature of his second son, and +looked upon his wild deeds as evidence of a cruel and lawless mind, a +menace to the peace of England, while they were in reality but the +tokens of a restless energy for which the comparatively peaceable life +of England at that time was all too dull and tame. + + +Leofric and Hereward + +Frequent were the disputes between father and son, and sadly did Lady +Godiva forebode an evil ending to the clash of warring natures +whenever Hereward and his father met; yet she could do nothing to +avert disaster, for though her entreaties would soften the lad into +penitence for some mad prank or reckless outrage, one hint of cold +blame from his father would suffice to make him hardened and +impenitent; and so things drifted from bad to worse. In all Hereward's +lawless deeds, however, there was no meanness or crafty malice. He +hated monks and played many a rough trick upon them, but took his +punishment, when it came, with equable cheerfulness; he robbed +merchants with a high hand, but made reparation liberally, counting +himself well satisfied with the fun of a fight or the skill of a +clever trick; his band of youths met and fought other bands, but they +bore no malice when the strife was over. In one point only was +Hereward less than true to his own nobility of character--he was +jealous of admitting that any man was his superior in strength or +comeliness, and his vanity was well supported by his extraordinary +might and beauty. + + +Hereward at Court + +The deeds which brought Earl Leofric's wrath upon his son in a +terrible fashion were not matters of wanton wickedness, but of lawless +personal violence. Called to attend his father to the Confessor's +court, the youth, who had little respect for one so unwarlike as "the +miracle-monger," uttered his contempt for saintly king, Norman +prelate, and studious monks too loudly, and thereby shocked the weakly +devout Edward, who thought piety the whole duty of man. But his +wildness touched the king more nearly still; for in his sturdy +patriotism he hated the Norman favourites and courtiers who surrounded +the Confessor, and again and again his marvellous strength was shown +in the personal injuries he inflicted on the Normans in mere boyish +brawls, until at last his father could endure the disgrace no longer. + + +Hereward's Exile + +Begging an audience of the king, Leofric formally asked for a writ of +outlawry against his own son. The Confessor, surprised, but not +displeased, felt some compunction as he saw the father's affection +overborne by the judge's severity. Earl Godwin, Leofric's greatest +rival, was present in the council, and his pleading for the noble lad, +whose faults were only those of youth, was sufficient to make Leofric +more urgent in his petition. The curse of family feud, which +afterwards laid England prostrate at the foot of the Conqueror, was +already felt, and felt so strongly that Hereward resented Godwin's +intercession more than his father's sternness. + + +Hereward's Farewell + +"What!" he cried, "shall a son of Leofric, the noblest man in England, +accept intercession from Godwin or any of his family? No. I may be +unworthy of my wise father and my saintly mother, but I am not yet +sunk so low as to ask a favour from a Godwin. Father, I thank you. For +years I have fretted against the peace of the land, and thus have +incurred your displeasure; but in exile I may range abroad and win my +fortune at the sword's point." "Win thy fortune, foolish boy!" said +his father. "And whither wilt thou fare?" "Wherever fate and my +fortune lead me," he replied recklessly. "Perhaps to join Harald +Hardrada at Constantinople and become one of the Emperor's Varangian +Guard; perhaps to follow old Beowa out into the West, at the end of +some day of glorious battle; perhaps to fight giants and dragons and +all kinds of monsters. All these things I may do, but never shall +Mercia see me again till England calls me home. Farewell, father; +farewell, Earl Godwin; farewell, reverend king. I go. And pray ye that +ye may never need my arm, for it may hap that ye will call me and I +will not come." Then Hereward rode away, followed into exile by one +man only, Martin Lightfoot, who left the father's service for that of +his outlawed son. It was when attending the king's court on this +occasion that Hereward first saw and felt the charm of a lovely little +Saxon maiden named Alftruda, a ward of the pious king. + + +Hereward in Northumbria + +Though the king's writ of outlawry might run in Mercia, it did not +carry more than nominal weight in Northumbria, where Earl Siward ruled +almost as an independent lord. Thither Hereward determined to go, for +there dwelt his own godfather, Gilbert of Ghent, and his castle was +known as a good training school for young aspirants for knighthood. +Sailing from Dover, Hereward landed at Whitby, and made his way to +Gilbert's castle, where he was well received, since the cunning +Fleming knew that an outlawry could be reversed at any time, and +Leofric's son might yet come to rule England. Accordingly Hereward was +enrolled in the number of young men, mainly Normans or Flemings, who +were seeking to perfect themselves in chivalry before taking +knighthood. He soon showed himself a brave warrior, an unequalled +wrestler, and a wary fighter, and soon no one cared to meddle with the +young Mercian, who outdid them all in manly sports. The envy of the +young Normans was held in check by Gilbert, and by a wholesome dread +of Hereward's strong arm; until, in Gilbert's absence, an incident +occurred which placed the young exile on a pinnacle so far above them +that only by his death could they hope to rid themselves of their +feeling of inferiority. + + +The Fairy Bear + +Gilbert kept in his castle court an immense white Polar bear, dreaded +by all for its enormous strength, and called the Fairy Bear. It was +even believed that the huge beast had some kinship to old Earl Siward, +who bore a bear upon his crest, and was reputed to have had something +of bear-like ferocity in his youth. This white bear was so much +dreaded that he was kept chained up in a strong cage. One morning as +Hereward was returning with Martin from his morning ride he heard +shouts and shrieks from the castle yard, and, reaching the great gate, +entered lightly and closed it behind him rapidly, for there outside +the shattered cage, with broken chain dangling, stood the Fairy Bear, +glaring savagely round the courtyard. But one human figure was in +sight, that of a girl of about twelve years of age. + + +Hereward Slays the Bear + +There were sounds of men's voices and women's shrieks from within the +castle, but the doors were fast barred, while the maid, in her terror, +beat on the portal with her palms, and begged them, for the love of +God, to let her in. The cowards, refused, and in the meantime the +great bear, irritated by the dangling chain, made a rush towards the +child. Hereward dashed forward, shouting to distract the bear, and +just managed to stop his charge at the girl. The savage animal turned +on the new-comer, who needed all his agility to escape the monster's +terrible onset. Seizing his battle-axe, the youth swung it around +his head and split the skull of the furious beast, which fell dead. It +was a blow so mighty that even Hereward himself was surprised at its +deadly effect, and approached cautiously to examine his victim. In the +meantime the little girl, who proved to be no other than the king's +ward, Alftruda, had watched with fascinated eyes first the approach of +the monster, and then, as she crouched in terror, its sudden +slaughter; and now she summoned up courage to run to Hereward, who had +always been kind to the pretty child, and to fling herself into his +arms. "Kind Hereward," she whispered, "you have saved me and killed +the bear. I love you for it, and I must give you a kiss, for my dame +says so do all ladies that choose good knights to be their champions. +Will you be mine?" As she spoke she kissed Hereward again and again. + +[Illustration: Alftruda] + + +Hereward's Trick on the Knights + +"Where have they all gone, little one?" asked the young noble; and +Alftruda replied: "We were all out here in the courtyard watching the +young men at their exercises, when we heard a crash and a roar, and +the cage burst open, and we saw the dreadful Fairy Bear. They all ran, +the ladies and knights, but I was the last, and they were so +frightened that they shut themselves in and left me outside; and when +I beat at the door and prayed them to let me in they would not, and I +thought the bear would eat me, till you came." + +"The cowards!" cried Hereward. "And they think themselves worthy of +knighthood when they will save their own lives and leave a child in +danger! They must be taught a lesson. Martin, come hither and aid me." +When Martin came, the two, with infinite trouble, raised the carcase +of the monstrous beast, and placed it just where the bower door, +opening, would show it at once. Then Hereward bade Alftruda call to +the knights in the bower that all was safe and they could come out, +for the bear would not hurt them. He and Martin, listening, heard with +great glee the bitter debate within the bower as to who should risk +his life to open the door, the many excuses given for refusal, the +mischievous fun in Alftruda's voice as she begged some one to open to +her, and, best of all, the cry of horror with which the knight who had +ventured to draw the bolt shut the door again on seeing the Fairy Bear +waiting to enter. Hereward even carried his trick so far as to thrust +the bear heavily against the bower door, making all the people within +shriek and implore the protection of the saints. Finally, when he was +tired of the jest, he convinced the valiant knights that they might +emerge safely from their retirement, and showed how he, a stripling of +seventeen, had slain the monster at one blow. From that time Hereward +was the darling of the whole castle, petted, praised, beloved by all +its inmates, except his jealous rivals. + + +Hereward Leaves Northumbria + +The foreign knights grew so jealous of the Saxon youth, and so restive +under his shafts of sarcastic ridicule, that they planned several +times to kill him, and once or twice nearly succeeded. This +insecurity, and a feeling that perhaps Earl Siward had some kinship +with the Fairy Bear, and would wish to avenge his death, made Hereward +decide to quit Gilbert's castle. The spirit of adventure was strong +upon him, the sea seemed to call him; now that he had been +acknowledged superior to the other noble youths in Gilbert's +household, the castle no longer afforded a field for his ambition. +Accordingly he took a sad leave of Alftruda, an affectionate one of +Sir Gilbert, who wished to knight him for his brave deed, and a +mocking one of his angry and unsuccessful foes. + + +Hereward in Cornwall + +Entering into a merchant-ship, he sailed for Cornwall, and there was +taken to the court of King Alef, a petty British chief, who, on true +patriarchal lines, disposed of his children as he would, and had +betrothed his fair daughter to a terrible Pictish giant, breaking off, +in order to do it, her troth-plight with Prince Sigtryg of Waterford, +son of a Danish king in Ireland. Hereward was ever chivalrous, and +little Alftruda had made him feel pitiful to all maidens. Seeing +speedily how the princess loathed her new betrothed, a hideous, +misshapen wretch, nearly eight feet high, he determined to slay him. +With great deliberation he picked a quarrel with the giant, and killed +him the next day in fair fight; but King Alef was driven by the +threats of the vengeful Pictish tribe to throw Hereward and his man +Martin into prison, promising trial and punishment on the morrow. + + +Hereward Released from Prison + +To the young Saxon's surprise, the released princess appeared to be as +grieved and as revengeful as any follower of the Pictish giant, and +she not only advocated prison and death the next day, but herself +superintended the tying of the thongs that bound the two strangers. +When they were left to their lonely confinement Hereward began to +blame the princess for hypocrisy, and to protest the impossibility of +a man's ever knowing what a woman wants. "Who would have thought," he +cried, "that that beautiful maiden loved a giant so hideous as this +Pict? Had I known, I would never have fought him, but her eyes said +to me, 'Kill him,' and I have done so; this is how she rewards me!" +"No," replied Martin, "this is how"; and he cut Hereward's bonds, +laughing silently to himself. "Master, you were so indignant with the +lady that you could not make allowances for her. I knew that she must +pretend to grieve, for her father's sake, and when she came to test +our bonds I was sure of it, for as she fingered a knot she slipped a +knife into my hands, and bade me use it. Now we are free from our +bonds, and must try to escape from our prison." + + +The Princess Visits the Captives + +In vain, however, the master and man ranged round the room in which +they were confined; it was a tiny chapel, with walls and doors of +great thickness, and violently as Hereward exerted himself, he could +make no impression on either walls or door, and, sitting sullenly down +on the altar steps, he asked Martin what good was freedom from bonds +in a secure prison. "Much, every way," replied the servant; "at least +we die with free hands; and I, for my part, am content to trust that +the princess has some good plan, if we will only be ready." While he +was speaking they heard footsteps just outside the door, and the sound +of a key being inserted into the lock. Hereward beckoned silently to +Martin, and the two stood ready, one at each side of the door, to make +a dash for freedom, and Martin was prepared to slay any who should +hinder. To their great surprise, the princess entered, accompanied by +an old priest bearing a lantern, which he set down on the altar step, +and then the princess turned to Hereward, crying, "Pardon me, my +deliverer!" The Saxon was still aggrieved and bewildered, and replied: +"Do you now say 'deliverer'? This afternoon it was 'murderer, +villain, cut-throat.' How shall I know which is your real mind?" The +princess almost laughed as she said: "How stupid men are! What could I +do but pretend to hate you, since otherwise the Picts would have slain +you then and us all afterwards, but I claimed you as my victims, and +you have been given to me. How else could I have come here to-night? +Now tell me, if I set you free will you swear to carry a message for +me?" + +[Illustration: Hereward and the Princess] + + +Sigtryg Ranaldsson of Waterford + +"Whither shall I go, lady, and what shall I say?" asked Hereward. +"Take this ring, my ring of betrothal, and go to Prince Sigtryg, son +of King Ranald of Waterford. Say to him that I am beset on every side, +and beg him to come and claim me as his bride; otherwise I fear I may +be forced to marry some man of my father's choosing, as I was being +driven to wed the Pictish giant. From him you have rescued me, and I +thank you; but if my betrothed delays his coming it may be too late, +for there are other hateful suitors who would make my father bestow my +hand upon one of them. Beg him to come with all speed." "Lady, I will +go now," said Hereward, "if you will set me free from this vault." + + +Hereward Binds the Princess + +"Go quickly, and safely," said the princess; "but ere you go you have +one duty to fulfil: you must bind me hand and foot, and fling me, with +this old priest, on the ground." "Never," said Hereward, "will I bind +a woman; it were foul disgrace to me for ever." But Martin only +laughed, and the maiden said again: "How stupid men are! I must +pretend to have been overpowered by you, or I shall be accused of +having freed you, but I will say that I came hither to question you, +and you and your man set on me and the priest, bound us, took the key, +and so escaped. So shall you be free, and I shall have no blame, and +my father no danger; and may Heaven forgive the lie." + +Hereward reluctantly agreed, and, with Martin's help, bound the two +hand and foot and laid them before the altar; then, kissing the +maiden's hand, and swearing loyalty and truth, he turned to depart. +But the princess had one question to ask. "Who are you, noble +stranger, so gallant and strong? I would fain know for whom to pray." +"I am Hereward Leofricsson, and my father is the Earl of Mercia." "Are +you that Hereward who slew the Fairy Bear? Little wonder is it that +you have slain my monster and set me free." Then master and man left +the chapel, after carefully turning the key in the lock. Making their +way to the shore, they succeeded in getting a ship to carry them to +Ireland, and in course of time reached Waterford. + + +Prince Sigtryg + +The Danish kingdom of Waterford was ruled by King Ranald, whose only +son, Sigtryg, was about Hereward's age, and was as noble-looking a +youth as the Saxon hero. The king was at a feast, and Hereward, +entering the hall with the captain of the vessel, sat down at one of +the lower tables; but he was not one of those who can pass unnoticed. +The prince saw him, distinguished at once his noble bearing, and asked +him to come to the king's own table. He gladly obeyed, and as he drank +to the prince and their goblets touched together he contrived to drop +the ring from the Cornish princess into Sigtryg's cup. The prince saw +and recognised it as he drained his cup, and, watching his +opportunity, left the hall, and was soon followed by his guest. + + +Hereward and Sigtryg + +Outside in the darkness Sigtryg turned hurriedly to Hereward, saying, +"You bring me a message from my betrothed?" "Yes, if you are that +Prince Sigtryg to whom the Princess of Cornwall was affianced." "Was +affianced! What do you mean? She is still my lady and my love." "Yet +you leave her there unaided, while her father gives her in marriage to +a hideous giant of a Pict, breaking her betrothal, and driving the +hapless maiden to despair. What kind of love is yours?" Hereward said +nothing yet about his own slaying of the giant, because he wished to +test Prince Sigtryg's sincerity, and he was satisfied, for the prince +burst out: "Would to God that I had gone to her before! but my father +needed my help against foreign invaders and native rebels. I will go +immediately and save my lady or die with her!" "No need of that, for I +killed that giant," said Hereward coolly, and Sigtryg embraced him in +joy and they swore blood-brotherhood together. Then he asked: "What +message do you bring me, and what means her ring?" The other replied +by repeating the Cornish maiden's words, and urging him to start at +once if he would save his betrothed from some other hateful marriage. + + +Return to Cornwall + +The prince went at once to his father, told him the whole story, and +obtained a ship and men to journey to Cornwall and rescue the +princess; then, with Hereward by his side, he set sail, and soon +landed in Cornwall, hoping to obtain his bride peaceably. To his grief +he learnt that the princess had just been betrothed to a wild Cornish +leader, Haco, and the wedding feast was to be held that very day. +Sigtryg was greatly enraged, and sent a troop of forty Danes to King +Alef demanding the fulfilment of the troth-plight between himself and +his daughter, and threatening vengeance if it were broken. To this +threat the king returned no answer, and no Dane came back to tell of +their reception. + +[Illustration: Hereward and Sigtryg] + + +Hereward in the Enemy's Hall + +Sigtryg would have waited till morning, trusting in the honour of the +king, but Hereward disguised himself as a minstrel and obtained +admission to the bridal feast, where he soon won applause by his +beautiful singing. The bridegroom, Haco, in a rapture offered him any +boon he liked to ask, but he demanded only a cup of wine from the +hands of the bride. When she brought it to him he flung into the empty +cup the betrothal ring, the token she had sent to Sigtryg, and said: +"I thank thee, lady, and would reward thee for thy gentleness to a +wandering minstrel; I give back the cup, richer than before by the +kind thoughts of which it bears the token." The princess looked at +him, gazed into the goblet, and saw her ring; then, looking again, she +recognised her deliverer and knew that rescue was at hand. + + +Haco's Plan + +While men feasted Hereward listened and talked, and found out that the +forty Danes were prisoners, to be released on the morrow when Haco was +sure of his bride, but released useless and miserable, since they +would be turned adrift blinded. Haco was taking his lovely bride back +to his own land, and Hereward saw that any rescue, to be successful, +must be attempted on the march. Yet he knew not the way the bridal +company would go, and he lay down to sleep in the hall, hoping that +he might hear something more. When all men slept a dark shape came +gliding through the hall and touched Hereward on the shoulder; he +slept lightly, and awoke at once to recognise the old nurse of the +princess. "Come to her now," the old woman whispered, and Hereward +went, though he knew not that the princess was still true to her +lover. In her bower, which she was soon to leave, Haco's sorrowful +bride awaited the messenger. + + +Rescue for Haco's Bride + +Sadly she smiled on the young Saxon as she said: "I knew your face +again in spite of the disguise, but you come too late. Bear my +farewell to Sigtryg, and say that my father's will, not mine, makes me +false to my troth-plight." "Have you not been told, lady, that he is +here?" asked Hereward. "Here?" the princess cried. "I have not heard. +He loves me still and has not forsaken me?" "No, lady, he is too true +a lover for falsehood. He sent forty Danes yesterday to demand you of +your father and threaten his wrath if he refused." "And I knew not of +it," said the princess softly; "yet I had heard that Haco had taken +some prisoners, whom he means to blind." "Those are our messengers, +and your future subjects," said Hereward. "Help me to save them and +you. Do you know Haco's plans?" "Only this, that he will march +to-morrow along the river, and where the ravine is darkest and forms +the boundary between his kingdom and my father's the prisoners are to +be blinded and released." "Is it far hence?" "Three miles to the +eastward of this hall," she replied. "We will be there. Have no fear, +lady, whatever you may see, but be bold and look for your lover in the +fight." So saying, Hereward kissed the hand of the princess, and +passed out of the hall unperceived by any one. + + +The Ambush + +Returning to Sigtryg, the young Saxon told all that he had learnt, and +the Danes planned an ambush in the ravine where Haco had decided to +blind and set free his captives. All was in readiness, and side by +side Hereward and Sigtryg were watching the pathway from their covert, +when the sound of horses' hoofs heard on the rocks reduced them to +silence. The bridal procession came in strange array: first the Danish +prisoners bound each between two Cornishmen, then Haco and his unhappy +bride, and last a great throng of Cornishmen. Hereward had taken +command, that Sigtryg might look to the safety of his lady, and his +plan was simplicity itself. The Danes were to wait till their +comrades, with their guards, had passed through the ravine; then while +the leader engaged Haco, and Sigtryg looked to the safety of the +princess, the Danes would release the prisoners and slay every +Cornishman, and the two parties of Danes, uniting their forces, would +restore order to the land and destroy the followers of Haco. + + +Success + +The whole was carried out exactly as Hereward had planned. The +Cornishmen, with Danish captives, passed first without attack; next +came Haco, riding grim and ferocious beside his silent bride, he +exulting in his success, she looking eagerly for any signs of rescue. +As they passed Hereward sprang from his shelter, crying, "Upon them, +Danes, and set your brethren free!" and himself struck down Haco and +smote off his head. There was a short struggle, but soon the rescued +Danes were able to aid their deliverers, and the Cornish guards were +all slain; the men of King Alef, never very zealous for the cause of +Haco, fled, and the Danes were left masters of the field. Sigtryg had +in the meantime seen to the safety of the princess, and now placing +her between himself and Hereward, he escorted her to the ship, which +soon brought them to Waterford and a happy bridal. The Prince and +Princess of Waterford always recognised in Hereward their deliverer +and best friend, and in their gratitude wished him to dwell with them +always; but he knew "how hard a thing it is to look into happiness +through another man's eyes," and would not stay. His roving and daring +temper drove him to deeds of arms in other lands, where he won a +renown second to none, but he always felt glad in his own heart, even +in later days, when unfaithfulness to a woman was the one great sin of +his life, that his first feats of arms had been wrought to rescue two +maidens from their hapless fate, and that he was rightly known as +Hereward the Saxon, the Champion of Women. + + + + +GLOSSARY AND INDEX + + +In the following Index no attempt is made to indicate the exact +pronunciation of foreign names; but in the case of those from the +Anglo-Saxon a rough approximation is given, as being often essential +to the reading of the metrical versions. In these indications the +letters have their ordinary English values; ĕ indicates the very +light, obscure sound heard in the indefinite article in such a phrase +as "with a rush." + + +A + + ABLOEC. See Anlaf + + ACHILLES. His sulks, 184; + Cuchulain, "the Irish," 184 + + ADEON. Son of Eudav; grandson of Caradoc, 49 + + AGE. See Golden Age + + AILILL. King of Connaught, husband of Queen Meave; to decide claims + to title of Chief Champion, 189; + seeks aid of Fairy People of the Hills, 193 + + AILMAR. King of Westernesse, 290; + welcomes and adopts Childe Horn, 291; + Princess Rymenhild, daughter of, 292; + dubs Horn knight, 297; + hears of Horn's first exploit, 299; + Fikenhild betrays Horn and Rymenhild to, 300; + Horn returns to, 304; + reluctantly gives his daughter to Horn, 308; + Horn leaves Rymenhild to his care, 308, 309 + + AIX-LA-CHAPELLE. Wondrous springs of, 125; + Charlemagne at, 155 + + ALEF. King of Cornwall; Hereward at court of, 343; + casts Hereward into prison, 343; + his daughter releases Hereward, 344, 345; + Sigtryg sends forty Danes to, 348 + + ALFTRUDA. Ward of Edward the Confessor, 339; + Hereward's first meeting with, 339; + rescues from Fairy Bear, 340, 341; + Hereward takes farewell of, 342 + + ALICE OF CLOUDESLEE. Wife of William of Cloudeslee, 227; + outlaw husband visits, 227, 228; + rescued from burning house, 232; + thanks Adam Bell and Clym for delivering her husband, 240; + appointed chief woman of bedchamber to the royal children, 246 + + ALL-FATHER. Praised for Beowulf's victory over Grendel, 18 + + ALTO-BIS-CA´R. Song of (a forgery), 120 + + ANGLESEY. Same as Mona, 47 + + ANGLO-SAXON NOBILITY. Hereward the ideal of, 334, 335 + + ANGLO-SAXON TIMES. Legends regarding Constantine during, 42 + + ÆNGUS THE EVER-YOUNG. Irish people and wrath of, 158 + + ANLAF. Same as Olaf, or Sihtricson; known to Welsh as Abloec or + Habloc; romantic stories concerning, 73 + + ANSEIS, DUKE OF. Mortally wounded, 143 + + ARABIA. Physicians from, with remedies for Constantine's leprosy, 65 + + ARMAGH. Capital of Ulster; Cuchulain and Emer dwell at, 186; + King Conor and heroes return to, 190; + heroes return to, 195 + + ARNOLDIN, SIR. Cousin of Athulf; helps to save Rymenhild, 312; + King Ailmar nominates as his heir, 313 + + ARTHUR, KING. Uncle of Sir Gawayne, 265; + Christmas kept at Carlisle by, 266; + Guenever, queen of, 266; + uncle of Sir Gareth and Sir Mordred, 266; + damsel requests a boon of, 267; + his journey to Tarn Wathelan, and fight with giant, 269; + humiliated by the giant and released on certain conditions, 270; + his search for the answer to the giant's question, 270-272; + learns it from the loathly lady, 272; + the ransom paid to giant, 273; + the loathly lady demands a young and handsome knight for husband + for helping, 274; + Sir Gawayne offers to pay ransom for, 275; + summons court to hunt in greenwood near Tarn Wathelan, 276; + rebukes Sir Kay, 277; + his joy over his nephew's wedding with the supposed loathly lady, + 284, 285 + + ARTHURIAN LEGEND. Preserved by mediæval Wales, 265 + + ARVON. Fertile land of, searched by ambassadors of Maxen Wledig, + 47-49 + + ASBRAND. Brother of Biargey, 113; + helps Howard against Thorbiorn, 115 + + ASCHERE (ask-herĕ). One of King Hrothgar's thanes, carried off by + Grendel's mother, 21 + + ATHELBRUS. King Ailmar's steward, to train Childe Horn to be a + knight, 291, 292; + induces Athulf to personate Horn, 293; + sends Horn to Princess Rymenhild, 294; + land of King Modi committed to care of, 313 + + ATHELSTAN. King of England; kinship of Anlaf with, 73 + + ATHELWOLD. King of England, father of Goldborough, 80; + his death and burial, 81 + + ATHULF. Horn's favourite companion, 287; + personates Horn before Rymenhild, 293; + writes to Horn on behalf of Rymenhild, 303; + plans with Horn the rescue of Rymenhild, 308; + his father found at Suddene, 309, 310; + weds Reynild, 313 + + AUDE THE FAIR. Sister of Oliver, betrothed bride of Roland, 155; + Charlemagne promises his son Louis to, 155; + dies of grief for Roland's loss, 155 + + AUGUSTUS. Constantine's elevation to rank of, 64 + + AWE, LOCH. Black Colin, Knight of, 249, 250; + Black Colin dwells at, with wife, 250; + Lady of, 251; + Black Colin far away from, 254; + Black Colin's return to, 258 + + +B + + BABYLON, EMIR OF. Marsile's vassal; defeated by Charlemagne, 154 + + BALTIC SEA. Forefathers who dwelt on shores of, 1 + + BANIER, SIR. A Knight of the Round Table, 266 + + BARNESDALE. Forest in South Yorkshire, once dwelling-place of Robin + Hood, 314, 315; + Sir Richard of the Lea sets out for, to repay loan, 328 + + BARTON, SIR ANDREW. Scottish hero, 248 + + BASQUES. Attack Charlemagne, 119 + + BATHSTEAD. Place on shores of Icefirth near where Thorbiorn lived, + 97-118 + + BEAN-STAN. Father of Breca, 12 + + BEDIVERE, SIR. A Knight of the Round Table, 266 + + BELI. Son of Manogan; Britain conquered by Maxen Wledig from, 48 + + BELL, ADAM. Outlaw leader in forest of Englewood, 226; + declared powerless to deliver William of Cloudeslee, 233; + rescues William from death, 237, 238; + visit to London to see the king, 241; + the king pardons, 243 + + BEO´WA. Stories of, crystallised in stories of Beowulf, 1 + + BEO´WULF. + 1. The poem of, 1. + 2. Thane of Hygelac, King of Geats, 1; + son of Ecgtheow, 6; + nephew of King Hygelac, 6; + grandson of Hrethel, 6; + brought up at Geatish court, 6; + famous swimming match with Breca, 6; + his mighty hand-grip, 6; + sails for Denmark to attack Grendel, 6; + challenged by Warden of Denmark, 6; + declares his mission to Hrothgar, 10; + disparaged by Hunferth, 12; + honoured by Queen Wealhtheow, 14, 20; + struggles with Grendel, 16; + mortally wounds Grendel, 17; + vows to slay mother of Grendel, 23; + does so, 26; + carries off sword-hilt and Grendel's head, 26; + sails to Geatland, 29; + welcomed by King Hygelac and Queen Hygd, 29, 30; + chief champion of Hygelac, 30; + refuses the throne in favour of Heardred, and becomes guardian + of, 31; + again chosen King of Geatland, 31; + encounters with fire-dragon, 31-39; + recites slaying of Frankish warrior, Daghrefn, 35; + forsaken by Geats in his encounter with the fire-dragon, 36; + slays the dragon, 37; + his death and funeral, 39-41 + + BERILD. Son of King Thurston, 301; + slain by the Saracens, 302 + + BERNARD BROWN. Danish magistrate; protects Havelok and Goldborough, + 88-89 + + BER-NA´R-DO DEL CA´R-PIO. Hero in Spanish legend who defeats Roland, + 121 + + BERTRAM. Earl's cook who befriended Havelok, 82-83; + marries one of Grim's daughters and becomes Earl of Cornwall, 94 + + BIARGEY. Wife of Howard the Halt, 97; + urges Howard to claim wergild for Olaf, 106, 107, 108; + Howard returns to, 111; + visits her brothers, Valbrand, Thorbrand, and Asbrand, 112, 113; + hails Thorbiorn while out fishing, 112; + urges Howard to seek vengeance, 113, 114 + + BIRKABEYN. Rule of, as king over Denmark, 74; + Swanborow and Elfleda, daughters of, and Havelok, son of, 74; + commits Havelok to care of Jarl Godard, 75; + death and funeral of, 75; + Jarl Ubbe, an old friend of, 87 + + BLACK COLIN OF LOCH AWE, 249; + son of Sir Nigel Campbell, 249; + Patterson, name of foster-parents, 250; + messenger tells of new crusade, 250; + decides to go on crusade, 251; + his wife's grief, 251; + touches at Edinburgh and ships at Leith, _en route_ to Holy Land, + 253; + his desire to see Holy Land and Holy Sepulchre, 253; + reaches Rome, 253; + sees Pope, 253; + regards Pope as Vicar of Christ, 253; + journeys to Rhodes, 253; + takes service with Knights of St. John, 253; + a pilgrim at Jerusalem, 253; + letter in name of, forged by Baron MacCorquodale, 255; + falsely reported wounded by Saracens, 255; + hears news of wife's impending second marriage, 257; + returns home, 258; + welcomed by foster-mother, 259; + disguised as a beggar, hands token to his wife, 262; + recognised and welcomed by his wife, 262 + + BLACK DOUGLAS. Scottish hero, 248 + + BLACK MONK, THE. Captured by Robin Hood's followers, 330; + high cellarer in Abbey of St. Mary, 331; + Robin Hood confiscates his gold as repayment of loan to Sir + Richard of the Lea, 331, 332; + departs from greenwood, 332 + + BLACK SAINGLAIN. One of Cuchulain's magic steeds, 191 + + BLANCANDRIN. Vassal of King Marsile, 123; + overtaken by Ganelon, 130; + Ganelon and, plot Roland's destruction, 131 + + BLAYE. Bodies of Roland, Oliver, and Turpin buried in cathedral of, + 155 + + BLUEMIRE. Dwelling-place of Howard the Halt, 97 + + BOG OF ALLEN. Cathleen's messenger declared to be sick in, 177 + + BORS, SIR. A Knight of the Round Table, 266 + + BOURNE, HALL OF. Home of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, 336 + + BRAND. Trusted serving-man of Thorbiorn, 97, 102 + + BRECA. Famous swimming champion, beaten by Beowulf, 6; + son of Beanstan, 12 + + BRICRIU OF THE BITTER TONGUE. Compared with Thersites, 186; + invites King Conor and Red Branch heroes to a feast, 186; + stirs up strife among heroes of Ulster, 187, 188; + flatters the wives of the heroes, 189, 190 + + BRIGIT. + 1. Of the Holy Fire; wrath of, and Irish people, 158. + 2. Cathleen's old servant, 173 + + BRISEIS. Achilles and his sulks concerning, 184 + + BRITAIN. Legend of "The Dream of Maxen Wledig" shows importance of + Constantine to, 42; + ambassadors of Maxen Wledig carried to, 47; + conquered by Maxen Wledig from Beli, son of Manogan, 48; + given by Maxen Wledig to Eudav, 49; + Elene summoned from, is baptized, and seeks the sacred Cross, + 54-62; + Constantine sent to, 63; + Constantine proclaimed emperor of, 63 + + BRITONS, EARLY, Greeks of Homer, and Irish Celts, racial affinity + between, 184 + + BRITTANY. Roland, prefect of marches of, 120 + + BRUCE, ROBERT. Scottish hero, 248; + Sir Nigel Campbell, adherent of, 249 + + +C + + CAERLLEON. See Caernarvon, 49 + + CAERMARTHEN. See Caernarvon, 49 + + CAERNARVON. Castle in land of Arvon in which Princess Helena dwelt, + 48; + given with castles Caerlleon and Caermarthen to Princess Helena as + dowry, 49 + + CAIN. Grendel, offspring of, 4 + + CALEDONIANS. Defeated by Constantius, 63 + + CALIDORE, SIR. Mediæval Wales had a knight of courtesy equal to, 265 + + CALVARY. The hill of, 58, 59, 61 + + CAMPBELL, SIR NIGEL. Leader in Scottish Independence, 249; + father of Black Colin, 249; + his death, 250; + clansmen of, accompany Black Colin to Holy Land, 252 + + CARADOC. Father of Eudav; grandfather of Princess Helena, and of + Princes Kynon and Adeon, 49 + + CARLISLE. Outlaw band near town of, in Englewood Forest, 226; + reference to sheriff of, 227; + William of Cloudeslee goes to, 227; + sheriff informed of William's presence at, 229; + outlaws Adam Bell and Clym go to, 234; + the outlaws escape from, 239; + King Arthur keeps Christmas at, 266; + Sir Gawayne and loathly lady wedded at, 280 + + CATHBAD. Druid; Cuchulain's tutor, 185 + + CATHLEEN. Irish countess; legend concerning, 156; + antiquity of the legend, 156; + the story, 156-183; + her grief because of her people's famine, 161; + prays to Virgin Mary, 163; + Fergus, steward of, 163; + value of her wealth, 164; + commands Fergus to provide food for sufferers from famine, 165; + her goodness extolled by the demons, 169; + hears of demon traders, 172; + tries to check traffic in souls, 174; + visits demons, 176; + Oona, foster-mother to, 178; + revisits demons, 179; + sells her soul, 179, 180; + her death, 182 + + CATHOLIC CHURCH. Pope, head of, 119 + + CELION. Constantine to send to, for Bishop Sylvester, 71 + + CELTIC LITERATURE. Spirit of mysticism in all, 156 + + CELTS. Gospel preached to, by St. Patrick, 157; + Irish, early Britons, and Greeks of Homer, racial affinity between, + 184 + + CHAMPION. + 1. Of Erin: compared with Achilles, 184; + Cuchulain the, his fame at age of seventeen, 185; + Bricriu urges Laegaire to claim title of, 187; + title to go to warrior who obtains Champion's Bit, 187; + tests to decide claims to title of, 193, 194, 196-203; + Uath the Stranger challenges the heroes to a test to decide + claims to title, 199-203. + 2. Of Women: Hereward known as, 351 + + CHAMPION OF IRELAND. See Champion of Erin. + + CHAMPION'S BIT, THE, 187, 188; + claimed by chariot-drivers of Laegaire, Conall, and Cuchulain, + 188, 189; + awarded by Queen Meave to Laegaire, 195; + heroes severally claim, 195, 196; + tests to decide claims to, 196-203 + + CHANSON DE ROLAND. Roland and, 121; + late version of Anglo-Norman poem, 122; + Thorold, author of, 122 + + CHARLEMAGNE. World-famed equivalent, 119; + head of Roman Empire, 119; + Roland, nephew of, 119; + expedition into Spain, 119; + receives an embassage from Marsile, 124; + calls his Twelve Peers to council, 125; + sends Ganelon to Saragossa, 128-130; + receives through Ganelon the keys of Saragossa, 134; + his evil dream, 134, 137; + hears Roland's horn, 145, 146; + hastens to the rescue, 146; + avenges death of Roland and the Peers, 153, 154; + his return to Aix, 155; + his son, Louis, promised to Aude the Fair, 155 + + CHARLES THE GREAT. King of the Franks, world-famed as Charlemagne, + 119. + See Charlemagne + + CHILDE HORN. See Horn + + CHOSEN PEOPLE. The Jews the, 56 + + CHRIST. The Cross the sign of, 53; + the Resurrection of, preached to Constantine, 53; + Constantine's desire to find the sacred Cross, 54; + inhabitants of Suddene who believe on, threatened with death, 287 + + CHRISTENDOM. Enriched by treasures of the True Cross and Holy Nails, + 62 + + CHRISTIAN-S. Preach the way of life to Constantine, 53; + the Lord of, 57; + faith, in Iceland, 96, 97; + law, to be driven out of Suddene by law of Mahomet, 287 + + CHURCH OF ROME. Constantine's generosity to, 42 + + CHURCHMEN. Beaten and battered by Gamelyn, 217 + + CINDERELLA. Root idea of, similar to "Gamelyn," 204 + + CLYM OF THE CLEUGH. Outlaw leader in forest of Englewood, 226; + declared powerless to deliver William of Cloudeslee, 233; + his stratagem to save William of Cloudeslee, 234; + rescues William from death, 238; + visits London to see the king, 241; + the king pardons, 243 + + COLIN, BLACK. See Black Colin, 249 + + COMALA. Hero in Gaelic Highland poems, 248 + + CONALL CEARNACH. Cuchulain's cousin, a Red Branch chief, 187; + urged to claim title of Chief Champion, 187; + awarded Champion's Portion, 195; + claim tested by Curoi, 196-203; + disgraced by Uath, 201 + + CONFESSIO AMANTIS. Early English poem, by "the moral Gower," 42; + story told in, of Constantine's true charity, 64 + + CONNAUGHT. Ailill, King of, 189; + heroes sent to Cruachan in, 190 + + CONOR. King of Ulster, 185; + Cuchulain, nephew of, 185; + Dechtire, sister of, 185; + invited with the heroes of Red Branch to a feast by Bricriu, 186; + received with court at Dundrum by Bricriu, 188 + + CONQUEROR, WILLIAM THE. Cause of England being laid at feet of, 338 + + CONSTANTINE III. King of Scotland; marriage of Anlaf with daughter + of, 73 + + CONSTANTINE THE GREAT. Emperor of Rome; renown in mediæval England, + 42; + Cynewulf's poem, "Elene," written on the subject of his conversion, + 42; + his vision of the Holy Cross, 42, 50, 51; + generosity to Church of Rome and Bishop Sylvester, 42; + legends concerning, 42; + the only British-born Roman emperor, 49; + his greatness provokes a confederation to overthrow him by Huns, + Goths, Franks, and Hugas, 50; + conquers Huns by Cross standard, 52; + Christians preach the way of life to, 53; + is baptized into the Christian faith, 53; + his desire to find the sacred Cross, 54; + sends for Elene, 54; + ordains "Holy Cross Day," 62; + eldest son of Constantius, 63; + sent to Britain, 63; + proclaimed emperor, 63; + granted title of "Cæsar," 64; + marriage with Fausta, 64; + elevation to rank of Augustus, 64; + Emperor of Rome, 64; + attacked by leprosy, 64; + the remedies suggested, 65-72; + his noble resolve, 68; + his vision, 69-70; + his healing, 71-72 + + CONSTANTIUS. Emperor Maxentius hero of the Welsh saga instead of, 42; + father of Constantine the Great, 63; + proclaimed Emperor of Britain, 63 + + CORNISH PRINCESS, THE. Daughter of King Alef, affianced to Prince + Sigtryg, 343, 344, 345, 346; + Haco betrothed to, 347, 348; + receives token from Hereward, 348; + reveals Haco's plans to Hereward, 349; + rescued from Haco, 350; + guards, all slain, 351; + wedded by Sigtryg, 351 + + CORNWALL. Godrich, Earl of, 80; + Bertram made Earl of, 94; + Hereward sails for, 343; + Alef, King of, 343; + Sigtryg and Hereward sail for, 347 + + COVENTRY. Lady Godiva's ride through, 335 + + CRESCENT. Cross exalted above the, 253 + + CROSS. The Holy, Constantine's vision of, 42, 50, 51; + Romans conquer Huns by, 52; + the people awed by the standard of the, 53; + Constantine's desire to find the sacred, 54; + Elene's quest after, 54-62; + secret place of, revealed by Judas, 61; + "Holy Cross Day" ordained, 62 + + CRUACHAN. Conor sends heroes to Ailill at, 190; + Good People's Hill at, 193; + heroes bid farewell to court at, 195 + + CRUSADE-S. Reference to, 249; + Black Colin receives tidings of one about to be set on foot, 250; + Black Colin decides to go on, 251; + story of Horn typical of romance of the, 286 + + CUCHULAIN. Reference to Connla and, 95; + Irish hero, 156; + often called "the Irish Achilles," 184; + nephew of King Conor and son of Dechtire, 185; + god Lugh, reputed father of, 185; + champion in Ulster and all Ireland, 185; + bride sought for, 186; + wooes and weds Emer, daughter of Forgall the Wily, 186; + Conall Cearnach, cousin of, 187; + urged to claim title of Chief Champion, 188; + Grey of Macha and Black Sainglain, magic steeds of, 191; + awarded golden cup and Champion's Portion, 195; + claim tested by Curoi, 196-203; + answers Uath's tests, 202; + acclaimed Champion of Heroes of all Ireland, 203 + + CUROI OF MUNSTER. Failing a judgment from Ailill, to be asked to + decide claims to title of Chief Champion, 190; + heroes go to, to hear his judgment, 196; + puts heroes to certain tests in order to decide claims, 196-203; + assumes form of giant under name of Uath, the Stranger, 199-203 + + CURTIUS. Reference to, 156 + + CUTHBERT. Name under which Childe Horn serves King Thurston in + Ireland, 301, 302 + + CYNEWULF (ki´nĕ-wulf). Early English religious poet; "Elene," his + poem on the subject of conversion of Constantine the Great, + 42 + + CYRIACUS. Baptismal name of Judas, 61; + Bishop of Jerusalem, 61 + + +D + + DAGDA. Irish people and wrath of, 158 + + DA´G-HREFN. Frankish warrior who slays Hygelac; killed by Beowulf's + deadly hand-grip, 35 + + DANES. Corpse of Scyld sorrowfully placed in vessel by, 2; + feasting of, in Heorot, 4; + slain in Heorot by Grendel, 4; + desert Heorot, 5; + welcome Geats and Beowulf, 10; + rejoice over Beowulf's victory, 18-29; + friendship with Geats, 30; + Gospel preached to, 157; + Prince Sigtryg sends forty to King Alef, 348; + plan ambush for Haco, 350; + rescue Cornish princess, 350, 351 + + DANISH. + 1. Occupation of England and its influence on language, &c., 73. + 2. Invasions, hero-legends which have come down from times of, 286 + + DANUBE. Huns overwhelmed in, 52 + + DECHTIRE. Sister of King Conor, 185 + + DECIUS. Reference to, 156 + + DEMONS. Appear in Erin to buy souls, 168; + visited by Cathleen, 176; + revisited by her, 179; + Cathleen sells her soul to, to ransom her people, 179; + cheated of Cathleen's soul, 182 + + DENMARK. Under sway of Scyld Scefing, 2; + Scyld Scefing mysteriously comes to, as babe, 2; + Beowulf sails to deliver King of, from Grendel, 6; + Warden of, challenges Beowulf, 6; + King Birkabeyn's rule over, 74; + Godard made regent of, on behalf of Havelok, 75; + Havelok sails from, with Grim, 80; + Havelok's dream concerning, 86; + Havelok's return to, and recognition as King of, 87-92 + + DIARMUIT. Irish hero, 156 + + DIOCLETIAN. Emperor; Constantine evades jealousy of, 63 + + DODDERER. Horse offered as wergild by Thorbiorn to Howard, 107 + + DOVER. Princess Goldborough imprisoned in castle of, 81; + Hereward sails from, to Whitby, 339 + + DUBLIN. Demons arrive at village near, 168 + + DUNDRUM. Bricriu receives King Conor and court at, 188 + + DUNSTAN. Monk; his saintly reputation, 335 + + DURENDALA. Roland's famous sword, 136; + Roland tries in vain to break, 152 + + +E + + ECGTHEOW (eg´theow). Father of Beowulf, 10; + shielded by Hrothgar against Wilfings, 11 + + EDINBURGH. Black Colin at, _en route_ to Holy Land, 253 + + EDWARD. + 1. The First: reference to war between England and Scotland during + reign of, 249; + 2. The Second: reference, _ibid._, 249. + 3. The Confessor: division of England under, 335; + Hereward at court of, 337, 338; + banishes Hereward, 338, 339; + Alftruda, ward of, 339 + + EGYPT. Constantine's valour in wars in, 64; + philosophers from, with remedies for Constantine's leprosy, 65 + + ELECTRA. Reference to Orestes and, 95 + + ELENA. Same as Elene and Helena, 63 + + "ELENE" (elā´nĕ). Cynewulf's poem of, on the subject of + Constantine's conversion, 42; + summoned from Britain by Constantine, is baptized, and seeks the + sacred Cross, 54-62. + Same as Helena (Elena), 63 + + ELFLEDA THE FAIR. Daughter of King Birkabeyn, 74; + slain by Godard, 76 + + ELY. Hereward's defence of, 334 + + EMER. Daughter of Forgall the Wily; wooed and wedded by Cuchulain, + 186; + flattered by Bricriu, 189; + flattered by Queen Meave, 195; + adjudged by Uath to have first place among all the women of Ulster, + 203 + + ENGELIER THE GASCON. Mortally wounded, 143 + + ENGLAND. Mediæval, and Constantine the Great, 42; + influence on language by Danish occupation, 73; + Athelstan, King of, 73; + Athelwold, King of, 80; + Grim sails from Denmark to, 80; + arrives at, in Humber (Grimsby), 81; + Havelok's dream concerning, 86; + Fergus journeys to, 165; + the outlaw of mediæval, 225; + King of, pardons outlaws, William of Cloudeslee, &c., 243; + war between Scotland and, 249; + government of, during twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth + centuries, 314; + division of, under Edward the Confessor, 335; + cause of being laid at Conqueror's feet, 338 + + ENGLEWOOD. Outlaws in forest of, under Adam Bell, William of + Cloudeslee, and Clym of the Cleugh, 226; + outlaw band broken up, 247 + + ERCOL. Ailill's foster-father; heroes sent to, 194 + + ERIN. See Ireland, 157; + demons appear in, 168; + Champion of, compared with Achilles, 184; + land of, searched for bride for Cuchulain, 186 + + EUDAV. Son of Caradoc, father of Princess Helena, 49; + Kynon and Adeon, sons of, 49 + + EUROPE. Ruled from City of Seven Hills (Rome) by Emperor Maxen + Wledig, 43; + Constantine granted rule over Western, 64; + relation between Greek and Irish literature among literatures of, + 184 + + EVIL ONE. Tales relating dealings with, reference to, 157; + demons buy souls for, 168-182 + + EXCALIBUR. King Arthur's sword, 269 + + +F + + FAIRY BEAR, THE. A white Polar bear owned by Gilbert of Ghent, 340; + reputed kinship of, to Earl Siward, 340, 342; + slain by Hereward, 341; + Hereward's trick on Norman knights with, 341, 342 + + FAIRY PEOPLE OF THE HILLS. King Ailill seeks aid of, 193 + + FAITH. Bishop Sylvester preaches the Christian, to Constantine, 71; + Charlemagne fights for, 119; + Marsile to embrace the Christian, 131; + the true, English knowledge of, 165; + Irish sufferers tempted to revolt from, 167 + + FALL, THE, OF MAN, 71 + + FAUST. Legends, trend of, 157 + + FAUSTA. Daughter of Emperor Maximian and wife of Constantine, 64 + + FEDELM. Wife of Laegaire, 189 + + FEN COUNTRY. Hereward, the terror of the, 336 + + FENIANS. Champions of the, identical with Highland Gaelic heroes, 248 + + FERGUS THE WHITE. Cathleen's steward, 163; + foster-brother to Cathleen's grandfather, 164; + declares value of Cathleen's wealth, 164; + sends servant to buy food at Ulster, 165; + journeys to England, 165; + returns with help, 182 + + FIKENHILD. Horn's companion next in favour to Athulf, 287; + spies on Horn and Rymenhild, 299, 300; + demands Rymenhild in marriage, 311; + slain by Horn, 313 + + FINGAL. Hero in Gaelic Highland poems, 248; + Scotch embodiment of Finn, 248 + + FINN. Fingal Scotch embodiment, 248 + + FINN OF THE FRISIANS. Victory of Danes over, chanted in Heorot, 19 + + FINNSBURG. Fight in, sung of in Heorot, 19 + + FITELA. Son of Sigmund; glory of, chanted by Danish bard, 18 + + FLEMINGS. Or Normans; Hereward enrolled among, to qualify for + knighthood, 339; + Hereward's trick on, with Fairy Bear, 341, 342 + + FOREFATHERS. Feelings of our, embodied in "Beowulf," 1 + + FORGALL THE WILY. Cuchulain wooes Emer, daughter of, 186 + + FRANCE. Victories of Charlemagne for, 119; + Charlemagne sets out for, 134 + + FRANKISH. + 1. Warrior, Daghrefn, slays Hygelac, and is slain by Beowulf, 35. + 2. Army marches towards Pyrenees, 134; + arrives too late to rescue Roland, 146 + + FRANKS. Charles the Great (Charlemagne), King of, 119; + Saracen host encamps near, 134; + and Moors meet in battle, 140; + defeat the Saracens, 141; + attacked by second Saracen army, 142; + defeat the heathens once more, 143; + attacked by third Saracen army, 144 + + FRENCH LITERATURE, developing "Roland Saga," 121 + + FRIAR TUCK. See Tuck + + +G + + GALERIUS. Constantine evades hatred of, 63; + grants Constantine title of "Cæsar," 63 + + GAMELYN. Tale of, a variant of fairy-tale "Wicked Elder Brothers," + 204; + ultimate source, through Lodge's "Euphues' Golden Legacy," of + _As You Like It_, 204; + literary ancestor of "Robin Hood," 204; + Sir John of the Marshes, father of, 205; + left in charge of eldest brother, John, 206; + resists him, 207, 208; + victorious at wrestling match, 210, 211; + overcomes his brother's servants, 212; + allows himself to be chained, 213; + released by Adam Spencer, 214, 215; + batters the Churchmen, 217; + puts his brother John in chains, 217; + puts sheriff's men to flight, 218; + goes to the greenwood, 219; + joins the outlaws, 220; + proclaimed a wolf's-head, 220; + arrested, 221; + Otho offers himself as surety, 221; + fails to appear at court, 222, 223; + releases Otho, 223; + sits on judge's seat and condemns Sir John, 224; + made chief forester by King Edward, 224; + made Otho's heir, 224 + + GANELON. Romance version of Danilo or Nanilo, 121; + compared with Judas, 121; + one of Charlemagne's Twelve Peers, 125; + his hostility to Roland, 126; + plots with Blancandrin the destruction of Roland, 131; + delivers to Marsile the message of Charlemagne, 131, 132; + swears on sacred relics the treacherous death of Roland, 134; + delivers keys of Saragossa to Charlemagne, 134; + deceives Charlemagne concerning sound of Roland's horn, 145, 146; + arrested for treason, 146; + his death as a traitor, 155; + his name a byword in France for treachery, 155 + + GARETH, SIR. One of King Arthur's nephews, 266 + + GASCONS. Attack Charlemagne, 119 + + GAUTIER, COUNT. Roland's vassal, 136 + + GAWAYNE, SIR. King Arthur's nephew, the true Knight of Courtesy, 265; + learns of King Arthur's adventure with the giant, 274; + learns the price to be paid for the loathly lady's secret, 275; + offers to pay it by marrying the loathly lady, 275; + betroths the loathly lady, 279, 280; + weds the loathly lady, 280; + his choice frees the loathly lady from magic spells, 281, 283; + the beauty of his bride, 281-285 + + GEATISH COURT. Beowulf brought up at, 6 + + GEATLAND. Same as Götaland; news of Grendel's ravages reaches, 6; + Beowulf sails to, 29; + welcomed to shores of, 29, 30 + + GEATS. Hygelac, King of, 1; + Götaland, realm of, 5; + arrival with Beowulf at Danish shores, 7; + friendship with Danes, 30; + forsake Beowulf in his encounter with the fire-dragon, 36; + their sorrow over Beowulf's death, 40-41 + + GERIER. Peer of Charlemagne; mortally wounded, 143 + + GERIN. Peer of Charlemagne; mortally wounded, 143 + + GERMANY. Forefathers who dwelt in North, 1; + Hygelac seeks conquest of his neighbours on mainland of, 5 + + GHENT. See Gilbert + + GILBERT OF GHENT. Hereward's godfather, 339; + Hereward received by, 339; + his Fairy Bear, slain by Hereward, 340, 341; + Hereward quits his castle, 342; + Hereward takes farewell of, 343 + + GLENURCHY. Glen belonging to MacGregors, given to Sir Nigel Campbell, + 249; + Black Colin inherits, 250; + Lady of, grieves over her husband's departure on crusade, 251; + Baron MacCorquodale's land borders, 256; + Black Colin's return to, 258; + new castle built with rents of, 264 + + GOD. The Unknown, reverenced by Constantine, 51; + the people awed by the token of the Unknown, 53; + worship of the True, 157; + famine cools love for, 167 + + GODARD, JARL. Counsellor and friend of King Birkabeyn, 75; + Havelok committed to care of, 75; + regency over Denmark, 75; + his cruelty, 76-78; + his treachery disclosed and punished by death, 91-92 + + GODHILD. Queen of Suddene, King Murry's consort, the mother of Horn, + 286; + hears of husband's death and flees, 288 + + GODIVA, LADY. Wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, 335; + her famous ride through Coventry, 335; + Hereward, second son of, 336 + + GODRICH. Earl of Cornwall, regent for Princess Goldborough, 80; + his rule, 81; + imprisons Princess Goldborough out of jealousy, 81; + attends sports at Lincoln, 83; + hears of Havelok's skill and strength, 83; + enforces a marriage between Havelok and Goldborough, 84; + captured, tried as a traitor, and burnt at the stake, 93-94 + + GODWIN. Earl of Kent, 335; + Lady Gytha, wife of, 335; + intercedes on behalf of Hereward, 338; + Hereward bids farewell to, 339 + + GOLDBOROUGH. English princess, daughter of King Athelwold; orphaned, + 80; + Earl Godrich regent for, 80; + imprisoned in Dover Castle, 81; + forced to wed Havelok, 84; + learns in a dream of Havelok's royal birth, 86; + crowned Queen of England, 94 + + GOLDEN AGE. Forefathers cherished lifetime of ancestors as, 1 + + GÖTALAND. Realm of Geats, in south of Sweden, 5. + See Geatland, 7 + + GOTHS. Form a confederation with the Huns, Franks, and Hugas to + overthrow Constantine, 50 + + GOWER, "THE MORAL." Early English poet; his poem "Confessio Amantis" + and Constantine's conversion, 42; + story told in "Confessio Amantis" of Constantine's true charity, 64 + + GREECE. Philosophers from, with remedies for Constantine's leprosy, + 65 + + GREEK-S. Elene touches at land of, 56; + literature, relation of, to Irish literature, 184; + of Homer, early Britons, and Irish Celts, racial affinity between, + 184 + + GRENDEL. A loathsome fen-monster, 3; + enmity aroused by the feasting at Heorot, 4; + slays and devours Danes in Heorot, 4; + master of Heorot, 5; + Beowulf determines to attack, 6; + struggles with Beowulf in Heorot, 16; + worsted by Beowulf, 17; + mother of, avenges his death, 21 + + GREY OF MACHA. Cuchulain's best-beloved horse, 191 + + GRIM. Legendary hero whose loyalty secured privileges to Grimsby, + 74; + Godard's thrall, 77; + ordered to drown Havelok, 77; + saves and maintains Havelok, 79-82; + sails from Denmark to England, 80; + sends Havelok to Lincoln, 82; + his death, 85; + his three sons, Robert the Red, William Wendut, and Hugh the + Raven, 87 + + GRIMSBY. The town of Grim, 74; + Havelok at fish-market of, 82; + battle near, between Havelok and Godrich, 93 + + GUDRUN. Reference to Siegfried and, 95 + + GUENEVER, QUEEN. Wife of King Arthur, 266; + dreads magic arts during husband's absence, 274; + learns of King Arthur's adventure with the giant, 274; + welcomes the loathly lady at court, 280 + + GUEST, THE WISE. Sister of, marries Thorbiorn, 103; + Howard seeks at the Thing, 108, 109, 110; + his judgment against Thorbiorn, 110, 111; + removes his sister from Thorbiorn, 111; + gives judgment at Thing against Howard, 118 + + GYTHA, LADY. Wife of Godwin, Earl of Kent, 335 + + +H + + HABLOC. Welsh name for Havelok, 73 + + HACO. Cornish leader; betrothed to the Cornish princess, 347; + Cornish princess reveals plans of, to Hereward, 349; + ambush planned for, 350; + slain by Hereward, 350 + + HAROLD. Son of King Thurston, 301; + slain by the Saracens, 302 + + HART, THE. See Heorot, 3 + + HASTINGS. Battle of, and "Song of Roland," 122 + + HATHCYN. Son of King Hrethel, brought up with Beowulf; slays his + brother, Herebeald, 34; + slain himself by Swedes, 35 + + HAUTECLAIRE. Oliver's sword, 141 + + HAVELOK THE DANE. Legend of, 73; + Anlaf, equivalent, 73; + hero of the strong arm, in mediæval England, 74; + son of King Birkabeyn of Denmark, 74; + committed to care of Jarl Godard, 75; + imprisoned by Godard, 76-77; + saved and maintained by Grim, 78-82; + brought by Grim to England, 80; + his feats of strength, 82-84; + Goldborough forced to wed, 84-85; + Grim's three sons accompany to Denmark, 87; + aided by Jarl Ubbe, 88-93; + Ubbe recognises as heir to throne of Denmark, and renders homage + to, 90-91; + acknowledged King of Denmark, 92; + and of England, 94 + + HEALFDENE (ha´lf-dānĕ). Father of King Hrothgar, 9 + + HEARDRED (ha´rd-red). Son of Hygelac and Hygd; succeeds his father, + 31; + his death, 31 + + HECTOR. Reference to death of, 95 + + HELENA. British princess; marriage with Constantine glorified in + "Mabinogion," 42; + hailed as Empress of Rome, 48, 49; + receives three castles as dowry, Caernarvon, Caerlleon, and + Caermarthen, 49; + mother of Constantine the Great, 63 + + HELL. The purchase of souls for, 170-183; + Cathleen sells her soul to, 179 + + HENGEST. Deeds of, chanted in Heorot, 19 + + HEOROT (hyo´r-ŏt). Hall built by Hrothgar, 3; + same as "The Hart," 3; + enmity of Grendel to, 4; + feasting of Danes in, 4; + Danes slaughtered in, by Grendel, 4; + deserted by Danes, 5; + Grendel master of, 5; + Geats proceed to, 9; + feast in, to welcome Beowulf, 12; + Grendel and Beowulf struggle in, 16; + Grendel's mother enters and carries off Aschere, 21 + + HEREBEALD (he´rĕ-bald). Son of King Hrethel, brought up with + Beowulf, 34 + + HEREWARD. One of the famous outlaws, 225; + the Saxon, personality real, yet surrounded by cloud of romance, + 334; + the ideal of Anglo-Saxon chivalry, as Roland of Norman, 334; + second son of Leofric and Godiva, 336; + terror of Fen Country, 336; + at court, and his conduct there, 337; + banished as an outlaw, 338, 339; + his farewell, 338, 339; + his first meeting with Alftruda, 339; + goes to his godfather, Gilbert of Ghent, 339; + enrolled among Flemings to qualify for knighthood, 339; + his encounter with the Fairy Bear, 340, 341; + rescues Alftruda, 341; + his trick on the Norman knights, 341, 342; + leaves Northumbria, 342; + takes farewell of Alftruda, 342; + takes farewell of Gilbert of Ghent, 343; + sails for Cornwall, 343; + at court of King Alef, 343; + kills the Pictish giant, 343; + imprisoned by King Alef, 343; + released by King Alef's daughter, 344, 345; + sails for Ireland, 346; + sails for Cornwall with Prince Sigtryg, 347; + obtains admission to Haco's bridal feast, 348; + learns Haco's plans, 349; + slays Haco and helps to rescue Cornish princess, 350, 351; + known as Hereward the Saxon, the Champion of Women, 351 + + HEROD. Constantine declared more cruel than, 67 + + HET-WARE, THE. Expedition against, 31, 34 + + HIGHLANDS. Gaelic, old ballads, heroes in, 248; + ballads, merely versions of Irish Gaelic hero-legends, 248; + Irish Gaelic hero-legends carried from Erin to, 248 + + HILDEBURH, QUEEN. Deeds of, chanted in Heorot, 19 + + HNÆF (năf). Deeds of, chanted in Heorot, 19 + + HOLY CROSS. Constantine's vision of, 42, 50, 51; + his desire to find, 54; + Elene's quest after, 54-62; + Judas confesses to knowledge of sacred truth of, 57; + Judas refuses to reveal place of, at first, but is prevailed upon + by starvation, 58, 59; + the "Day" of, ordained, 62 + + HOLY INNOCENTS. Constantine declared more cruel than Herod, who + killed the, 67 + + HOLY LAND. Black Colin receives tidings of fresh crusade in, 250; + sets out for, 252; + Black Colin's desire to see, 253 + + HOLY NAILS. Obtained by Elene, 61; + given to Constantine, 62 + + HOLY ROOD. King Arthur vows by, 268; + giant forces him to swear by, 270 + + HOLY SEPULCHRE. Black Colin's desire to see, 253 + + HOLY TREE. See Holy Cross + + HOMER. Greeks of, early Britons, and Irish Celts, racial affinity + between, 184 + + HOOD, ROBIN. See Robin Hood + + HORN. His story originally a story of Viking raids, 286; + son of King Murry and Queen Godhild, 286, 308; + Athulf, and next Fikenhild, his favourite companions, 287; + captured by Saracens, 288; + cast adrift upon the sea, 288, 289; + lands on shore of Westernesse, 289; + questioned by King of Westernesse, 290; + adopted by King Ailmar, 291; + Athelbrus trains as a knight, 291, 292; + loved by Princess Rymenhild, 292; + Athulf personates before Princess Rymenhild, 293; + welcomed to Rymenhild's bower, and hears her declaration of love, + 294, 295; + dubbed knight, 297; + his first exploit, 298; + spied on by Fikenhild, 299, 300; + banished by King Ailmar, 300; + sails for Ireland, 301; + serves King Thurston under name of Cuthbert, 301; + slays the giant emir, 301, 302; + King Thurston offers his kingdom and daughter to, 302; + receives letter from Rymenhild, 304; + reveals his identity to King Thurston and implores his help, 304; + returns to Westernesse, accompanied by Irish knights, 304; + in disguise, visits Rymenhild's wedding feast, 305; + his stratagem to test Rymenhild's love, 306, 307; + the fictitious death of, 307; + reveals his identity to Rymenhild, 307; + arranges with Athulf to deliver Rymenhild, 308; + weds Rymenhild, 308; + reconquers Suddene, 310; + finds his mother, 310, 311; + crowned King of Suddene, 311; + warned in dream of Rymenhild's danger, 311; + his return to Westernesse, 311, 312; + slays Fikenhild, 313; + dwells at Suddene with Rymenhild, 313 + + HOWARD THE HALT. Popular Icelandic saga, 96; + famous Viking, 97; + Biargey, wife of, 97; + Olaf, son of, 97; + upbraids Olaf, 100; + removes from Bathstead, 103; + mourns Olaf's death, 106; + claims wergild for Olaf, 106-111; + sheltered by Steinthor, 108, 109; + urged by Biargey to seek vengeance, 106, 107, 113; + seeks help of Valbrand, 114; + slays Thorbiorn, 116; + sheltered by Steinthor, 117; + judgment of Thing against, 118; + his nephews exiled, 118 + + HRETHEL (rethel). Father of Hygelac and grandfather of Beowulf, 6; + Beowulf and the king's sons, Herebeald, Hathcyn, and Hygelac, 34; + Beowulf recites his death, 35 + + HRETHRIC (re´th-ric). Son of Hrothgar; succeeds his father, 31 + + HROTHGAR (roth´gār). Great-grandson of Scyld, 2; + builds the hall Heorot, or "The Hart," 3; + grief of, over Grendel's fierce ravages, 4; + champions offer aid to, 5; + Geats conducted to, 8; + son of Healfdene, 9; + Wealhtheow, wife of, 14; + rejoices over Beowulf's victory, 18-29; + Aschere, thane of, carried off by Grendel's mother, 21; + grief of, over loss of Aschere, 22; + succeeded by his son Hrethric, 31 + + HRUNTING (runting). Hunferth's sword, lent Beowulf for the purpose + of attacking Grendel's mother, 23-25 + + HUGAS. See Huns, 50 + + HUGH THE RAVEN. Youngest son of Grim; accompanies Havelok to + Denmark, 87 + + HUMBER. Grim arrives in, 81 + + HUNFERTH. Hrothgar's orator, jealous of Beowulf, 12; + lends Beowulf his sword, Hrunting, 23, 24 + + HUNS. Form a confederation with the Goths, Franks, and Hugas to + overthrow Constantine, 50; + Romans conquer by Cross standard, 52 + + HYGD. Wife of King Hygelac; hails Beowulf's return to Geatland, + 29, 30; + offers crown to Beowulf, 31 + + HYGELAC (hē´gĕ-lac). King of Geats, 1; + son of King Hrethel, 5, 34; + brother-in-law of Ecgtheow, 6; + uncle of Beowulf, 6; + hails Beowulf's return to Geatland, 29, 30; + Beowulf chief champion of, 30; + slain in expedition against the Hetware, 31; + succeeded by his son, Heardred, 31; + brought up with brothers, Herebeald and Hathcyn, and Beowulf, 34 + + +I + + ICEFIRTH. Thorbiorn in, 97 + + ICELAND. Christian faith in, 96, 97 + + ICELANDIC. + 1. Saga, "Howard the Halt," 96. + 2. Ghosts, reference to, 96 + + INNIS EOALAN. The Lady of Loch Awe builds a castle on ruins of White + House on, 257 + + INNOCENTS, HOLY. Constantine declared more cruel than Herod, who + killed the, 67 + + IRELAND. Characteristics common to people of, 156; + known in olden Europe as "Isle of Saints," 157; + Gospel preached to people of, 157; + High King of, convinced of truth of Trinity, 157; + strife in, 158; + famine in, 159-183; + famine tempts people to revolt from the True Faith, 167; + demons arrive in, 168; + Cuchulain without fear among the champions of, 185; + Horn at, 301-304; + Horn touches at, on way to Suddene, 313; + Sigtryg, son of a Danish king, in, 343; + Hereward sails for, 346 + + IRISH. Relation of literature, to Greek literature, 184; + Celts, early Britons, and Greeks of Homer, one stock, 184; + heroes, and legends concerning, 248 + + ISLE OF SAINTS. See Ireland, 157 + + ITALY. Claims Roland in guise of Orlando, Orlando Furioso, Orlando + Innamorato, 121 + + +J + + JERUSALEM. The place where Christ suffered, 54; + Elene's quest in, to find the sacred Cross, 54-62; + Constantine and Elene build a glorious church in, 61; + Cyriacus (Judas) Bishop of, 61; + messenger to Black Colin familiar with all holy places in, 250; + Black Colin as a pilgrim at, 253 + + JESUS CHRIST. The Cross the sign of, 53; + the Resurrection and Ascension of, preached to Constantine, 53 + + JEWS. Elene's quest to land of, to find sacred Cross, 55-58; + the Chosen People, 56; + summoned, but dismissed in peace, by Elene, 58 + + JOHN. + 1. Son of Sir John of the Marshes, 205; + Gamelyn left in charge of, 206; + Gamelyn resists, 207, 208; + his great feast, 216; + put in chains by Gamelyn, 217; + proclaims Gamelyn a wolf's-head, 220; + his death by hanging, 224. + 2. Little. See Little John + + JOSEPH and his brethren, "Gamelyn," a version of story of, 204 + + JUDÆA. See Jerusalem + + JUDAS. Grandson of Zacchæus; confesses to knowledge of secret truth + of Holy Tree, 57; + refuses at first to disclose the secret place of the Holy Cross, + but is prevailed upon by starvation, 58, 59; + baptismal name Cyriacus, 61; + Ganelon compared with, 121 + + JUDGMENT, DAY OF, 71 + + JULIUS CÆSAR and early Britons, 184 + + +K + + KAY, SIR. Steward of King Arthur's household, 266; + jeers at loathly lady, 277 + + KENT. Earldom of, held by Godwin, 335 + + KERRY. Champions drive to, 196 + + KILCHURN CASTLE. New castle built with rents of Glenurchy, 264 + + KNIGHT OF COURTESY. The true, is Sir Gawayne, King Arthur's nephew, + 265 + + KNIGHT OF LOCH AWE. Equivalent, Black Colin Campbell, 249 + + KYNON. Son of Eudav, grandson of Caradoc, 49 + + +L + + LADY OF GLENURCHY. Grief of, 251; + the gold ring token, 252; + wooed by Baron MacCorquodale, 254-257; + receives forged letter, 255; + her stratagem to delay her marriage, 256; + builds a castle on ruins of White House on Innis Eoalan, 256, 257; + recognises and welcomes her husband, 262 + + LADY OF LOCH AWE. Same as Lady of Glenurchy, 251 + + LAE-GAI´RE. Bricriu urged to claim title of, 187; + Fedelm, wife of, 189; + awarded Champion's Portion by Queen Meave, 195; + claim tested by Curoi, 196-203; + disgraced by Uath, 201 + + LANCELOT, SIR. A Knight of the Round Table, 266 + + LEA, SIR RICHARD OF THE. Stranger guest of Robin Hood's, 323 + + LEITH. Black Colin takes ship at, for Holy Land, 253 + + LENDABAIR. Conall's wife, 189 + + LEOFRIC. Earl of Mercia, 335; + Lady Godiva, wife of, 335; + Hereward, second son of, 336; + Hall of Bourne, home of, 336; + his wrath kindled against Hereward, 337; + asks for writ of outlawry against Hereward, 338; + Hereward bids farewell to, 339 + + LEOFRICSSON, HEREWARD. See Hereward + + LEVE (lāvĕ). Wife of Grim the fisherman, 78 + + LIGHTFOOT, MARTIN. Hereward's follower who accompanied him into + exile, 339; + assists Hereward in his trick on Norman knights, 341, 342; + cast into prison by King Alef, 343; + released by King Alef's daughter, 344, 345 + + LINCOLN. Grim carries fish to, 81; + Havelok goes to, 82; + Havelok becomes porter, 82; + Havelok's fame in, 83; + Godrich summons his army to, against Havelok, 93; + Godrich's trial and death at, 94 + + LITTLE JOHN. One of Robin Hood's followers, 315; + searches the stranger knight's coffer, 319; + counts out four hundred pounds to stranger guest, 322, 323; + acts as squire to Sir Richard of the Lea, 323-327 + + LOATHLY LADY, THE, and King Arthur, 271-274; + demands of King Arthur a young and handsome knight for husband, + as price of her help, 274; + Sir Gawayne offers to wed, 275; + Sir Kay jeers at, 277; + her betrothal to Sir Gawayne, 279; + her marriage with Sir Gawayne, 280; + set free from magic spells, 281-285 + + LOCH AWE. See Awe, Loch + + LONDON. Visit to, of William of Cloudeslee and fellow outlaws, 241 + + LOUIS. Charlemagne's son, Count of the Marshes, promised to Aude the + Fair, 155 + + LUGH OF THE LONG HAND. Great god, reputed father of Cuchulain, 185 + + +M + + MABINOGION. A series of Welsh legends; glorifies marriage of British + princess Helena and Constantine, 42 + + MACCORQUODALE, BARON. Wooes the Lady of Loch Awe, 254-257; + his stratagem of a forged letter, 255; + hears of Black Colin's return, 263 + + MACGREGORS. Expelled from Glenurchy, 249 + + MAHOMET. Saracens declare determination to win land of Suddene + according to law of, 287; + faith of, thrown off by Saracens for the true faith, 310 + + MAIRI. Old widow in whose house the demon traders lived, 173 + + MARSILE. King of Moors; defies Charlemagne, 122; + idols of, 122; + Blancandrin's advice to, 123; + sends an embassage to Charlemagne, 124; + offers to become a Christian, 124-126; + Ganelon sent to, with Charlemagne's terms, 130; + Ganelon's reception by, 131, 132; + takes counsel with leaders, 132; + swears on the book of Law of Mahomet the treacherous death of + Roland, 134; + pursues the Frankish army, 137; + Roland slays only son of, 147; + mortally wounded, he returns to Saragossa, 147; + his death, 154 + + MARTIN. See Lightfoot + + MASSES. Of the Father, of the Holy Spirit, of Our Lady, heard daily + by Robin Hood, 315 + + MAXEN WLEDIG. "The Dream of," preserved in the "Mabinogion," 42-49; + Emperor of Rome, 43; + expedition down the Tiber, 43; + his vision near Rome, 43; + his vision declared, 44-47; + ambassadors sent out to find the maiden of his dream, 47, 48; + journeys himself to land of Arvon, 48, 49; + conquers Britain from Beli, son of Manogan, 48; + weds Helena, daughter of Eudav, 49; + Constantine, son of, the only British-born Emperor of Rome, 49 + + MAXENTIUS. Emperor; hero of Welsh saga "Mabinogion," 42 + + MAXIMIAN. The Emperor; father of Fausta, who became Constantine's + wife, 64 + + MEAD. Dwelling-place of Guest the Wise, 103 + + MEAVE. Queen of Connaught, wife of King Ailill; to decide claims to + title of Chief Champion, 189; + pronounces judgment, 195 + + MERCIA. Earldom of, held by Leofric, 335 + + MODI. King of Reynes; wooes Rymenhild, 303; + slain by Horn, 308; + land of, committed to care of Sir Athelbrus, 313 + + MONA. Sacred isle of; same as Anglesey; ambassadors of Maxen Wledig + view, 47 + + "MONTJOIE! MONTJOIE!" Battle cry of Franks, under Roland, 140, 142, + 148 + + MOORS. Rulers of, and Charlemagne, 119; + and Franks meet in battle, 140 + + MORDRED, SIR. One of King Arthur's nephews, 266 + + MOST HIGH. Grendel outcast from mercy of, 4 + + MUCH. One of Robin Hood's followers, 315; + assists to count out gold for stranger guest, 323 + + MURRY. King of Suddene, 286; + Queen Godhild consort of, 286; + Horn, son of, 286; + attacked and slain by Saracens, 287, 288 + + +N + + NAESI. Irish hero, 156 + + NAILS, THE HOLY. Obtained by Elene, 61; + given to Constantine, 62 + + NAIMES, DUKE. One of Charlemagne's Twelve Peers, 126, 136, 137; + urges Charlemagne to hasten to rescue of Roland, 146 + + NORMAN ENGLAND. Royal authority in, how asserted, 314 + + NORMANS. Or Flemings; Hereward enrolled among, to qualify for + knighthood, 339; + Hereward's trick on, with Fairy Bear, 341, 342 + + NORSE influence in connection with story of "King Horn," 286 + + NORSEMEN. Firm hold of blood-feud on imagination of, 96 + + NORTH COUNTRY. Equivalent, Ulster, 165 + + NORTH SEA. Forefathers who dwelt on shores of, 1; + ambassadors of Maxen Wledig reach, 47 + + NORTHUMBRIA. Inheritance of Anlaf, 73; + writ of outlawry against Hereward only of nominal weight in, 339; + Earl Siward ruler in, 339; + Hereward leaves, 342 + + NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. The Sheriff of, and Robin Hood, 315 + + +O + + ODIN. The raven, the bird of, 115 + + OISIN. Scotch embodiment of Ossian, 248 + + OLAF. + 1. Same as Anlaf, &c., 73. + 2. Son of famous Viking, Howard the Halt, 97; + finds Thorbiorn's lost sheep, 98-100; + kills a wizard, 101; + second fight with the wizard's ghost, 102; + wooes Sigrid, 99, 103; + meets Thorbiorn, 103-106; + his death, 106; + Howard claims wergild for, 106-111; + wergild awarded for, 118 + + OLIFANT. Roland's horn, 138; + blown by Roland, 145, 146; + Roland's dying blast on, 149 + + OLIVER. One of Charlemagne's Twelve Peers, 125, 136; + descries the Saracens and proclaims Ganelon's treason, 138; + appeals to Roland to blow his horn, 138; + Hauteclaire, sword of, 141; + objects to Roland blowing his horn, 144; + mortally wounded by Marsile's uncle, 148; + under misapprehension, strikes Roland with Hauteclaire, 148; + his death, 148, 149; + avenged by Charlemagne, 153, 154 + + OONA. Cathleen's foster-mother, 178; + her vision, 182 + + ORCHY. River, running through Glenurchy, 249 + + ORESTES. Reference to Electra and, 95 + + ORLANDO, ETC. Italy claims Roland in guise of, 121 + + OSSIAN. Hero in Gaelic Highland poems, 248; + Scotch embodiment of Oisin, 248 + + OTHO. Son of Sir John of the Marshes, 205; + becomes surety for Gamelyn, 221; + arrested owing to failure of Gamelyn to appear at court, 223; + released by Gamelyn, 223; + sits on judge's seat with Gamelyn and condemns Sir John, 224; + appointed sheriff by King Edward I., 224; + makes Gamelyn his heir, 224 + + OUR LADY. Robin Hood accepts her surety for four hundred pounds lent + to stranger guest, 322; + the Black Monk and the suretyship, 331-333 + + OUTLAWS. Famous: Hereward, Robin Hood, William of Cloudeslee, 226; + pardoned by king, 243; + rules of, in case of Robin Hood, 316; + their feast, 317, 318, 330 + + +P + + PAMPELUNA. Taken by Charlemagne, 119 + + PARADISE. Cathleen's soul in, 182 + + PATTERSON. Name of foster-parents of Black Colin, 250 + + PEERS. Of France, 125, 136; + the champions of the Moors challenge the Twelve, of France, 137; + of Charlemagne, triumph over Marsile's twelve champions, 141; + their death, 143-153; + avenged by Charlemagne, 153, 154 + + PENELOPE. Lady of Loch Awe turns to guile, as did, 256 + + PEOPLE OF THE HILLS. Cuchulain's friends among, 198, 199 + + PERSIA. Constantine's valour in wars in, 64; + physicians from, with remedies for Constantine's leprosy, 65 + + PETER AND PAUL. The Apostles; appear in a vision to Constantine, + 70, 71 + + PICTISH GIANT. King Alef's daughter betrothed to, 343; + slain by Hereward, 343 + + PLANTAGENETS. England under, 314 + + POPE. Head of Holy Catholic Church, 119; + proclaims Holy War at Rome, 251; + sees Black Colin, 253; + regarded by Black Colin as Vicar of Christ on earth, 253 + + PRIAM. Reference to lament of, 95 + + PYRENEES. Charlemagne's march through passes of, 119; + Frankish army marches toward, 134 + + +R + + RANALD. King of Waterford, 345, 346; + Prince Sigtryg, son of, 345; + Hereward at feast of, 346, 347 + + RANALDSSON, SIGTRYG. See Sigtryg + + RED BRANCH. Heroes of, invited to feast by Bricriu, 186; + heroes return to, 199; + Uath, the Stranger, comes to, 199; + heroes of, and Uath, the Stranger, 199-203; + champions of, identical with Highland Gaelic heroes, 248 + + REYNES. Modi, King of, 303; + wooes Rymenhild, 303, 304 + + REYNILD. Daughter of King Thurston; offered to Horn, 302; + weds Sir Athulf, 313 + + RHINE. Black Colin's journey up, 253 + + RHODES. Black Colin journeys to, 253; + supposed news from, by man of Black Colin's band, 255 + + RICHARD, SIR, OF THE LEA, Robin Hood's stranger-guest, 317-324; + Robin Hood's loan to, 322-324; + his land in Uterysdale, 323; + redeems his land from Abbot of St. Mary's, 324-327; + sets out to repay loan, 328; + defends the right at a wrestling contest, 328; + arrives before Robin Hood to repay loan, but is exempt, 333; + returns to Uterysdale, 333; + his power used to protect the outlaws, 333 + + ROBERT THE RED. Eldest son of Grim; accompanies Havelok to Denmark, + 87 + + ROBIN HOOD. Romantic sympathy with, 225; + one of the famous outlaws, 226; + the original, 314; + forest of Barnesdale at one time his dwelling-place, 314, 315; + Sherwood Forest, headquarters of, 315; + Little John, Will Scarlet, and Much, his three most loyal + followers, 315; + three Masses heard by, 315; + sends his followers to Watling Street, 316; + his outlaw rules, 316; + stranger guest brought to, 317; + lends stranger guest four hundred pounds, 322; + sends his followers again to Watling Street, 329; + his followers capture and bring to greenwood, as guest, the Black + Monk, 330; + appropriates gold of the Black Monk as payment of loan to Sir + Richard of the Lea, 331, 332; + exempts Sir Richard from repayment of four hundred pounds, 333; + dwells securely in the greenwood under Sir Richard's protection, + 333 + + ROLAND. Charlemagne's nephew; fame of, in romance, 119; + historical basis of legend of, 120; + in Spanish legend, 121; + "Saga" in French literature, 121; + "Chanson de Roland" and, 121; + one of the Twelve Peers, 125; + destruction plotted by Blancandrin and Ganelon, 131, 134; + plants his banner on topmost summit of Pyrenees, 134; + appointed to command rearguard, 135; + appealed to by Oliver to blow his horn, 138; + his army defeats Saracens, 141; + defeats second Saracen army, 143; + attacked by third Saracen army, 144; + willing to blow horn, but Oliver objects, 144; + blows Olifant, 145, 146; + Charlemagne hastens to rescue of, but arrives too late, 146; + slays only son of Marsile, 147; + smitten by Oliver in mistake, 148; + set upon by four hundred Saracens, 150; + realising death near, he tries to destroy sword Durendala, 152; + his death, 153; + avenged by Charlemagne, 153, 154 + + ROMAN EMPIRE. Charlemagne head of, 119 + + ROMANS. Conquer Huns by the Cross standard, 52 + + ROME. Church of, Constantine's generosity to, 42; + Maxen Wledig seeks rest near, 43, 46; + Princess Helena hailed Empress of, 48, 49; + Constantine calls a council of all wisest men in, 53; + Black Colin's messenger just home from, 251; + Holy War proclaimed by Pope at, 251; + Black Colin reaches, 253; + Black Colin's supposed letter from, 255 + + RONCESVALLES. Roland's glory from, 119; + celebrated in "Song of Altobiscar," 120; + Spain claims part of honour of, 120; + the battle of, 140-153 + + RONCEVAUX. Same as Roncesvalles, 122 + + ROUND TABLE. Knights of, 266 + + RYMENHILD. Princess, daughter of King Ailmar; + loves Horn, 292; + Athulf personates Horn before, 293; + welcomes Horn in her bower and declares her love, 294; + wishes Horn good success as knight, 298; + gives token to Horn, 298; + spied on by Fikenhild, 299, 300; + wooed by King Modi, 303; + writes to Horn through Athulf, 303; + Horn at wedding-feast of, 305; + Horn's stratagem to test her love, 306, 307; + her knight and lover, Horn, restored, 307; + wedded to Horn, 308; + left to her father's care, 309; + demanded in marriage by traitor, Fikenhild, 311; + delivered by Horn, 313; + dwells at Suddene as queen, 313 + + +S + + SAMSON. Peer of Charlemagne; mortally wounded, 143 + + SARACEN-S. Host, encamps near Franks, 134; + pursue the Frankish army, 137; + chiefs vow to slay Roland, 137; + defeat of, by Roland's army, 141; + second army attacks Roland, 142; + defeated once more, 143; + third army attacks Roland, 144; + their rule in the Holy Land, 251; + Horn's hatred of, typical of romance of Crusades, 286; + attack and slay King Murry, 287, 288; + Horn's victory over, 298; + Suddene purged of, by Horn, 310 + + SARAGOSSA. Charlemagne repulsed at, 119; + decided to send Ganelon to, as ambassador, 128; + Charlemagne's threat to take, 132; + Charlemagne receives through Ganelon the keys of, 134; + captured by Charlemagne, 154 + + "SARN HELEN." Roman roads in Wales connecting Helena's three castles + known as, 49 + + SAXON ENGLAND. The maintenance of justice in, 314 + + SAXON-S. Hereward the, 334; + the darling hero of the, 334; + Anglo-, chivalry, Hereward the ideal of, 334, 335; + Hereward the, known as the Champion of Women, 351 + + SCARLET, WILL. Cousin to and one of Robin Hood's followers, 315 + + SCOTLAND. Hero-myths of, 248; + national heroes of Lowland, actual, not mythical, 248; + war between England and, 249 + + SCOTTISH INDEPENDENCE. Sir Nigel Campbell one of leaders in cause + of, 249 + + SCYLD SCEFING (skild ske´f-ing). Founder of Scyldings dynasty, 2; + coming to and passing from Denmark, 2; + Hrothgar, great-grandson of, 2 + + SEVEN HILLS. Rome, the City of, 43; + Maxen Wledig, emperor, rules Europe from, 43 + + SHERWOOD, FOREST OF. Headquarters of Robin Hood, 315 + + SIEGFRIED. Gudrun and, in "Nibelungenlied," 95 + + SIGMUND. Father of Fitela; glory of, chanted by Danish bard, 18 + + SIGRID. Thorbiorn's housekeeper, 97; + loved by Olaf, 99; + quits Thorbiorn's service, 103; + disappearance of, 106 + + SIGT-RYG RANALDSSON. Prince of Waterford; his troth-plight with King + Alef's daughter, 343; + son of King Ranald, 345; + Hereward's mission to, 345-347; + sails for Cornwall to rescue his love, 347; + sends forty Danes to demand fulfilment of troth-plight, 348; + Sigtryg and Danes plan ambush for Haco, 350; + rescues, and marries, Cornish princess, 350, 351 + + SI´HT-RIC-SON. Same as Anlaf, Abloec, &c., 73 + + SIR JOHN OF THE MARSHES. Noble gentleman who lived in Lincolnshire, + in reign of Edward I., 204, 205; + father of John, Otho, and Gamelyn, 205; + his death, 206 + + SI-WARD, EARL. Ruler in Northumbria, 339; + reputed kinship to Fairy Bear, 340, 342 + + SNOWDON. Mountainous land of, reached by ambassadors of Maxen + Wledig, 47 + + SOCACH. Black Colin's foster-parents' dwelling-place, 250 + + SOULS. The traffic in, during Irish famine, 170-183; + Cathleen tries to check traffic in, 174 + + SPAIN. Charlemagne's expedition into, 119; + begins to quit, 134; + returns to, to rescue Roland, 146 + + SPANISH LEGEND. Bernardo del Carpio and Roland in, 121 + + SPENCER. + 1. Adam, steward in household of Sir John, releases Gamelyn, + 214, 215. + 2. Edmund, reference to his Red Cross Knight, 265 + + STEINTHOR OF ERE. Great chieftain who shelters Howard, 108, 109, + 117; + speaks on Howard's behalf at the Thing, 118 + + ST. JOHN, KNIGHTS OF. Black Colin takes service with, 253; + Grand Master of, 253 + + ST. MARY. Abbey of, in York, lands of stranger knight in pledge to + Abbot of, 321; + land redeemed by Sir Richard of the Lea, 324-327; + the Black Monk high cellarer in Abbey of, 331 + + ST. PATRICK. Preached Gospel to people of Ireland, 157 + + SUDDENE. King Murry and Queen Godhild, and son Horn, the royal + family of, 286; + Horn sails for, to wrest from Saracens, 309; + Athulf's father found at, 309, 310; + Horn reconquers, 310; + a Christian realm once more, 311; + Horn crowned king of, 311 + + SWANBOROW. Daughter of King Birkabeyn, 74; + slain by Godard, 76 + + SWEDEN. Götaland, realm of Geats in south of, 5 + + SWEDES. Slay Hathcyn, son of King Hrethel, 35 + + SWITZERLAND. Black Colin and Highland clansmen pass through, 253 + + SYLVESTER. Bishop of Rome; and Constantine, 42; + Constantine told in a vision to send for, 70; + preaches the Christian faith to Constantine, 71 + + +T + + TAILLEFER. "Song of Roland" and, 122 + + TARA. Black stone of, 157 + + TARN WATHELAN. Giant in castle near, ill-treats maiden, 267; + King Arthur's journey to, and fight with giant who lived in Castle + of, 269, 270; + King Arthur summons court to hunt near, 276; + the churlish knight of, set free from magic spells, 284 + + TEUTONIC NORTH. Beowulf famous throughout, 5 + + THERSITES. Compared with Bricriu of the Bitter Tongue, 186 + + THING. Howard at the, 107, 108, 117, 118 + + THOR-BIORN. Mighty chief on shores of Icefirth, 97; + Vakr, nephew of, 97; + Olaf and sheep of, 98-100; + whale unjustly adjudged to, 102; + marries sister of Guest, 103; + Sigrid leaves, 103; + meets Olaf, 103-106; + Warflame, magic sword of, 104-106; + thrusts Olaf with Warflame, 106; + Howard claims wergild from, 106-111; + Guest's judgment against, 110, 111; + hailed by Biargey while out fishing, 112; + slain by Howard, 116 + + THOR-BRAND. Brother of Biargey, 113; + helps Howard against Thorbiorn, 115 + + THOR-DIS. Mother of Vakr; sends second son to assist in fight + against Olaf, 105 + + THOR-KEL. Lawman and arbitrator of Icefirth, 97; + his false decree concerning a whale, 102 + + THOR-OLD. Same as Turoldus; author of "Song of Roland," 122 + + THURSTON. King of Ireland; served by Horn, 301; + Harold and Berild, sons of, 302; + offers kingdom and his daughter Reynild to Horn, 302; + Horn discloses his identity to, 304 + + TIBER. Hunting expedition down, by Maxen Wledig, 43 + + TIR-NAN-OG. The land of never-dying youth, 163 + + TREE, THE HOLY. See Holy Cross + + TRINITY. Truth of, demonstrated by shamrock-leaf, 157 + + TROJAN WAR. An ancient story, yet well known, 58 + + TUCK, FRIAR. Masses sung by, for Robin Hood, 318 + + TURPIN. Archbishop of Charlemagne, one of Twelve Peers, 125, 136; + blesses the knights, 139, 140; + mediates between Roland and Oliver, 145; + mortally wounded, 149; + his death, 150, 151 + + +U + + UATH, THE STRANGER. Giant who tests champions, 199-203; + adjudges Cuchulain Champion of Heroes of all Ireland, 203 + + UBBE (ub-bĕ). Danish jarl, friend of King Birkabeyn; befriends + Havelok and Goldborough, 87-93; + appointed Regent of Denmark for Havelok, 94 + + ULSTER. Fergus commanded to buy food at, 165; + Conor, King of, 185; + Cuchulain peer among champions of, 185; + Armagh, capital of, 186; + Red Branch heroes, royal bodyguard of, 186; + Bricriu stirs up strife among champions of, 187, 188 + + UNKNOWN GOD. Constantine's acceptance and reverence of the, 51; + the people awed by token of, 53 + + UTERYSDALE. Land of Sir Richard of the Lea in, 323; + Sir Richard redeems the land, 324-327; + Sir Richard returns to, 333 + + +V + + VAKR. Thorbiorn's nephew, 97; + mocks Olaf, 100; + jeers at Brand the Strong, 102, 103; + accompanies Thorbiorn to meet Olaf, 103-106; + Thordis, mother of, 105; + his miserable end, 116 + + VALBRAND. Brother of Biargey, 112, 113; + visited by Howard, 114 + + VALTIERRA. Charlemagne retires to, on way to France, 134 + + VEILLANTIF. Roland's steed, 136; + slain by Saracens, 150 + + VICAR OF CHRIST on earth, Black Colin regards Pope as, 253 + + VIKINGS. Gospel preached to, 157 + + VIRGIN MARY. Cult of, 121; + Cathleen invokes, 163; + Cathleen's people invoke, 181 + + +W + + WALES. Old Roman roads in, that connected Helena's three castles + still known as "Sarn Helen," 49; + legend of Havelok the Dane thought to have originated in, 73; + mediæval, Arthurian legend preserved by, 265 + + WALLACE, SIR WILLIAM. Scottish hero, 248; + schoolfellow and comrade of Sir Nigel Campbell, 249 + + WARDEN. Of the coast of Denmark, welcomes Beowulf, 6; + conducts Geats to Heorot, 8; + Wulfgar, one of Hrothgar's nobles, greets Beowulf, 9; + of Geatland, welcomes Beowulf's return, 29 + + WARFLAME. Magic sword, owned by Thorbiorn, and by which he himself + is slain by Howard, 115, 116 + + WASHERS OF THE FORD. Wrath of, and Irish people, 158 + + WATERFORD. Prince Sigtryg of, his troth-plight with daughter of King + Alef, 343; + Ranald, King of, 345; + Hereward reaches, 346; + Prince and Princess of, Hereward the best friend of, 351 + + WATLING STREET. Robin Hood sends his followers to, 316; + a year later sends followers once more to, 329 + + WEALHTHEOW (wal-thyow), QUEEN. Wife of Hrothgar; honours Beowulf, + 14, 20 + + WELSH. + 1. Legends, "Mabinogion" and "The Dream of Maxen Wledig," 42; + Celtic features in, 185. + 2. Saga, hero of, Emperor Maxentius, 42 + + WEOHSTAN (wyo-stan). Father of Wiglaf, who supported Beowulf in his + fight with the fire-dragon, 36 + + WEST. Constantine a favourite of Roman soldiery of the, 63; + Roman soldiery of the, proclaim Constantine emperor, 63; + the fictitious wanderings of Horn in realms of, 307 + + WESTERN ISLES. Irish Gaelic hero-legends carried to, from Erin, 248 + + WESTERNESSE. Childe Horn lands on shore of, 289; + Ailmar, King of, questions Horn, 290; + Horn returns to, accompanied by Irish knights, 304; + recital of the fictitious plans of Horn to reach, within seven + years, 307 + + WHITBY. Hereward lands at, 339 + + WIG-LAF. Son of Weohstan; supports Beowulf in his fight with the + fire-dragon, 36-41 + + WILF-INGS. Hrothgar shields Ecgtheow from, 11 + + WILLIAM OF CLOUDESLEE. One of the famous outlaws of England, 226 + + WILLIAM TELL. William of Cloudeslee the, of England, 226; + Alice, wife of, 227; + goes to Carlisle, 227; + sheriff informed of his presence, 229; + attacked by sheriff and his men, 231; + capture of, 232; + sheriff sentences to be hanged, 232; + news of his sentence conveyed to the greenwood, 233; + Clym's stratagem to save, 234; + rescued from death, 237, 238; + visits London to see king, 241; + the king pardons, 243; + shoots apple from son's head, 245, 246; + receives royal favours from king and queen, 246 + + WILLIAM WENDUT. Second son of Grim; accompanies Havelok to Denmark, + 87 + + WINCHESTER. Godrich takes Goldborough from, to Dover, 81 + + WLEDIG. See Maxen Wledig + + WOMEN, CHAMPION OF. Hereward known as, 351 + + WYRD (weird). Goddess of Fate, 13, 34 + + +Y + + YORK. Archbishop of, unites in marriage Havelok and Goldborough, 85; + Abbot of St. Mary's Abbey, in, 321 + + YORKSHIRE. Barnesdale, forest in, once dwelling-place of Robin Hood, + 314, 315 + + YULETIDE. King Arthur's knights keep, 267 + + +Z + + ZACCHÆUS. Grandfather of Judas, 57 + + + + +Transcriber's Note + +Minor typographic errors in punctuation have been corrected without +note. Hyphen inconsistencies have been corrected without note where +there was a prevalence of one formation over another. + +There is some variation in spelling, sometimes of proper names, often +between the main text and quoted texts, and a number of archaic words. +These remain as printed, unless they were an obvious typographic +error, which were amended as follows: + + Page 48--need amended to heed--"... that when their + horses failed they gave no heed, but took others ..." + + Page 73--crystalized amended to crystallized--"These + stories finally crystallized in a form ..." + + Page 84--Havelock amended to Havelok--"... and so, in + great fear, Havelok agreed to the wedding." + + Page 233--vension amended to venison--"... William had + given the boy many a dinner of venison, ..." + + Page 338--Whereever amended to Wherever--""Wherever fate + and my fortune lead me," ..." + + Page 355--7 amended to 74--"... and Havelok, son of, 74;" + + Page 358--o amended to of--"... Daughter of King Alef, + affianced to Prince Sigtryg ..." + + Page 359--Alaf amended to Alef--"Prince Sigtryg sends + forty to King Alef, 348;" + + Page 362--Niger amended to Nigel--"Glen belonging to + MacGregors, given to Sir Nigel Campbell, 249;" + + Page 366--Herebald amended to Herebeald--"brought up + with brothers, Herebeald and Hathcyn ..." + + Page 372--missio nto amended to mission to--"Hereward's + mission to, 345-347;" + + Page 375--332 amended to 232--"... capture of, 232;" + +There were some instances of omitted text; these were all checked +against another edition of the text, and, in the case of the omitted +page references, cross-checked against this edition, and repaired as +follows: + + Page 347--omitted word (marriage) inserted at the end of + the section just prior to "Return to Cornwall"--"... he + would save his betrothed from some other hateful + marriage." + + Page 368--the entry for London had no page number + reference; 241 inserted. + + Page 370--the entry for Priam had no page number + reference; 95 inserted. + +The frontispiece illustration has been moved to follow the title page. +Other illustrations have been moved so that they are near the text +they refer to. 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