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diff --git a/43077-0.txt b/43077-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3bdc6ba --- /dev/null +++ b/43077-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,12638 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43077 *** + +Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this + file which includes the original illustration and map. + See 43077-h.htm or 43077-h.zip: + (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/43077/43077-h/43077-h.htm) + or + (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/43077/43077-h.zip) + + + Images of the original pages are available through + Internet Archive. See + https://archive.org/details/clerkofoxfordhis00ever + + + + + +A CLERK OF OXFORD + +and + +His Adventures in the Barons' War + +by + +E. EVERETT-GREEN + +Author of "Shut In," "In Taunton Town," "The Sign of the Red +Cross," "In the Days of Chivalry," "The Lost Treasure of Trevlyn." +&c. &c. + + + + + + + +T. Nelson and Sons +London, Edinburgh, and New York +1898 + + + + +[Illustration: _The City of Oxford from an old print._] + + + + +CONTENTS. + + + I. THE DIE CAST 9 + + II. A RIVER JOURNEY 25 + + III. OLD OXFORD 40 + + IV. THE FIRST DAY 55 + + V. THE NEW LIFE 70 + + VI. A "MAD" PARLIAMENT 85 + + VII. THE CONSTABLE'S CHILDREN 100 + + VIII. STORMY SCENES 116 + + IX. A STUDENTS' HOLIDAY 131 + + X. THE FAIR OF ST. FRIDESWYDE 147 + + XI. THE MAGICIAN'S TOWER 163 + + XII. WINTER DAYS WITHIN THE CASTLE 178 + + XIII. KENILWORTH CASTLE 193 + + XIV. THE GREAT EARL 208 + + XV. PRINCE EDWARD 223 + + XVI. BACK AT OXFORD 239 + + XVII. THE BELL OF ST. MARTIN'S 254 + + XVIII. THE NEW CHANCELLOR 269 + + XIX. THE CHANCELLOR'S AWARD 285 + + XX. TURBULENT TIMES 300 + + XXI. KING AND STUDENTS 315 + + XXII. IN ARMS 328 + + XXIII. ON THE FIELD OF LEWES 344 + + XXIV. AFTER THE BATTLE 360 + + XXV. CHRISTMAS AT KENILWORTH 375 + + XXVI. PLOTS 391 + + XXVII. THE CAPTIVE A CONQUEROR 407 + + XXVIII. THE FATAL FIGHT 423 + + XXIX. LEOFRIC'S REWARD 439 + + XXX. ON THE STILL ISIS 454 + + + + +A CLERK OF OXFORD. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +_THE DIE CAST._ + + +"My son," spoke a gentle voice from behind the low, moss-grown wall, "we +must not mourn and weep for those taken from us, as if we had no hope." + +Face downwards upon the newly-made mound of earth lay a youth of some +fifteen or sixteen summers. His slight frame was convulsed by the +paroxysm of his grief; from time to time a strangled sob broke from his +lips. The kindly-faced monk from the Priory hard by had been watching +him for some time before he thus addressed him. Probably he now saw that +the violence of the outburst was spent. + +The youth started upon hearing himself addressed, and as he sprang to +his feet he revealed a singularly attractive face. The brow was broad +and massive, indicating intellectual power. The blue eyes beneath the +pencilled arch of the delicate eyebrows looked out upon the world with a +singular directness and purity of expression. The features were finely +cut, and there were strength and sweetness both in the curved, +thoughtful lips, and in the square outline of the jaw. The fair hair +clustered in curling luxuriance about his head, and fell in sunny waves +to his shoulders. His hands were long and white, and looked rather as +though they had wielded pen than weapon or tool of craftsman. Yet the +lad's habit was that of one occupying a humble rank in life, and the +shoes on his feet were worn and patched, as though by his own apprentice +hands. Beside him lay a wallet and staff, upon which the glance of the +monk rested questioningly. The youth appeared to note the glance, yet it +was the words addressed to him that he answered. + +"I think it is rather for myself I weep, my father. I know that they who +die in faith rest in peace and are blessed. But for those who are +left--left quite alone--the world is a hard place for them." + +Father Ambrose looked with kindly solicitude at the lad. He noted his +pale face, his sunken eyes, the look of weary depression that seemed to +weigh him down, and he asked gently,-- + +"What ails thee, Leofric, my son?" + +"Everything," answered the youth, with sudden passion in his tones. "I +have lost everything in the world that I prized. My father is dead. I +have no home. I have no fortune. All that we had is swallowed up in +paying for such things as were needful for him while he lay ill. Even +that which he saved for masses for his soul had to go at the last. See +here, my father, I have but these few silver pieces left in all the +world. Take them, and say one mass for him, and let me kneel at the door +of the chapel the while. Then will I go forth into the wide world alone, +and whether I live or die matters nothing. I have no one in the wide +world who will know or care." + +But the monk gently put back the extended hand, and laid his own kindly +upon the head of the youth. + +"Keep thy money, my son. The mass shall be said--ay, and more than +one--for the repose of thy father's soul. He was a good man and true, +and I loved him well. That pious office I will willingly perform in +memory of our friendship. But now, as to thyself. Whither goest thou, +and what wilt thou do? I had thought that thou wouldst have come to me +ere thou didst sally forth into the wide world alone." + +There was a faint accent of reproach in the monk's voice, and Leofric's +sensitive face coloured instantly. + +"Think it not ingratitude on my part, my father," he said quickly. "I +was coming to say good-bye. But that seems now the only word left to me +to speak in this world." + +"Wherefore so, my son? why this haste to depart? The old life has indeed +closed for thee; but there may be bright days in store for thee yet. +Whither art thou going in such hot haste?" + +"I must e'en go where I can earn a living," answered Leofric, "and that +must be by the work of mine own hands. I shall find my way to some town, +and seek to apprentice myself to some craft. These hands must learn to +wield axe or hammer or mallet. There is nothing else left for the son of +a poor scholar, who could scarce earn enough himself to feed the pair of +us." + +Father Ambrose looked at the lad's white fingers, and he slightly shook +his head. + +"Methinks thou couldst do better with those hands, Leofric. Hast never +thought of what I have sometimes spoken to thee, when thou hast been +aiding me with the care of the parchments?" + +The lad's face flushed again quickly; but his eyes met the gaze fastened +upon his with the fearless openness which was one of their +characteristics. + +"My father, I could not be a monk," he said. "I have no call--no +vocation." + +"Yet thou dost love a quiet life of meditation? Thou dost love learning, +and hast no small store for thy years. It is a beautiful and peaceful +life for those who would fain flee from the trials and temptations of +the world. And the Prior here thinks well of thee; he has never grudged +the time I have spent upon thee. I shall miss thee when thou art gone, +Leofric; life here is something too calm and same." + +There was a touch of wistful regret in the father's tones which brought +back the ready tears to Leofric's eyes. After his own father, he owed +most to this kindly old monk, though it had never for a moment struck +him that the teaching and training of a bright young lad had been one of +the main interests in that monotonous existence. + +"That is what I have felt myself," he answered quickly. "I love the +calm and the quiet, the books and the parchments. I shall bless you +every day of my life for all your goodness to me. But I would fain see +the great world too. I have heard my father and others speak of things I +would fain see with mine own eyes. It breaks my heart to go, yet I +cannot choose but do so. I dare not ask to come to you, my kindest +friend, my second father. I could not be a monk. I should but deceive +and disappoint you were I to seek an asylum with you now." + +Father Ambrose sighed slightly as he shook his head; but he made no +attempt to influence the youth. Perhaps he loved him too well to press +him to enter upon a life which had so many limitations and drawbacks. + +Yet he would not let him go forth upon his travels with so small a +notion of what lay before him. He led him into the refectory, where +strangers were entertained, and had food brought and set before him. The +lad was hungry, for he had of late undergone a very considerable mental +strain, and had had little enough time or thought to spare for creature +comforts. The long illness of his father, a man gently born, but of very +narrow means, had completely worn him out in body and mind; and now, +when thrown penniless upon the world, there had seemed nothing before +him but to wander forth with wallet and staff, and seek some craftsman +who would give him food and shelter whilst he served a long and perhaps +hard apprenticeship to whatever trade he chanced upon. + +He spoke again of this as he sat in the refectory, and again Father +Ambrose shook his head. + +"Thou art not of the stuff for an apprentice to some harsh master; thou +hast done but little hard work. And think of thy skill with brush and +pen, and thy knowledge of Latin and the Holy Scriptures; thy sweet +voice, and thy skill upon the lute. What will all these serve thee, if +thou dost waste thy years of manhood's prime at carpenter's bench or +blacksmith's forge?" + +Leofric sighed, and asked wistfully,-- + +"Yet what else can I do, my father?" + +"Hast ever thought of Oxford?" asked Father Ambrose, rubbing his chin +reflectively. "There be lads as poor as thou that beg their way thither +and live there as clerks, being helped thereto by the gifts of pious +benefactors. They say that the King's Majesty greatly favours students +and clerks, and that a lad who can sing a roundelay or turn an epigram +can earn for himself enough to keep him whilst he wins his way to some +honourable post. Hast ever thought of the University, lad? that were a +better place for thee than a craftsman's shop." + +Leofric's eyes brightened slowly whilst the monk spoke. Such an idea as +this had never crossed his mind heretofore. Living far away from Oxford, +and hearing nothing of the life there, he had never once thought of that +as a possible asylum for himself; but in a moment it seemed to him that +this was just the chance he had been longing for. He could not bring his +mind to the thought of the life of the cloister; yet he loved learning +and the fine arts with a passionate love, and had received just enough +training to make him ardently desire more. + +"Would such a thing as that be possible for such as I, my father?" he +asked with bated breath, seeming to hang upon the monk's lips as he +waited for the answer. + +"More than possible--advisable, reasonable," answered another voice from +the shadows of the room. Leofric started to his feet and bent the knee +instinctively; for, unseen to both himself and Father Ambrose, the Prior +had entered, and had plainly heard the last words which had passed +between the pair. + +The Prior was a tall, venerable man, with eagle eye and an air of +extreme dignity; but he was kindly disposed towards Leofric, and greeted +him gently and tenderly, speaking for a few minutes of his recent heavy +loss, and then resuming the former subject. + +"Oxford is the place where lads such as thou do congregate together in +its many schools and buildings, and learn from the lips of the +instructed and wise the lore of the ancients and the wisdom of the +sages. There be many masters and doctors there who began life as poor +clerks, begging alms as they went. What one man has done another may +attempt. Thou mayest yet be a worthy clerk, and rise to fame and +learning." + +"Without money?" asked Leofric, whose eyes began to sparkle and glow. + +"Yes, even without money," answered the Prior: "for at Oxford there are +monasteries and abbeys to each of which is attached a Domus Dei; and +there are gathered together poor clerks and other indigent persons, to +whom an allowance of daily food is made from the monks' table; whilst, +through the liberality of benefactors, a habit is supplied to them +yearly, together with such things as be absolutely needful for their +support. Once was I the guest of the Abbot of Osney, and I remember +visiting the Domus Dei, and seeing the portions of meat sent thither +from the refectory. I will give thee a letter of recommendation to him, +good lad. It may be that this will serve thee in some sort upon thy +arrival." + +Leofric bent the knee once more in token of the gratitude his faltering +lips could scarce pronounce. The thought of a life of study, in lieu of +that of an apprentice, was like nectar to him. Prior and Father alike +smiled at his boyish but genuine rapture. + +"Yet think not, my son, that the life will be free from many a hardship, +to a poor clerk without means and without friends. There be many wild +and turbulent spirits pent within the walls of Oxford. Men have lost +life and limb ere now in those brawls which so often arise 'twixt +townsmen and clerks. The Chancellor doth all he can to protect the lives +of scholars and clerks; yet, do as he will, troubles ofttime arise, and +men have ere this been forced to leave the place by hundreds till the +turbulent citizens can be brought to reason and submission." + +But Leofric was in nowise daunted by this aspect of the case. Trained up +hardily, albeit of studious habits, the fear of hardships did not daunt +him. + +"So long as I have food to eat and raiment to wear, I care for no +hardship, so as I may become a scholar," he said. "And can I, reverend +Father, rise to the dignity of a master, if I do not likewise take the +vows of the Church upon me?" + +"Ay, truly thou canst," was the reply. "There are the scholastic +_Trivium_ of grammar, logic, rhetoric, and the mathematical _Quadrivium_ +of arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music. These form the magic +circle of the arts, of which thou mayest become a master without taking +any vow to Holy Church. Yet methinks thou wouldest do well to wear the +tonsure and the gown, that thou mayest in all quarrels or troubles have +the right to claim the benefit of clergy, and so escape from the secular +arm if it were stretched out against thee. This is the usual custom of +clerks at Oxford and Cambridge. But it commits thee to nought, if thou +art not willing to join thyself to any of our brotherhoods." + +The Prior eyed him kindly, but Father Ambrose sighed, and Leofric +himself felt a qualm of shame at his own distaste for the life of the +cloister. + +"The wish, the call, may come perchance," he answered humbly, glancing +from one to the other; "but methinks I am not fit for the life of holy +meditation, or surely the kindness I have here received would have +inclined mine heart that way." + +"Thou art still too young to take such vows upon thyself," said the +Prior. "It is men who come to us aweary of the evils and strife of the +world that know the blessedness of the cloistered life. Thou mayest +learn that lesson in time; or thou mayest link thy lot with that of +these wandering friars, who teach men that they have found the more +acceptable way. For myself, I have found the place of rest, and I desire +to end my days here in peace." + +"And how may I journey from here to Oxford?" asked Leofric with some +timidity, after a short silence. "Surely the way is long; and I have +never fared farther than Coventry, which place I thought to make my +home, if I could but find a master who would receive me as apprentice." + +The Prior pondered awhile before replying. + +"There be two ways of journeying--by land and by water," he replied; "if +by land, thou wouldest have to beg thy way from place to place. At some +hostel they would give thee bed and board, most like, if thou wouldest +make them merry by a song; or at some great house, if thou couldst +recite a ballad or speak a Latin grace. At the Monasteries thou wouldest +receive food and bed, and mayhap an alms to help thee on thy way. Many a +clerk begs his way to Oxford year by year, and is well received of all. +Yet the perils of the way are many and great through the forests which +lie betwixt thee and thy goal. It might be that the water way would be +the better." + +"I love the water," said Leofric eagerly; "and my little canoe lies +beneath the bank under the alder clump. I have made many a miniature +voyage in her before. Methinks she would carry me safely did I but know +the way." + +"And the way thou canst not miss," answered the Prior. "This little +stream which flows past our walls joins itself, as thou dost know, to +the wider Avon, which presently flows into a river men call the +Cherwell, and in its turn that doth make junction with the Isis, whereon +the town of Oxford is situate. This junction is hard by the town itself; +when thou dost reach that, thy journey will have an end." + +Leofric listened eagerly. He had heard, indeed, of these things, but +hitherto they had been but names to him. Now it seemed as though the +great unknown world, lying without the circle of his daily life, were +about to open before him. + +"I would fain try the water way," he said. "I am skilful with the +paddle; and I can carry my little craft upon my back whenever rocks and +rapids impede my progress. The season is favourable for the journey. The +ice and snow are gone. There is a good depth of water in all the +streams, and yet the weed and slime of summer and autumn have not begun +to appear; nor will the overarching boughs from the trees hinder +progress as they do when clad in their summer bravery. I love the river +in the early spring, and if I do but follow the course of the stream I +cannot miss my way, as I might well do upon the road in the great forest +tracks." + +"Yes, that is very true. Methinks thou wilt be safer so, if thou canst +find sustenance upon the way. But thou canst carry with thee some +provision of bread, and there be several godly houses beside the river +where thou wilt be welcomed by the brothers, who will supply thy needs. +Take, too, thy bow and arrows; thou wilt doubtless thus secure some game +by the way. But have a care in the King's forests around Oxford how thou +dost let fly thy shafts. Many a man has lost his life ere now for +piercing the side of some fat buck." + +Leofric's heart was now all on fire for the journey which lay before +him. He could scarcely believe that but one short hour ago he had +believed himself hopelessly doomed to a life of uncongenial toil. He had +never thought of this student life--he hardly knew of its existence; but +the Prior of the Monastery and some of the monks, who had known and +befriended both Leofric and his father, had themselves discussed several +times the question of dispatching the youth to Oxford for tuition; and +the rather unexpected death of the father, after a lingering illness, +seemed to open the way for the furtherance of this design. + +Leofric had been the pet of the Monastery from his childhood. Always of +a studious turn, and eager for information, it had been the favourite +relaxation of several of the monks to instruct him in the Latin tongue, +to teach him the art of penmanship, and even to initiate him into some +of the mysteries of that wonderful illumination of parchments which was +the secret of the monks in the Middle Ages. + +Leofric profited by every opportunity afforded him. Already he could +both speak and understand Latin easily. He had a very fair knowledge of +certain portions of the Scriptures, and possessed a breviary of his own, +which he regarded as his greatest treasure. For the age in which he +lived these were accomplishments of no mean order, and it would have +seemed to the ecclesiastics little short of a disgrace to them had they +permitted their pupil to lose his scholarship in some craftsman's shop. +They had frequently spoken of sending him as a clerk to Oxford, unless +he could see his way to becoming one of themselves. This, however, was +not to be. The boy, though reverent and devout, had no leanings after +the life of the cloister, and the Prior was too wise a man to put +pressure upon him. But he was willing to forward, by such means as he +could, any project which should secure to Leofric the advantages of a +liberal education. + +So the lad was bidden to remain a guest of the Monastery for the few +days necessary to his simple preparations. The Prior wished him to be +provided with a habit suitable to his condition of clerk. This habit was +made of a strong sort of cloth, and reached to the knees, being confined +at the waist by a leather girdle. He was also provided with a change of +under-raiment, with strong leggings and shoes, and with a supply of +coarse bread and salted meat sufficient for several days. The Prior +wrote a letter to the Abbot of Osney, recommending the lad to his +favourable notice, and asking for him a place in the Domus Dei, should +no better lodging be obtainable. + +Leofric himself spent his time in the mending of his canoe, which had +been somewhat battered by the winter storms. He had made the little +craft out of the bark of trees, and had covered it with pitch to make it +waterproof. Some story he had heard about wild men in unknown lands had +given him the idea of constructing this little boat, and now it seemed +as though it would be of real service to him in his new career. + +Father Ambrose would sit beside him on the river bank, and talk to him +as he prosecuted this task. There was a strong bond of affection between +the old monk and the young lad. + +"Thou wilt come back some day and see us, Leofric," he said once, as the +task drew near to its accomplishment; "I would fain look again upon thy +face before I die." + +"Indeed I will, father. I too shall always love this place, and shall +never forget the kindness I have received, nor how these many days +masses have been said for my father, and never a penny paid by me, +albeit I would gladly give my all." + +"Nay, nay, boy, it is a labour of love; and we know that thou wilt some +day, when thou art rich and famous, give of thine abundance to our +shrine here. Thou wilt see strange things in the great world, my son. +Thou wilt see the great ones of the earth rising up against their +anointed King, and that King taking vows upon his lips which he has +neither the wish nor the intention to fulfil. The world is full of +terrible things, and thou wilt quickly see many of them. Yet keep +through all a pure heart and clean hands, so will God love thee, be thy +path what it will." + +Leofric looked up quickly. + +"I have heard somewhat from time to time of the feud betwixt the King +and the Barons; but to me such tales are but as idle words. I know not +what men mean." + +"Thou wilt know more anon," answered the monk gravely. "We have heard +from those who pass to and fro that times are dangerous, and men's minds +full of doubt and fear. I know not what may betide this land, but there +be those who say that the sword will ere long be unsheathed, and that +brother will war against brother as it hath not been seen for many a +long day. God forbid that such things should be!" + +"And will such strife come nigh to Oxford?" asked Leofric. "Shall we +hear ought there of the battle and the turmoil?" + +"I trow well that ye will. Knowest thou not that the King hath a palace +close by the walls of the city, and another but a few leagues away? +Methinks that in yon city there will be much strife of tongues anent +these burning questions of which we scarce hear a whisper. Thou must +seek to be guided aright, my son; for youth is ever hot-headed, and like +to be carried away by rash counsels. It is a grievous thing for a nation +to rise against its anointed head; and yet, even as Saul was set aside +by God, and another put in his place, we may not always say that a King +can do no wrong--albeit we must be very slow to judge and condemn him." + +Leofric listened eagerly. Every day of late he had heard words which +roused within him the knowledge that beyond the peaceful circle of his +past life lay a seething world into which he was shortly to plunge. The +thought filled him with eager longings and desires. He wanted to shoot +forth in his tiny craft and see this world for himself. And, behold, +to-day his task was finished, and the Prior had ordained that at dawn +upon the morrow he should go. + +His habit and provision were already packed and stowed away. He had +received his letter and messages, and had listened in meek silence to +the admonitions and instructions of the Prior. He had slept his last +night beneath the hospitable Monastery roof, and had heard mass for the +last time in the grey dawning. + +Now he stood with one foot in his little craft, pressing the hand of +Father Ambrose, and looking round at the familiar faces and buildings +with smiles and tears struggling for mastery in his face. + +Then the canoe shot out into the midst of the stream. + +His voyage was begun. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +_A RIVER JOURNEY._ + + +It was no light task that Leofric had set himself. The river wound in +and out through forest tracts hardly ever traversed. Trees blown down in +winter storms lay right athwart the stream. _Débris_ brought down from +above was often packed tight against such obstructions; and then there +was no way of proceeding save by dragging up the canoe out of the water +and launching it again lower down. As the forest was often very thick +and tangled along the banks of the river, this was no light matter, and +had Leofric not been gifted with a strong will and a very resolute +purpose, he might well have given up in despair. + +As it was, he found travelling a great deal slower work than he had +anticipated, and already his store of provision was greatly diminished, +although he could not flatter himself that he had travelled any very +great distance. He was sometimes disposed to doubt whether, after all, +he had been wise in choosing the waterway in preference to the road. + +Night was falling, and it looked as though rain was likely to come on at +moonrise. The clouds were sullen and lowering; the wind moaned and +whistled through the trees, and lashed the water into angry little +wavelets. Leofric was feeling weary and a little depressed by the +intense loneliness of his voyage, when suddenly he heard himself hailed +by a friendly voice from somewhere out of the thicket. + +"Whither away, good friend, and why art thou afloat and alone at this +hour of the evening? What dost thou in yon frail craft out on the +darkling river?" + +Leofric looked eagerly about him, and espied, not far away, a +ruddy-faced youth of about his own age, sitting beside the water +fishing, with a basket at his side that showed he had not thus sat in +vain. With a few strokes of his paddle he brought himself alongside the +bank. The sound of a human voice was as music to his ears after the long +silence of the forest. + +"Good-even, good comrade," he answered, stepping lightly ashore; "and +welcome indeed is thy friendly voice. For four days have I been alone +upon this river, and the sight of a kindly face is like a draught of new +wine." + +"But what dost thou alone upon the river?" + +"Marry, that is soon told. I am a poor lad who would fain become a +clerk, and I am on my way to Oxford, there to seek to maintain myself +whilst I study the arts and win my way to a livelihood--" + +Hardly had he got out these words before the other youth sprang to his +feet with a whoop of joy, and to Leofric's astonishment flung his arms +about his neck, and fairly danced in the exuberance of his delight. + +"Now, what ails thee?" he asked, half amused, half bewildered. "Hast +thou taken leave of thy senses, good friend?" + +"Thou mayest well ask--methinks it must even seem so; but listen, fair +youth, and soon shalt thou understand. I am the son of a farmer, but I, +too, have a great longing after letters. I have heard of this same city +of learning, and I have begged and prayed of my father, who has many +other sons, to let me fare forth and find my way thither, and climb the +tree of learning. At first he listened not, but laughed aloud, as did my +brothers. But my mother took my part, and I learned to read last winter +at the Monastery, and the kindly fathers spoke well of my progress. +Through these winter days I have gone daily thither, taking an offering +of fish, and receiving instruction from them--" + +"That is how I obtained such learning as I possess," interposed Leofric +eagerly; "and my father taught me too, for he was a scholar of no mean +attainments. But it is the monks who possess the books and parchments." + +"Yea, verily; and these last weeks I have mastered in some poor sort the +art of penmanship. And now my father has almost consented to letting me +go. Only he has said that I must wait until chance shall send me a +companion for the way. From time to time there pass by clerks and +scholars returning to Oxford after an absence, or making their way +thither, even as thou art doing; and my father has promised that I may +join myself to the next of these who shall pass by. Now thou dost +understand why I did so embrace thee. For if thou wilt have me for a +travelling companion, we may e'en start forth to-morrow, and find +ourselves in Oxford ere another week be passed." + +No proposition could have been more welcome to Leofric. He had had +enough of loneliness, and this sturdy farmer's son would be the best +possible comrade for him. He was delighted at the notion. His canoe +would carry the double burden, and the fatigues of navigation would be +greatly lessened when shared between two. + +"Come up to the farm with me," cried his new friend, "and there will be +bed and board and a hearty welcome for thee; thou shalt find there a +better lodging than in some hollow tree by the river-banks; and my +mother will give us provision enow ere we start forth upon our voyage +to-morrow." + +Leofric was grateful indeed for this invitation. He made fast his canoe, +saw that his few possessions were safely protected from a possible +wetting, and followed his new friend along the narrow winding track +which led from the river-side to the clearing round the farmstead. + +On the way he learned that his companion's name was John +Dugdale--commonly called Jack. The farm where he had lived all his life +was situated not more than five miles from the town of Banbury. Jack had +plainly heard more of the news of the world than had reached Leofric in +his quiet home on the upper river. Something of the stir and strife that +was agitating the kingdom had penetrated even to this lonely farm. + +The great Earl of Leicester, Simon de Montfort, had passed through +Banbury on his way from Kenilworth to London, not long ago. There was a +great stir amongst the people, Jack told Leofric, and men spoke of the +Earl as a saviour and deliverer, and he was received with something very +like royal honours when he appeared. Leofric asked what it was from +which he was to deliver the people, and Jack was not altogether clear as +to this; but it had something to do with the exactions of the King and +the Pope; and he was almost certain that the clergy themselves were as +angry with the King as the Barons could be. He had heard it said that +half the revenue of the realm was being taken to enrich the coffers of +the Pope, or to aid him in his wars. More than that Jack could not say, +rumours of so many kinds being afloat. + +"But let us once get to Oxford, good comrade, and we shall soon learn +all this, and many another thing besides. I want to know what the world +is saying and thinking. I am weary of being stranded here like a leaf +that has floated into some backwater and cannot find the channel again. +I want to know these things; and if there be stirring times to come for +this land, as many men say there will, I would be in the forefront of it +all. I would wield the sword as well as the pen." + +This was a new idea to Leofric, who had contented himself hitherto with +dreams of scholastic distinction, without considering those other +matters which were exercising the ruling spirits of his day. Jack's +words, however, brought home to him the consciousness that there would +be other matters of interest to engross him, once let him enter upon +the life of a rising city. Oxford could not but be a centre of vitality +for the whole kingdom. Once let him win his way within those walls, and +a new world would open before his eyes. + +Talking eagerly together, the lads pursued their way through the forest +path, and suddenly emerged upon the clearing where the farmhouse stood. +Lights shone hospitably from door and window; a barking of dogs gave a +welcome to the son of the house; and Leofric speedily found himself +pushed within a great raftered kitchen, lighted by the blaze of a goodly +fire of logs, where he was quickly surrounded by friendly faces, and +welcomed heartily, even before Jack had told all his tale and explained +who the stranger was. + +The Dugdales were honest farmer folks, always glad to welcome a passing +stranger, and to hear any item of news he might come furnished with. +Leofric had little enough of this commodity; but the fact that he was +making his way to Oxford as a prospective clerk there was a matter of +much interest to this household. Farmer Dugdale was a man of his word. +He had promised Jack to let him go so soon as he should find a companion +to travel with. He would have preferred as companion one who had had +previous experience of University life; but he would not go back on his +word on that account. Leofric's handsome and open face and winning +manner gained him the good-will of all at the farm: they pressed him to +remain their guest for a few days, whilst Jack's mother made her simple +preparations for sending out her boy into the world for an indefinite +time, and the two companions learned to know each other better. + +Leofric was willing enough to do this. He was very happy amongst these +hearty, homely people, and became attached to all of them, especially to +Jack. Together they strengthened the canoe, made a locker in which to +stow away sufficient provision for the journey, and a second paddle for +Jack to wield, which he quickly learned to do with skill and address. + +Jack's mother took Leofric to her motherly heart at once, and she made +sundry additions to his scanty stock of clothing, seeing that his +equipment equalled that of her own son. It was little enough when all +was said and done; for times were simple, and luxuries unknown and +undreamed of, save in the houses of great nobles. The boys felt rich +indeed as they beheld their outfits made ready for them, and there was +quite a feast held in their honour upon the last evening ere they +launched forth upon their long journey. + +Happy as Leofric had been at the farm, he was still conscious of a +thrill of pleasure when he and Jack dipped their paddles and set forth +upon their journey together. The Dugdale family, assembled on the banks, +gave them a hearty cheer. They answered by an eager hurrah, and then, +shooting round a bend in the stream, they found themselves alone on the +sparkling waterway. + +To Leofric this voyage was very different from the last. There were the +same obstacles and difficulties to be overcome, but these seemed small +now that they were shared between two. Jack was strong, patient, and +merry. He made light of troubles and laughed at mishaps. They fared +sumptuously from the well-stocked larder of the farm, and the weather +was warm and sunny. To make a bed of leaves in some hollow tree, and +bathe in the clear, cold river on awaking, was no hardship to either +lad. They declared they did not mind how long the journey lasted, save +for the natural impatience of youth to arrive at a given destination. + +"And I should like an adventure," quoth Jack, "ere we sight the walls +and towers of Oxford Castle. Men talk of the perils of travel; but, +certes, we have seen nothing of them. I've had more adventure tackling a +great pike in the stream at home sometimes than we have seen so far." + +Nevertheless Jack was to have his wish, and the travellers were to meet +with an adventure before they reached their journey's end. + +It came about in this wise. + +They knew that they must be drawing near their journey's end. They had +been told by a woodman, whose hut had given them shelter upon the last +night, that the forest and palace of Woodstock were near at hand. They +wanted to get a view of that royal residence. So upon the day following +they halted soon after mid-day, and leaving their canoe securely hidden +in some drooping alder bushes, they struck away along a forest track +described to them by the woodman, which would, if rightly followed, +conduct them to a hill from whence a view could be obtained of the +palace. + +Walking was tedious and difficult, and they often lost their way in the +intricacies of the forest; but still they persevered, and were rewarded +at last by a partial view of the place, which was a finer building than +either of the lads had ever seen before. But the sun was getting low in +the sky by this time, and they had still to make their way back to their +boat, unless they were to sleep supperless in the forest; so they did +not linger long upon the brow of the hill, but quickly retraced their +steps through the forest, trying to keep at least in the right +direction, even though they might miss the actual path by which they had +come. + +Suddenly they became aware of a tumult going on in a thicket not very +far away. They heard the sound of blows, of cries and shouts--then of +oaths and more blows. Plainly there was a fight going on somewhere close +at hand, and equally plain was it that travellers were being robbed and +maltreated by some forest ruffians, of whom there were always a number +in all the royal forests, where fat bucks might chance to be shot, +undetected by the king's huntsmen. + +The lads had both cut themselves stout staffs to beat down the +obstructions in the path. Now they grasped their cudgels tightly in +their hands and looked at each other. + +"Let us to the rescue!" quoth Jack, between his clenched teeth. "I can +never hear the sound of blows without longing to be in the thick of the +fray. Like enough in the gathering shades the assailants will think we +be a larger party, and will make off. Be that as it may, let us lend +our aid whilst it may serve those in distress." + +Leofric nodded, grasping his staff firmly in his hand. He had all the +courage of a highly-strung nature, even if he lacked Jack's physical +vigour. + +Springing through the leafy glades of the forest, they soon came upon +the scene of the encounter, and easy was it to see that robbery and +spoliation was the object of the attack. + +Four stalwart young men, wild and dishevelled of aspect, armed with +stout cudgels and bows and arrows, had set upon two travellers, whose +clothes denoted them to be men of substance. They had been overpowered +by their assailants, though plainly not till a severe struggle had taken +place. Both were now lying upon the ground, overmastered each by a pair +of strong knaves; and in spite of their cries and struggles, it was +plain that these sturdy robbers were rifling them of such valuables as +they possessed. + +Jack took in the situation at a glance. With a yell of defiance he +sprang upon the nearest rogue, and hurled him backwards with such right +good will that he reeled heavily against a tree trunk, and fell +prostrate, half stunned. In a second the traveller had wrenched himself +free from the other assailant, and had dealt him such a sounding blow +across the pate (he having laid aside his stick in order the better to +plunder) that he measured his length upon the turf, and lay motionless; +whilst the other pair of bandits, who had been belaboured by Leofric, +seeing that they were now overpowered and in no small danger of +capture, flung down their booty and made off to the woods, dragging +their helpless comrade with them. + +It was no part of the travellers' plan to take into custody these +knaves, and they made no attempt to detain them, glad enough to see them +make off in the darkening forest. But they turned to their preservers +with words of warm gratitude, and showed how narrowly they had escaped +being muleted of rather large sums of money; for one had a belt into +which many broad gold pieces had been sewn, and the purse of the other +was heavy and well plenished. + +"We are travelling to Oxford," said he of the belt. "We joined for a +time the convoy of one of the 'fetchers,' conveying young lads and poor +clerks thither. But as we neared the place we grew impatient at the +thought of another night's halt, and thought we would strike across the +forest ourselves, and reach our goal soon after sundown. But we missed +our way, and these fellows set upon us. It is a trade with some lewd +fellows calling themselves clerks, and often pleading benefit of clergy +if caught, to infest these woods, and fall upon scholars returning to +the University, and rob them of such moneys as they bear upon their +persons." + +Leofric's eyes were wide with amaze. + +"Surely those fellows were not clerks from Oxford?" + +"Like enow they were. There be a strange medley of folks calling +themselves by that name that frequent the streets and lanes of the city, +or congregate without the walls in hovels and booths. Some of these, +having neither means to live nor such characters as render them fit +subjects to be helped from any of the chests, take to the woods for a +livelihood, shooting the King's bucks or falling unawares upon +travellers. Some clerks run to the woods for refuge after some wild +outbreak of lawlessness. There be many wild, lawless knaves habited in +the gown of the clerk and wearing the tonsure. Are ye twain from Oxford +yourselves, or bound thither, since ye seem little acquaint with the +ways of the place?" + +Explanations were quickly made, and the two elder youths, who might have +been eighteen and nineteen years old perhaps, suggested that they should +finish the journey together on foot, lading themselves with the contents +of the canoe, but leaving it behind in the alders, to be fetched away +some other time if wanted. They were near to the river by this time, and +the lads quickly fetched their goods, glad enough to travel into the +city in company with two comrades who plainly knew the place and the +life right well. + +They were very open about themselves. The name of one was Hugh le +Barbier, and he was the son of an esquire who held a post in the house +of one of the retainers of the Earl of Leicester--"the great De +Montfort," as the youth proudly dubbed him. His companion was Gilbert +Barbeck, son of a rich merchant. His home was in the south of England, +but he had been travelling with Hugh, during an interlude in their +studies. In those days regular vacations were unknown. Men might stay +for years at the University, hearing lectures all the time through; or +they might betake themselves elsewhere, and return again and resume +their studies, without reproof. The collegiate system was as yet +unknown, though its infancy dates from a period only a little later. But +there was a Chancellor of the University (if such it could be called), +and learned men from all lands had congregated there; lectures in Arts +and also in the sciences were regularly given, and degrees could be +taken by those who could satisfy the authorities that they had been +through the appointed courses of lectures, and were competent in their +turn to teach. + +The religious houses had been the pioneers in this movement, but now +there was a reaction in favour of more secular teaching. The monks had +some ado to hold their own, and obtain as many privileges as were +accorded to others; and friction was constantly arising. + +Moreover the recent migration of friars to Oxford had struck another +blow at the older monastic system. The personal sanctity of many of +these men, their self-denying life, their powers of preaching, the +strictness with which they kept their vows, all served to produce a deep +impression upon the minds of those who had grown weary of the arrogance +of the Priors and Abbots. + +The Grey Friars in particular, followers of St. Francis, were +universally beloved and esteemed. They went about barefoot; they would +scarce receive alms in money; their buildings were of the poorest and +roughest, and were situated in the lowest parts of the town. They busied +themselves amongst the sick and destitute; they lived lives of +self-denial and toil. The favour of princes had not corrupted them, and +the highest powers of the land spoke well of them. + +Hugh told all this to his comrades as they walked through the darkening +forest. He was plainly a youth of good parts and gentle blood, and he +seemed taken by Leofric's refined appearance and thoughtful face. + +"I would not go to Osney, or live in the Domus Dei there," he said. +"Thou hast saved me the loss of all my wealth; it would go hard if thou +wouldst not accept the loan of a few gold pieces, enough to establish +thyself in some modest lodging in the town, or even in one of the empty +niches upon the walls, where clerks have made shift to dwell ere now. +Out beyond the walls, shut up on the island of Osney, away from all the +bustle and roistering and tumult of the town, it scarce seems life at +all; and methinks the monks will get hold of thee, and win thee to be +one of themselves. Better, far better, be one of us in the town. Then +wilt thou see all that is to be seen, and learn far more, too, than thou +wilt in the schools of the monks." + +Leofric listened eagerly to this advice. + +"Is Osney then without the walls?" + +"Ay verily, on one of the many islands that the river makes in its +windings. Oxford itself is little more than an island, for that matter, +since the city ditch has been dug on the north side of it. But within +the city there is life and stir and stress, and all the Halls where the +students lodge are there, and the lodgings amongst the townsfolks which +some prefer. Come and belong to us, not to the monks. So wilt thou +learn the more, and enjoy life as thou couldst not do cooped up on yon +damp island in the Domus Dei?" + +"I would fain do so," answered Leofric readily. "I have no desire for a +monkish life. I would see what life is like without the cloister wall. +But I have little money; I love not debts--" + +"Tush! be not over scrupulous. Thou hast done me one good turn; I claim +right to do thee another. Now no more of that. Let us put our best foot +forward; for it will be dark ere we reach our destination. Perchance we +may yet have to camp once more in the woods; for if the city gates be +locked, we may have some trouble in getting admitted. The townsmen, +albeit they live and thrive by them, love not the clerks. They will do +us a bad turn an they can; yet methinks we are even with them, take one +thing with another!" + +Hugh showed his teeth in a flashing smile, and Gilbert laughed aloud. +Then the party strode on through the darkness, till they paused by +common consent to light a fire and camp for the night in company--it +being plain by this time that they could not enter Oxford that night. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +_OLD OXFORD._ + + +With glowing cheeks and beating hearts, Leofric Wyvill and Jack Dugdale +beheld the walls of Oxford towering above them in the clear morning +sunlight. + +For many long hours during the previous night had the four travellers +sat over their camp fire, listening and telling of the life of the +mediaeval University city. Already Leofric and Jack felt a thrill of +pride in the thought that they were to be numbered amongst its sons; +already they had wellnigh made up their minds that they would set up +together in some nook or turret in the city walls, make a sort of eyry +there for themselves, and live frugally upon the small sum of money they +possessed, until they were able to earn something towards their own +maintenance, or could borrow from one of the "chests" provided for the +benefit of poor students. + +Hugh had carried his point, and Leofric's purse now held a few gold +pieces as well as his own small store of silver. By the exercise of +economy the two friends would be able to live in modest comfort for a +considerable time, and Leofric, at least, hoped before long to earn +money by his penmanship and talent in illuminating parchments. + +[Illustration: PLAN OF OXFORD + +SHOWING THE POSITION OF + +THE ANCIENT HALLS, etc., + +ACCORDING TO WOOD. + +_12th and 13th Centuries._] + +They knew by this time where their new comrades lived. Gilbert had a +lodging with an honest citizen of the name of Seaton, who kept a shop +hard by Carfax, and sold provisions of all sorts to clerks and others. +He was one of the burgher class, who contrived to keep on good terms +both with the scholars and his fellow-citizens, and in the frequent +collisions between "town and gown"--to borrow the modern phrase--he +stood good-humouredly aloof, and would not take sides in any dispute. + +Hugh lived in one of the many Halls which had sprung up within the city +walls. These were not collegiate institutions, but were merely places of +abode, hired perhaps by a number of clerks collectively, perhaps by some +master, who received inmates as boarders. They lived in these houses, +and took their meals there--everything being of the roughest and +simplest description--and attended lectures in the different schools +according to their own fancy. Some of the richer students enlisted the +services of a tutor; but many lived a free and lawless existence, +learning almost nothing, frequenting lecture just for the fashion of the +thing, but making no progress in scholarship, and spending the best part +of the day in amusement or fighting. + +In the schools attached to the religious houses there was more order, +more comfort, and more decency of life than in these self-constituted +Halls; but amongst such clerks as had no leaning towards the religious +life there was a strong feeling of preference for simply secular abodes; +and there were difficulties between the monks and the University +authorities with reference to the course in Arts which held back many +from attaching themselves to the monastic schools. + +All this Leofric and Jack had been told with more or less of detail, and +already Leofric was resolved against settling himself upon Osney Island, +in the Domus Dei there. He would present his letter to the Abbot, but +not until he had made a nook for himself somewhere else. Gilbert +declared that he knew of a little turret in the city wall, not far from +Smith Gate, in which two students had lived for a considerable time. If +it were empty, they could take possession of it, and by the expenditure +of a little money and ingenuity could transform it into quite a +respectable living-chamber for themselves. Many a poor clerk had +inhabited a chamber of that sort before, and Jack and Leofric secretly +thought that they should prefer the quiet life on the wall to the noise +and confusion which plainly too often reigned in the various Halls. + +"We will go in by Smith Gate, and see if the turret be empty," said +Gilbert; "if so, these lads can take possession forthwith, and we will +show them where they can provide themselves with such things as be +needful for them." + +They were nearing the city by now. Already there had spread beyond the +walls a certain number of Halls and other buildings. The Church of St. +Mary Magdalene and the colony of the Austin Friars were without the wall +on the northern side, and a few Halls had sprung up along Horsemonger +Street, as it was then called, which was on the north side of the city +ditch, where Broad Street now runs. + +The Austin Friars were only just beginning to appear in Oxford; but the +Black, White, and Grey Friars had already obtained a footing in the +city. As the travellers approached the gate, they saw the cowled figures +flitting about, some with black habits over their long white +under-dress, some with a simple gown of grey or brown, bound with a cord +at the waist. These latter, who all (save the old and infirm) went +barefoot, were the Franciscans or Minorites--the Grey Friars of whom the +lads had heard; and they regarded them with curiosity and veneration, +believing them to be full of sanctity and virtue. + +Out through the gate, just as the youths approached it, came a couple of +Masters in their gowns and hoods. Leofric and Jack scanned them +curiously, and eagerly inquired of their companions who they were. + +"Nay, I know not the names of all the Masters in the city," answered +Hugh, laughing; "there be too many for that. Belike they have been +lecturing in School Street this forenoon, and are going back to their +Halls. Some of these same Masters will like enough come and invite you +twain to attend their lectures; but give not too ready an answer to the +first who asks. Rather visit several and pick out those who please you +most. It is oft the poorest and least learned who are most eager for +listeners, the better sort having always their lecture-rooms full." + +And now they were actually within the city precincts. Smith Gate being +so close to School Street, the eager eyes of the two new-comers were +immediately gratified by the sight of many hurrying figures of clerks +and Bachelors and Masters, some going this way and some the other, +talking earnestly together, disputing with some warmth and eloquence, or +singing snatches of songs, like boys released from school. + +It was not easy for unaccustomed eyes to distinguish the rank of the +various passers-by; for academic dress was still in its infancy, and +there were few, if any, statutory rules respecting it. The habit of the +clerk was very much what he wore at home, and the black cappa of +Bachelor or Master was often the same, though Masters were beginning to +wear the square, tufted cap, and had the right to the miniver hood of +the nobles and beneficed ecclesiastics. The scarlet gown of the Doctor +had just come into use, but was at present seldom seen, as many were +unable to purchase so costly a robe. The most common garment for every +person in the University was the "tabard" with the girdle, and these +tabards might be either red, black, or green; but black was the +commonest colour, as being the most serviceable in daily wear. + +Fain would the lads have lingered to watch the shifting throng of clerks +and their preceptors, as they streamed out from the lecture-rooms for +the mid-day meal; but Hugh and Gilbert laughed at their eager curiosity, +and drew them along to the left down Hammer Hall Lane, pausing suddenly +upon reaching a small turret in the wall, which once had been open to +the street, but was now closed in by a few mouldering boards. + +"Good!" cried Gilbert, as he pulled aside one of the boards; "the place +has not been taken. Now look well at it, you two, and see if you think +you can make shift to live here till a better place offers." + +Pushing their way within the circular recess, the lads saw that a rude +stairway led up to some sort of chamber overhead. Mounting the rickety +steps with care--for they had become loose and rotten--they found +themselves in a small and not unpleasing little chamber, lighted by +several long, narrow loopholes, and roofed in securely from the weather +overhead. + +The flooring was rather decayed, and there was a mouldering smell +pervading the place; but its former occupants had done various things to +render habitation possible. A fireplace and chimney had been contrived +in one corner, and some rude shutters had been affixed to keep out the +cold air at night, or in inclement weather. A rickety shelf that would +serve as a table still hung drooping from its nail. Plainly the place +had been lived in before, and might well be again. Leofric and Jack +looked round it, and smiled at one another. + +"We could live here like princes, if there be nothing to hinder," said +the latter. "Can we come and fix our abode here without making payment +to any one?" + +"Marry yes, since nobody uses the place. There be many such nooks along +the walls, and poor clerks have settled themselves there again and +again, no man saying them nay. In times of war they might post archers +or marksmen at these loopholes; but short of a siege, I trow none will +disturb you. And from without ye can climb easily upon the wall, and +enjoy the air and watch what goes on beneath. Also there be the Fish +Ponds just below, and I warrant ye will catch many a good supper from +thence when ye be in need of a good meal." + +Jack laughed, for he had no small skill as a fisherman; but just now he +was all agog to see Oxford and settle into these new quarters. + +"Had I but a few tools and some boards, I would fix us up bench and +table, mend the stairs and the floor, and make the place as comfortable +as heart could wish," he cried. + +"And I would gather rushes for the floor, and wood for the fire, and we +should feast right royally on the last of the provisions we laid up for +the way," added Leofric. + +"Then come away to Carfax, where ye can lay in such stores as ye need," +cried Gilbert. "I will take you to honest Master Seaton, where I have +always lodged. He will tell you where to go for all ye need, and the +right price to pay: for there be dealers in the city who seek to mulct +clerks and scholars, and charge them more than the fair price for goods; +and the Chancellor, and even his Majesty the King, have had to +interpose." + +"What is Carfax?" asked Leofric, as, after depositing their goods +carefully in the turret, they replaced the boards and sallied forth once +more. + +"Why, the meeting of the four great streets of the town--Quatrevois some +folks call it--where High Street, Great Bayly Street, Fish Street, and +North Gate Street all meet. St. Martin's Church is there with its great +bell, and whenever there be strife 'twixt citizens and clerks, that +bell booms out to gather the citizens together; whilst our +rallying-point is St. Mary's, whose bell rings to warn us that they are +rising against us. At other times Carfax is the chief mart of the city, +and the bull-ring stands in the centre. But come, and thou shalt see for +thyself; and good Master Seaton will give us all some dinner, I trow." + +Gilbert led the way, and the rest followed him willingly. The streets +had thinned considerably, the noontide hour having driven in clerks and +masters alike to their dinner. Gilbert strode down Cat Street, and +pointed out to his comrades several Halls situated there, and sounds of +laughter and loud talking and jesting broke upon the ears of the +passers-by, plainly indicating the proximity of considerable numbers of +inhabitants. + +"That was the Hall where I lived last," observed Hugh, as he pointed to +a house, somewhat better than the rest, on the left-hand side as they +walked down Cat Street. "Corbett's Hall it was then called; and the +Master was an excellent man. I heard he was about to go elsewhere; +probably I shall find a new head by now. But I will not pause there now; +I will wait till the fetcher has brought in my goods and chattels. I +will come with you to Carfax, and pay my respects to good Master Seaton +first." + +So on went the four, the pair who had never before seen a town gazing +with wonder at the quaint-timbered houses on either side the street, +whose projecting upper floors seemed almost to meet overhead. There was +no footpath or paving of any sort; the roadway was but a track, deep in +mud in winter, and in dust in summer. St. Mark's Church at the corner, +where they turned into High Street, brought Leofric to a standstill, for +such edifices were new to him; but his companions laughed and hurried +him on, telling him he could drink his fill of churches in Oxford any +day he chose, but that Master Seaton's dinner would not wait for his +leisure. + +On they went along this wider thoroughfare, not pausing to examine +anything in detail, but taking in the general effect of a populated +city, which was immensely wonderful to the two lads from the country, +till Gilbert pointed to a tall tower standing out against the sunny sky, +and said,-- + +"Yon is St. Martin's Church, and this is Carfax." + +It was, as he had said before, just a meeting of the ways, but such a +sight as it presented Leofric and Jack had never dreamed of. The open +place seemed full of people: there were stalls on which merchandise of +all sorts was being vended; loud-voiced salesmen were crying their +wares, or chaffering over bargains with customers. There were shops, +with signs swinging over them, that displayed a better sort of ware; and +lads of all ages, from thirteen upwards, in the tabard of clerks, were +strolling about, buying or examining goods, or exchanging a rough sort +of banter with the townsmen. A few Masters or Bachelors would be seen +threading their way through the crowd, but they did not often linger to +speak to any; it was the clerks who seemed to have all the leisure, and +some of these were playing games or throwing dice, whilst others looked +on, encouraging or jibing the players. + +"Heed not that rabble rout," said Gilbert, forcing his way towards a +rather fine-timbered house at the corner, where Fish and High Streets +joined; "come to Master Seaton's house, and let us hear all the news." + +Gilbert led the way into a shop, where he was greeted somewhat +boisterously by a merry-looking youth behind the counter. He nodded a +reply, and pushed open a door which gave access to a steep and narrow +staircase, and after ascending this he opened another door, and +instantly a number of voices were raised in welcome and greeting. + +Gilbert and Hugh pushed into the room from whence these sounds issued, +whilst Leofric and Jack stood together just on the threshold, gazing +about them with curious eyes. + +They saw before them a quaint, pleasant room, rush-strewn, and plainly +furnished with table and benches, in which a party of six was gathered, +seated round the board, which was hospitably spread with solid viands. + +The master of the house was easily distinguished by his air of authority +and his general appearance. His wife was a comely dame, ruddy of face +and kindly of aspect. On either side of her sat a pretty maiden, one of +sixteen, another of fourteen summers; and the good-looking, strapping +youth, who was now greeting Gilbert and Hugh right eagerly, was very +plainly the son of the house. An apprentice looked on wide-eyed and +silent at the apparition of four strangers; yet it was plain that +neither Gilbert nor Hugh were so regarded in the Seaton household. + +Not only were they joyfully received themselves, but their two comrades +quickly shared in the hospitable welcome. They were placed at the table, +their trenchers were heaped with good food, and the story of the +encounter in the forest was eagerly listened to by all. + +"There be many poor rogues who have taken to the forest in these times +of scarcity," said Hal Seaton, the son. "The harvests have been bad, and +prices have been raised; and the idle and prodigal have had much ado to +keep body and soul together. Sometimes they take to theft and pillage, +and then flee to the forest for safety; and some go thither in the hope +of killing a fine buck unseen by the huntsmen, or to rob unwary +travellers, especially those that be coming with full purses to pursue +their studies here." + +"Ay, and there be some that think there will be fighting ere long 'twixt +his Majesty the King and the Barons," added Seaton himself gravely. +"Heaven send such a thing come not to pass! It is ill work when brother +takes up arms against brother, and city against city." + +The youths would willingly have asked more of the state of parties at +this stirring season, but just now personal matters were of more +pressing importance. So they left politics for another time, and told +about the turret hard by Smith Gate, where Leofric and Jack were about +to ensconce themselves; and Hal begged a half-holiday from his duties in +the shop, that he might take his tools, and some odds and ends of planks +lying about in the workshop behind, and help the lads to settle +themselves in. + +This was willingly accorded, and Master Seaton and his wife both showed +great kindness to the would-be clerks. The former unearthed from his +stores some strong sacking fashioned into huge bags, that, stuffed with +straw or dead leaves, did excellently for bedding; and the latter put up +in a basket a liberal supply of food from her well-stocked larder, for +her motherly heart went out towards the two lonely lads, coming to +settle in a strange city, knowing nothing of the life before them. +Leofric's blue eyes and gentle manners won her affections from the +first, and no one could help liking honest Jack, who was so merry and so +full of hope and courage. + +Laden with a number of useful odds and ends, the little party made their +way back to the turret chamber; and soon the sound of hammer, chisel, +and saw spoke of rapid advance in the necessary work. + +Leofric crossed the river again to gather dead leaves and bracken for +bedding, wood for firing, and rushes for the floor. By the time he had +collected and brought in sufficient stores, the work overhead had +rapidly progressed, and he uttered an exclamation of delighted +astonishment as he beheld the result of the afternoons toil. + +The stairs and flooring were mended, rudely, to be sure, but strongly. +Something like a fastening had been contrived to the lower entrance, so +that they could use the basement of the turret as a storehouse for wood +and other odds and ends. Up above, the little chamber began to look +quite comfortable. The holes in the masonry had been filled up with +mortar or patched by boards. The window shutters had been mended, and +could now be used for keeping out inclement wind. One of the loopholes +had actually been glazed by Hal's deft fingers, and he promised to keep +his eyes open for any chance of picking up some more glass, so that the +others might be served in the same way. To be sure, the glass of those +days was none too translucent, and save in very cold weather, it was +pleasanter to have the loopholes open to the light of day; but if heavy +rain or bitter cold should drive the occupants to close their shutters, +it was certainly advantageous if one or two of the narrow slits could be +glazed, so that they would not be left in total darkness. + +The shelf table against the wall had been mended, and two stools of a +suitable height contrived. When the fire was lighted on the hearth, and +the smoke had been coaxed to make its way up the chimney, the place wore +a really cosy and home-like aspect, which was greatly enhanced after the +floor was strewn with rushes, and the two mattresses stuffed and laid +side by side in a little recess. The spare habits of the boys were hung +against the wall on pegs, and their few worldly possessions laid in +order upon the shelf which had been fixed up to receive them. + +"I vow," cried Hugh, as he looked around him, "that I would almost +sooner have such a lodging as this than spend my days in a Hall. There +be Halls where fires are scarce known save in the coldest weather, and +where the rushes lie on the floor till they rot, and become charged with +so much filth that the stench drives the luckless clerks out into the +streets. It hath not been so where I have lodged, 'tis true; but there +be Halls wherein I would not set foot for the noisome state they are +in." + +Leofric and Jack were charmed with their quarters, and when their guests +had bid them good-bye, and they had fastened themselves in for the +night, they looked at each other with a sense of triumph and joy. Here +they were, established as a pair of clerks in a lodging of their own in +Oxford, where none was likely to molest them. They had money in their +purses enough to last them a considerable time. They had made kind +friends who would help them through the difficulties and perplexities of +their first days; and surely before long they would find themselves at +home in this strange city, and would enter into its busy life (of which +they had caught glimpses to-day) with the zeal and energy of true +students. + +As they sat at their table, partaking with good appetite, though +frugally, of the provisions left from the journey, seasoned by some of +Mistress Seaton's dainties, they spoke together of their plans for the +morrow. + +"Methinks I should go to Osney, and present my letter. But I shall have +no need to ask for shelter in the Domus Dei, seeing how well we be +sheltered here." + +"And I would fain see something of the good Grey Friars, of whom so much +good is spoken in the town," answered Jack; "and we must seek out such +Masters as we would learn from, and find out what fee we must pay to +attend their lectures. It is not much, methinks, that each clerk gives, +but we must be careful how we part with our money, for we may not find +it easy to put silver in our purse when our store has melted away." + +"I shall ask the Abbot of Osney if he will give me vellum or parchment +to illuminate, for I have some skill that way," said Leofric; "I used to +help the monks of St. Michael. I might e'en do the same here; and, +perchance, I might teach thee too, good Jack." + +Jack looked at his rough, red hands, and shook his head. + +"I can make shift to read and write, but I never could do such work as +that," he answered. "I will fish in the ponds, and snare rabbits in the +woods, and make bread of mystelton for us to eat. My care shall be the +larder, and thou shalt have leisure for work if thou canst get it. So +will we live right royally in our nook, and learn all that Oxford can +teach us!" + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +_THE FIRST DAY._ + + +The lads slept soundly in their new quarters, but awoke with the first +light of day, eager to enter upon the strange life of the city. Making +their way first to the top of the wall, they had a good look round them +over the still sleeping town; and then finding a place where, by the +exercise of a little activity, they could clamber down on the outer +side, they refreshed themselves by a plunge in the Fish Ponds, by way of +ablutions, and returned through the gate to their lodging. + +They had a great curiosity to go forth together and see the city, but +they did not intend immediately to decide upon the preceptor they should +follow. Just at starting they felt almost too excited to settle to +regular study, and the visit to the Abbot of Osney was the first +business of the day. + +Putting on their better habits, and making themselves as trim and neat +as circumstances permitted, the boys sallied forth, and took the way to +Carfax as before. They knew that Osney lay to the west of the city wall, +beyond the Castle, and they had a great wish to see that building at +close quarters; so they pursued their way along Great Bayly Street, till +they reached the mound itself, crowned with its frowning walls and +battlements. + +As they passed along they saw not only numbers of clerks sallying forth +to their daily lectures, but great numbers of the Black Friars, who +appeared to be exercising considerable activity. Some were wheeling +little trucks or carts which held loads of what appeared to be goods and +chattels, and they appeared to be very busy, passing to and fro with +their loads or their empty trucks, like a colony of industrious ants. + +"What are they doing?" asked Jack of a bystander. + +"Removing themselves from the Jewry to the new House that the King's +Majesty has bestowed upon them without the city walls through Little +Gate and down Milk Street," was the answer. "They came and settled in +the Jews' quarter, hoping to convert the Hebrew dogs to the true faith; +but methinks they have but a sorry record of converts. Anyhow they are +going thence, and their new house is all but ready. A few may linger on +in the Jewry, but the most part will fare forth to the more commodious +building yonder." + +Having thus satisfied their curiosity on that score, the boys passed +onwards to the Castle, and just as they approached the West Gate, they +were in time to prevent something of a catastrophe. As they drew near, +they perceived that a young lady, mounted on a fair palfrey, was +approaching from the outer side. She was quite young, perhaps fifteen or +sixteen, and was very fair to look upon. Her hair was a dusky chestnut +colour, and was loosened by the exercise of riding, so that it framed +her face like a soft cloud. Her eyes were bright and soft and dark, and +her figure was as light and graceful as that of a sylph. As the two lads +passed under the gateway, marking her approach, they bared their heads, +and glanced at her with honest admiration in their eyes. + +The little lady noticed their salutation, and returned it with a gentle +dignity of manner; but just at that moment a piece of rag lying in the +gutter was suddenly whirled round and up by a gust of wind, right +against the face of the spirited little barb she was riding. + +The creature suddenly took fright, reared up on its hind legs, and then +made a sudden swerve, dashing off along West Gate Street at a headlong +pace. + +But luckily the girl rider was not borne away too in this reckless +fashion. When the creature started and reared so violently, she had been +almost unseated; and Leofric, seeing this, had with one quick movement +thrown his arm about her; and as soon as the palfrey swerved and made +off, the lady was simply lifted from her seat and gently set down by the +strong arms of both lads--for Jack had rushed up to give assistance. + +She stood now in the roadway, dazed, but safe, looking from one of her +preservers to the other, and faltering out broken words of thanks. + +Then the servant who had been behind, and who had in vain striven to +stop the runaway horse, rode up, lifted the little lady to his saddle, +and carried her away, before she had sufficiently recovered her breath +to do more than wave her hand to her two deliverers. + +The sentry at the gate, who had now come up, looked after them with a +laugh. + +"Old Ralph is a grim guardian. He will never let his young mistress have +speech of any. But I doubt not when it comes to the ears of the +Constable, he will seek you out to reward you; for fair Mistress Alys is +as the apple of his eye." + +"Who was the lady?" asked Jack eagerly. + +"Mistress Alys de Kynaston, only daughter of the Constable of the +Castle, Sir Humphrey de Kynaston. They say she is the very light of the +house, and I can well believe it." + +After a little more talk about the Castle and its Custodian, the sentry +directed the lads how to find Osney Abbey; and after crossing +Bookbinders' Bridge and passing the Almshouses, they quickly approached +the gate by which access was had to the Abbey itself. + +It was a fine building, inhabited by the Canons Regular of St. +Augustine. There were the Chapel, dedicated to St. Nicholas, the fine +cloistered refectory, the Dormitory, the Abbot's Lodging, to say nothing +of the fine kitchens, and the Domus Dei of which mention has been made. + +The present Abbot was Richard de Appelton, and when Leofric presented +his letter and asked speech of him, he was ushered into the presence of +the great man with very little delay. + +Strangers, even youthful strangers, were always received hospitably at +the religious houses, and the Abbot, after reading the letter of his +friend, spoke kindly to the boys, asking them whether they desired the +shelter of the Domus Dei. + +Leofric explained what had befallen him since that letter was penned, +and how he had met with kind friends, and had already found a lodging +within the walls of the town. The Abbot stroked his shaven chin, and +looked from Jack to Leofric, letting his eyes rest somewhat longer upon +the face of the latter as he said,---- + +"So thou art not as yet disposed to the religious life? Yet thou hast +the face of a godly youth." + +"I trust we may yet be godly without the cloister wall," answered +Leofric modestly. "It is not for roistering and revelry that we have +chosen to live within the town, but we would fain have some small spot +that we may call our own, and I had thought that perchance I might turn +such skill as I have in penmanship to account, so that I might earn fees +for----" + +"Ah yes, I know what thou wouldst say. Perchance we can give thee some +work of that kind from time to time. But there be other ways of winning +money too, open to poor clerks. Thou canst say a prayer or a grace at +some rich man's table, or the Chancellor will give thee a licence to beg +for thy maintenance. A likely youth, with a face like thine, will not +find living hard. And if thou art ever in any trouble, thou canst always +come to me. The Domus Dei is open to such as thou, and any son who comes +from my good friend the Prior of St. Michael will be welcome for his +sake." + +Leofric thanked the Abbot gratefully, and received from him a small +present in money, and two or three squares of vellum, such as were used +in the making of breviaries. This was a very great acquisition for +Leofric, as he could now begin some illuminating or transcribing work in +his leisure hours, and by the sale of this add to their scanty store of +money, and obtain the material for fresh work of a like kind. + +This he preferred greatly to begging, notwithstanding that mendicancy +had been made respectable, if not honourable, by the friars, and that to +give alms to a poor clerk, or reward him for singing a "Salve Regina," +or saying a prayer or grace, was one of the regular and esteemed forms +of charity. + +"And remember, good lads, that there are homes in the city open to such +as ye," said the Abbot, as he bid them adieu. "There is Glasson Hall in +the High Street, which pious John Pilet gave to Osney Abbey not long +since. We might find room for the pair of you there, if you were +disturbed in your nest. There is Spalding Court in Cat Street, which the +burgesses of the town have bought for the use of poor clerks; and there +be Halls where the poorer clerks serve the wealthier, and earn a +pittance thus. Ye will find many ways of living; and pray Heaven we have +a good harvest this year, so that the present scarcity may cease." + +And with a nod and a word of blessing the Abbot dismissed his young +guests. + +"Let us take a prowl round the town," said Jack, as they turned their +backs upon the stately buildings of the Abbey, "there is so much to see +at every turn, and I would fain know the streets and lanes of the city +by heart. We must enter by the West Gate that we left, but we will +wander round the walls and see what lies in the south ward of the city." + +Leofric willingly agreed, and they retraced their steps as far as the +gate, where they were at once hailed by the same sentry as had spoken to +them before. + +"Fortune favours you, honest lads," he said. "The Constable of the +Castle has just sent down this purse, to be given to the two clerks who +saved the Mistress Alys from hurt when her palfrey took fright," and he +put into the hands of Jack a small leathern satchel, in which were a +goodly number of silver pieces. + +"Now this is luck indeed!" cried the youth, as they took their way +onward. "We meet with success at every turn. Methinks that either thou +or I must have been born beneath a lucky star." + +But they had little time for discussing their good luck, for almost +immediately they found themselves in the heart of the Grey Friars' +colony, which lay close to the West Gate, just where there was a gap in +the city wall, probably owing to the proximity of a marshy tract which +rendered the protection of the wall of comparatively little use. Trill +Mill Stream wound round the little colony, and formed its southern +limit. The parish was that of St. Ebbs, perhaps the poorest in Oxford. +This was doubtless why the Minorites, or Grey Friars, had made of it +their headquarters. To dwell among the poor, and to live as poorly as +any of them, was their principle and practice; and down in these +low-lying, swampy districts, fever, ague, even leprosy abounded, and the +Friars toiled with might and main amongst the sick. + +The boys saw them going forth by twos and threes, or passing in and out +of their low, poverty-stricken buildings. It was against the desires of +their founder that they should ever possess property or aspire to +learning; but the practical inconvenience of the one prohibition, and +the thirst for knowledge which was growing up in the hearts of men at +this time, militated against the strict code of St. Francis. + +The Franciscans made their houses as simple and unpretentious as +possible. They lived the most self-denying of lives; but they were +beginning to frequent the schools, and to teach in schools of their own, +and although there were often drawbacks and difficulties placed in the +way of their advancement, they had already many great and notable +scholars in their ranks. + +The main difficulty was that by statute no one might begin in theology +who had not first taken a degree in Arts, whilst the vows and rules of +the monks and friars debarred them in many cases from any sort of +secular studies. They were so well qualified to lecture in theology that +it was often difficult to refuse their plea; and yet the statutes stood +in the way. + +As the boys reached the corner of Milk Street, they observed a +Franciscan Friar of venerable aspect coming towards them, and +instinctively Leofric bent the knee as if to ask a blessing. + +The old man stood still, and smiled benignly. It was one of the +characteristics of the Grey Friars that, in spite of the self-denial and +austerity of their lives, they were more uniformly cheerful, kindly, and +even merry in their talk and ways than any other of the religious +orders. For this reason, perhaps, they were beloved above others; and +the great ones of the world, as well as the poor, came to love and +venerate them. + +"Peace be with you, my children," said the Friar. "Come you as strangers +to this city? Methinks you have the air of the country clinging to you +yet." + +"We did but arrive yesterday," answered Leofric; "and we have scarce the +right to call ourselves clerks. But that is what we hope to be soon, so +as we can make up our minds where we shall gain the best learning for +such fee as our purse will enable us to give." + +"You must needs first study the _Trivium_ and _Quadrivium_ of Arts," +said the Friar, when he had questioned them a little more as to their +intended manner of life; "but since I hold that no learning is complete +that doth not embrace the study of the Word of God, come ye both, if it +please you and ye have time, to the school of our order, where I strive +to impart a few crumbs of knowledge to our clerks and younger brethren. +Many lads like ye twain come without fee, and glad shall I be if any +poor words of mine can give help or comfort." + +The boys would have stammered out some words of thanks, but the Friar +put them aside with a smile. + +"Nay, nay, lads, we are sent here not for our own but for others' good. +Ask for the School of the Franciscans, and for Brother Angelus. Most +mornings from nine till eleven I am to be found there. You will be +welcome. Go in peace." + +"We will of a surety go," said Leofric, as they pursued their way. "He +had the face of a saint. I trow that this is a right godly place. We get +kindness from all we meet." + +"Methinks it is thy face that wins it for us," quoth Jack, with a laugh; +"thou hast somewhat the face of a saint thyself." + +There was some shrewd truth in this remark. Leofric's was a countenance +that could not but attract; and at that time there were such numbers of +rude, rough, ill-mannered and ill-living clerks in the place, that +favourable notice was often bestowed upon such as appeared of gentler +nature and manners. All the religious brotherhoods were more or less on +the look-out for likely pupils, and though the more enlightened of their +members would not put pressure upon lads to make too early a choice of +the cloister life, or of that of the friars, they gladly recruited their +ranks from such promising students and clerks as they succeeded in +drawing beneath their influence. + +As the boys stood looking down Milk Street, they continued to see the +Black Friars flitting busily to and fro, fetching and carrying their +simple goods and chattels; and prompted by curiosity, they turned into +the Jewry, and were soon gazing with the greatest interest at the Jewish +denizens of that quarter. + +The Jews had had a footing in Oxford from the very early days; they had +a synagogue in Fish Street, nearly opposite to St. Aldate's Church. (It +may be noted that the old Fish Street is the present St. Aldate's.) They +were, of course, the most moneyed class in the city, and they had their +own code and manner of life, were exempt from the operation of the +common law, and were treated as serfs of the King. Had it not been that +the Kings protected them from pillage by their neighbours, in order to +plunder them themselves, the Jews would scarcely have continued to +exist. The people hated and feared them, even whilst they borrowed from +them at a rate of usury limited by statute. But they were too valuable +to the Crown to be exterminated, and the Black Friars had settled +amongst them in the hope of effecting their conversion. + +For many years they had considerable success, so much so that the King +established a house called the Guild Hall for the reception of the +baptized Hebrews. It was not really their lack of success (although +fewer conversions had taken place of late) but lack of room which +occasioned the flitting of the Black Friars from the Jewry. They were +not all of them leaving immediately, even now; but their new building +was almost complete, and a number of the brothers were about to take +their departure, hence the excitement prevailing in the locality of the +Jewry. + +When the lads had gazed their fill at the strange dress and dark faces +of the Jews, and had listened to their talk, and their covert jests as +they secretly derided the Christian brothers who had dwelt so long +amongst them, they turned southward down Fish Street, and then by St. +Frideswyde's Street to the great group of beautiful and ancient +buildings comprising St. Frideswyde's Church and Abbey--the oldest in +Oxford--occupying the site where Christ Church now stands. + +Grave, stately looking men walked with slow, meditative steps about the +enclosure in which stood those buildings. They were habited in a long +white coat of cloth down to the heels, girt about with a leather girdle; +over this was a short surplice of linen, and over that again a short +black cape that reached to the elbows. On their shaven heads they wore a +black square steepled cap. These were the Canons Regular of St. +Augustine--the same order as those of Osney. + +Here again the walls were broken down, and had crumbled to decay, groves +and meadows and fish ponds extending southward to Trill Mill Stream. The +boys looked about them in silent wonder, but nobody addressed them; and +though they would have liked to steal into the church and see St. +Frideswyde's shrine, they did not venture to do so, fearing that they +would be regarded as intruders in that sacred place. + +"Hugh le Barbier was telling me of notable miracles done at yon shrine," +said Leofric, as they turned away at length up St. Frideswyde's Lane. +"St. Frideswyde was a daughter of an ancient king, and she built a +nunnery here, and was herself a nun. Afterwards it became a place for +monks, and now it is an Abbey; but the shrine of St. Frideswyde still +remains, and great wonders are wrought there." + +"Hark!" suddenly cried Jack, whose ears had been more attentive to some +sound in the distance than to his companion's words, "I hear the noise +of a tumult. There is something stirring not far off. Let us e'en run +and see what it be. Methinks I hear the sound of blows and shouts." + +Leofric heard the same sound which had attracted Jack's attention. It +seemed to proceed from a short distance off, and they hurried along till +they reached the corner of Great Jewry Lane where it joins Shydyard +Street (now Oriel Street), where the shouting began to take more +articulate form, and the boys heard the words, "North, North!--South, +South!" bawled and yelled from scores of throats. + +"It is some fray betwixt the clerks," said Jack, who had not listened +for naught to Gilbert's tales during the night they camped by the fire +in the forest. "Did he not tell us that they were banded into two or +more great bodies, North and South, and that they were ofttimes coming +to blows together? Haply we had better stand close in this doorway, and +let the rout go by. Clerks are killed by their fellows in the open +streets every year, if what we hear be true, for nothing worse than +belonging to the adverse faction." + +Leofric, who though no coward was by nature placable, and adverse to +blows, was ready enough to take this counsel, and set his back against +the door in the little porch which offered shelter to the pair. The +fight seemed to be coming their way, and presently a few clerks scudded +by, yelling, laughing, cursing; brandishing their clubs and hurling all +manner of foul and derisive epithets at those behind them, from whom, +however, they evidently thought it well to flee. Others followed, some +having cut heads or bleeding noses, dishevelled, out of breath, angry, +yet inclined to make game of themselves and others all the while. + +"North! North! North!" they shouted, interlarding their words with many +an oath and epithet that need not be transcribed. "Ye coward +Southerners, ye only dare to attack when ye be ten to one. We will give +you back as good as ye gave! North! North!" + +Plainly the pursuers were close behind the flying feet of the last +fugitive, when suddenly the rout was brought up short by the appearance +of a tall man in a long gown, with a weapon at his side, who came round +the corner at a quick pace, and confronted the rioters with stern +glances. + +"How dare you disturb the peace again, you good-for-nothing brawlers?" +he cried in ringing accents. "Let me have such another scene within the +week, and I will have some of you to answer for it in the Chancellor's +Court. As if it were not enough that you must be fighting the burgesses, +fighting the citizens, fighting the Jews, but ye must be fighting one +another too, and that in broad daylight, when you should be at your +studies. To your Halls and lodgings, every man of you; and if I hear of +such another brawl as ye come from lecture, I will deal differently with +some of you." + +The clerks, who had pulled up suddenly at sight of this stalwart +functionary, now began to slink away this way and that. Many of them +were mere lads, led on by the boyish instinct of fighting; a few were +evilly-disposed rogues, who were always to be found in the streets, +ready for any brawl; others, again, were scholars who had followed in +the wake of the crowd, with an idle interest in anything that savoured +of a fight rather than with any particular desire to take part in it. + +These sorts of frays were of almost daily occurrence in old Oxford, and +only when they became too numerous or too severe was any particular +notice taken of them. The students for the most part lived and brawled, +studied and played, very much as it pleased them, and a fight, with many +or with few, was part of the day's work. + +Jack espied Gilbert at the edge of the crowd, and made for him quickly. + +"What is the matter? and who is he that stayed the fight?" he asked, +with eager curiosity; and Gilbert answered, laughing,-- + +"There is naught the matter; the fight was but a bit of play as the men +came out from lecture. We have such almost every day, and they seldom +come to more than a few cracked crowns. Yon man of the gown is the +Proctor of the South. There be two such in the University, one for the +North and one for the South; and I trow they have their hands full to +keep order sometimes! But come along, let us to dinner, and ye shall +tell your news." + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +_THE NEW LIFE._ + + +Before a week had passed away, Leofric and Jack felt as though they had +been months at Oxford, so many new experiences had been crowded into +that short space. + +The more they saw of the strange life of the place, the more glad were +they of the chance which had given to them this little private shelter +of their own, instead of casting them amongst a number of strange clerks +in one of the poorer Halls or lodgings of the city. + +For in the days of its infancy the University had enough to do in +protecting its own liberties from outside attack. It was therefore +unable to exercise individual authority over its heterogeneous members. +It provided instruction for them, it guarded their persons jealously +from assaults from without, and fought their battle right lustily when +jealous townsmen or papal emissaries sought to interfere with liberty or +life. But for the rest, the clerks and scholars lived in a state of +glorious and almost barbaric liberty, and all that Chancellor or +Proctors could hope to attempt was to restrain any serious outbreaks of +violence, either between clerks and citizens, or between the various +sections of the clerks themselves. + +Open rioting in the streets was checked as far as possible; but an +immense amount of roistering and disorder could and did prevail without +let or hindrance, and there was no certainty from day to day that some +bloody collision might not occur in the city which might have a serious +termination. + +Stories were told of clerks who had been set upon and killed by angry +citizens, of citizens who had been slain by clerks, of Masters even who +had met with injuries too often fatal in their effects, sometimes from +the hands of citizens, sometimes from those of scholars inflamed by +passion or drink. + +There had been times when the King had had to interfere in order to calm +the strife between the contending parties. There had also been times +when the Masters and scholars had deserted Oxford by hundreds, if not +thousands, and had threatened to establish themselves in other +localities. This had been done when the citizens had put upon them some +marked indignity and affront, and had generally resulted in the +submission and humiliation of the town. For, as was pointed out to the +burgesses, the importance and prosperity of Oxford mainly depended upon +the presence there of this school of learning, and if they drove away +the scholars by their ill-judged enmity, they were signing the +death-warrant of their own city. + +It was often to these quarrels and their adjudication that the +endowments (if such a word can be employed) of the University were +owed. The citizens would submit, and agree to pay so many marks a year +in token of their penitence, and these moneys were called "chests," and +formed a fund from which poor scholars might borrow without interest, +leaving a pledge behind; and private individuals would sometimes start a +similar chest, from which system gradually developed the scholarships +and exhibitions of our own days. + +But the life of the infant University was a very strange one as compared +with the collegiate system which gradually grew out of it. Thirteen or +fourteen was a common age for a youth to commence life as a clerk, and +even at that tender age very little supervision was given him. + +Originally the University copied to a certain extent the guilds of a +city corporation, and as a seven years' apprenticeship was imposed upon +lads entering trade guilds, so a seven years' course was expected of a +student between the date of his entry as a clerk and the time at which +he might take his M.A. degree. In the previous century there were +regular University guilds, and as the University was international, and +men from all countries came thither, these guilds naturally partook of a +national character, men of the same language consorting together, so +that different Halls became associated with the names of different +nationalities. + +Even amongst the inhabitants of the British Isles there were +distinctions and race divisions. The Welsh formed a colony of their own, +whilst North and South were the two main factions in the place in the +thirteenth century, and these brawled terribly at times between +themselves. + +Even when no actual brawling was going on, the streets of Oxford after +dusk were places where it was needful to walk warily. By day studies and +games occupied the clerks the best part of their time; but with the +setting of the sun a stop was put to these occupations. Candles were +dear, firing was often scanty, and the close, ill-smelling Halls, where +the rush-strewn floors were often not cleaned for weeks together, became +almost intolerable when shut up. Naturally enough, the clerks preferred +to sally forth into the streets, some to drink or sing songs at the +taverns, others to parade the streets, shouting and joking, and playing +any pranks that entered their heads. When it is remembered that almost +every person in those days carried arms of some sort, and that the most +trifling quarrel provoked blows, it may well be understood that the +evening hours in the city were anything but peaceful, and some sympathy +can be felt with the citizens in their enmity towards the gownsmen, even +though these were a source of profit to them. + +Evening by evening Leofric and Jack heard hideous sounds of drunken +revelry proceeding from the various streets in the vicinity, and if ever +they had the curiosity to parade the town after dark, they were amazed +at the disorder and violence which seemed to prevail. + +"I had thought," said Leofric, "that Oxford would be full of grave and +reverend doctors, whose presence would impose order and gravity upon +all. But methinks it is full of wantonness and revelling and fighting. +Right glad am I, good Jack, that we have our own little nest on the +walls. I should be loth indeed to belong to yonder herd." + +Jack was not quite so particular, and a frolic in the streets, so long +as things did not go too far, was rather agreeable to him than +otherwise. Sometimes he would steal out, whilst Leofric was poring over +his illuminating work, and enjoy a stroll with some of the clerks of the +better sort with whom he had made acquaintance, and as he grew used to +the strange ways of the city, he found much to amuse and interest him. + +Leofric had purchased, with the money given him by the Abbot of Osney, +some materials to enable him to work at the illumination of his vellum +leaves, and was doing some fine and beautiful illumination which was +certain to fetch him a good sum at some wealthy man's house. Jack looked +on in amaze at his skill, but sometimes felt the time hang a little +heavy. On such occasions he would sally forth to do the necessary +marketings, or to collect fuel, and so forth; and often Hugh le Barbier +would drop in to watch Leofric at his toil and exchange ideas with him +on many subjects. + +Hugh was of a studious turn, and he had the same sort of refined +instinct as Leofric, and shrank from the tumult and rowdiness of the +streets. He had not yet succeeded in finding a Hall quite to his mind, +and was lodging at present at "Dagville's Inn" (now the Mitre), which +belonged in those days to one Philip Pady, a burgess, who had rented it +to an Italian of the name of Pedro Balzani, who had lived long in the +city, and made an excellent innkeeper, having great skill in culinary +matters, and a good English wife who understood the likings of her +countrymen. + +"Thou must come and sup with me one of these days," said Hugh one day, +as he sat with Leofric after Jack had sauntered forth. "I have a +comfortable chamber enow, though somewhat chilly when the wind is +riotous; but I have found favour in the eyes of mine host, and I take my +meals with him and his family. This is not a grace he accords to all who +come, nor even to all who stay long in his house, as I am doing. And, in +truth, he does right to be cautious; for he has a pair of wonderfully +beauteous daughters, twin sisters, and so much alike that it was long +before I knew one from the other." + +Leofric looked up with a gleam of interest in his eyes. + +"Beautiful, thou sayest? I was wondering if perchance I could find in +this place a beautiful face; for see thou here, I would fain on this +square of vellum portray an angel with a roll in his hands, upon which I +shall inscribe, in fine penmanship, certain prayers. I have some small +skill in drawing faces. I used to amuse the monks of St. Michael by +taking likenesses of them, and they said I did it well. But it is not +easy to find a face for an angel, though there are some pretty lads here +and there walking the streets. I wonder if I could find an inspiration +in the face of your twin sisters." + +"Thou shalt come and see," quoth Hugh eagerly; "methinks it would please +them well to be thus portrayed. For my part, I think that Linda's face +would be the better; it is ofttimes full of a sweet seriousness and +repose, whereas Lotta is all sparkle and fire; and it is by these two +expressions that I begin to know them the one from the other, though, +should Lotta be pensive and Linda merry, I am at fault again!" + +"I should like to see them," said Leofric. "I have heard of such +things--sisters so alike that none may distinguish between them--but I +have never seen such. It must be something strange." + +"Thou shalt come and see; thou and Jack shall sup with me to-morrow. I +have spoken to Balzani about you both before now. Thou hast a quick eye +and a keen understanding, and I would ask what thou dost think of Tito +Balzani, the son of mine host. For my part I like him not, and methinks +he has no love for me. He consorts with one Roger de Horn, one of the +biggest braggarts and bullies of the place. He calls himself a clerk, +but it is little of learning that will ever get into that pate of his. +He, too, comes to table with mine host and his family, and methinks he +is vexed and jealous because the same grace is accorded to me. He speaks +insolent words anent upstarts and fine-gentlemen fops; and it is plain +that he seeks a quarrel with me, or else to drive me to other quarters." + +Leofric was interested in all that concerned his friend, for he had a +sincere liking for Hugh, who had been kind to him in a variety of ways. +He gladly promised to visit him on the morrow, and take supper with him, +being interested in the thought of seeing these Balzanis. + +"I suspect there is some love-jealousy at the bottom of this fellow's +dislike for Hugh," remarked Jack, when he heard Leofric's account of the +matter; "there be some fellows who must always have a sweetheart, and +perchance this bully thinks that the fair ladies will think more of +Hugh's open face and gentle bearing than of his own. We will go and see +for ourselves; for I would be sorry that any hurt should come to good +Hugh. He is a very proper fellow; but in such a city as this any +evil-disposed person might seek a quarrel with his rival, and do him a +deadly mischief without fear of anything worse than the Chancellor's +prison. Benefit of clergy may be source of safety to some, but it can be +a source of peril too, when the vilest of the land claim it as a cloak +for their worst sins." + +The new clerks were beginning to learn many lessons as to the working of +the prevailing system, and they heard many things from Brother Angelus, +whose lecture-room they sought whenever they could, and who seemed to +take a special interest in these two lads. Once they had accompanied him +in a round of visits amongst the poor in the parish of St. Ebbs, and had +longed to emulate his skill and tenderness with the sick. It seemed +strange to them to see one who was so learned in saintly lore, and who +was so revered in his own school by the pupils of St. Francis, humbling +himself here to perform the most menial office for the poorest person, +without a thought for his own dignity or position. But it was alike the +theory and the practice of the friars to humble themselves to tend their +brethren; nor did they think it shame to ask alms at the doors of the +rich, for they might possess nothing of their own, and must needs beg +sustenance for themselves and for those whom they desired to help. + +Leofric and Jack had by this time settled what lectures to attend and +what masters to follow. They had been perplexed for a while at the +choice before them, and by the solicitations of their superiors for a +hearing in their particular schools. They had visited a considerable +number before finally deciding, and were now deeply interested in the +daily lectures they heard upon a variety of subjects. Jack declared he +had never had such a hard time in his life, and he wanted a good deal of +help from Leofric in taking in what he heard. But both lads had sharp +wits and a great thirst for information, and they soon attracted the +notice of their instructors by their regular attendance, and by the +attention they bestowed upon the lecture. + +So far they had not made a great many acquaintances amongst their +fellow-clerks, the number of whom was quite confusing at the outset. +Some amongst them were too rough and uncouth to attract them, whilst +others, more gently born, were superior to them in station, and they +feared a rebuff should they attempt to make advances. Life was simpler +in its conditions in those days, and friendships easily grow up when the +young are thrown together; but pride of race is nowhere absent, and both +Leofric and Jack had a great dislike to putting themselves forward in +any way. + +There was a great deal of talk in the city at that time, and indeed all +over the country, as to the condition of affairs betwixt the King and +the Barons. Leofric and Jack were only gradually beginning to take any +interest in political matters, being sufficiently engrossed just now in +their own affairs; but Hugh talked often to Leofric about the great Earl +of Leicester, who had married the King's sister, and who was now the +head and champion of the Barons' party. He spoke of him with the ardent +enthusiasm of youth, called him the greatest and noblest man of the day, +would tell long stories of his prowess in Gascony and other places, and +of the ill-treatment he had ofttimes received at the hands of the +capricious and unstable monarch. + +"The King never knows his own mind two days together!" the young man had +scornfully declared, "and he makes promises only to break them. He is +the tool and dupe of the Pope, and is bleeding his country to death, +sending all its wealth across the seas for objects with which we have no +concern. And then he breaks every promise whereby he has attained these +moneys, and our charters and liberties are trampled underfoot, even when +he has most solemnly promised to observe and respect them." + +Hugh was an ardent supporter of that party in the kingdom which began to +be called the Barons' party, and Leofric and Jack drank in his spirit +eagerly. It was, in fact, the prevailing one amongst the members of the +University of all grades. The friars, too, were far more in sympathy +with the champions of the liberties and rights of the people and the +constitution, than with the aggressions and tyrannies of a Pope-ridden +monarch. So that Oxford, although divided in some measure upon the +burning questions of the day, inclined on the whole very much in favour +of that party of which Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, was now the +acknowledged head. + +When Hugh escorted his two friends through the streets to Dagville's +Inn, where they were to sup with him as arranged, he was considerably +excited by a rumour which had just reached the city, and which was +causing no small stir there. + +It was said that Oxford had been chosen as the place where in a short +time, perhaps two months hence, a Parliament was to be assembled in +which the burning questions of the day were to be discussed, and some +settlement of a definite nature arrived at between the King and his +nobles. The very idea of this great assembly sent a thrill of excitement +through the place. The streets were crowded with knots of clerks and +citizens, for once all gathered amicably together, discussing the news +which had been brought from London, and wondering whether it were true. + +Dagville's Inn presented a lively appearance. Its porch and bar were +crowded with guests, and a dark-faced man, who spoke with the accent of +a foreigner, was busy serving the guests, as was also a youth with a +tousle of frizzy hair and a pair of shifty black eyes, who bore a strong +resemblance to mine host, but looked a great deal more crafty and cruel. + +Leofric observed his face as he passed in, and noted that he gave an +ugly scowl at sight of them. It seemed plain that he had no liking for +Hugh, although what was the cause of the grudge he bore him it was less +easy to decide. + +Hugh pushed his way through the lower room, his guests following; and +after mounting to the upper floor, they found themselves in a pleasant +room, not unlike that in which they had seen the Seaton family assembled +on their first arrival at the city. Its window, which was large and +latticed, though the lattice stood wide open to the mild evening air, +looked upon the High Street; and upon the window seat lay a lute, and a +piece of fine embroidery work such as was seldom seen save in the +nunneries or in the houses of fine ladies. + +A table in the centre of the room was set for supper, but the apartment +itself was empty, and Leofric took up the lute gently, and fingered it +with loving touches. But the next moment he put it hastily down, for the +door opened, and a pleasant-looking motherly woman came in bearing a +smoking dish, and she was followed by two maidens, each with a dish in +her hands. + +Hugh stepped forward to relieve one daughter of her load, and Jack did +the same by the second. Leofric, who was more shy by nature, stood where +he was in the window, looking in a sort of amaze from one girl to the +other. Both were dressed exactly alike, in a semi-Italian fashion which +he thought most bewitching; but it was the beauty of the two faces, and +their extraordinary similarity, which confused and bewildered him. No +wonder Hugh had said it was hard to tell one sister from the other; he +marvelled that any should learn to know them apart. To his eyes the +faces seemed identical, the same rich colouring, the same dark +velvet-soft eyes, the same flashing smile and finely-pencilled brows. + +Hugh made him known to the sisters, who were girls of about his own age, +albeit their southern blood made them appear older than their age. He +called one Lotta and one Linda, and asked Leofric if he thought they +would do as models for him. + +The young artist blushed to the roots of his hair, and knew not what to +say; but one of the maidens laughed merrily, and looked archly into his +face. + +"Methinks if he wants an angel-model, he had best take his own +portrait," she said, in clear musical tones; whilst the other sister +added in a voice of precisely the same character,-- + +"Or seek to get a glimpse of lovely Mistress Alys at the Castle. +Methinks she has the fairest face of any maid in the city." + +Whilst the young people were talking together in the window, and drawing +out Leofric to tell them of his art, and even to show them what he could +do by means of a bit of charcoal upon a piece of wood, a tall, burly, +dark-browed young fellow lounged into the room, and looked across at the +group round Leofric with a scowl in his deep-set eyes. + +Jack was the only one who noticed his entrance, and he knew the intruder +to be Roger de Horn, who had a certain notoriety in the place as being +one of its most turbulent spirits. + +"Supper, supper, good folks," called the mistress from the head of the +table, where she had seated herself before another smoking dish which +she had been to fetch. "If the father and Tito are busy for the moment, +we must not let the supper spoil. Doubtless they will join us when they +smell the viands.--Come, young sir, and let us see if thou canst wield a +knife as well as a pen, for I believe not in your starveling clerks. +Good victuals make good scholars, as I always say." + +The hostess was a cheerful soul, and her calling in life had given her +easy, pleasant manners that won her good-will from all. She looked +little enough like the mother of the crafty Tito, or even of these +beautiful girls. Tito, in truth, was not her son; for Balzani had been +married twice, and his first wife had been of his own nationality. Tito +was several years older than the twin sisters, and no very great +likeness existed between them. Yet the daughters looked far more Italian +than English, although they spoke their mother's tongue with perfect +fluency, and without any sort of accent. They were both very charming +girls. Leofric could not on that occasion decide in the least which was +the more charming, for he could not tell them apart. Sometimes he +thought he was beginning to know them, but again found himself +completely at fault. But he was delighted with the permission accorded +to him of drawing their portraits, and the girls' eagerness over this +matter amused and gratified him not a little. + +Roger seemed in a very ill temper all the while, as Jack was not slow to +notice. He sat silent and sullen at the board, nor did it soothe him to +observe that nobody seemed to miss him or take note of his ill-humour. +All were occupied with Hugh and his guests, chattering and laughing +gaily. Nobody appeared to have a word or a look for him, unless it were +the hostess, who pressed him sometimes to partake of one or another of +the dishes on the table, but always returned to join the chatter of the +young folks, which plainly interested her much more than the morose +responses of Roger. + +When Balzani and his son appeared, they were full of the news which was +exciting the place. The innkeeper was pleased with the thought of all +the fine company that this meeting would bring to the town. He did not +profess to know or to care very much about the rights of the case; he +was still too much the foreigner to enter keenly into English politics. +But the local excitement he thoroughly appreciated, and when he got a +chance he questioned Hugh closely about the great Earl of Leicester and +his household and retinue, wondering whether so great a man would +condescend to lodge in his house, and if so, what gain such a thing +would bring to him. + +When Jack and Leofric took their leave, promising another visit soon, +Hugh walked with them part of the way, asking their opinion of his +quarters and his friends. + +"I'd have a care if I were thee," said Jack, with one of his shrewd +glances; "for that braggart Roger de Horn is no friend of thine, and +methinks Tito and he are fast friends. In this city it behoves men to +walk warily if they have foes abroad. I would have a care if I were +thee." + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +_A "MAD" PARLIAMENT._ + + +"'Twill be a mad Parliament, gentlemen, a mad Parliament," said one +reverend doctor, as the news was definitely made known in Oxford that +that place had been selected by King and Barons as a neutral spot where +the adjourned Parliament should meet. + +Great excitement reigned throughout the city and University. Nothing was +talked of but the political situation, the weakness of the King, the +resolution of the Barons to enforce the terms of the Great Charter upon +the tyrannical monarch, and the possibility (only too well grounded) +that the Sovereign, advised by his foreign favourites, would seek to +call in aid from abroad, and overrun the fair realm of England with +foreign mercenaries. + +"But hireling foreigners must be paid," remarked one citizen grimly, as +this danger was mooted, "and until the nation gets its rights and +liberties, no more money will his Majesty wring from it. The sinews of +war are in our pockets, and there they shall stay unless the King +chooses to hear reason." + +"Ay, and more than that," cried Gilbert, hurrying up to join the eager +crowd; "I have had good news from my father in the south. He tells me +that the Barons have garrisoned the Cinque Ports, so that no foreigners +may land on our coasts. As the truce with France has just expired, they +have good reason for this step, without doing any disloyalty to his +Majesty; but all the world knows with what special object it has been +done at this moment. Methinks we shall be free from fear of foreign +invasion, and that we shall obtain our liberties without bloodshed." + +"Heaven grant we may!" cried the older and graver amongst the +townsfolks, some of whom remembered, and others had heard from their +fathers, the tales of the terrible struggle in John's time, which had +led to the granting of the Great Charter. They wanted no repetition of +such scenes as those; albeit some of the younger and more ardent +spirits, and the lawless and violent ones, would not have been +displeased had some open collision occurred which should cause the whole +country to fly to arms. + +Even as it was, great impetus had been given to the joustings and +practices of wars in the meadows around the city. Both clerks and +citizens went out afoot or on horseback during the long evenings of +summer, and often such a tumult arose, and such a din of arms, that one +might well suppose some real battle was going on rather than an +imitation of it. + +June had come, and all the world was clothed in verdure. Oxford was +looking her best and brightest at this season. As the day for the +assembling of this Parliament drew near, the excitement became intense. +Lectures in some cases were suspended, and discipline of any kind became +enforced only with difficulty. + +As usual, there were two parties in the city. The very fact that the +scholars sided almost to a man with the Barons' party disposed some of +the citizens to throw in their sympathies with the King. Henry was no +special favourite, but he was personally beloved by those who had at any +time had access to his presence. He was not vicious, and he was devout; +his defenders could always say many things in his favour. He was not a +monarch to inspire respect or personal enthusiasm; but then neither was +he one who roused against himself any great outbreak of popular rage. +Had he lived in less critical days, or been better advised, he might +have passed through life comfortably and easily, and have been regarded +as a good and well-meaning monarch. + +"We must needs see some of these great sights!" cried Jack excitedly to +Leofric, after coming back from a prowl round the city one evening. +"They say that to-morrow the Barons will march into the city; and upon +the day following the King will arrive at Beaumont Palace. We must go +forth to see these brave sights. Marry, what a time it will be for +Oxford! Right glad am I to be here at such a season! Think of it--I +might have been following the plough behind my father's horses, knowing +naught of the great things that be doing in the world!" + +A few minutes later and Hugh burst in, quivering with excitement. + +"The great Earl of Leicester with his train comes to-morrow," he cried, +"and many others of the Barons as well. Some will lodge here, and some +there; but the great De Montfort and his sons will come to Dagville's +Inn, and for the nonce all who are there must make way. So I come to beg +a lodging with you, my friends; and if fortune favours us, I will seek +to get speech with my old playmates, Guy and Amalric, and will present +ye both to them." + +"Are they the sons of the great Earl?" asked Leofric eagerly. + +"Ay; and time was once when I went as a page with my father to +Kenilworth, and we played together, we boys. Guy and Amalric are the two +youngest sons. The elder pair have won knighthood for themselves beyond +the seas. But these be yet lads still, albeit, if report says true, very +proper and noble lads. Right well do I hope that they will accompany +their father on the morrow. Methinks they will not have forgotten me. +Amalric was very friendly in those past days, and we vowed to love each +other always." + +There was little sleep for the trio in the turret that night. Jack and +Leofric made Hugh tell them everything he could remember of the De +Montfort family at Kenilworth, when he had been there as page. + +They wanted to know, too, the names of the other Barons who would +support the Earl of Leicester; and although parties changed with +somewhat confusing rapidity, as private jealousies or conflicting +interests made the friend of to-day the enemy of to-morrow, yet Hugh +knew pretty well who were likely to range themselves upon the side of +the liberties of the nation, and could give bits of information to his +companions about the great nobles of the day. + +The Earls of Gloucester, Hereford, and Norfolk were, he thought, certain +to support the Earl of Leicester, and also Hugh le Bigod and Hugh le +Despenser, whose names were pretty well known at that time. The King was +more likely to be backed by Bishops and Archbishops, especially such as +still held themselves subservient to the Pope. Then he was almost +certain to be attended by some of the De Lusignans, his half-brothers, +and by numbers of other foreign favourites, whose constant presence at +Court was such an offence to the nation. + +"They eat up everything before them, like so many locusts!" cried Hugh +hotly. "So soon as any place becomes vacant, the King, instead of +promoting some honest English gentleman to it, who may have served him +faithfully for years, throws it to one of his foreign favourites, who +may have a dozen such offices already. They drain the life-blood from +the country, and we, its sons, are left to take what pickings we can +get!" + +It was easy to understand how bitterly the English nobles and gentlemen +were beginning to resent this kind of thing; and when it was combined +with a constant infringement of their liberties, and an equally constant +imposition of new and illegal exactions, anger became exasperation, and +the sense of a coming crisis was in the very air. + +The short night was soon over, and with the first of the sunlight the +three lads awoke from their light slumbers. + +There was no lingering abed for any that day. Hardly had they returned +from their plunge in the pool, and arrayed themselves in their best +habits, before sounds in the streets warned them that all the city was +up and doing. + +Hurrying forth, they saw that the citizens had begun to deck their +houses as if for a festival: flags were flying from windows, and bands +of clerks paraded up and down the streets, singing songs, cracking +jokes, and sometimes striving to make speeches in imitation of those +which would be made when the conference should have assembled. + +Mummers were pouring into the town, as they always did on any holiday, +and at the street corners they were to be seen going through their rough +representations or practising some rude sort of jugglery. It was plain +that there would be no lectures that day. The clerks were far too +excited to attend, and the masters little less so. + +But many hours must of necessity pass before the Barons would be likely +to arrive at the city gates. These hours had to be got rid of somehow, +and Leofric suggested that they should go and see if Brother Angelus +were lecturing in the school of the Friars, since perhaps the excitement +had not spread so much into the religious establishments as into the +Halls and lodging-houses. + +Friar Angelus truly was there, and so were the pupils of his own school, +but very few outsiders came in that day; and the lecturer did not keep +his hearers very long, dismissing them with a smile, and cautioning +them not to get into any mischief or trouble in their excitement. + +He looked pleased to see Leofric and Jack, and spoke to them as he +passed out. They asked him rather eagerly which side he took--that of +the King or that of the Barons. He answered, with one of his thoughtful +smiles, that these matters were not given to him to judge of--that he +meddled but little in the strife of nations; but if he had to judge of +any question, he sought always to discover the teachings of Holy +Scripture, and to judge according to the mind of Christ. + +By this time messengers had come to report that the Earl of Leicester, +together with the Earl of Gloucester, had reached Abingdon, where they +had halted to dine, and that they might be expected to arrive at the +Grandpont by three o'clock in the afternoon. + +All the city seemed in motion towards the South Gate, which led towards +the Grandpont (as Folly Bridge was then called), and Gilbert rushing up +joined himself to the other three, and urged them to come and see all +that was to be seen. + +The narrow street was quite blocked with foot passengers--clerks, +citizens, masters and doctors all mingling together in one moving mass. +It was a good-natured crowd, and there was much laughing and jesting as +they had to squeeze through the gateway, and again across the bridge, +until in the meadow beyond they had breathing room, and could spread +themselves out more at ease. Here, dotted about in picturesque +groups, were knots of persons who had come from the surrounding +districts--farmers on their stout nags, with wife or daughter perched on +a pillion behind; and there, too, were groups of squires and gentlemen +from the neighbouring houses or castles, many of these having brought +their women folk to watch the procession pass. + +One group attracted attention from the fine trappings of the horses, and +from the general air of importance it wore. There were two ladies, +several horsemen in fine garments, and one tall, commanding personage, +who was evidently an official of some sort. He was surrounded by several +soldiers, who observed an attitude of watchful attention; and Gilbert +said to his comrades in a quick whisper,-- + +"Yon is the Constable of the Castle. They say he is very favourable to +the cause of the Barons, though he calls himself the servant of the +King. He is a good man, and well beliked in Oxford, albeit he and the +Chancellor sometimes come to loggerheads anent the limits of their +jurisdiction; yet they be good friends for all that. There goes the +Chancellor to speak with him and join his party." + +Leofric looked rather eagerly towards the little group around the +Constable, and truly enough there sat Mistress Alys upon her palfrey, +her golden hair hanging like a cloud about her face, her eyes gazing +round her full of curiosity. Suddenly she met the gaze bent upon her, +and started a little. Then a look of recognition flashed into her face. +She glanced at her father, but he was engrossed in conversation, and did +not see. Failing in getting his attention, she just raised her hand, and +waved it for a moment towards Leofric and his companion; then blushing +a little as if at her boldness, she drew back behind one of the horsemen +in the group. + +Leofric bared his head and bowed low at the little lady's salute; but he +made no further attempt to attract attention, and the friends passed +quickly through the crowd lingering at the head of the bridge, and made +their way along the road towards Abingdon, where numbers of the citizens +were already straying, in hopes of catching sight of the foremost of the +Barons' followers. + +Presently they came upon a group gathered beneath the shade of some +large oak trees, and heard themselves hailed in tones of welcome. This +group consisted of the Seaton family, and the beautiful twins, Lotta and +Linda. Pedro Balzani, not desiring that his daughters should remain in +the inn when it was like to be crowded from garret to basement by fine +gallants in the train of the Earl of Leicester, had asked of his +neighbours the Seatons houseroom for them at this season, Joanna Seaton +being the great friend of the twin sisters. The whole party had come +forth to picnic under the greenwood trees and watch the show go by. And +now, as was but natural, these four comrades, who always consorted more +or less together, were invited to share in the remains of the repast, +and to join the pleasant party. + +Nothing loth, they all sat down, and having been too excited to provide +themselves with dinner, were glad enough of some of Dame Seaton's +excellent fare. By this time all the party were very well +acquainted--laughter and fun were the order of the day. By this time +Leofric had come to distinguish as a rule between the twin sisters, +although he frequently made a mistake which evoked amusement and banter. +Hugh never made any mistake now, and always gravitated towards Linda, +the gentler of the two girls. Leofric sometimes wondered whether or not +he was beginning to love the maiden. She was certainly very sweet and +winning, yet she was but the daughter of an innkeeper, and half a +foreigner to boot; whilst Hugh was a gentleman's son, and might hope one +day to win his spurs. + +The sun overhead shone down hotly, though beneath the trees it was +pleasant enough. The afternoon was wearing on, and excitement had become +intense. + +At last the long-waited-for sounds arose, telling of the approach of a +number of riders. Rushing helter-skelter along the dusty road came bands +of clerks and others, who had gone on towards Abingdon, and now came +pouring back towards the city with the cry on their lips,---- + +"They come! they come!" + +All sprang to their feet. The youths helped the maidens to clamber into +good places of observation amid the branches of a gnarled old oak, +blasted by lightning, that stood hard by the road. Then they drew +themselves up bare-headed beneath, prepared to swell the shout of +welcome which arose as soon as the foremost horsemen hove in sight. +Leofric strained his eyes to gaze at the oncoming procession, for it was +such a sight as his eyes had never looked upon before. + +Hugh stood close beside him, his eyes shining with excitement and +anticipation. The tramp of horse-hoofs and the ringing sound of armour +made itself heard through the still, clear air. + +"Come they in arms?" whispered Gilbert with bated breath, for he was not +prepared for that. Yet, sure enough, as the first ranks of the horsemen +rode up, it was plainly to be seen that they were armed from top to +toe--a brave spectacle in truth, yet one that the by-standers had +scarcely expected to see. + +Row after row, row after row of bravely-trapped horsemen passed by at a +gentle trot, and still Hugh made no sign. Then he suddenly grasped the +arms of those next to him, and exclaimed,---- + +"There he is! there he is! Is he not a right royal man?" + +Leofric's gaze was instantly fastened upon the eagle-like face of a +warrior in a richly-chased coat of mail, with a plumed head-piece on his +head--a man who sat erect in his saddle, returning the greetings of the +by-standers with a grave dignity of demeanour--a man who looked born to +command and born to rule, and who, in spite of his own foreign blood, +was at this moment the champion of England's liberties, the enemy of +those hordes of foreign aliens who were preying upon the land to her +destruction. + +Close behind him rode in pairs four young men, all of them bearing some +sort of likeness to their eagle-faced sire. The faces of the first two +did not specially attract Leofric, for there was too much haughtiness in +the bearing of the young men, albeit no trace of that passion was to be +seen in their great father. But the younger pair were far more +attractive, being bright-faced boys, who looked about them with eager +eyes, and flashed a quick smile at Hugh as they rode by. + +"Those be my young lords, Guy and Amalric," cried Hugh with beaming +face, "and they have not forgotten me. Anon I will seek speech of them. +And see--see! yonder rides mine own father, amongst the retainers +bringing up the rear. Ah! I had scarce thought to see him here. Now, +perchance, we shall see something of the great scene when this +Parliament, which men call "mad", shall assemble itself. Methinks there +will be sound sense found amongst those who gather together to discuss +the welfare of the nation." + +It was hopeless to try to keep up with the riders; the hot sun and +choking dust alike precluded such a thing. The party returned leisurely +to Oxford, to find the city half mad with excitement. Nor was there any +diminution of excitement possible; for on the morrow there would be a +yet grander sight, when the King himself should arrive, and when the +Barons should ride forth to meet and welcome him. + +This was indeed a very fine spectacle, and Hugh took care that his +friends should share it with him. He had managed to borrow steeds from +some of his father's servants, who had no need to take part in this +ceremony, and upon these horses he mounted his friends and himself. They +posted themselves at a certain spot hard by Beaumont Palace, where they +were told they would obtain an excellent view of the meeting betwixt +King and Barons. + +To-day Leofric and Jack were able to obtain a far nearer and better view +of the Earl of Leicester, and the more they studied his handsome face, +the more admiration did they feel for him. He seemed the soul and centre +of that noble assembly. The other Barons appeared to regard him as their +natural chieftain, and whenever he spoke they hung upon his words, and +appeared to give the utmost respect to them. Although he was habited +more plainly than any, he was like a king in their midst. His face was +lined by anxiety and care, but the fire in his eyes was unquenched and +unquenchable. He looked like one born to rule, and his expression seemed +to show that, on this occasion at least, he meant to exercise that +faculty to the uttermost. + +A blare of trumpets suddenly announced the coming of the King, and a +thrill seemed to run through the assembled crowd. The Earl drew himself +erect in his saddle, and the other nobles fell into rank around him. The +trumpet notes drew nearer and nearer, and at last the cry was +raised,---- + +"The King! the King!" + +In gorgeous array, surrounded by courtiers dressed in the extreme of +foppery, appeared the procession of the monarch. The nobles bared their +heads, as did also the crowd, and all faces were turned expectantly +towards the oncoming procession. + +Everything that pomp and state could do to add dignity to the King's +Majesty was present here; and yet there was so little of true kingly +majesty in that weak, handsome face, and in the shifting expression of +the uncertain eyes, that Leofric, looking from one face to the other, +said in his heart,---- + +"Is it possible that that is the King and the other the subject? Surely +it should be just the other way about." + +It did indeed so appear; for the Earl, whilst showing every mark of +respect to his sovereign, yet wore himself so lofty and kingly an aspect +that Henry seemed unwittingly to shrink before him, but he strove to +conceal this by taking a haughty and rebuking tone. + +"How, now, my lord of Leicester! is it in arms that you come to meet +your King?" + +"Sire," replied the Earl, speaking for himself and his companions, "we +are on our way to quell the troubles that have arisen in Wales, and +therefore come we armed, as indeed needs must be if we are to do there +your Majesty's behests. This business once over for which we are met +together, and we must to the West to serve your Highness there. Let us +hope for a speedy settlement of affairs here, for our presence is needed +urgently against the troublers of the peace of the realm." + +As he spoke the Earl swept with his eagle eyes the ranks of swarthy +faces that surrounded the King, and a murmur went up from the crowd +which was sufficiently significant. + +It was almost an open challenge of defiance, and Henry knew it as such. +This could be seen in the flush upon his face, and in the flash of his +eye. Yet he could not meet the calm gaze of the Earl, and he strove to +pass the matter off with a laugh. + +"Thou wert always something too ready with thy tongue, Simon," he said; +"be careful thou art not some day too ready with thy sword likewise." + +"My sword can never be too ready, an it be unsheathed in the service of +your Majesty's peace and honour, and for the safety and welfare of the +fair realm over which it has pleased God to set you," was the steady +response. + +The King laughed, and shrugged his shoulders. + +"Come and ride with me, and tell me of my sister, thy wife," he said, as +though willing to let other matters rest for the present. "Thou art as +great a tyrant as ever thou wast, Simon; but beshrew me if I can help +from liking thee when we meet face to face. Ride by my side and talk to +me. Let the people at least see that we bear each other no ill-will." + +So King and subject rode side by side to the palace of Beaumont, and the +people made the welkin ring with their acclamations. + +"Though whether they be shouting for thee or for me," remarked Henry, +with a short laugh, "perhaps it would be well not to inquire too +closely." + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +_THE CONSTABLE'S CHILDREN._ + + +"Fair Mistress Alys, this is sooth a wondrous city, in the which strange +sights are to be seen. Fain would I myself belong to it, and make one of +those bands of scholars whom I see passing to and fro through the +streets. Fain would I learn more of the life here, and share it for a +while. I am aweary of the clash of arms and the strife of tongues. The +life of a scholar has more charms for me." + +The fair-faced Alys looked up from the frame where was stretched a great +piece of tapestry work, upon which her nimble fingers were at work. +There was a smile in her eyes as she made reply,-- + +"And yet, from all I hear and see, there is plenty of strife of tongues +and clash of arms even within the walls of this city, and amongst the +clerks and scholars themselves. I have not dwelt long enough here to +know what it is all about; but methinks those who have the charge of the +city have hard work sometimes to keep the peace there." + +"That is very true," spoke a second voice, not at all unlike the one +which had just ceased, although it belonged to a lad of seventeen +summers, who lay full length upon a wide settle, over which a great +bearskin rug had been first laid. The face of this youth was thin and +hollow, and his hands were white and wasted. But his hazel eyes were +liquid and full of brightness, and though the broad brow was often +furrowed by pain, the smile which lit up the thin, well-cut features was +frequent and full of brightness. + +"Yes; Alys speaks no more than the truth," said the youth, as Amalric de +Montfort turned to look at him. "We have not been long in this place, as +thou dost know. Until our father had been settled here some time as +Constable of the Castle, he would not summon us to be with him. We +remained with our mother's kindred in the south, and have only been a +few short months within these walls. Yet we have learned many strange +things during this time, and truly do I think that the city of Oxford +can be one of the most turbulent spots upon the face of the earth. I +have heard my father and the Chancellor of the University taking counsel +together how the peace may be kept, and in sooth it seems no easy matter +to decide." + +"Ah yes, where many hot-headed youths be pent up together in narrow +bounds, there must needs be strife of a kind," answered Amalric; "but +that, after all, is a brotherly sort of strife, far removed from this +other strife of which I begin to grow strangely weary. If ye twain could +know but the half of what my noble father has endured at the hands of +the King--how he has spent his substance and his own life-blood away +there in Gascony, all to establish the King's royal authority there; and +how for all his faithful service he has received naught but hard words +and humiliations which would have turned many another into a bitter foe! +The tyranny and caprice of the weak King (uncle though he be of mine, I +will speak the truth of him) has been heartbreaking. It has aged my lady +mother, and embittered my father's life. And now, when he is forced to +stand forth as the champion of the nation, to hold the King to his +promises, there will be nothing before him but one long, strenuous +fight. Oh, I begin to weary of it all! If I could help him, I would be +ever at his side; but I can do nothing, and my heart grows sick within +me. Would that he would leave me behind in this city of learning, that I +might join the ranks of scholars, and gain, perchance, by my pen what I +scarce think I shall ever do by my sword! Methinks I was not born for +such strenuous days as these." + +"Would that I might be in the very thickest of the strife!" cried the +lad, Edmund de Kynaston, his eyes dilating with a quick flash. "Methinks +were I as others are, I would ever seek out the post of greatest peril, +and stand in the foremost of the fight! Yet here am I, a useless log, +scarce able to put one foot before the other. Such is the caprice of +Dame Fortune!" + +Alys rose from her frame, and crossed the room with light steps; she +bent over her brother and gently smoothed away the hair from his brow. + +"But thou art happy here with me, my brother?" she questioned +pleadingly; "and when our father has time to see to the matter, we will +study together, and grow learned and wise, even if we cannot go forth +into the great world of battles without." + +Edmund's smile was bright and eager as he imprisoned his sister's +fingers in his own. + +"Verily, we will do great things together in one fashion or another, +sweet sister. I am always happy with thee at my side; yet I would that I +could serve and tend thee, instead of receiving all the service at thy +hands." + +"I love to tend thee, brother mine," whispered Alys, as she bent over +him and kissed his brow, and then tripped lightly back to her frame; for +idleness was not permitted to the daughter of the Constable, and her +mother required a daily portion of work from those skilful fingers. + +This conversation took place in a pleasant upper chamber belonging to +one of the many solid buildings enclosed within the walls of what was +known as the Castle of Oxford. + +There were several buildings within these circling walls--the College +and Chapel of St. George, the Constable's quarters, and certain strong +towers that were often used as prisons for unruly clerks and scholars. +The Chancellor himself, although exercising a wide jurisdiction over the +liberties of the members of the University, had no place of durance in +which to place offenders, so that they were most often brought into the +Castle and lodged there. + +Sir Humphrey de Kynaston had not occupied the position of Constable very +long, and so far he and the Chancellor had been excellent friends. They +were both anxious to maintain the peace of the city, and were agreed to +act in concert, instead of in rivalry, as had sometimes been the case +between former Governors of Castle and University. + +Sir Humphrey had only two children, a boy and a girl. Edmund had always +been famed for his daring spirit and sunny temperament, and during his +boyhood had been the pride and joy of his father's heart. Two years ago, +however, he had received what appeared at the time to be a fatal injury +during a boar-hunt in the New Forest, where he was staying with his +mother's kinsfolks. The boar had turned to bay, and when some daring +huntsman, together with Edmund's uncle, approached to try to give the +final blow, the maddened creature sprang at them with such fury that +both fell before him, and all thought their lives must pay the forfeit. +But Edmund had seized a strong spear, and had made so sudden and fierce +a rush that the beast was borne back for a moment, giving the two time +to gain their feet once again. When they turned to slay their quarry, +however, they found that he had inflicted a terrible wound upon Edmund +with his great tusks. The boy was carried home in what was thought to be +a dying state, and although his fine constitution had enabled him to +pull through the long and dangerous illness, he had remained permanently +crippled, unable to do more than trail himself painfully from room to +room, or occasionally in warm weather to take a little very gentle +exercise on the back of a quiet and well-trained horse, which would be +content to pace sedately without prancing or curvetting. + +Since that day it had been the chiefest happiness of Alys's life to wait +upon her brother, soothe his hours of suffering, which were many, and +share with him every simple joy and interest in life. Brother and sister +had both been greatly pleased to join their father at the Castle here, +and were ready to take a keen interest in all that went on at this seat +of learning. + +Edmund had been fired with the desire to excel now in learning as he had +once excelled in feats of skill and strength. Their father had promised +to find for them a tutor with whom they might study; and perhaps some +youthful clerk to read to them out of such books as were then +obtainable, that they might progress the faster in their studies. + +But the present excitement occasioned by the Parliament assembled in the +city had for the moment driven everything else out of the minds of those +dwelling there, and Sir Humphrey had his hands and mind and house alike +full. + +The Parliament was sitting in the vacated quarters of the Black Friars +in the Jewry. The largest of their buildings there had been hastily +fitted up as a Council chamber; and the King and Barons met in daily +conclave to discuss the situation, and agree upon some definite plan for +the future. + +The great De Montfort, who had been accustomed to rough it under all +sorts of climates and in all sorts of conditions, would have been +content to take up his own quarters at the inn in the town, had not Sir +Humphrey insisted that he and his sons should be his guests at the +Castle, leaving only the retinue at Dagville's Inn. + +Thus it came about that, whilst the Earl and his two elder sons went +daily to the meeting-place in the Jewry, the younger sons, Guy and +Amalric, were left pretty much to their own devices, and spent their +time for the most part either in wandering about the town and learning +what they could as to the life there, or with the fair Alys and her +brother in this pleasant, airy chamber. + +The room was itself very attractive, for it was adorned with tapestry +hangings which Alys's skilful fingers had wrought, and upon the stone +floor lay the dressed skins of many a wild creature of the woods which +Edmund had slain ere he had been laid low. Several stuffed birds and +small beasts were to be seen set upon the brackets which Edmund carved +in his hours of ease; and a tame falcon upon a perch occupied a little +recess, and when released from his chain would fly about the room or +perch affectionately on the hand of the master he loved. A great +wolf-hound also was generally to be found lying at full length beside +his master's couch. He had been Edmund's most faithful follower almost +from boyhood, and was now growing old and a little infirm. Therefore his +master's ways were little trouble to him, and save when he paced +backwards and forwards in the courtyard with his mistress, he seldom +cared to move from beside Edmund's couch. + +Both Guy and Amalric de Montfort had grown fond of this upper chamber +and its inhabitants, and came and went almost at will. Edmund had been +keenly interested in all that these lads could tell him of their +father's campaigns, and of the battle for constitutional liberty which +he was so strenuously fighting now. Edmund knew that his own father was +strongly in sympathy with the action that the Barons were now taking, +and he listened eagerly to any items of information which he could pick +up. But whilst the Parliament was sitting, little was said as to the +course the deliberations were taking. There were whispers of stormy +scenes, and of outbreaks of fierce and rather impotent anger on the part +of the King; but for the most part a discreet silence was observed as to +the probable result of the deliberations, though from the King's +increasing irritability and fits of gloom it was surmised that he was +not best pleased at the course things were taking. + +The talk between the De Kynastons and Amalric de Montfort on this +particular day was interrupted by the sudden entrance of Guy, who came +in eagerly and joyously. + +"I have a plan!" he cried. "I was wandering down hard by the Grandpont, +when I saw a man in a right comely wherry, and he was pleased to hire it +to me for a few pence. He says that it will carry a party well, and that +if we lift it over the fall by Iffley Church, we can navigate a great +stretch of the river, or if we better like we can go up against the +current. Methought thou mightest well go with us, Edmund, for thou canst +ride down to the river-bank, and then the boat will carry thee bravely, +and we can take with us that bear's skin and make a couch for thee along +the bottom." + +Alys clapped her hands in delight at the thought. Somehow it had never +occurred to them that the river might open up a new source of amusement +for the invalid. + +Quickly was the matter settled. Dame Kynaston, though rather a martinet +in her household, as a managing housewife in those days had some need to +be, was a loving mother also, and was only too glad to forward any plan +whereby Edmund might benefit in health or spirits. Very soon the little +party was on its way to the wherry lying by the bridge, eagerly planning +the day's pleasuring, and finally settling that the navigation of the +Cherwell would afford the most amusement and novelty. + +"What is yon tower hard by the bridge?" asked Amalric of Alys, by whose +side he was walking, a little in advance of the other pair. + +"They call it Friar Bacon's study," answered Alys. "You may have heard +of Friar Bacon. They say he was a great and a good man, and he joined +himself to the Minorite Friars. But he grew too learned in what men call +the black arts--in astrology and astronomy; and he built himself yon +tower, that he might the better study the stars. So men got frightened +at him and his learning, and he was banished the city and the realm. I +have heard that he went to Paris, but I know not if that be true. They +say that if a greater or more learned man should ever pass beneath the +tower, its walls will crumble away, and it will fall to the ground. But +it has not fallen yet!" + +"I have heard of Friar Bacon and his learning in very truth," answered +Amalric. "I call it shame that such a man should be banished the realm. +I believe not that any learning hurts the soul of man, so it be gotten +in the fear of God and the love of man." + +Just at that moment a youth in the dress of a clerk turned a corner, and +came face to face with Alys and her companion. + +"Hugh!" cried Amalric joyfully. "If I have not been looking for another +sight of thy face ever since we first entered the city, and I caught +sight of thee in the crowd! Now this is well met, for we are bent on a +days pleasuring on the water, and I am very sure that fair Mistress Alys +will give me leave to ask thee to join our company." + +Alys bent her head with ready assent. She was interested in all clerks; +and the pleasant, open face of Hugh was attractive, besides the +guarantee of his being known to Amalric. Guy also gave him a friendly +greeting when the palfrey was led down to the waters edge, and before +long the whole party had embarked, and were rowing gently down the +stream to the point where the Cherwell made its junction with the Isis. + +Hugh was called upon to tell his experiences as a scholar in the city, +and was nothing loth to do so. Amalric listened with all his ears, and +Edmund likewise. The youngest son of the warlike Earl of Leicester had +more of the scholar than the soldier in his composition, and was already +deeply bitten by the idea of remaining in Oxford and becoming a scholar +there. It was not likely that his father would oppose the wish if +strongly urged, and Amalric thus lost no opportunity of obtaining +information as to the life there. + +Edmund lay along the bottom of the boat, delighted with the easy motion, +with the tree-crowned banks between which they were gliding, and the +beauty of all they saw in wood and meadow. The waterway was so narrow in +places that Alys could hardly believe they could force their way through +it at all; but this they always managed to do, and pushed on and on +until the sound of falling water told them that they would find an +obstruction to further progress. + +"Never mind," cried Hugh; "it is but the fall. We must disembark and +carry the boat a few yards, and launch it afresh on the upper stream. +There we shall have a wider highway and more water. Ha! and here, as +happy chance wills it, are two good friends who will lend us a hand." + +They had come in sight of the fall now, and also of a little canoe drawn +up near to the bank, in which a pair of lads were seated, one diligently +fishing in the pool, the other poring over a small volume which he held +in his hands; and so intent did this latter appear over his task, that +it was not until hailed in a loud voice by Hugh that he lifted his face. + +When he did so, however, Alys gave a little cry, and bending over +Edmund, she said eagerly,-- + +"Brother, yonder is the clerk who saved me when the palfrey went nigh to +hurting me that day in the spring-tide. I am sure it is he; and it was +he I saw in the meadows the day when the Barons made their entry into +the city. Prithee may I speak to him? he seems to be known to Master +Hugh." + +"I will speak him first," answered Edmund; and then with a good deal of +confusion of tongues the boat was drawn ashore, and all the party +disembarked--Alys giving her shoulder to her brother to lean upon whilst +the wherry was carried to the upper waters close above the fall. + +"May I not help you, sir?" asked Leofric, coming up with a shy smile in +his eyes. The other four youths--for Jack had taken his part there--were +carrying the boat, and Leofric had been sent back to help Edmund up the +narrow path. "I am very strong, and the way is not long. Lean upon me, +and I will take you there gently." + +"Thanks, good lad," answered Edmund, availing himself of the strong arm +extended to him. "I was wanting a word with thee, for my sister here +tells me that thou didst do her a good turn one day some while back, +when her horse took fright, and might have thrown her from its back." + +Leofric blushed and disclaimed, declaring that Jack had done more than +himself; but Alys was of another opinion, and both brother and sister +fell into conversation with their new acquaintance, whose face, as +usual, won him favour at once. + +"Thou wert reading when we came up," said Edmund; "art thou a scholar of +this place?" + +Leofric told of himself, who and what he was, and admitted that he was +able to read Latin fairly well and understand it too, and that Brother +Angelus had given him several books to study, to help him to a greater +proficiency. + +"These are the 'Sentences' they think so much of in the schools," said +Leofric, drawing the little volume from his pouch; "but Brother Angelus +prefers to go straight to the Scriptures themselves for learning, and +loves not the Sentences very greatly. But it is well for a clerk to be +versed in them. I have begun to study the philosophy of Aristotle too, +for all men talk much of him now, though some say that his learning is +dangerous to the soul. How-beit all men are eager to learn it." + +"And where dost thou dwell?" asked Edmund eagerly; "and if thou be poor, +as thou sayest, how dost thou live?" + +"Our wants are but few, and we live in a little turret on the walls, +where we have made a chamber for ourselves, no man forbidding us. My +comrade, Jack Dugdale, fishes, and snares rabbits in the woods; and I +gain small sums of money by painting on vellum, which I learned from the +good monks of St. Michael. We have enough for our needs, and can pay our +fees to the masters we seek after. Your father, sir, gave us money that +day of which you spoke. It was very welcome to us then, for we had but +come into the city, and scarce knew then how we should live." + +By this time the boat was launched again, and the whole party assisted +Edmund to regain his former position along the bottom. Guy de Montfort +had taken an immense fancy to the canoe he had seen, and nothing would +serve him but that Jack should bring it up and give him a lesson in the +management of the craft. When he heard how the two lads had travelled +in it from a region not so very far from his own home of Kenilworth, he +was very much astonished; and getting Leofric to take his place in the +boat, he and Jack set off together up the stream, and were soon lost to +sight of the others. + +This left Amalric, Hugh, and Leofric to navigate the larger boat, and to +talk together of those matters which interested them and Edmund so much. +It was natural that Amalric and Hugh should consort together, having +been friends and comrades in old days. This left Leofric free to answer +the many eager questions put to him by Edmund, whilst Alys sat by with +eager face and shining eyes, not losing a word of the conversation, and +sometimes taking a share in it herself. + +"I can get books," said Edmund, "but they be nearly all in Latin. I can +neither read them easily nor understand what I read. I want to find +somebody who will come and read with me; for soon my eyes grow weary, +and my back aches if I try to hold up the volume myself, and I am +wellnigh ashamed to ask my father for a tutor, when perchance I might so +soon get aweary of his teachings. What I want rather, to begin with, is +a tutor for perhaps a few hours in the week, and for the rest a youth +like myself, himself a clerk, but with more learning than I, who would +come and read to me and with me till I could get the mastery myself over +the Latin tongue." + +Leofric's eyes were bright with interest. He was too modest to speak the +words that trembled on his tongue; but the thought of having access to +books was strangely tempting, and there was something about Edmund and +Alys which attracted him greatly. The gentle refinement of their manners +and speech was in such pleasing contrast to the _brusquerie_ of the bulk +of his associates. When Alys said timidly,-- + +"Would Leofric Wyvill come to us if our father approved?" his face +burned with gratification and joy at being thus singled out; and Edmund +looked at him, saying,-- + +"I had scarce liked to ask, in case thou mightest have other work more +important; but I trow my father would approve, and would pay thee for +thy time and labour." + +"O sir, to have books to read would be payment enough!" cried Leofric +eagerly. "I have longed to see more, but there be all too few in the +city for the needs of scholars and clerks; and but for the kindness of +Brother Angelus, I should never have aught to study save what I can +write down of the things we hear. I am but a learner myself; but if I +can help you, it will make me glad and proud to do so. I could at least +strive to remember all I hear, and repeat it to you. That is what I have +to do for Jack, who is not used to learning. He forgets all too soon, +and then we go over each lecture together, and I write upon the walls +such things as we most desire to remember, and there they are to remind +us if we want information another day." + +Before the boat and its occupants made their way back to the town, +Amalric de Montfort had made up his mind to ask of his father grace to +remain behind and enter himself as a clerk in some Hall at Oxford; +whilst Edmund had fully resolved to beg his parents to engage Leofric +Wyvill to come to him several times in the week, to read with him, and +instruct him in brother-like fashion in those things which he was +learning for himself. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +_STORMY SCENES._ + + +"Have a care how thou dost answer me, Mistress; I am not one who brooks +trifling!" + +"I have never trifled with thee, Roger de Horn," answered the maiden +addressed, speaking firmly though gently. "Methinks thou dost forget +thyself in speaking such words to me to-day." + +The dark face of Roger was deeply flushed. He looked as though he had +been drinking--as indeed was probably the case; at any rate he was very +angry, and his words came hissing from between his teeth in a fashion +not pleasant to hear. + +"Not trifled with me, quotha? Canst thou look me in the face and say +that?--whilst the love-token that thou didst give me lies now upon my +heart!" + +The face of Linda Balzani flushed deeply, partly with anger, partly with +maiden modesty. She drew herself away with a gesture full of simple +dignity. + +"I have given thee no token," she said. "If thou hast received aught, it +must be from the hands of my sister. I know nothing of any token." + +"What!" cried the young man, the flush mounting even to his brow, "wilt +thou deny the kiss that thou didst bestow upon me out in the greenwood +on Midsummer Eve, and the token thou didst give me as proof of thy +love?" + +Linda drew away yet a little farther, and glanced round the room as +though seeking some way of exit. The excitement in Rogers manner was +unpleasant, and the claim he was making upon her was revolting. She had +always disliked this braggart, even though treating him with civility as +her brother's friend. Of late she had come to dislike him more and more, +and to shrink from his approach as one shrinks from the proximity of +some noisome reptile. She had fancied that her sister had of late been +seeking the society of Roger with pleasure; which thing rather perplexed +her, because in private Lotta never masked her dislike and contempt for +the bully and swaggerer, and of late had been more severe in her +strictures than ever. + +The very thought of what had taken place under the greenwood trees upon +Midsummer Eve brought a flush to Linda's brow and a throb to her heart. +Was it not then and there that Hugh le Barbier had breathed into her +ears some words so full of music that the echo of them had never left +them since? She had scarce dared to think what those words might imply. +She was content to dream rather than to think, and she had lived in +dreamland almost ever since. To be spoken to thus was unendurable, and +the spirit of the maiden was roused. + +"Methinks, sir, that thou hast been drinking, and hast overheated thy +blood," she said, rising as if to leave the room. "I spoke scarce three +words to thee upon that Midsummer Eve. I have done nothing and said +nothing to warrant the claim thou dost make. Prithee let me go; I have +had enough of this." + +But Roger planted himself before the door, his sombre eyes glowing with +passion. + +"Beshrew me if thou be not a false and fickle jade! But I will brook +none such answer from thee. See here--behold the token! Wilt thou dare +to look upon it and tell me it was never thine?" + +Linda looked, and started slightly. It was indeed a little trinket that +had belonged to her for years. As a child she used to carry it as a +charm about her neck; but latterly she had ceased to do this. She had +not even missed it from the box where she kept it together with a few +more little keepsakes and girlish treasures. How it had come into the +possession of Roger she could not imagine. He saw her start, and his +eyes gleamed. + +"So!--thou dost not dare to deny the witness of thine eyes!" + +"The heart was once mine," answered Linda quietly, "but I have not seen +it for many weeks. I never gave it thee. It must have fallen into the +hands of another, and so have come to thine. Let me pass, sir; we have +had something too much of this already." + +"What!" he cried furiously, "thou dost own to the trinket, but dost deny +the gift? Thinkest thou that I will endure to be flouted thus?" + +"I flout thee not, sir; I do but speak sooth. I gave thee no trinket--I +gave thee no kiss. I have never bestowed upon thee aught save that meed +of friendship which my brother's friend has a right to look for." + +He grasped her slim wrist in his strong hand. He brought his swarthy +face and flashing eyes close to her shrinking face. + +"Thou didst give me much more than that till _he_ came amongst us--the +upstart, the fine gentleman, the fop with the smooth speech and dainty +dress! Thinkest thou I have not seen it all--how that thou dost seek to +play us one against the other? But thou shalt never make a tool of me; I +will have all or nothing! And I will wring the neck of any man who shall +dare come betwixt me and my love!" + +The last words were hissed rather than spoken, and so cruel and fierce +was the aspect of the speaker that Linda tore herself suddenly away and +uttered a shriek of fear. + +The next moment the door was quickly opened from without, and Joanna +Seaton appeared, with Lotta a little behind her, the latter wearing +rather a strange look upon her handsome, haughty face, whilst her gaze +glanced rapidly from one to the other of the occupants of the room. + +"Is aught amiss?" asked Joanna quickly; "methought that I heard a call." + +Roger turned upon his heel with one sinister glance over his shoulder, +and made as if to depart. + +"I will finish what I have to say another day," he observed, "when thou +art in a better frame for listening, fair Mistress Linda, and when thou +hast something refreshed thy memory." + +"What does he mean?" asked Joanna, as Roger clanked down the stairs and +Linda sank trembling upon a couch. + +"He is a bad man--I fear and I hate him!" she cried in panting +breaths.--"Lotta, what hast thou done that he should say such things to +me? It must have been thy doing! He has the agate heart that once I +wore. None can have given him that but thou. And thou must have given +him other tender tokens too, for he speaks of things of which I know +naught. Sister, thou doest not well to show treachery to thine own flesh +and blood!" + +Lotta tossed her handsome head, and a flush crept into her dusky cheek. +Of late the likeness between the sisters had grown somewhat less. A +softness and subtile charm had crept over Linda, whilst Lotta, though +handsome as ever, had seemed to grow harder and more defiant in her +proud beauty. Mistakes between the pair were of less frequent +occurrence, and although it would be easy for Lotta to personate her +sister of set purpose, the difference between them was becoming more +clearly marked day by day. + +"What now, Linda?" quoth the other; "thou art always fancying some new +thing. I have scant patience with thy whims. What do I know of thy +trinkets, or of thy lovers? Thou art like a skilful bowman, who has a +second string to his bow ready to hand. But when thou dost find that +such a game has its perils, and that thou art playing with edge tools, +prithee do not seek to drag me in to help thee out of the slough. It is +a paltry trick, and unworthy of thy name." + +"But Lotta--" + +"Peace, child! I will hear no more. I am sick to death of thee and thy +lovers! Let me alone. Manage thine own affairs as thou wilt, but no word +shalt thou have from me. Go, and do as thou dost choose. Play them one +against the other, and see what comes of it. I will have nothing to do +with the matter; it is no concern of mine." + +And Lotta swept out of the room with her whirlwind air of displeasure, +whilst Linda looked in perplexity at Joanna, and asked piteously,-- + +"Why is she so changed to me?" + +"I fear me it is jealousy," answered Joanna, who had seen a great deal +during the weeks that the twins had been with them. Joanna had been +friendly with both from childhood, but had always liked Linda best. Now +she began to find that she loved Linda and rather disliked and feared +Lotta. There was something wild and untamed in her nature, and her +conduct towards her sister often provoked the indignation of the +onlooker. + +"Jealousy!" repeated Linda, with rising colour. + +"Ay, jealousy of what she sees betwixt thee and Hugh le Barbier," +answered Joanna. "Hast thou not seen that Lotta has gone nigh to lose +her heart to yon courtly youth? I have observed it these many weeks, and +once I did think that he might return her regard; but it seems plain +now that his fancy has been elsewhere fixed, and poor Lotta has to bear +the pain of seeing it too." + +Linda's cheeks were scarlet; she faltered as she spoke. + +"Methought Lotta was pleased by the notice of Roger. I had thought that +her fancy went that way." + +"Perchance it did--till Hugh appeared. But there can be no comparison +betwixt the two, and Lotta has ambition. She would fain link her lot in +life with one who could raise her higher in the world. And Hugh has +prospects of becoming, if not a knight at least an esquire to some noble +lord, in whose service he may rise high. It may be ambition rather than +love; but be it what it may, it is bitter to her to see herself passed +by for another. I think perhaps it is the more bitter because that other +is her sister, and so like to her in outward show that she cannot +understand why she holds not an equal place in his heart." + +Linda's face was all aglow. It could not but be sweet to feel that +others had read the secret of Hugh's attachment to herself; but, again, +it pained her that her sister should regard her as a rival, and still +more that she should stoop to subterfuge, and seek to embroil her with +so dangerous a man as Roger de Horn. + +"What can it profit her to behave thus?" she asked of Joanna, when she +had told the whole story; "why should she seek to anger him thus against +me? It is cruel to me, and also to him, if indeed a creature so full of +ferocity has any room in his heart for the gentle passion of love." + +"Love is not always a gentle passion with natures such as his," answered +Joanna shrewdly; "and methinks I see what Lotta seeks to accomplish. +She knows that thou hast a timid nature as compared with her own; and +she thinks, possibly, that Roger will terrify thee into compliance with +his wishes, or that doubt and distrust may be awakened in the heart of +Hugh by what he hears and sees; in which case, perchance, he might turn +to her for comfort. Such are the unworthy wiles of a jealous nature. But +it is playing a dangerous game to trifle with a creature so untamed and +savage as Roger. There is no knowing to what excesses his anger may lead +him." + +Linda shuddered slightly at the memory of the past scene. + +"Pray Heaven he hurt not Hugh!" she murmured. "He said he would wring +the neck of any man that dared to come betwixt him and his purpose!" + +"That is bad," said Joanna, looking grave. "I will speak to my brother +and also to Gilbert Barbeck, and tell them to give an eye to Hugh should +any riot arise in the city, as is like." + +"Why is it like?" asked Linda anxiously. + +"Marry, because of all the excitements in the city during the sitting of +this 'Mad Parliament,' as the King's friends have dubbed it. It has been +hard work to keep down rioting all these weeks; and men say they are +certain there will be some great collision ere long--we are never safe +from such in this place, as thou dost know. The marvel is that none such +took place whilst the Parliament was sitting. Had it not been for the +presence within the walls of so many armed men under discipline, I +verily believe it would have done so." + +There was much truth in the words of this citizen maiden. Great had been +the excitement ruling in Oxford during the days of the sitting of the +Great Council or Parliament, and great was the joy and triumph of the +supporters of De Montfort and the Barons at the result thereof. + +This is not the place in which to give a history of those Provisions of +Oxford of which so much was heard during the following years of Henry's +reign. Suffice it to say that by those provisions the Barons obtained +for themselves all that they desired, and for the time being the King +was little more than a puppet in their hands. They had no desire to make +new laws--that had never been a part of their purpose; what they aimed +at was to rid themselves of illegal exaction, of feudal service, to +obtain justice for themselves and others, and to rid the country of the +multitudes of foreign favourites who were eating up the substance of the +land, whilst its own sons had perforce to stand by empty-handed. +"England for the English" was in effect their cry; and their position +having been granted, steps were immediately taken to ensure the carrying +out of the measure agreed upon. + +Those who desire information will find in every history book how this +was done, and will read about the twenty-four nobles and men of high +estate chosen in equal numbers by King and Barons--the Council of +Fifteen, the Twelve Commissioners of Parliament, and the Twenty-four +Commissioners of the Aid. + +All this belongs to the region of history rather than to that of +fiction; but the result of this Parliament was that the King's power and +that of his foreign favourites was, for the time being, broken, and a +wave of enthusiasm and delight swept over the land, causing an outbreak +of excitement and triumph which was quite enough to give anxiety to the +authorities in such a turbulent city as that of Oxford. + +The great Earl of Leicester was for the moment the idol of the +University. Whenever he appeared abroad he was hailed with shouts and +cheers. His strong personality and the fascination of his manner won +upon the clerks and scholars, till they would have been ready to lay +down their lives in his service. He received the adulation of the crowd +with a kindly dignity that won all hearts, and when it was found that he +was about to leave one of his sons behind him to study the Arts in +Oxford, public delight knew no bounds, and Amalric was almost as much +lauded and praised as his great father. + +But, of course, there was never unanimity in this turbulent body of +undisciplined youths. The very fact that the presence of De Montfort +aroused in the breasts of many such unbounded enthusiasm, tended, as if +from pure contrariety, to inflame others against him--to throw them into +the arms of the party who sided with the King, and called De Montfort +and his friends sacrilegious usurpers of the power and authority which +had been vested by God in His anointed servant. + +The monks were for the most part ardent supporters of the monarchy, +whilst the friars unhesitatingly declared that the kingly power could +be abused, and that, when this was the case, God Himself raised up men +of right and might to turn the King's heart from his errors, and to be +champions of truth and freedom. Scripture precedents could, of course, +be quoted on both sides, and controversy often raged fiercely. In an age +and in a place where disputation and argument was as the elixir of life, +and where a man's fitness for promotion in the University depended much +on his oratorical powers and his ability to hold his own in some wordy +warfare, it was likely enough that such burning questions as these +should be discussed by high and low alike, with every weapon from the +armoury of logic and rhetoric. + +Although by this time the Parliament had broken up, the Barons had taken +themselves away, whilst the King had retired for a short time to +Woodstock, and had then left that part of the country, controversy and +excitement still ran high. It seemed as if some sort of explosion must +take place ere the atmosphere was cleared, and the authorities were very +watchful to try to put down with a strong hand anything like street +rioting or disturbance. + +But the spirit of the time was too strong for them. The students +themselves seemed weary of good behaviour. How it originated none +exactly knew, but soon there was no hiding the fact that a great +jousting was to take place shortly in the meadow of Beaumont, where the +various nationalities should try their prowess in feats of skill and +strength, and hold high revelling there such as was due to them upon the +feast of Holy Trinity; only that the presence of the King and Barons in +Oxford at that date had caused an adjournment of the holiday. + +At that time the holidays of the Church were nearly all that students +could claim. There was no regular break in the lectures as now, and men +remained for years at Oxford without thinking of visiting their homes. +But they regarded these Church holidays somewhat jealously, and they, +together with the Fair of St. Frideswyde, formed the chief interludes in +the monotony of University life. + +"Tito," said Roger de Horn, taking his friend by the arm and leading him +down a dark alley where none might see or hear them, "I have discovered +all too much. Both your sisters love yon upstart Hugh, and Linda will +have none of my wooing. I knew how it would be directly he crossed my +path. He has been mine enemy from first to last. He will undo us if we +undo not him." + +Tito's eyes gleamed fiercely in the darkness. + +"Methought thou hadst some token from Linda, and that all was well," he +said. + +"So had I; but now she flouts me, and denies it. She says that Lotta +must have given it me. I could have sworn it was Linda; yet in the +darkness it is no easy matter to tell one from the other." + +"I would not wed Lotta were I in thy place," said Tito, with a short +laugh. "She would run a stiletto through thy heart if thou didst anger +her, as soon as kiss thee if thou didst please her. She is a veritable +shrew when she is angered. Linda is a different sort. A man may lead her +anywhere through her affections, or terrify her into submission. It +matters little which, so we may win her to our purpose. I had thought +that all was going well." + +"And so did I, till I spoke with her a week since, and found her as +adamant. I thought she was mine own till then; now I know that another +has her heart." + +Tito gave a short laugh that was somewhat like a snarl. + +"We must rid ourselves of that other then." + +"So said I," returned Roger promptly. "So told I my pretty fond love--" + +"Then thou wert a fool for thy pains," interrupted Tito roughly. "If the +man be warned, we shall have trouble with him." + +"If the maid be frightened, she may come to her senses," retorted Roger. + +Tito shook his head slightly. + +"Thou dost not know what our southern women are made of," he answered. +"They love with a different love from your cold northerners, and yet the +northern blood from their mother has given to both a prudence which may +be dangerous to our plan." + +Roger muttered something that sounded like a curse. + +"We will be a match yet for their prudence and their caution. Men have +vanished from Oxford ere now, or have been found dead in the streets, +and none have been the wiser for it. The Chancellor shakes his head; the +other clerks clamour against the townsfolk, and perhaps a citizen is +slain in reprisal; and then the matter is forgotten. What has been +before can be again. Her lover dead, and pretty Linda will soon forget +her fancy; or, mourning for him, she will be the more easily +persuaded--and once we are sure of her, we can commence our plan, and +wealth and renown will flow in upon us. We have all in readiness save +the high priestess of the mysteries!" + +"Hist, hist! have a care what thou dost say!" whispered Tito, in some +alarm. "There is peril as well as profit in our plan. The black art +finds scant favour in the eyes of the Church. Men have perished at the +stake ere now for dabbling even as deeply as we have done. Have a care +what thou dost speak in the open streets." + +"Tush! none can hear," quoth Roger, with some contempt; "but as to the +other matter, we must watch our chance and use it well. Men talk of the +joustings which will soon take place if this horrid rain will but cease, +which is rotting the corn in the fields, and bringing famine to our +doors. When man meets man in full tilt in the jousting-field, it cannot +be a very hard matter to run a lance into his eye, or even to pierce his +heart. Moreover there be other chances, if eyes are kept open. Leave yon +upstart to me, and I will soon find a way of wiping off my score against +him. I have played that game before now. I shall play it the more +skilfully for the practice I have had." + +"Well, well, do as thou wilt; only be cautious, for we want none of the +Chancellor's prison, and he watches over the lives and liberties of the +clerks with jealous eye. Well enow should I like to see him cleared out +of the path. I have no love for him, and he stands in the way of our +cherished plan." + +"He shall not stand so long," muttered Roger between his teeth; and +then the two men moved away along the dark and unsavoury lane, whilst a +head, which had been thrust out awhile ago from an upper window, was now +drawn in, and Linda Balzani pressed her two hands to her throbbing brow. + +"What devils men can be!" she whispered. "What devilry is this that they +are desiring to practise, and in which I am to be their tool? Heaven +send me strength and courage to thwart their evil schemes! O Hugh, my +love, my love! they shall not hurt thee if I can save thee. Twice warned +is thrice armed. I will save thee from their cruel malice, or I will die +with thee!" + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +_A STUDENTS' HOLIDAY._ + + +"Wilt thou come to see the joustings in Beaumont meadows to-morrow, fair +Mistress Alys?" + +Alys raised her eyes from her frame, and saw that Amalric had entered +the room with his eager, elastic step. The young De Montfort was no +stranger to that upper chamber now. Indeed, scarce a day passed but he +found his way thither, to tell the news of the city in the eager ears of +Edmund, or to look into the eyes of the fair Alys, and listen whilst she +played upon the lute. + +A great friendship had sprung up between these three, and the fact that +Amalric had entered as a scholar at St. George's College in the Castle +gave them the more chance of frequent meetings. Sir Humphrey and his +wife were glad that Edmund should be enlivened by the visits of a +friend, and in his heart of hearts the Constable was devoted to the +cause of the Barons, although his position obliged him to maintain an +air of neutrality when political questions were discussed. + +A great change had recently come over the lives of brother and sister. +Instead of passing their days alone in this upper room, seeing hardly +any faces but those of their parents from one week's end to another, +they now enjoyed a variety of diversions. A master of Arts came twice in +the week to instruct Edmund in some of that lore he was so eager to make +his own, and upon three other days in the week the young clerk Leofric +Wyvill made his appearance, to read with the invalid, and to assist him +with such preparation for his tutor as it was possible to make in those +days. Alys shared these readings with her brother, and was almost as +keenly interested as he. She almost neglected her tapestry frame now for +a more congenial task, but her mother still looked for the daily +portion, and she would return to it and work hard again, whilst Leofric +retailed to them such things as he had heard from those various masters +whose lectures he sedulously attended. + +He was sitting beside Edmund's couch now, drawing mathematical figures +and working out the problems attached, when Amalric's voice broke in +upon them, and for the moment thoughts of study were thrown aside. + +"They say it will be a brave show," continued young De Montfort: "North +and South will meet together and tilt and hold joustings. They say the +Welsh have joined the Northerners, and that they will challenge those of +the South to meet them in mock combat. They have chosen St. +Bartholomew's Day, and all men say it will be a goodly sight.--Art thou +to be there, fair mistress?" + +"I know not," answered Alys; "methinks my father little likes these +students' holidays. He says there is too often more of purpose than of +jest in their joustings. I trow he will judge that I am better safe at +home." + +Leofric looked up with parted lips, as though about to speak; and Edmund +observing him, said,-- + +"Is that thine opinion also, Leofric?" + +"Perchance it is not for me to speak, seeing that I have but little +knowledge to go upon. Yet I have a feeling that to-morrow will not pass +without trouble. I have heard ill-whispers in the air. I have a fear +that one whom I love right well may be in danger on that day." + +This was interesting, and all looked eagerly at Leofric. + +"Tell us all," said Edmund quickly; "it may be that we can help thee." + +"I speak of one whom you all know," answered Leofric,--"Hugh le Barbier, +who has shown me great kindness since I came hither a poor, raw lad--" + +"Hugh le Barbier! why, I know him well," cried Amalric. "What hast thou +to say of him? If peril threatens, sure we can protect him! Tell us what +is in thy mind." + +"He has an enemy," answered Leofric, "one Roger de Horn--" + +At that name Edmund interrupted in his turn. + +"I have heard my father speak of him. He is a turbulent fellow who has +often disturbed the peace of the town, and but for the benefit of +clergy, which he claims, would have met with some severe chastisement. +What is his cause of quarrel with honest Hugh, our friend?" + +"In sooth I think it is about a maid," answered Leofric. "There be two +fair sisters--daughters of the host where both Hugh and Roger dwell. +Methinks I have told of them before. It is their faces I have drawn in +my idle hours--the two sisters so alike that few may tell them apart. +From what I can learn, methinks that Hugh and Roger both love the same +maid, and that she returns the affection of Hugh, as any maiden would. +Why Roger cannot please himself with the other, who is her very +counterpart to look at, I cannot tell," continued Leofric, who knew +nothing of the mysteries of love, and was puzzled to know how even Hugh +had come to give such deep affection to one sister, whilst showing a +calm indifference to the other; "but it seems that they have both set +their fancy upon the same. And it is whispered that Roger has vowed +vengeance upon his rival, and that he may seize upon his chance of doing +him a mischief to-morrow." + +"That must be stopped," said Edmund quickly; "I will speak to my +father." + +But Leofric slightly shook his head. + +"I fear me that would do no good. Hugh will certainly not be withheld +from joining in the joustings. He is to tilt, with Linda's snood of +crimson ribbon fastened to his head-piece. If Roger be his antagonist in +the lists, none can well interpose. These joustings are held to be the +right of all clerks and citizens upon a holiday. To seek to stop them +now would but stir up a riot in the place which might be worse than any +mock battle in the fields." + +"Then we must be there to see that our friend Hugh comes to no unfair +mischief at the hands of his rival," said Amalric quickly. "Which side +doth Hugh take--North or South? He is a dweller in the middle parts of +the country, and might choose either." + +"We have agreed to throw in our lot with the South," answered Leofric, +"and Roger is of the fierce Northerners. Some men say that at the last +there will be a grand mock battle, in which all men will join. For +myself, I would sooner it came not to such a pass. I fear me there might +be less of mock fighting than true were it so." + +Alys looked a little alarmed at the thought, and Amalric exclaimed,-- + +"Surely the Chancellor and Proctors, and the Constable your father, +could contrive to keep men from falling upon each other in such savage +fashion?" + +Edmund slightly shook his head. + +"I am not sure. Strange things happen in Oxford every year. It is not +many years since there was such a riot betwixt some Irish clerks and +some of the Northerners as made the Chancellor take oaths of the +students to keep the peace for the future. But new men pour in every +year, and oaths are forgotten all too quickly. I would that I could come +abroad to-morrow and see the tilting. I should not take it amiss if +there were to be some collision betwixt party and party. I sicken of +this life between high walls. I long to see life once more." + +"And so thou shalt!" cried Amalric eagerly; "I have my horses here, and +I will borrow a litter from somewhere, and will take thee and Mistress +Alys to the jousting-field. There shalt thou see all that goes on, and +thy father shall give thee a few trusty fellows for a guard; so that if +there be any rioting, thou and Mistress Alys can be brought safely back +in haste, by Barbican Lane. The rioters will give the Castle a wide +berth, we may be sure; the tide of battle--if battle there be--will all +set the other way." + +Alys clapped her little hands together; Edmund's eyes lighted with +anticipation. To escape from his prison, to go abroad in the streets, +was the great ambition of his life. But it was seldom that he had +achieved this end, and the thought of sharing in the gaieties of the +morrow was enchanting alike to him and to his sister. + +Sir Humphrey was willing to fall in with the plan suggested. He had a +great liking for Amalric, and perhaps had already formed an idea that +the youth was attracted by his young daughter. Both youth and maiden +were still full young, but at least there was no harm in permitting them +some pleasant intercourse if they were disposed to like one another. The +Earl of Leicester was at this juncture perhaps the greatest man in the +kingdom, and an alliance with the noble house might prove of great +advantage to the knight in his career. His wife had suggested this +notion to him, and he had listened not unwillingly. In those days men +regarded their daughters somewhat in the light of chattels, to be +disposed of as best promoted the advancement of their own interests; and +the fact that Sir Humphrey was a tender father, and that Alys was the +light of his eyes, did not detract from the pleasure of the thought that +she might make a grand match, when a few years had passed over her head, +with the scion of a house as likely to thrive and increase in power and +glory as that of Simon de Montfort. + +Upon the next day, therefore, he forwarded all the arrangements +suggested by Amalric, furnished a guard to his son and daughter, and +putting them under the care of young De Montfort, permitted them to +sally forth into the town to see the gay pageantry of a students' +holiday. + +The sun shone brightly to-day--the clouds had all rolled away. The town +had assumed a holiday appearance, and from every door a motley multitude +poured forth. Church bells rang; at every corner were to be met +processions of clerks and scholars, many of whom had just achieved some +scholastic success, and were in consequence crowned with wreaths of +flowers; whilst their friends and supporters danced around them +similarly adorned, some disguised with masks, others in grotesque +garments like mummers--all alike bent on amusement, and all with their +faces set towards Beaumont meadows, in which the jousts and games and +tiltings were to be held. + +Conspicuous amongst the gay throng in holiday attire (for the citizens +with their wives and daughters were pouring out to see the fun) was a +small group of what some took to be mummers--tall figures dressed all in +black, with masks upon their faces and weapons in their belts. There +were some six of these in all, and they glided hither and thither +amongst the shifting throng, unknown and silent, people making way for +them as they moved, as if half afraid of their strange appearance. + +Alys and Edmund caught sight of them more than once, and eagerly asked +Amalric who and what they were; but he could give them no reply, and +soon they ceased to think of them in the entertainment of watching the +gay shifting throng. + +A good position for seeing the jousting was fixed upon by the men in +charge of the Constable's children, and Edmund's litter was drawn up +upon a knoll under a clump of trees, which gave a pleasant shade from +the sun's rays; whilst the horse, tethered close at hand, could feed +upon the grass. + +"I should like to see some of the people we have been told about," said +Alys, as she stood beside her brother's couch.--"Prithee, good Leofric, +bring to us here thy friends Hugh and Gilbert and Jack, and those two +twin sisters Lotta and Linda, and any others of whom thou hast spoken. I +would be friends with all the world to-day. Go seek them and bring them +hither, and at noon we will feast here together under the greenwood +trees, and watch the merry joustings at our ease." + +Alys was in unwontedly gay spirits that day, and Leofric hurried off to +do her behests. It was easy to persuade his comrades to accept the +invitation of the Constable's daughter, and she on her side had a pretty +way of putting people at their ease in her company. + +The twin sisters interested her greatly, but she did not think them +quite so wonderfully alike as she had expected. One of them was pale and +pensive, and had an anxious look in her soft eyes; whilst the other was +radiant and flushed, talking and laughing gaily with all who +approached, and throwing towards Hugh le Barbier glances of such +witchery and fascination that Alys at first thought she must be the lady +of his choice. + +All seemed to be gaiety and good-humour during the early hours of the +day. Games of all sorts, trials of skill and strength, wrestling, +archery, and quoits were entered into with great zest. The jousting was +to take place after the mid-day meal, and at present the horsemen were +comparatively few; but these few rode hither and thither, and carried +off the ring from the pole with considerable skill. Alys watched +everything, and enjoyed herself mightily, making herself a very graceful +and gracious hostess to her invited guests. + +As the meal proceeded she found herself able to speak a few words to the +pensive twin, whom she now knew to be Linda, the maiden whom Leofric had +said that Hugh loved. Hugh had been sitting beside her for some little +while, but now he had gone off with Gilbert to look to their horses for +the tilting, and the shadow had fallen again upon the face of the girl. + +"Is aught troubling thee, maiden?" asked Alys, in a gentle tone. +"Methinks that thou art pensive where others be gay. Tell me what is in +thy heart, and I will seek to comfort thee." + +Linda gave a sudden start, and glanced timidly into the face of the +younger girl; but what she saw there seemed to inspire her with +confidence. She had heard before of the gentle Alys, and felt that she +was not quite a stranger. + +After a quick glance round to be sure that none else could hear her +words, she made reply,-- + +"In sooth, sweet mistress, I scarce know how to answer; and yet my heart +is heavy within me, and I fear I know not what. I have one who is near +and dear to me, and I trow he is in danger. Yet how to succour him I +know not; for he is brave of heart, and smiles at thought of fear; yet I +have known terrible things happen in this strange city, and I fear--I +fear!" + +"What dost thou fear?" asked Alys, drawing a little closer. + +"I fear foul play for him," answered Linda; "I have heard things which +make my heart heavy as lead within me. Lady, hast thou seen some strange +men in the crowd to-day--men all in black, who look to me like devils +moving amongst the merry-makers? Hast thou seen them?" + +"Ay, verily have I. Methought they were mummers, but none could tell me +of them. Who and what are they?" + +"I know hot for a certainty, and yet I fear them. I saw through the +mask-hole of one of them a pair of evil, flashing eyes, and methought it +was Roger de Horn who thus gazed at me with malice in his heart. I truly +think that my brother is another, and there are more whose names thou +wouldest not know. But I fear me there are certain wild spirits bound +together to do evil, and that the safety of my lover is to-day +threatened amongst them." + +Alys sat silent, a sympathetic fear creeping over her. What could she +say to comfort this trembling maiden? + +"But how can these men hurt him? he will be mounted, and they are on +foot. Dost think that they will join in the tourney too?" + +"Nay; I should fear them less did they do so. Hugh would be more than a +match for any of them, skilled as he is in knightly exercises, strong, +and full of courage. He could unhorse Roger de Horn at one blow, despite +his size and strength; and that does yon coward and braggart well know, +wherefore he will not meet him in fair fight. What I fear is an +ambushment, in which my lover will be carried off by those wicked men. +And if he be thus spirited away, Heaven alone knows what fate may await +him: for I am very sure that these confederates have sold themselves to +the Evil One, and are masters of unholy crafts that we wot not of; and +as all men know, when such seize upon a human victim, they do him to +death with their black arts in some fearful fashion, seeking to wrest +his soul from him ere they let go their hold upon his body!" and Linda +trembled in every limb. + +Alys shivered also, for these words sounded mysterious and terrible. She +did not understand their import, but none the less did they fill her +with horror. + +But before another word could be said the sound of trumpet blasts smote +upon the ears of the crowd, a great shout rent the welkin, and from +opposite sides of the field two gallant parties of mounted revellers +rode in--banners flying, lances in rest--and made a complete circuit of +the meadow, the crowd flying right and left before them, until the +field, lately covered with groups of merry-makers, became cleared for +the tiltings of the mounted rivals. + +It was a gallant show of student prowess, and for a while all went well; +the combatants were fairly well matched, and good-humour prevailed over +feelings of emulation and rivalry. + +The sun slowly sank in the sky, but the revelry and joustings still went +on. The crowd had closed in more and more upon the combatants, and now +there was to be one great final charge, all the horsemen taking part in +it together--a sort of mock battle before the sun should set. + +Edmund was growing rather weary, but was still keenly interested; whilst +Amalric, who had declined to join in the jousting, and had remained all +the while with brother and sister, gazed very intently at the grouping +of the crowd, and in particular at the movements of certain black +figures, who seemed to be directing in a rather curious fashion the +actions of certain knots of clerks and citizens, who were drawing ever +nearer and nearer to the scene of action. + +"Methinks, Edmund," he said suddenly, "that thou and Alys had better be +turning homewards. The sun will soon be gone, and this is the last of +the merry-making. It would be well not to get hemmed in by the crowd as +it breaks up. I will call up the men, and we will return," and as he +spoke he gave Edmund a look which the latter instantly understood. + +Alys would fain have lingered, fascinated by the strange sight +presented by the plain, where she could have fancied a real battle was +raging. There were such shouting, such clashing of arms, such defiant +yells from the combatants, that she almost trembled where she stood; and +when she mounted her palfrey, she felt that the creature was trembling +also at the unwonted clamour. + +Suddenly a girl's voice close at hand broke into a quick wail of horror +and fear. Linda, clasping her hands closely together, cried in tones of +lament,-- + +"It has begun! it has begun! They are fighting now. Oh, what will be the +end of this?" + +"Come, Mistress Alys," spoke Amalric, in tones that unconsciously +betrayed anxiety and authority, "we must not linger here. It is too +true; they have begun to fight in earnest now." + +And so it was. Either the excitement of the moment had been too much for +the combatants, or there had been evil influences at work; but whatever +the cause, there was no mistaking the result. Yells of execration and +defiance, screams of agony from the wounded, threats, menaces, curses, +rent the air, and in a moment the scene was changed from one of revelry +and sport to one of fury and bloodshed. It was no sight for a maiden's +eyes, and Alys was hurried by her attendants through the rough ground of +Broken Heys and into the Barbican Lane, where still the shouts of the +multitude pursued her, and the din of battle drowned all other sounds. + +"Oh, what is happening--what is happening?" she cried, as the party +halted at last beneath the gateway. "Oh, do not let Hugh le Barbier +fall into the hands of his foes! Cannot some of you rescue him from +those wicked men?" + +Her words were not altogether understood, but enough had passed upon the +subject to cause Amalric to cry,-- + +"Now that thou art safe, sweet lady, I will ride back and see what I can +do to stop this riot, and save our friend if he be in any peril;" and +Leofric sprang to his stirrup and said,-- + +"Let me run with thee, sir, and strike a blow for my friend, if need be. +I know not what is purposed against him, but methinks this fight will +not fail to be taken advantage of by his enemy." + +Leofric could run like a hare, and had no difficulty in keeping pace +with Amalric's steed as they once more crossed the broken ground towards +the meadow. The light was fading by this time, but the din of battle was +louder than ever, and it seemed as though the whole populace of the town +had now joined in one indiscriminate _mêlée_. From within the walls +could be heard the clanging of the bells of St. Martin's and St. +Mary's--signals that mischief was abroad; and from the gates of the city +the Chancellor and his men were already issuing, the Proctors in +attendance, to seek to quell this formidable riot, in which at least +half the University clerks were involved. + +The Constable of the Castle on his side had come forth with a guard, and +at sight of these dignitaries bearing down upon them from either side +the combatants paused and wavered. Then the men of the North, who were +getting the upper hand, made a sudden dash forward, drove their +adversaries before them pell-mell through the open gate from which the +Chancellor had lately issued, hewed down numbers of them in their rush, +and made for their own Halls and lodgings, barricading themselves into +these and hurling defiance at the promoters of law and order, and +flinging stones and other offensive missiles at any who sought to +dislodge them. + +The fight was practically over, the victory, if such it could be called, +remaining with the Northern section, who had certainly inflicted much +damage upon their adversaries, whilst meeting with many reprisals +themselves. Quite a dozen clerks had been killed or mortally wounded, +whilst minor injuries had been inflicted upon more victims than could be +numbered that night. + +Amalric and Leofric, joined later on by Jack (whose head had been broken +by a quarter-staff) and by Gilbert (who had received a few bruises and +contusions), hunted all over the place for some trace of Hugh. His horse +they found grazing quietly in one corner, which excited some alarm for +the safety of the rider; but Gilbert declared he had seen Hugh ride +safely out of the _melée_ when it began to turn into a battle, and that +he had called out to him to go home quietly before worse happened. He +himself rode off towards the Bocardo gate, and Gilbert lost sight of him +in the confusion; but he never guessed that harm had come to him till he +found he had not been heard of at the inn, and he started off again in +search of him. + +From dusk till moonrise did his friends seek for him, exploring every +corner of the field and the streets, and asking all whom they knew if +they had seen him. Hugh was well known and popular in Oxford, and even +the Chancellor and the Proctors gave a passing assistance in the search; +but at length the party had to pause and look at each other in blank +dismay. + +"He has been spirited away!" said Amalric, beneath his breath. + +"This is the doing of Roger de Horn," quoth Jack, between his shut +teeth. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +_THE FAIR OF ST. FRIDESWYDE._ + + +"I Tell thee the fault is thine own. Thou couldst have saved him an thou +wouldst!" + +"Thou art cruel to me, Lotta--cruel, cruel!" wailed Linda. "As though I +had not enough to bear without these taunts!" + +"Taunts! they are true words every one, and I did warn thee before. If +thou hadst given thyself to honest Roger, thou mightest have saved thy +lover." + +Linda's pale face flushed; she wrung her hands together; her eyes, that +were sunken and hollow, flashed suddenly. + +"Honest Roger, quotha! and he little better than a common assassin! I +hated and feared him long ere I saw Hugh. Wouldst thou have had me +betroth myself to a murderer?" + +There was an answering flash in Lotta's eyes. + +"To save the man I loved from death, _I_ would have promised anything," +she cried--"ANYTHING!" + +"So would not I," answered Linda, drawing a deep sigh. "I dare not sware +a falsehood--not even for his sake. Nor would he wish it of me. There +are things worse than death." + +"Ay, verily there be," answered Lotta significantly; "who knows but what +thy dainty lover (as thou dost call him) may even now be suffering some +such fate." + +Linda started and gazed earnestly at her sister. + +"Lotta, what meanest thou? Speak! What dost thou know?" + +"I know nothing," was the dogged reply, and a hard gleam shone in +Lotta's eyes. + +The likeness between the twin sisters was growing less and less every +week. Linda had grown pale and drooping of late, and went about heavily, +as one in whom the vigour of life is sapped; whilst Lotta was almost as +blooming as of old, save that her beauty was harder in character, her +laugh more forced, and her speech more reckless. Some thought her more +bewitching than ever, but Linda was of a different opinion. She began to +fear her sister, and to suspect that Lotta hated her with that cruel +sort of hatred which is born of jealousy. + +Linda had not realized until the mysterious disappearance of Hugh that +Lotta loved him; but the knowledge had been forced upon her during those +dreadful days following the fight in Beaumont meadows. Since that day +Lotta had been altogether different, and had never ceased to taunt the +heart-broken Linda with having been the cause of the fate which had +overtaken Hugh upon that occasion. She was always throwing reproaches at +her, and urging her even now to accept the suit of Roger de Horn, lest +some worse thing should happen; and Linda grew more pale and tearful as +week after week passed by, and no news of the absent Hugh reached either +her or any in the city. + +He seemed to have been spirited away as if by magic. His body had never +been found, and it was generally supposed that he had been alarmed by +the magnitude of the fight, and fearing for the consequences to those +concerned, had quitted the city and betaken himself elsewhere, as was +often enough done by those who feared the result of any act of violence. +He had been one of the most valiant of the tilters in the tourney, and +might perhaps fear lest his name should be brought before the Chancellor +or the King as having been a leader in the fight that had followed. + +For there had been great displeasure aroused in high places at this +lusty and bloody battle. The Chancellor had closed the schools for a +while, to make inquisition on the matter; and the clerks, in affright at +seeing their privileges withdrawn, had made a collection of money, and +had sent presents to the King and Queen and Prince of Wales, in the hope +of obtaining pardon. + +The King had, however, given a stern reply, to the effect that money +could not buy back the life of even one loyal subject wantonly slain; +and had it not been that his Majesty was too much taken up with troubles +in Wales and with his own Barons at home, more serious steps might have +been taken. + +As it was no mandate followed, and gradually the life of the place +resumed its former course; but it may be understood that, at a time of +so much excitement and anxiety, the disappearance of a single student +created but little stir. Had his dead body been found, there must have +been inquiry, and search made for the authors of the crime, as Hugh was +a gentleman's son, and the companion and friend of young De Montfort; +but since he had simply vanished, it was concluded that he had done so +of his own free-will, and only a few of his nearest friends harboured +dark fears as to his safety. + +Linda had good reason for believing that he had met with foul play, and +though for a while she cherished the hope that he would come back as +suddenly as he had left, the hope was dwindling away little by little, +so that Lotta's last words brought a start of mingled dismay and hope. + +"If thou dost know nothing, why dost thou speak thus?" she cried, +clasping her hands tightly together. + +"I speak but the fantasy that sometimes fills my mind. I verily believe +even now, if thou wouldst hear reason and mate thyself with Roger, that +Hugh might be brought back again as from the dead." + +"Thou dost believe he yet lives?" + +"Marry, how can I tell? I know no more than thyself. But men put not +their heads within a noose for small cause. Were I in thy place, I would +see if I could not save my lover, even though I might never wed him." + +"Thinkest thou that he would reckon life a boon had I been false to +him?" spoke Linda, in very low tones. + +Lotta's hard laugh rang out mockingly. + +"Thou vain and foolish child! thinkest thou that there is a man upon +earth who would not choose life rather than love? Thinkest thou that +thou art the only maiden in the city worth the wooing? Go to for a +veritable fool an thou dost! Let him but taste the sweets of liberty +again, and I trow that he would console himself for thy desertion, and +that right quickly;" and Lotta flashed a meaning glance at her own +reflection in a small mirror of burnished brass that hung against the +wall. + +Linda shivered again. She read her sister's meaning all too well. Yet +what would she not be willing to do to win liberty for her lover, were +he indeed alive? + +"If thou wouldst but tell me what thou dost know!" she said again. + +Lotta threw herself along the couch beside the window, and looked down +into the street below. It was plain that she was excited and disquieted, +but Linda had no clue to her thoughts. + +"I know naught," she repeated; "but I have my thoughts. That something +is afoot I cannot doubt. Hast seen how strange Tito is of late--how +little he is at home after dark--how he and Roger consort more and more +together? Something is hatching between them; what its nature is I know +not. But I have my thoughts--I have my suspicions. And is not Tito ever +on at thee that thou shouldst forget Hugh and wed with Roger? And doth +he not tell me to urge the same upon thee, and throw out strange hints +that the sooner this be done the sooner some other good will follow? I +verily believe that hadst thou the spirit or the heart of a mouse, thou +couldst save him whom thou dost profess thou lovest. But if thou wilt +not make sacrifice for him--well, such love is not worth the having! I +would cast it from me with scorn!" + +Linda buried her face in her hands and sobbed. She was bewildered and +distressed above measure by Lotta's words. If indeed Hugh were living, +what would she not do to obtain his release from the power of the evil +men who had captured him? but to pay the price asked of her for this! +Oh, it was almost more than she could bear to think of! And yet might it +not be her duty--that duty she owed to him whom she loved more than +life? + +She was in a grievous state of doubt and dismay, and upon the first +opportunity she sought counsel of her friend Joanna Seaton, who had been +her confidante throughout. + +Joanna looked very grave at what she heard, but warned Linda very +seriously against taking such a false step as that of listening to the +suit of Roger de Horn. + +"Thou dost hate and fear him; it could never be right to wed him. We may +not do evil even for good to come. The holy friars have at least taught +us that, albeit the monks may not have done so. Thou mayest not swear +falsely, Linda." + +"Not even to save him from--oh, I know not what?" + +"Not even for that. Moreover, thou dost not know that he is living, or +in the power of his foe. I fear me that Lotta is not true to thee nor to +her better self. She has let the demon of jealousy possess her, and she +is now seeking to work upon thee and to get thee to wed with Roger. I +fear me she has some evil purpose in her head. I would not have thee put +too great faith in her words, Linda." + +"But if she should be right!" urged Linda feverishly. "Oh, could we not +save him?" + +Joanna was silent, revolving many matters in her mind. Linda suddenly +spoke again. + +"Joanna, to-morrow doth begin the Fair of St. Frideswyde." + +"Yes, truly; but what of that?" + +"Listen, Joanna. Dost thou not remember that there come to the fair year +by year those who practise magic--who read the future from the stars, +from the cards, from crystal bowls? I have never sought to such before, +having never cared to pry into the future. But now, ah now, if they +could but tell me that one thing--if they could but say whether he were +alive or dead!" + +Joanna looked struck by the idea, and a little excited. Living in an age +of superstition, the girls were not free from the belief in magic which +lies dormant in almost every nature. Truly if they could discover by +occult means what they so greatly desired to know, it might put a weapon +in their hands which they could use with effect. Many were there in the +city who would fly to the rescue of Hugh, were it but known that he +lived, and where was his hiding-place. If they could but once discover +this much, the rest might follow, and the prisoner be released. + +No event could better facilitate their design than the approaching Fair +of St. Frideswyde. Formerly it had been held in July, upon the feast of +the translation of St. Benedict, and the five days following; but within +the memory of the present generation it had been changed to the vigil +and feast of the saint himself, and occupied a whole week, from the +eighteenth to the twenty-fourth of October inclusive. Not only was a +great fair held in the streets of the city all through these days, but +the whole authority of the place was handed over to the Prior of St. +Frideswyde's. To him the Mayor surrendered the keys of the city; the +courts of the town were closed in favour of the Piepowder Court, which +was held by the steward of the Priory, and before which all disturbers +of the peace were brought during the week of the fair. + +Persons of every sort thronged into the city during the week. The +hostels were full to overflowing; a general holiday was observed. +Housewives stocked their larders and wardrobes for the winter; young +folks made merry together at mummings and shows of every kind. Clerks +and scholars thronged into the fair so soon as they were free of the +schools. The streets were lighted by torches, and frolic and +merry-making lasted far into the darkness of the autumn night. Mummers, +jugglers, fortune-tellers crowded into the place to gather a harvest +there; and if any youths or maidens desired to consult the stars, have +their fortunes told or their horoscope cast, that was the season when +this could be managed without trouble or risk. + +The fascination of the supernatural has a great hold upon the young +imagination. Linda and Joanna had not discussed this matter long before +both were burning with eagerness to put the matter to the test. It had +been already rumoured that a noted astrologer from foreign parts would +visit the town during the Fair of St. Frideswyde; and if this were so, +he was the very man of all others to be consulted. He could know nothing +whatever respecting the character or history of the persons who +consulted him, and therefore, if he could tell or show them somewhat +concerning the fate of Hugh, his prognostications might be looked upon +as true, especially if he could give some sign whereby those who +consulted him should be able to prove the efficacy of his magic. + +Others besides Linda and Joanna awaited eagerly the opening of the fair. +Alys de Kynaston was never weary of questioning her father about it, and +begging permission to wander through it when the time should come. +Edmund was keenly curious too, but he could not hope to see much, though +he meant to ride into the city, and go through such places as his horse +could carry him. Leofric was not able to tell them anything about it, as +he had not seen one himself as yet; but he picked up all the information +that he could on the subject, and both he and Amalric resolved to see +everything possible, even at the expense of their studies during that +week. + +Different as was their rank in life, Amalric and Leofric had become +great friends of late. Their anxiety for Hugh was one link which had +drawn them together, and their love of study was another. Amalric +attended a number of the same lectures as Leofric. He often joined the +readings in the Castle, and profited by Leofric's scholarship, which +was certainly rapidly increasing with all this exercise. At other times +he would mount Leofric upon one of his own horses, and they would ride +forth together and scour the country for miles round, enjoying the rapid +exercise and the free companionship. Amalric was fond of weaving fancy +pictures of their future life, when Leofric and he should ride forth +together to win their spurs of knighthood, and meet with those +adventures which befell all true gallant youths who went forth in the +cause of chivalry. + +In spite of his scholarly tastes, he had soldier blood in his veins, and +did not mean to settle down altogether to a life of study. There was +glory to be won in the far East in the Crusades, as well as against the +Turks upon the seas, even if not nearer at home. Amalric had his dreams +of warlike glory, and Leofric shared them also. He would be the +esquire--Amalric should be his knightly master. Together they would do +and dare great things; and thus planning and castle-building, their +souls were knit together, and a deep and lasting friendship sprang up +between them. + +At the fair they were always to be seen together, sometimes in +attendance upon the maiden Alys, who delighted to obtain permission to +go afoot into the crowd with them. Her father, finding that there seemed +little danger of any untoward disturbance just now (the memory of the +King's recent displeasure being still fresh in men's minds), was pleased +to gratify her whim, and Amalric was always eager to be entrusted with +the care of one who was becoming daily dearer to him. So with a servant +or two in close attendance, but with Amalric and Leofric one on each +side, the eager maiden visited the fair and made numerous little +purchases, greatly to her own edification and the admiration of the +spectators. + +Thus it chanced that she came one day face to face with Linda, whom she +had not seen since the day of the joustings, and she was greatly struck +and grieved by the change in her looks. The citizen's daughter would +have passed by with a simple reverence; but Alys put forth her hand and +drew Linda towards her. + +"I am glad to see thee once more; but thou art sadly changed since last +we met. My father ever says that Hugh will come back again. Lose not +altogether heart and hope." + +"Ah, sweet lady, I thank thee for such kindly words; but thy noble +father knows not all that we know. And I have not lost all hope, either, +albeit I almost tremble. Hist! I can say no more here; but anon I shall +learn somewhat, and then will I tell thee all--if indeed there be aught +to tell. I have heard a whisper of hope. Perchance it will become +something more anon. I must wait--I must wait--with what patience I can. +On the last day of the fair I shall know all." + +With these rather mysterious words Linda pressed Alys's hand and glided +away, whilst the maiden stood looking after her with wondering eyes, and +turning to Amalric asked,-- + +"What doth such speech portend?" + +Amalric shook his head; but Leofric, who had heard much of the gossip +of the fair from Jack, who was always in the thick of things, made +answer,-- + +"Perchance she has been asking the oracle of him. Men say it is right +wonderful what he doth tell; but they speak not too openly of the +matter, lest the monks and canons of the city arise and drive him forth. +The black arts are not encouraged, albeit there is always juggling and +fortune-telling enow at these fairs. But this magician from foreign +lands is something different. All men who have gone to him are +whispering of the wonders he doth show, and the strange fashion in which +he reads the thoughts of their hearts. For myself I have not had any +desire to seek to him. Brother Angelus has warned us against such +things. He says that half of it is trickery, unworthy to be practised by +honest men; and that what is really magic is of the devil, and should be +shunned by those who call themselves children of God. But for all that, +many men who live upright and godly lives will, from sheer desire to see +and hear the man, go to consult him or ask a question. These ofttimes +come away with puzzled or troubled faces. For my part, I desire not to +have dealings with either a trickster or an emissary of the Evil One." + +Alys shivered slightly. She had been on the point of asking to be taken +to the magician; but these words had the desired effect of checking the +impulse. Nevertheless, she felt considerable curiosity to know what +Linda had heard or seen, and greater still would have been her curiosity +had she known what was about to take place. + +Linda had consulted the oracle, who sat within a small tent just within +the south gate, his face shrouded beneath a deep cowl, from under which +his eyes gleamed like live coals. By day he sat and answered questions +put to him in a deep, dreamy voice, which seemed to come from somewhere +far away; but there were those who had asked to see certain things, or +to look into the crystal globe or into the magic bowl, and they were +bidden to meet him at an appointed time without the city gate after +nightfall; and those who came back from these interviews spoke with +bated breath of what they had seen and heard, and that only in whispers, +lest the thing should reach the ears of the Prior. + +Linda was one of those who, in a strange ecstasy of trembling and hope, +were awaiting their turn to lift the curtain and see beyond the veil. + +The oracle had divined her question ere it could leave her faltering +lips. He told her that she came to ask news of one she loved--of one who +might even be beyond the reach of human power--sleeping the sleep of +death. Linda had given a little shriek at hearing these words; but the +magician had gone on to say, in the same deep, monotonous voice, that if +living his face could be called up in the magic mirror, and that thus +alone could she learn whether indeed death had taken her lover for his +prey. + +Did she desire to inquire further? Linda, in an agony of terror and +expectancy, declared that she did; and Joanna, though more frightened +than she had anticipated, and half afraid of the approaching ordeal, +would not leave her friend to face it alone. + +It was not difficult, in the confusion attendant upon the fair, to slip +out of the house after supper, unknown to those within; and it was easy +enough to find the emissary of the magician, who, habited in a long gown +and cowl like those of some monk or friar, stood without the gate to +conduct those who had appointments to that other secret place, where the +magic arts were practised beneath the cloak of night. + +But first he tightly bandaged the eyes of the girls. That they had heard +was always done; so that no man knew in what spot stood the strange +curtained place where these mysteries were carried on. Linda held +Joanna's arm tight, and both girls shook and trembled as they were led +along what seemed an interminable road, till at last they were made to +halt, and they heard a curious knock upon some panel that sounded like +that of a door. + +The next moment they were pushed within an archway, and they heard the +door clang to behind them. For a moment their hearts almost failed them; +but the burning curiosity to know what would come next aided them to +rally courage, and in a few seconds they felt themselves pushed into +seats, and the bandage removed from their eyes. + +At first all was so dark about them that they saw little more than they +had done when blindfold; but in a few minutes there was a slight +rustling sound, and then a little tongue of flame seemed to shoot up, +and they saw by its light that the magician sat before them, a small +table only between himself and his visitors, and that he was feeding +the flame in a small brazier before him, which emitted not only a little +light, but also a scent almost like that of incense, and a light smoke +that dimmed the air. + +Above the head of the magician was a mirror, placed at a curious angle, +so that it reflected nothing in the room. Indeed there seemed nothing +that it could well reflect. The walls appeared to be only black +curtains, whose sombre hue absorbed almost all the little light there +was, whilst the chill vault-like atmosphere lay like an oppression upon +the lungs of the visitors. They felt almost as though stifling, and +could not have spoken had their lives depended upon it. + +But speech did not appear to be demanded of them. The magician after a +long silence, during which time he was feeding the brazier with various +drugs which he had arranged upon the table beside him, addressed himself +suddenly as if to some unseen presence. + +"Go!" he said, in a tone of inflexible authority, "look into the heart +of yonder maid, and see whose face is engraved there. If that face be +yet in the land of the living, show it upon the mirror. That is thy task +this night. Go--begone!" + +Dead silence followed this strange command. But in a moment a sound of +music arose as if from the ground at their feet--a strange, weird, low +cadence that rose and fell and filled the room; then the cloud of +incense grew thicker, and for a moment the face of the mirror was dimmed +and blurred. + +Then the air cleared. The mirror shone out again, and reflected in its +shining surface was a face--the face of a man--wan, white, death-like, +with closed eyes and ashen lips. But it was the face of Hugh for all +that. + +"He lives," said the voice of the magician; "but he will not live long, +unless the woman who loves him best on earth will sacrifice herself for +him." + +Linda uttered a strangled scream, and fell senseless to the floor. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + +_THE MAGICIAN'S TOWER._ + + +"I trow there was no magic in it at all--or no magician," cried Joanna, +with suppressed excitement of manner; "I believe it is nothing but some +devilry and trickery of Tito's and Roger's. The more I think of it, the +more certain do I become. They are an evil pair, and are capable of +anything." + +Joanna was standing in the midst of an eager and interested group. The +whisper had gone out in certain quarters that a strange thing had +happened, and that news might be had of the missing Hugh. Amalric de +Montfort had heard as much, and had begged of Leofric to take him to see +the maiden who could tell what had befallen. Gilbert and Jack were also +gathered together to hear the tale. The Fair of St. Frideswyde had just +concluded; the city was resuming its normal condition; lectures for the +day were just ended, and Gilbert had conducted his friends to the +citizen household, that they might hear from Joanna's own lips the story +of the mysterious visit which had resulted in the unexpected apparition +of the face of Hugh le Barbier in the magician's mirror. + +It was an age of superstition, and the belief in magic was deeply +implanted in the minds of men of all classes. Nevertheless, in this +particular case, a sceptic doubt had arisen, and when Joanna boldly +spoke out her opinions, a murmur as of assent passed round the ring. + +"Devilry without doubt," said Amalric, with an emphatic gesture. "The +only question to my mind is, Whose is the devilry? and what chance have +we of catching the perpetrators thereof, and wresting the truth from +them?" + +"If it be a real magician from foreign parts, he may already have left +the city," said Jack; "folks are flocking away, now that the fair is +over, as fast as they were flocking in a week ago." + +"If I be right in my conjecture," said Joanna significantly, "the +mysterious magician and his associate will not quit Oxford. Neither will +they altogether cease their dark practices; they find them pay too +well." + +Hal Seaton, the brother of Joanna, who was also in this secret, looked +out to be certain no one was listening, and then locked the door, +signing to the company to be seated. + +"Now, sister," he said, "tell to these our friends all that thou didst +tell to me upon the night after we had carried to her home the swooning +Linda. For if thou be right in what thou dost surmise, Hugh le Barbier +is yet alive, and in sore need of help from without, which we must give +him without delay. Wherefore speak, and speak freely, for we are all +friends here." + +Joanna told them of what had befallen her and Linda when they sought to +learn more of the fate of Hugh--how they had been taken blindfold into +the presence of the magician, and how the wan and wasted face of Hugh +had appeared before them in the magic mirror. + +"Linda at that moment did faint away," said Joanna, "but in the darkness +the magician seemed not to know it. He made some strange passes with his +hands, and then the lips of the mirrored face moved, and a voice which +sounded far away spoke in urgent accents, bidding Linda forget him, and +do all that was desired of her, as thus and only thus could she save him +from a fate that was worse than death. Linda did not hear one word of +this; but I heard all, and methought I knew whose was the voice that +spake these things." + +"Whose was it?" was the eager question. + +"Tito Balzani's," was the reply. "We all know the power Tito possesses +to throw his voice here, there, and wherever he chooses, and to imitate +the voices of others. We also know well that he has some knowledge of +magic and the black arts. His mother was accounted a witch, as I have +often heard, and she bequeathed to him certain books and properties the +use of which he has been studying of late more than some folks think +wise. There be always those who would seek to pry into forbidden things, +and Tito is one of such. He could play magician well, methinks, an he +had the mind; and I verily believe it was he and none other who so +astonished and awed our townfolk during the week of the fair." + +"That might explain much," cried Jack, "for all men were aghast at the +things the magician told them about themselves, which smacked mightily +of mystery if it were a stranger who thus spoke, but would easily be +explained if he were their own townsman. But leaving that matter, how +could he have deceived your eyes by the trick of the magic mirror? How +could he have gotten the face of Hugh reflected there?" + +"What I believe," answered Joanna, gravely and earnestly, as she glanced +round the faces bent upon her, "is that Tito Balzani and Roger de Horn +have made a prisoner these two months of Hugh le Barbier, and are +practising some of their devilries upon him--Roger from jealous rage and +hatred, because Linda scorns his suit and has given her heart to Hugh; +Tito because he desires that his friend should wed his sister, and +because a living subject can ofttimes be of such great use to one who is +practising the black arts of magic and mystery. Thou knowest, brother, +that the traveller who once chanced this way and told us of many strange +things he had seen in far-off lands, said that human blood was needful +to many of those experiments which sorcerers delight in. If that face +were truly Hugh's which we did see in the mirror, truly methinks he has +been bled within an inch of his life." + +Amalric started up in great excitement. + +"If that be so, we must fly to his rescue ere they do him to death with +their foul spells." + +"It is to talk of that that we are here together to-day," answered +Gilbert, whose face was stern and resolute. "But first we must find out +where they have hidden him; for albeit many of our townfolk did go forth +beyond the gates to inquire further of the magician, all were fast +blind-folded both in coming and going, so that none can say where the +place stands which hides his guilty secrets." + +Amalric turned eagerly upon Joanna once again. + +"Canst thou tell us aught of this? And when didst thou first believe +that it was trickery and not magic that was being practised upon thee? +Hadst thou suspected aught ere thou wentest forth?" + +"The doubt had just crossed my mind," answered Joanna. "I knew well that +Roger was bent upon obtaining Linda's hand in marriage, and I believed +that he had slain Hugh the better to obtain his object. Then when Linda +spoke of her doubt as to Hugh's death, I could not but wonder how far +Roger and Tito were concerned in his disappearance. But it was not till +I was within the magician's cave--for such it appeared to be--and heard +that voice urging upon the unconscious Linda to do the will of those two +evil men, that conviction came home to me. Then like a flash I seemed to +see it all--how they had not dared to kill Hugh, lest inquiry and +discovery should follow, but had made a prisoner of him, and were now +seeking through the medium of pretended magic to break Linda's resolve, +and hurry her into lifelong misery as the bride of Roger. For if she +could be convinced that her lover's life and liberty depended upon the +sacrifice, she might be willing to make it, when no other consideration +in the world would drive her to the step. This, then, was the meaning +of all this pretence of magic and occult power. Linda was to be +terrified into a rash promise, the magician working upon her and +foretelling life to her lover if she did but comply. And I verily +believe they would have succeeded but for that timely fainting fit, +which rendered her helpless and speechless, and angered them into words +which betrayed the plot to me." + +"What did they say?" + +"I can scarce repeat the words. All was darkness and confusion and haste +when they saw Linda lying like one dead before them. But I heard some +muttered oaths, only too like what I hear from Tito Balzani in moments +of anger; whilst the strength exhibited by the other man in lifting and +carrying Linda away was little like that of the bowed and aged man which +he had appeared to be, and I was wellnigh certain that it was Roger. I +was more than half afraid he would spirit her away next; but I kept fast +hold of her dress, even after my eyes were bandaged, and the other man +walked beside me guiding my steps. Just at the South Gate they set down +Linda, and vanished in the darkness. I pulled off the bandage, and found +myself alone with her, leaning up against the wall. The sentry at the +gate heard my call, and came and helped to carry her home. He said that +several half-swooning maidens had been left there during these last days +after dark. For his part he should be glad when the fair was ended and +the magicians had gone their way. He did not hold with honest citizens +being scared out of their senses. And having carried Linda home, he +departed." + +"Would he know where the magician had his place of resort?" asked +Amalric eagerly. "Didst thou ask him?" + +"Yes; but he could tell nothing. He said the less he meddled in such +matters the better. Methinks the magicians had scared him somewhat. He +was right glad to think they were going. I have asked of many if they +could tell; but none can say. Those who went forth were led blindfold, +and all they can say is that the way seemed long and tortuous, and that +the place was like a cave, albeit none can remember going down steps. +Yet it is true that there was a damp, cave-like scent in the air, and +one seemed to pass beneath an arch as one entered." + +"It could not be any of those buildings which pertain to the Black +Friars; the danger would be too great," said Hal, "for the friars are no +friends to magic. There are many mills along Trill Mill Stream, but one +can scarce see how the mock magician could weave his spells there. By +day they are used, and men work early and late. Besides, how could they +keep a prisoner there--if so be that Joanna is right, and Hugh has been +kept in durance vile during these many weeks? It is hard of credence; +and yet how else could his face appear in the mirror?" + +Here Leofric, who had listened to every word spoken, and had been +thinking deeply, looked up to say,-- + +"There is the tower--Friar Bacon's tower--close to the Grandpont, beyond +the South Gate, beyond the mills and the buildings of the Black Friars. +That tower hath an evil report. Men fear it even by day; by night all +give it wide berth. I have heard men say of late that strange sounds +have been heard issuing forth, and that it is a place unholy and to be +avoided. Can it be possible that these evil men have broken in, and used +it for the practice of their wicked arts? It might suit them well, since +they can study the stars from thence, cast horoscopes, and practise many +forbidden arts safely within its walls. And if they had a mind to keep a +prisoner there--" + +Amalric had started to his feet in great excitement. + +"The Magician's Tower--that is what I have heard it called! Verily, good +Leofric, methinks thou hast gotten the key of the mystery this time! +What place could better suit these evil creatures wherein to practise +deeds of darkness? As we know, men shun the spot even by day; but at +night none will pass by who can avoid it. Doubtless Friar Bacon left +behind him some things which might be useful to the pretended magician; +and he may have implements of his own for practising his black arts. +Where better could he carry on his practices? Where more secure could +some hapless prisoner be kept? And the sounds which men have heard +proceeding thence! Why did we not think of it before? Surely it must be +the voice of Hugh, seeking to call for aid from those without! Let us +fly to his rescue without delay! We will take a sevenfold vengeance upon +his persecutors if we find matters as we believe!" + +"We must have a care," said Hal, looking round with an air of caution; +"we have two clever and unscrupulous rogues to deal with. If we are to +catch them as well as their victim, we had better lie low till night has +fallen, and then sally forth and see if we cannot take them red-handed +in some of their villany. If we breathe a word of this abroad, we shall +find that they have escaped--and perchance have made away with their +victim, or hidden him elsewhere--and we shall be foiled in our purpose." + +"And we do but suspect the hiding-place," said Leofric. "If we are +wrong, and have given them warning, we shall lose them utterly. We shall +have much ado, methinks, to catch them as it is. If we make any stir and +let them hear so much as a whisper, they will be off, and we shall see +them no more." + +"True," said Amalric, whose first impulse had been to speak to the +Constable of the Castle and ask for a guard to go and search the tower; +"we might defeat our own ends by publicity. And then if our surmise were +to be wrong, they would have time to remove their prisoner and betake +themselves elsewhere before we discovered our error. We will band +together, all of us, and to-night we will meet here once more, and set +forth on our errand. Meantime let us not breathe outside these walls one +word of what has been resolved upon. Let us spend our day as we are wont +to spend it; but let each man revolve in his mind some course of action, +and come provided with that which he judges to be most needful to the +success of the enterprise. Arms, of course, each must carry, and +anything else that may seem well. To-night at curfew--or perchance an +hour later--we will meet, and then make for the tower with all speed and +secrecy." + +They rose with one accord as if to go. + +"Then," said Hal, "let our meeting-place be just without the South Gate, +under shelter of the wall hard by St. Michael's. There in the shadow +none will note our gathering; and the sentry knows us all, and will let +us pass without comment." + +"So be it," said Amalric, who from his rank naturally took the lead in +this matter. The young men saluted Joanna, Amalric thanked her for her +information and praised her for her courage, and then they went forth +one by one, to note that Tito Balzani, lounging in the door of the inn a +little higher up the street, watched their exit with lowering brows and +a sullen mien. + +Leofric and Jack passed him by as they walked towards their own +quarters. He looked at them with suspicion. + +"Whither away so fast?" he asked, with an air of would-be good +fellowship; "come and have a drink, and tell the news. What has taken +thee to Master Seaton's house to-day? The city is as dull as a stagnant +pool after the fair." + +"How goes it with Mistress Linda?" asked Leofric, ignoring the question; +"we heard from Joanna but now that she was sick of some fever of the +brain." + +"It is naught but a maid's folly and fantasy," answered Tito, with an +ugly scowl; "marriage with an honest fellow who would keep her from her +whimsies and puling would be the best cure for her. So I tell my father, +who has promised to think of it." + +Leofric passed on, seeing that Jack's face had flushed all over, and +that he only restrained himself with difficulty from betraying his real +feelings towards the Italian youth. + +"He is a young scamp himself!" cried the farmer's son, as they hastened +towards their lodging. "If we can but catch him to-night, I would gladly +wring his neck for him! But I fear he will be as slippery as an eel. +Nevertheless, let me but get a good grip of him, and it will go hard +that I shake not the breath out of his body!" + +"Gently, good Jack," said Leofric; "we must not take life without good +cause. But if things be as we suppose, I trust we shall bring both him +and his accomplice to the punishment their evil deeds deserve." + +To the impatient Jack the time seemed long before night came and they +could start forth on their quest. But the darkness fell early at that +season, and at the appointed hour the pair sallied forth, avoiding the +High Street, where Tito might possibly be on the watch (if he were not +already at the Magician's Tower), and skirting along the wall till the +South Gate was reached and passed. The walls of St. Michael's rose up +immediately before them, and here had already gathered the eager party, +all armed, and all resolute and full of courage. + +"Tito and Roger passed through the gate together an hour ago," said Hal +Seaton; "I have been watching and dogging them ever since our meeting +broke up. Fain would I have followed them farther; but they were full of +suspicion, and I feared to be seen, and so spoil everything. They +scuttled along like hunted foxes, sly and cunning and crafty. So far as +I could judge, they went straight down as if towards Grandpont. I truly +believe that the tower is their place of resort." + +Amalric took the lead. Bidding his followers walk very softly--which it +was easy to do in the thick mud of the low-lying road--he made his way +rapidly yet cautiously in the direction of the tower, and before long +they could see the lonely building standing out against the sky just at +the head of the bridge. + +All was dark and silent as they approached; but Jack had made a little +detour, and had found his way down to the very edge of the river. Now he +came flying back to say that from that side a glimmer of light could be +detected in an upper window, visible only from the river, and looking +blue and ghostlike as a corpse candle. Nor had they actually reached the +wall before a sudden cry, wild and strange, rang through the silence of +the night. The whole party started, and Amalric ground his teeth; but +they could well understand how the ordinary passer-by, hearing such a +sound, would hurry past in terrible fright, believing it the wail of a +lost spirit, or a demoniac yell. + +"Here is the door!" spoke Gilbert, in smothered tones, "but it is fast +locked and bolted. They will take good care of that." + +A long-drawn sobbing wail seemed to come from within, and Amalric's face +grew hard and stern. + +"Break it in, then--a truce to secrecy!--there is no time to lose!" he +cried; and the next moment the silence of the night was rent by the +sound of blows against the solid door, which soon sent it crashing +inwards. + +"A light!" cried Amalric; and Hal flashed a concealed lantern within the +opening forced. In a moment the five youths had vaulted in, drawing +their daggers as they did so. They found themselves in a dark, vaulted +chamber, hung round with black cloth; and for some moments they could +see no way of getting into the upper part of the tower. The magic mirror +hung upon the wall, and various curious-looking implements lay upon the +table, doubtless used by Tito when practising upon the credulity of +those who sought him. + +"This way!" cried Jack suddenly. He had discovered in the wall a narrow +spiral stairway. Recklessly dashing upwards, stumbling in the darkness, +but closely followed by his comrades, and holding his dagger fast in his +hand, he suddenly found himself brought up short by a locked door, and +behind that door he could hear whispering voices. + +"Stand back a moment!" he yelled to those behind; and they fell back, +not knowing what was to happen next. Jack had armed himself beforehand +with a mighty club, which in old days he had often wielded with good +effect, and which since his arrival in Oxford had been his favourite +weapon in those matches of skill and strength in which the hearts of the +students delighted. + +Raising this formidable weapon, and bringing it crashing against the +lock of this door, he forced it open before him. A stream of light burst +forth for a single second, almost dazzling their eyes. The next instant +they were enveloped in black darkness, whilst a sound of scuffling steps +and of angry words in the room beyond them told that they had surprised +the evil-doers in their work. + +Hal sprang forward with his lantern, and Jack exclaimed,-- + +"Catch them! catch them! they are getting out by the windows!" + +Springing forward, he caught at the legs of one, but received such a +violent kick upon the cheek that he let go his hold for a second. The +other fugitive was grappled by Gilbert, but he was more than half-way +out before he was seized, and he wriggled so dexterously and fiercely +that he too drew away, and the next moment both figures had vanished. + +"After them down the stairs!" cried Hal; and he, Gilbert, and Jack +dashed down through the darkness, leaving the light for any one who +desired it. + +Amalric caught it up, flashed it round the room, and then uttered a +short, sharp exclamation. Leofric had seen a ghastly figure stretched +upon a pallet in a corner. The next moment both he and Amalric were +bending over the prostrate form of Hugh le Barbier. + +Hugh indeed it was, though worn almost to a skeleton, and looking like +death. One arm was extended, and blood was oozing from a vein that had +evidently been recently opened. A number of other scars plainly showed +how frequently this operation had been repeated. His eyes, though half +open, seemed to take in no impression from without. He was cold and +almost pulseless. Amalric, bending over him and feeling his heart, said +between his clenched teeth,-- + +"We are only just in time!" + +They stanched the wound. They forced strong spirit down his throat. They +chafed his cold limbs, and finding warm garments, left behind by the +fugitives in their hasty flight, they wrapped him in them, and set light +to the fire upon the hearth, and laid him down in front of it to get the +full heat of the blaze. + +In moving him, they found that he had been chained by one ankle to the +wall, and they had to file through the fetter before they could free +him, their hearts meantime swelling with indignation and fury. + +"If we can but lay hands on those miscreants!" muttered Amalric between +his teeth. + +All this while Hugh lay lifeless and unconscious, although his pulses +still beat faintly. When he had for the third time swallowed the cordial +forced upon him by Leofric, he slowly opened his eyes, at first with +shrinking and horror in them, which changed gradually to great wonder +and joy. + +"Amalric!" he said faintly, as though speaking in a dream--"Leofric! +Heaven send this be not another dream!" + +And having so said he put out his hand, as if to assure himself by touch +of the presence of friends; and after having so done he once more lost +consciousness, the very shock of joy being too much for his weakened +frame. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + +_WINTER DAYS WITHIN THE CASTLE._ + + +All Oxford was thrown into excitement by the news. Hugh le Barbier, +whose disappearance after the jousting in Beaumont meadows two months +before had created a certain stir in some quarters, had now been found +in fetters in the Magician's Tower, as people sometimes called it, and +had been carried off to the Castle for security by the Constable. + +It was in all mouths that the foreign magician, whose doings and wonders +had attracted no small notice during the Fair of St. Frideswyde, was +none other than the Italian youth Tito Balzani, who had grown up in +their midst, and had therefore an intimate knowledge of those who +consulted him. It was further said that both he and Roger de Horn had +been in the plot for abducting and imprisoning the missing man, and that +they were now being searched for all through the neighbouring forests, +to which they had most likely fled for safety so soon as they found +themselves discovered. + +Jack Dugdale was forward to tell the tale to the gaping throng who +surrounded him whenever he appeared in the streets. + +He had spent pretty nigh three days himself searching for the fugitives, +and had often been hot upon their trail; but they had eluded him and the +other pursuers with a cunning which had in it almost a touch of the +supernatural, some thought, and now the chase had been reluctantly +abandoned, and it was admitted that the quarry had escaped for the +present. + +But the excitement did not immediately die down. The story was in every +one's mouth. Pedro Balzani's house was thronged with guests, all eager +to learn what was to be known; and though the house was watched closely +by the authorities, the man himself was not interfered with. He had made +it plain that he was ignorant of the doings of his son, and as he +himself bore a good character, the misdeeds of Tito were not visited +upon his head. + +But great anger prevailed against that young man throughout the town. +Numbers of the citizens, and still more their wives and daughters, had +consulted the magician, and had paid him what to them were large sums +for scraps of information which had seemed to them marvellous as coming +from the lips of a stranger from beyond the seas, but which lost all +their value when it was known that Tito was the speaker. Others had been +lured by him to the tower, and had paid heavily for a glance into the +magic mirror, the crystal bowl, or that other bowl the thought of whose +dark contents now made them shudder. Some still declared that he had +dealings with the Evil One, and that the things they had seen could only +be produced by the co-operation of spirits; but others vowed that it +was nothing but trickery from first to last, and longed to see Tito +brought back into the city, that he might be made to disgorge his +ill-gotten gains, which doubtless he had kept securely fastened upon his +person, so as to be ready for any emergency. + +As for the other members of the Balzani household, the mother was deeply +indignant at the trick which had been played upon her daughter by the +girl's half-brother and his friend. She saw clearly that they sought to +impose upon her credulity, and to induce her by that means to pledge her +hand to Roger de Horn as the price of the life and liberty of her lover, +Hugh. The mother learned much from the delirious ravings of the girl, +who had been stricken with brain-fever, and lay in a most precarious +condition. Indeed so dangerous was her state, and so imperative was it +that she should be kept perfectly quiet, that after three days she had +been conveyed by water up the river to the little village of Eynsham, +where her mother's sister lived; and there, far away from the tumult of +the city, which always set up excitement and paroxysms of fear, it was +hoped she would recover from the shock to her system, and regain her +normal health. + +"And learn to forget the past," spoke the mother to her sister, before +leaving the patient in her kindly care. "She is full young for thoughts +of love. Methinks in these troublous days the less a maid dreams of such +things the better. Hugh le Barbier is a goodly youth, and I desire none +better for child of mine; but he is above her in rank. When he sees more +of life and of the world, he will make more fitting choice. It would be +better that they should not meet--that both should learn to forget. +Naught but trouble and peril have followed from their early affection. +Better it should be put aside and forgotten. Wherefore I will the more +gladly leave Linda here, where, amid new scenes and surroundings, she +may well forget the past, and cease to think of him for whom she is no +fitting spouse in the eyes of the world." + +Bridget Marlow, who had no child of her own, was willing enough to have +the care of her sister's daughter. She promised to guard her jealously +and tend her lovingly, and to keep her as long as her mother could spare +her. + +"I always said, when I did hear of thy twin daughters, that one ought +surely to be mine," she said with a smile. "Fear not for her, sister--I +will guard her like the apple of mine eye; and she shall find a second +father and mother in us. In this quiet place few, save the good monks of +the Abbey hard by, pass our way. My husband, as thou dost know, acts as +porter of the gate by day; and living as we do neath the shadow of the +cloister wall, we are not molested by the comings and goings of +worldlings from the city. The maid will have peace and quiet here, and +may well forget the troubles through which she has passed." + +So Linda was, after a few days, left in that quiet place by her mother, +in the fond hope that she and Hugh would now forget one another, and +that the troubled dream of love would be effaced by illness from her +daughter's brain. + +Lotta nodded with approval when she learned what had been done. + +"She had better take the veil herself, and live the life of a nun," she +said, tossing her handsome, haughty head. "She is not fit for the battle +of life. She is a poor, puling creature at best! She is not fit to be +the bride of any save a man of dreams and books. The clash of arms turns +her cheek white; the thought of peril to one she loves drives her out of +her senses. She had better forget Hugh, and he her. They are no fitting +mates one for the other." + +As for Hugh himself, he had been carried to the Castle by order of the +Constable, when his case had been made known there. A guard had been +sent to search the tower, to take possession of everything found there, +and to convey the young man to the Castle, where he received every +attention and care. + +The father of Hugh and the Constable of the Castle had been friends in +their youth, and Sir Humphrey was not only interested in Hugh for that +reason, but was deeply indignant at the treatment he had received, and +the trick which had been played upon the authorities of the city by +these two lawless youths. + +For some days Hugh was unable to give an account of what had occurred, +lying in a state of exhaustion which was almost like that of trance. +Indeed so strange was his condition that Brother Angelus (at the earnest +solicitation of Leofric) was asked to come and look at him; and he shook +his head somewhat gravely over his state, and spoke words not altogether +understood by those about him. + +In those days the friars were the best leeches and surgeons to be had. +Their work amongst the sick poor gave to them a skill and insight not +always found amongst those who professed greater lore. Brother Angelus +had no small store of knowledge regarding sickness, and it was well for +Hugh that he was called to his side; for he strictly forbade any further +bleeding (always the favourite remedy for fevers), declaring that this +fever was itself the result of excessive bleedings practised with an +unholy purpose, and he detected other symptoms about the young man which +caused his face to take a stern and anxious aspect. + +"He has been made the unwilling accomplice in deeds of darkness," he +said, as he observed the comatose symptoms which often seized the +patient. "They have sought to subdue his spirit and will, and to throw +him into those unhallowed trances wherein men see and hear things which +our Maker has thought it good to hide from us. There are ways by which +one man may obtain this unrighteous power over his fellow, and this is +what yon evil men have sought to do with their captive. By weakening his +body they have sought to gain ascendency over his spirit. But it is +plain that he has resisted manfully, and to the very last. God be +thanked for that! We will pray that the malice of the enemy may in this +case be frustrated!" + +And daily, before he left the bed of the patient, the friar would kneel +down beside him, whilst those in the room would follow his example; and +he would pray earnestly against those wiles which had been used upon +him, and ask release for the spirit which had been in some sort fettered +and bound. + +Mysterious as all this was to those who saw and heard, it was plain to +them that Hugh responded better to the ministrations of Brother Angelus +than to any skill of leeches. In presence of the friar he was never +tormented by harassing dreams, nor did he start up as though in answer +to some call unheard by others. He grew calm and tranquil, and would +fall into a natural sleep; and at the end of ten days the fever fits +left him altogether, and he wakened to a full knowledge of his +surroundings, and an interest in life. + +When this advance was made, he was permitted to pass the day with +Edmund, in the pleasant upper chamber hard by his own, where, lying upon +another couch in the cheerful glow of the fire, he could enjoy the +society of his friends, and by-and-by tell them of those things which +had happened to him since his mysterious disappearance on the day of the +joustings. + +"I was suddenly and furiously set upon by three of those strange black +figures which we had noted moving in the crowd. There was such a tumult +all around that I scarce knew what was passing, nor who was friend or +who was foe; but it was plain that these men were bent upon my +destruction or overthrow, and I set myself to the task of fighting them, +though calling for assistance the while. But I seemed to be in the heart +of foes, for none heeded my cry, and though I laid low one of the +fellows, I presently felt a heavy blow upon my head which made me reel +in the saddle, and the next instant I was lying upon the ground with a +hand upon my throat, and just as my senses deserted me I thought I saw +the fiery eyes of Roger de Horn glaring into mine through the holes in +his mask." + +"Ah! I thought as much," said Amalric, through his shut teeth. "Would +that we could lay hands upon the villain now!" + +"And what befell you then?" asked the fair Alys, who had grown mightily +interested in Hugh during these past days, and was as eager as any to +hear his tale when he should be allowed to tell it, which he had not +been at first. + +By this time Hugh seemed quite like an old friend; he had been at the +Castle for a considerable time, and both Edmund and his sister felt +towards him almost as though he were a brother. Any comrade and friend +of Amalric's would have been welcomed, but Hugh was liked for his own +sake, and for the romantic history of which he was now the hero. + +"That I cannot say with certainty, fair mistress. For I lost my senses +then; and when I recovered them, it was to find myself bound by an iron +fetter to my ankle, in a strange circular chamber with a dome-like roof, +the like of which I had never seen before." + +"The Magician's Tower!" whispered Alys, with a little shiver of horror. + +"So I afterwards made out, from the words of the men who haunted it, and +from mine own knowledge of the city. I could sometimes hear the wash of +the river, or the voices of men in boats by day. But though I cried +aloud whenever I thought I might be heard, never an answer came; and my +captors, if they heard me, would punish me with blows and kicks, if not +with more refined forms of cruelty." + +"These men were Tito Balzani and Roger de Horn?" questioned Amalric +sternly. + +"Yes; and soon I became aware that they were engaged upon other matters +than those which directly concerned me, and that I was to be made useful +to them in the practice of their evil arts. I will not speak too much of +these things. The thought is hateful and repulsive. Suffice it to say +that they were eagerly pursuing the study of certain black arts, and +that they had books and instruments, either belonging to Tito, or found +by them in this strange tower, whereby they sought to prosecute their +studies. They had dupes too, who visited them, and strove to peer into +the future, and they would use incantations and burn strange pungent +drugs, and methinks they ofttimes so bewildered their visitors that they +imagined they saw in the smoke wreaths strange things which were never +there at all. However that may be, there were some who came again and +again, and brought gold with them each time. And as the conjurors grew +bolder they would ask larger fees. I trow they have grown rich upon the +proceeds of those weeks of fraud and devilry." + +"And how didst thou come to hear and see so much?" + +"They grew careless of my presence in the upper chamber, where +everything was prepared. As I grew weak from hunger and from loss of +blood--for blood seemed a necessity to them for every experiment, and it +was part of their purpose to reduce me to a mere shadow--they spoke +freely of all they did and wished to do. I am certain they never +intended me to escape their clutches; and I believe that upon the night +of the rescue, had you been but a few minutes longer in forcing the +door, they would have taken my life without pity, so fearful were they +of what I might reveal. But they could not spare time in their haste to +collect their gold, and as it was, they were almost caught as they +climbed through the window-slits." + +"And was it real magic?" asked Alys in a low voice; "or was it all +trickery and jugglery?" + +"That is hard to tell," answered Hugh; "but methinks they did all in +their power to invoke the aid of the Evil One. I trow well that they +sought to throw me into trances, that I might aid them in this. They +studied their books, and tried their wicked spells upon me; and there +were moments when I felt them succeeding, albeit I fought might and +main. If I could keep my mind fixed on holy things, and continue to +pray, I was safe from them. But there were moments when I was so weak +that I felt my hold slipping away, and I trow that then I did fall in +some sort beneath some evil spell; and the horror of it is but passing +away now, since Brother Angelus has spoken and prayed with me. Trickery +there was in much they did. I know my face was shown again and again in +the magic mirror, and that I was dressed up to look sometimes as a maid, +sometimes as an aged man, sometimes as a mailed warrior--my face painted +and my hair arranged to suit the part. This was when I was wellnigh +dead through loss of blood, and could not resist them. They had gained +such power over me that ofttimes I could not make a sound, greatly as I +longed to do so. When I guessed, from what they had said in my hearing, +that Linda was to be brought to see my face in the mirror, I strove +might and main to cry aloud, and tell who and what these men were; but +my voice would not obey--no sound could I utter." + +"If we can but catch them," cried Amalric, "they shall pay for their +devilries!" + +But Roger and Tito were too wary to be caught. They had fled beyond the +precincts of Oxford, and pursuit was abandoned at last as hopeless. Hugh +recovered his wonted vigour with more rapidity than could at first have +been anticipated; but he showed no disposition to return to his old +quarters at Dagville's Inn. Once he asked after Linda, and on hearing +what had befallen her he heaved a long sigh. + +"Methinks that I have brought her nothing but woe and sorrow," he said; +"she will be happier there than in the tumult of this strange city. Some +day I will see her again; but for the present let her remain in peace +and safety. I am glad she should be in so tranquil a place." + +But the house of the Balzanis had lost its charm for him. He had no wish +to face the father of Tito or the witcheries of Lotta, of which he was +not unconscious. + +"Stay here within the Castle," said Amalric, "and enter at St. George's, +as I have done. There be a few poor, turbulent Welsh students there, but +for the most part we are a quiet and studious company. We will make you +welcome amongst us. Come and be my comrade there." + +Hugh was easily persuaded to this course. St. George's in the Castle was +a very ancient building, dating back from the reign of William the +Conqueror. It had been founded by Robert d'Oilly for secular Canons, and +his successor had transferred it to the Canons Regular of Osney. +Subsequently it had become a house for University students, although it +remained to a certain extent under the jurisdiction of the Abbot of +Osney. + +This was shown by the fact that there was a Custos or Warden appointed +from among the Canons of Osney to be over the College of St. George's in +the Castle. He was not a permanent resident there, but paid a +domiciliary visit about Christmas time, which was regarded as a part of +the season's festivities. + +"Thou wilt join us in a good time," said Amalric to Hugh, when the +latter had installed himself with as much comfort as might be in those +days in his new quarters, having arranged to share a small and fairly +commodious chamber with young De Montfort: "for upon the Feast of the +Nativity, or a few days later, the Warden will come from Osney, to +remain to the Feast of the Epiphany; and we shall go forth with torches +and songs to welcome him, and bring him hither in state. They say we +live right merrily whilst he is with us. Fair Mistress Alys is all agog +to see the torchlight procession. I trust the night will be fair and +fine, that she be not disappointed." + +Alys, indeed, was all alive for any bit of entertainment in her +pleasant but rather monotonous life. The Christmas revellings were not +of a character greatly to attract one of a gentle spirit. She knew that +she would scarce be permitted during those days of feasting to sally +forth into the city at all. Riot and disorder too often characterized +the events of that season. The lectures of the Regent Masters were +suspended for a short period, although other lecturers continued their +discourses. Some amongst the richer scholars, or those from the +neighbourhood, went to their homes; but the greater number remained in +the city, and made night hideous with their revellings and disorder. A +Lord of Misrule was chosen for the occasion, and misrule was the order +of the day. The citizens themselves were little better behaved at this +holiday season, and for a week disorder and roistering prevailed in +defiance of any action on the part of the authorities. If they could +prevent an open riot or a pitched battle in the streets, it was as much +as they could hope to do; and Alys knew that she would be kept closely +within the Castle walls. Indeed, after her experience of a students' +holiday once before, she had little desire to witness another. + +Hugh was not sorry himself to be free of the turmoil of the city, his +health being not altogether what it had been before his strange +captivity. The greater seclusion and quiet within the Castle walls +better suited him, and companionship with Amalric and the Constable's +children was pleasant. He rather liked, too, the small solemnities with +which he was admitted to be a scholar of that place. He was taken before +the high altar of the chapel, and bidden to swear to be faithful and +obedient to the Warden and to the Abbot of Osney, and not to raise +debates between them, not to clamber over the Castle walls at night, or +to be guilty of nocturnal vagaries; and if promoted to wealth in after +life, to leave something to the College. Then he paid some small fees +for the registration of his name, for a supper to his fellow-scholars, +and towards the common stock of money; after which he became a scholar +of the College, and shared in the life of his companions. + +Three days after Christmas, upon a clear starlight night, the scholars +sat down to their supper attired in their best habits, each of them +being provided with a torch dipped in pitch and resin. + +That meal having been disposed of, they all marched in procession to +Osney in decorous silence, and with their torches yet unlighted. They +were admitted into the courtyard by a silent monk, and once there they +drew up in a circle round the enclosure, and waited, mute and patient. + +But they had not to wait long. A door in the building was flung open, +and out stepped the Abbot, and by his side was the Warden of St. +George's, the Canons Regular being grouped in the background. At sight +of these reverend men the scholars all bent the knee in token of +respect, and the Abbot advancing a few steps forward gave to them his +blessing. + +Then the Warden stepped forward, and saluted the scholars in Latin, they +replying in the same tongue, after which two of the seniors advanced, +lighted their torches, and placed themselves before him. + +The rest of the scholars drew up in rank behind, their torches yet +unlighted, and the procession filed out of the courtyard, and along the +wet, muddy road which led towards the Castle. Midway between the Abbey +and the Castle a halt was called. Rapidly and in orderly fashion the +scholars kindled their torches and struck up the appointed hymn. The +procession formed up again, and passing between rows of gaping citizens, +who had come out into King's Meadow to see the show go by, trooped +across Quaking Bridge and through the gateway, till they found +themselves within the precincts of the College itself. + +Here a new hymn was sung, and the Warden was conducted with great +ceremony to his own lodging, where he bid farewell to his body-guard and +dismissed them with kindly words of thanks. + +Alys from her upper window watched the picturesque grouping of the +gowned scholars, and the flashing of torches in the open space below; +and as Amalric and Hugh looked up and held theirs aloft, they were +rewarded by the waving of a slim white hand, which told them they had +been seen and recognized. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + +_KENILWORTH CASTLE._ + + +The summer sun shone bravely down upon a small band of travellers +journeying leisurely along through the leafy lanes of Warwickshire. + +Of this little band, two members rode ahead of the rest, sometimes +silent, but often engaged in earnest conversation. One of the pair was +richly dressed, and the horse he rode was a fine animal, fit for a +battle charger; the other was well mounted, but his dress was sober, and +suggested that of an ecclesiastic, albeit the sunny locks of the rider +flowed to his shoulders, and bore no sign of the tonsure. Both riders +were young, neither being over twenty years of age; but those were days +when youths were ranked as men at eighteen, and there were even warriors +in the battle ranks who counted less years than that, whilst few +comparatively of those who lived a stirring life in the midst of stress +and strife lived to see their hair turn grey. + +The younger of the pair, he of the more knightly aspect, was none other +than Amalric de Montfort. His companion was Leofric Wyvill, who had been +for years his chosen comrade and friend. + +The young men had just passed through a memorable period of their +academic life, and had been invested with the cappa of the bachelor. +They had successfully passed through their Responsions and their +Determinations. They had ably disputed before a large gathering, and had +acquitted themselves to the admiration and satisfaction of all. At +Amalric's cost they had given a banquet to the Masters and scholars, and +had now attained to the status of Bachelors of Arts; and Leofric, at +least, had every intention of continuing his career at the University, +and was to give a series of cursory lectures there upon his return. + +But for the present he was taking, in company with Amalric, a +well-earned holiday. Ever since his first arrival in Oxford, as an +impecunious clerk, he had remained there, year in, year out, working +hard to support himself and carry on his studies, and this was the first +time he had quitted the city either on business or pleasure. + +One year of academic life much resembled another; and little change had +come into Leofric's condition, save what was brought about by his +increasing intimacy with young De Montfort. He and Jack Dugdale still +occupied their little turret chamber, which had gradually become more +and more comfortable and habitable. Leofric had earned a steady income +by his illuminating work upon the vellum he was enabled to purchase, and +by assistance to Edmund de Kynaston in his studies. Jack kept the larder +supplied, and hung their chamber about with the dressed skins of the +creatures he had slain, thus protecting them from the winter's cold, +which down in that marshy place was severe and prolonged. The life had +been a busy and a happy one, and Leofric found it hard to believe how +fast the months and years had sped by. Looking back upon his life as a +clerk, it seemed to him to have been very short indeed. + +There was still a considerable interval before he could take his degree +as Master, and from that go on as inceptor in theology if he had a mind +to do so; but he had already won the favourable notice of many persons +in the University, and a brilliant career had been prophesied for him if +he did but persevere, as he had every intention of doing. + +The Determinations had taken place in Lent, as was always the case, and +for a while afterwards he and Amalric had remained in Oxford; but they +had long planned a holiday together when the summer should come, and a +few weeks back they had started off together to see something besides +the inside of lecture-halls and the familiar sights of Oxford. + +Amalric was determined that Leofric should see London, and their first +journey had been to that great city, which was seething in the +excitements of that unquiet period, when the struggle betwixt the King +and his Barons was becoming ever more and more acute, and when +far-seeing men began to predict that the matter would never be settled +until swords had been drawn and blood shed on both sides. + +After a week spent in that place, the friends had journeyed northward. +Leofric had paid a visit to his old friends and fathers the monks of St. +Michael, who were delighted to see him and to learn how great success +he had achieved. Now they were on their way to the Castle of Kenilworth, +Amalric's home, and the youth was growing excited at the thought of +seeing again his mother and his sister, who were certain to be there, +although he was far less certain of meeting with his father and +brothers. + +Just latterly the young students had been too much engrossed in their +studies to have a very clear idea what was going on in the world around. +Now, however, they began to feel a keen interest in these outside +matters, and Amalric, as was natural, strove to obtain and piece +together every scrap of information he could gain from high or low, +eagerly discussing each matter with Leofric, and growing in enthusiasm +for the cause to which his father was pledged as day by day passed on. + +The arguments upon both sides were strong. The King's party urged that +the King should be free; that he is no longer a King if he does not rule +as he pleases. He has the same right to rule the kingdom that the Barons +have to rule their own estates, and those who would interfere to make a +slave of him are robbers and worse, for they are laying unholy hands +upon the Lord's anointed. + +The Barons' arguments were also culled from Holy Writ, and proved how +deeply the teachings of the Franciscans were working in the hearts of +the people. The kingdom has to be protected as well as the King. If the +King listens to false counsellors, his Barons must guard him from such. +Obedience to law is not slavery, and God's laws are for monarch as well +as for peasants. True freedom consists in abstaining from evil. The +King's people are God's people, and must be ruled in His fear, not in a +spirit of greed and oppression. As Christ laid open all things to His +disciples, so should a King consult on all weighty matters with his +nobles. If he dishonour them and oppress his people, he cannot wonder if +he is hated and disobeyed. + +These arguments sunk deeply into the minds of the people, and they +looked to De Montfort as their hope and deliverer. The past years had +been full of trouble and vicissitudes. The King had escaped from the +tutelage and restraint imposed upon him, had made himself practical +master of London and even of the kingdom for a while, and had set at +open defiance the Provisions of Oxford. His son, Prince Edward, had +opposed him in this; had said that he, for his own part, could not +reconcile it to his conscience to break the oath which he had sworn on +that occasion; and had in effect joined himself to the party of the +Barons. This had alarmed his father, who perhaps felt that his son was a +better leader and stronger spirit than himself, and Edward had been sent +off to Gascony to his duties there. As it happened, however, the De +Montforts, his cousins, were there also at that time, and the Prince +spent most of his time with them, thus adding to the disquietude of his +father. + +Henry himself had been over to France carrying on the negotiations with +Louis concerning his renunciation of his futile claims upon that realm; +and upon his return he had asserted himself by summoning a Parliament +in the old form, quite irrespective of the Provisions of Oxford, and by +seeking to obtain from the Pope a bull absolving him from the oath taken +in that city under the compulsion of the Barons. + +The Pope, always ready to take the part of so pious a son, and one who +had been so useful to him as a tool, was ready enough to grant this +absolution, which was couched in characteristic terms by the wily +prelate:-- + +"We therefore, being willing to provide for your dignity in this matter, +with our apostolical authority, in the plenitude of our power, from this +time forward entirely absolve you from your oath. If, however, there +should be anything in those statutes concerning the advantage of +prelates, churches, and ecclesiastical persons, we do not intend to make +such void, or in any way relax the said oath in that respect." + +It was, perhaps, small wonder that the English people, with a lover of +freedom and constitutional liberty at their head, should revolt from the +rule of a monarch who could place himself beneath the sway of a Roman +Pontiff, and accept at his hands such favours as these. + +Of all these things and many others Amalric and Leofric spoke as they +rode through the sunny country during these long summer days. Everywhere +they met the same sort of talk, the same sense of insecurity, the +distrust of the King and the enthusiasm for De Montfort which was +agitating the hearts of the people everywhere. + +The nearer they approached to Kenilworth, the greater did this +enthusiasm grow; and when they were so near that the face of Amalric +became known, he was received with open arms by all, and was eagerly +questioned as to the doings of his noble father, and whether he also +were coming to dwell amongst them again. + +But of his father's doings at this particular juncture Amalric knew +little. He had returned to England--so much he had heard in London--and +was doubtless busy somewhere, but whether at Kenilworth or in other +districts the young man could not say. It was one of those things he was +eager himself to learn. + +The golden light of evening was lying over the level plains and wooded +slopes as the riders drew near to the Castle, and Amalric suddenly drew +rein and pointed to the great tower rising bold and massive from the +waters of the lake-like moat and the surrounding park and forest land. + +"See," he cried--"see, Leofric, there is my home! Is it not a lordly +pile of which one may well be proud? And look at yon white sail upon the +lake! that is our own sloop, wherein we have been wont to take our +pastime. Ah, happy, happy days of childhood spent within those walls! I +wonder if the future will hold anything half so sweet!" + +Leofric looked in admiration and amazement at the finest building it had +been as yet his lot to see, save perhaps the great Tower of London +itself. + +Although Kenilworth Castle in those days was not the magnificent pile +which it became when the Lancaster and Leicester buildings were added to +it, it was yet a very majestic structure, well fitted to be the home of +the King's sister, and of the foremost noble of the land. It was a +fortress as well as a castle, the walls being in many places from ten to +fifteen feet thick, whilst the principal tower--Cæsar's Tower, as it was +called--was considered wellnigh impregnable. It had a double row of +ramparts, and the moat which lapped the walls upon the south, east, and +west sides was more of a lake than a moat, and could be carried round +the north side if necessary. Boats were kept upon this lake, where the +family disported themselves, and the suite of rooms used by the Earl and +Countess were washed by the waters of the lake, and a boat was kept at +the water-door for their use and behoof. + +The banqueting-hall was capable of seating two hundred persons; and +Kenilworth had, besides its innumerable suites of living-rooms, its +prison, its mill for grinding corn, its brewery for the manufacture of +beer, its weekly market for the interchange of commodities with the +neighbouring peasants, and even its courts of justice. For Kenilworth +was privileged to hold assize of bread, beer, and so forth, to regulate +the prices for these, and weights and measures for other provisions; it +had its court-baron for the recovery of debts and the punishment of +minor trespasses, and its court-leet for that of more serious crimes. It +even had its gallows, which stood frowning upon the castle walls, ready +to make an end of any unlucky wight doomed to death by the voice of the +court. Such was the life of those days in a place as strong and as +important as the Castle of Kenilworth. + +But this evening all was sunshine and peace and beauty. Amalric pointed +eagerly out to his companion objects of interest in the Castle and +grounds as they rode onwards, and eagerly scanned the approaches to the +place, if haply he might see some familiar face, or catch a glimpse of +mother or sister taking an airing outside the walls. + +The gardens themselves lay within the extensive buildings and walls, +which formed two immense enclosures, capable of containing, in addition +to gardens and orchards, a tilt-yard and courtyard of ample dimensions. +Kenilworth was in effect a small township, complete in itself; and there +was stabling for above a hundred horses, which stables were often full +to overflowing when the Earl and his retinue arrived. + +But apparently he was not here to-day, for there were few signs of +active life about the place, and even the sentry upon the wall seemed +slumbering at his post, so that their approach had not yet been +observed. + +Suddenly Amalric shaded his eyes with his hand, and gazing towards the +waters of the moat, exclaimed,-- + +"In good sooth I am certain that yon figure in that white-sailed boat is +that of my sister Eleanora! Come, good comrade, let us leave the road +and ride up to the water's edge! Let us take her by surprise!--my +pretty, dainty little sister Nell. She will not have forgotten me, I +trow, though I have not seen her for three years and more." + +Spurring his horse eagerly forward, and closely followed by Leofric, +Amalric galloped towards the edge of the lake, upon whose placid bosom a +little white-sailed sloop was idly rocking, the wind having scarce +power to drift it from side to side. + +As they drew near they could see that the only occupant of the boat was +a young maiden of perhaps twelve summers, though she looked more, being +tall and slim, and possessed of a high-bred grace and self-possession +which her training had given her. She had just observed the +unceremonious approach of these riders, and was about to direct her +craft towards the opposite bank as a mark of her displeasure, when +something in Amalric's dress and bearing arrested her attention, and she +gazed earnestly at him, whilst the boat drifted nearer and nearer +inshore. + +"Sister mine, dost know me?" cried the youth, springing from his horse +and running to the very edge of the water. + +She looked at him with wide eyes full of wonder, which kindled into joy +as she recalled his face. + +"Amalric, dear Amalric!" she cried, stretching out her arms to him; and +the next moment he had drawn the boat ashore, and had her fast in a +brother-like embrace. + +"Amalric! how comest thou thither? Is our father with thee? Art come +with news of him?" + +"Nay, but to get news of him, and to see thee and my mother, and to take +a holiday after all these years of study. Art glad to see me again, +little Nell?" + +"O brother, yes! I missed thee sorely when thou didst go away; and now +thou wilt be so learned I shall almost fear to talk with thee. But I too +have learned to read the Latin tongue; and my mother has given order +for some fine vellum to be bought for me; and I am to have a breviary of +mine own when we can find some clever scribe who will transcribe it for +me. But tell me now, Amalric, who is thy friend who stands thus modestly +by? for methinks he has a gentle air. He is not a servant, but a friend, +I trow." + +"Thou art right, sister; a friend in good sooth. It is the same as I +have written of, if thou hast received the letters I have writ to my +mother as occasion has served. I would present him to thee--my faithful +friend and comrade, by name Leofric Wyvill. Thou wilt give him welcome, +I doubt not, for my sake." + +"Ay, and for his own," said the little Lady Eleanora, or, as she was +universally styled (probably to distinguish her from her mother), the +Demoiselle. The Countess of Leicester was always spoken of in her +household as the Lady Eleanora; for although the sister of a King, no +higher title had as yet been accorded to the Princesses of the blood +royal, at least in the common round of everyday life. The only daughter +of the Earl and Countess, therefore, had her own distinguishing title of +Demoiselle, by which she was universally known throughout the Castle of +Kenilworth. + +As she spoke she held out her hand with an air of gracious dignity, and +Leofric bent the knee and raised it reverently to his lips. The maiden +smiled, innocently pleased with the homage, and addressed him in +friendly tones. + +"We have heard of you, fair sir, and you are welcome to +Kenilworth.--Amalric, let us give our mother a surprise. Come into the +boat with me--yes, and you also, sir--and let us across to the +water-door, and enter her apartments without announcement! I trow she +will give us joyful welcome. We are looking from day to day for the +arrival of our father and his retinue. Thou dost seem like a herald of +his approach." + +Leofric's skilful management of the boat drew forth the approbation of +the Demoiselle, who permitted him, with a charming smile, to hand her +ashore at the wide stone landing-place, upon which opened an oaken +doorway studded with brass plates and heavy bolts. The door, however, +opened readily to the touch of the child's hands, and when she had +pushed aside a curtain, the trio found themselves in a vast and +beautiful apartment, so much more luxurious than anything that Leofric +had ever seen that he stood mute and spell-bound at the sight. But the +Demoiselle, laughing gaily at his silent bewilderment, called to them to +follow, and pushing aside a rich curtain of sombre hue, she beckoned to +them to pass within into a smaller second chamber. + +This room was very bright, for a western oriel window let in a flood of +glory. Seated near to this window, some fine embroidery in her hands, +was a stately and dignified figure, at sight of whom Leofric +instinctively retreated a step; for he knew without any telling that he +was in the presence of the Lady Eleanora, wife of the great De Montfort +and sister to the King. + +Amalric and the Demoiselle sprang forward, uttering their mother's name, +and the next moment Amalric had dropped upon his knees at her feet, to +be clasped in her fond arms. + +Whatever faults and failings Eleanora possessed--and that she was proud, +extravagant (at least in early life), and wilful no one who reads her +life can deny--in her relations as wife and mother her loyalty, +tenderness, and unselfishness shine out in no dim colours. Her husband +loved and revered her; her children almost worshipped her. She had +always a warm and loving welcome for them, and was never so happy as +when she could gather them about her, albeit in those troubled times +these opportunities were growing rarer and more rare. + +Leofric, standing just within the curtain, could not but gaze with +admiring eyes at the queenly woman before him. Although the Countess was +very plainly habited in a russet robe with no other trimming than white +lamb's wool, and had no ornament upon her person save a golden clasp to +her girdle, there was yet in her aspect such dignity and high-born grace +that he could not take his eyes from her beautiful face, and the story +of her romantic secret marriage with De Montfort (which Amalric had +often told to him) came flashing into his mind, and he could not wonder +that the Earl had dared so much to win that noble woman for his wife. + +The Lady Eleanora's face was thin and worn with anxiety, and her eyes +had that peculiar light which bespeaks a life of anxious watching. Her +life had not been a smooth one, for she had shared in all things her +husband's cares and troubles. Yet with all that she had not lost the +gracious sweetness of manner which had been hers from girlhood, and when +at last she beheld Leofric standing mute and shrinking just beside the +door, she made her son present him, receiving him with a gentle courtesy +and kindness which put him at once at his ease, and made him her devoted +servant from that time forward. + +She would not dismiss him to the quarters of the retainers, albeit his +rank was humble. She treated him as the friend and equal of her son, and +the fact of his having been of much assistance to Amalric during his +course of study gave him a standing at once. For the Lady Eleanora had a +great respect for learning, and all her children were well educated for +the times they lived in. Her sons had all received instruction from such +celebrated men as Robert Grostête and Adam Marisco, and scholars, even +if humble by birth, were always well treated within the walls of +Kenilworth. + +So when refreshment was served for Amalric in a neighbouring chamber, +Leofric was made to sit at table with him, and was given a room close by +that of his comrade. He made one of the little party that gathered in +the small oriel room after the more formal supper had been eaten in the +hall below, and he listened with the keenest interest whilst the +Countess related to her son the events of the past years and months, and +the condition of public affairs as they now stood. + +"I pray God," she said, "that my brother the King will be advised for +his good, and that this land may be saved from the miseries of war. But +I greatly fear me that he will refuse to be bound by the Provisions of +Oxford, even as our father refused to be bound by the terms of the Great +Charter. If that be so, there is but one remedy for the evil--the appeal +to arms; and from that your father will not shrink, if he knows his +cause to be a righteous one." + +"And where is he now?" asked Amalric eagerly. + +"He is in England; but more than that I do not know. He returned from +Gascony a short while since, and he has been conferring earnestly ever +since with our friends in various parts of the country. I am looking for +him daily now at Kenilworth. Every day that passes brings him one day +nearer." + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + +_THE GREAT EARL._ + + +"My father is coming! my father is coming! the watchman has sighted his +approach! Come and see him arrive with his train! it will be a right +goodly sight, methinks." + +So spoke the Demoiselle, rushing in hot haste into a great hall, which +might perhaps be termed the library of the Castle, where certain books +and manuscripts were stored in carved oaken presses against the wall, +and where Leofric spent a portion of each day in transcribing for the +little Eleanora the breviary which she was so eager to possess. + +The Countess, at a hint from her son, had offered this task to the young +scholar, and Leofric had gratefully undertaken it. The Demoiselle took +keen interest in the work, and had already established very friendly +relations with her brothers friend. A child at heart, despite her +graceful and self-possessed manners and queenly little ways, she +delighted in listening to stories of Oxford student life, and in +watching the skilful pen and brush of the young bachelor as he copied +the text or the illuminations from the scrolls in the library. Little +Eleanora was greatly delighted at being able to choose her favourite +designs for reproduction in her own breviary, and she danced in and out +the library like a veritable sprite, directing and admiring, chattering +freely to the scribe as she grew intimate with him, and letting him into +a great deal of the family history of the De Montforts during the years +of Amalric's absence. + +Amalric himself was often present, and then brother and sister would +converse freely and eagerly together. Leofric was treated as a friend +and equal by both, and greatly enjoyed this experience of life in a +nobleman's castle. It was like stepping forth into a new world or +learning a new language. + +The arrival of the Earl of Leicester had been for some time expected. +His wife knew that he was in England upon a flying visit for political +reasons, and daily was he looked for at Kenilworth; but so far no +definite tidings of his movements had reached her, and the household +lived in a state of expectancy and impatience. + +It was no wonder that, when the Demoiselle rushed into the library with +this piece of intelligence on her lips, Amalric and Leofric should start +at once to their feet, and hasten with all speed to the great courtyard, +where already the men-at-arms and the retainers were mustering. + +It was a beautiful and picturesque sight. The Countess, with her little +daughter and her handsome son beside her, stood at the top of the great +flight of steps which led into the banqueting-hall, opposite the great +gateway. All round the spacious courtyard were grouped the armed +retainers and servants of the household. The sentinels and men-at-arms +mounted the battlements, or drew up in martial array about the gateway, +and the herald rode forth to meet and greet his master and bring him in +in triumph. + +The sense of expectancy deepened as the minutes passed by; then a great +shout was raised as the trampling of horses' feet was heard within the +outer courtyard. The next minute the great Earl, bare-headed, as he +responded to the enthusiastic greetings showered upon him, rode through +the gateway and across the court; and a cry went up that seemed wellnigh +to shake the walls, as Kenilworth welcomed back its long-absent lord. + +The eagle face of the Earl had grown thinner and browner since Leofric +had seen it last. There were lines there which had been traced rather by +anxiety and sorrow than by the hand of time. But the light in the eyes +was unquenched, and the carriage of the haughty head betrayed the +undaunted and resolute spirit of this leader of men. + +His glance softened at the sight of his wife and daughter, and with a +quick and skilful turn of the reins he drew up his charger at the foot +of the steps, and leaped lightly to the ground. The next minute he had +embraced his wife before the eyes of the assembled crowd, who were +making the welkin ring with their plaudits; and little Eleanora was +clinging to his hand, half shy, yet intensely eager for the notice of +her sire, of whom she had seen but little, and that only on brief +visits, paid as occasion served, and he could be spared to enjoy the +pleasures of home life. + +Leofric's eyes wandered over the goodly company filing into the +courtyard after its lord. Immediately behind their father rode Henry and +Simon, his eldest sons, now knights, and youths of handsome person, +albeit lacking their father's nobility of aspect and charm of manner. +Behind these again rode Guy, the third son, and side by side with him +was a young man of noble aspect, very richly dressed, and plainly of no +small importance in the eyes of the great De Montfort himself; for even +before his own sons had had time to embrace their mother, he beckoned up +this youth to the top of the steps, and presented him with much ceremony +to his wife. + +Leofric noted that quite a number of the men who followed wore the badge +and the livery of this person. For a moment it crossed his mind that it +might be one of the King's sons; but upon putting the question to one +who stood by, he was answered in the negative. + +"Nay, it is not the Prince. The Prince is a kinglier youth than that. +That is Gilbert, the young Duke of Gloucester, and a right royal welcome +will be accorded him at Kenilworth; for if he had followed his father's +footsteps, and taken the side of the King, great hurt and loss to our +party must have ensued. We cannot afford to lose the support of +Gloucester." + +This enlightened Leofric considerably as to the situation, and he added +his voice to those raised in lusty cheering for the young Earl Gilbert. +He had heard much about the father of this young man, recently deceased, +and how, after joining in the cause which the Barons had at heart, he +had quarrelled again and again with the Earl of Leicester, and had +finally gone over to the King's side. Up to the present moment it had +been feared that this young son, a youth of nineteen, now Earl in his +father's stead, might follow that father's example and join the King's +party; but his appearance at Kenilworth to-day, in company with De +Montfort and his sons, showed plainly that he had thrown over the old +Earl's policy, and had cast in his lot with the Barons: so the hearts of +all were made glad, and cheer upon cheer rent the air as Leicester +presented his youthful compeer to his loyal retainers here. + +Preparations were instantly set on foot for a banquet of more than +ordinary splendour. The Countess had been prepared for some such +emergency as this, and the vast kitchens of the Castle could be depended +upon for an ample supply of those substantial dainties under which the +tables of our forefathers were wont to groan. The waters of the moat +supplied fresh-water fish and wild fowl in abundance. Kids and goats and +calves, oxen and sheep and swine, had only to be fetched in from the +stores in the Castle. Venison from the forests around, as well as small +game of all sorts, was supplied by the huntsmen; and in the household +roll of the Countess are to be found abundant entries concerning spices, +saffron, rice, figs, ginger, cinnamon, and raisins, showing that the +variety afforded in those days was considerable. + +But Leofric still stood watching the entry of the gay company which came +with the Earl in martial array. It seemed as though there was no end to +the following of knights and esquires who attended these two great +nobles. They filed in one after another in endless array, till the youth +wondered how even the walls of Kenilworth could accommodate them all. + +Suddenly he gave a great start of surprise, and pressed a few steps +forward. A small group had just come into the courtyard, seemingly in +the rear of the followers of the Earls, and Leofric recognized the face +and form of Sir Humphrey de Kynaston, Constable of Oxford Castle; whilst +riding at his side, upon a pretty little barb, was fair Mistress Alys, +his daughter, now grown to be a most beauteous maiden, the light of her +father's eyes; and these two were accompanied by four stout serving-men, +who wore the livery of their master. + +What could Sir Humphrey be doing here? asked Leofric of himself in no +small wonder; and pushing a way through the moving crowd of horsemen, +who were filing off towards the stables and quarters allotted to them, +he made his way to this little group just within the great gateway, and +doffed his cap respectfully before them. + +A little cry of delight from Alys told him he was recognized. + +"Father, it is Leofric--our good Leofric!" she cried. "I remember now +that Amalric was to bring him to Kenilworth. Now this is a good hap +indeed; for we feel like fish taken from the water in this strange +company.--Prithee, good youth, be our friend and counsellor, for +methinks our noble host has forgotten that he has made us his guests for +the nonce." + +A few words from Sir Humphrey explained what had happened. He had been +taking his daughter on a little riding expedition through the country, +some business of his own having obliged him to quit Oxford for the space +of a few weeks. They were journeying back, when they had fallen in with +the Earl of Leicester, who had cordially invited them to be his guests +for a few days. Then he had only had a small company with him; but that +very day he had been joined by the Earl of Gloucester and his following, +and so many knights and gentlemen had added themselves to his train upon +his approach to Kenilworth, that he and his daughter had betaken +themselves to the rear, and were disposed to think themselves forgotten; +so that the sight of a familiar face amid all that strange throng was +hailed with pleasure and relief. + +But the Earl had a better memory than Sir Humphrey had supposed, and at +this moment Amalric came hastening up to give a hearty welcome to the +Kynastons, and to escort them to his mother's apartments, where Alys was +to be lodged during her stay. She was eagerly received by the +Demoiselle, who was always delighted to have a girl friend to stay with +her; and before an hour had passed away the two maidens were fast +friends, and little Eleanora had promised Alys to take her into the +gallery overlooking the banqueting-hall, to see the fine company sit at +table, and hear the address which her father was certain to give them. + +"And Leofric shall come with us," said Eleanora, with one of her +imperious little gestures; "Amalric cannot. He must sit at table as one +of my father's sons. But Leofric can stay with us, and I trow he will +like it better than sitting for hours stuffing himself with all those +strange dishes that the cooks send up at feast-times. I will send and +tell him that we desire his attendance. Thou dost know him--he is thy +brother's friend; I have heard tell of thee from him. He is my brother's +friend likewise, and I trow he is a very goodly youth, and a good one +too. I care not if his birth be humble; we might have been born peasants +ourselves!" and the niece of the King tossed her dainty head, ailing the +democratic fancies of youth with a petulant grace characteristic of her +varying moods. + +"My father loves the people, and fights for their rights," she added +more seriously, after a moment's pause. "He loves the King, and would +well like to be his faithful vassal; but if he does wrong, my father +withstands him. Sometimes he says it may cost him his life one day; but +he never shrinks back from what is his duty." + +Leofric obeyed the behest of the Demoiselle with alacrity. + +There was, in addition to the minstrel's gallery overlooking the great +hall, a smaller private gallery, leading from the quarters occupied by +the Earl and Countess and their personal guests. Sometimes when the Earl +entertained a company of nobles, the Countess sat here and looked on +without taking part in the feasting; but to-day she would sit at table +with her lord, and he would fain have had his daughter too, had not +Eleanora pleaded the weariness she always felt at these lengthy +functions, and obtained grace for herself and Alys to have their own +supper privately served, and to look on as spectators only at the +banquet. + +It was in truth a goodly sight. The great hall was filled from end to +end with nobles, knights, and squires of varying degree, who occupied +tables arranged according to their rank, and made a proud and gay +display with their costly dresses and flashing jewels. The Earls of +Leicester and Gloucester, with the Countess between them, occupied the +places of honour at the highest table raised on a daïs, and Leofric +looked with admiration upon the noble face and grand figure of the great +De Montfort. Without doubt his was the kingliest figure of all those +present to-day; and his voice when he spoke was clear and sonorous, and +might be heard from end to end of the hall. + +The tables shone with massive silver plate; serving-men hurried to and +fro, bearing huge silver dishes containing viands of every description. +Huge barons of beef were borne in between two stalwart attendants; +boars' heads with gleaming white tusks, and peacocks with spreading +tails, formed dishes more ornamental than edible, though some favoured +them, and laughing plucked out the peacocks' plumes and stuck them in +their belts. Huge pasties, both savoury and sweet, found ready custom; +and as for the hogsheads of beer and wine that must have been consumed, +the household roll speaks eloquently of the capacity of our ancestors in +the matter of strong drink. The watchers in the gallery laughed merrily +at the sight, and wondered how long the stores of Kenilworth would stand +the strain. + +Towards the end of the banquet the Earl of Leicester rose to his feet, +flagon in hand, and in clear loud tones, which dominated the clamour of +voices around him, gave the toast,-- + +"His Majesty the King!" + +In a moment the whole company was on its feet, and the loyal toast was +drunk with acclamation. + +When the hubbub had subsided, the Earl motioned to his guests to be +seated, and himself remaining standing, made a long and eloquent speech. + +He spoke of his own affection for the King--his desire for the peace and +welfare of the realm--his hatred of bloodshed and confusion. Men had +said of him, he exclaimed, with a flash in his eagle eyes, that he +desired himself to be monarch of the realm, and the King to be a mere +tool in his hands. That charge he utterly and fiercely denied. He was +the loyal servant of the King, so long as his Majesty would abide by his +plighted word, and would regard the liberties of his subjects and the +terms of the Great Charter. The Provisions of Oxford were in themselves +nothing new; they were but the means by which the Great Charter could be +upheld. The King was not the only person in the realm who had rights to +be cherished and guarded. The liberties of all classes must be +considered; and if a monarch, through weakness or lack of judgment, +surrounded himself with false and scheming men, who persuaded him to +acts of tyranny and rapacity, it then behoved his loyal subjects, who +wished to do him true service, to remove from his side these false +sycophants, and to furnish him instead with true and able counsellors, +who could advise him for his own good and for the good of the realm. + +This was in effect what the Barons' party (as it had come to be called) +were doing. They would not stand by passive and idle whilst England's +wealth and England's honour were being handed over to foreign powers, +whilst the country was being bled to death to fill the papal coffers, +and every lucrative place, as it fell vacant, was heaped upon some +foreign adventurer, whose handsome face had attracted the King's +admiration, or whose relationship to the Queen gave him a supposed claim +upon his royal kinsman. + +The Prince knew all this as well as any man in the kingdom. He had +remonstrated with his feeble father times without number. He had sworn +to the Provisions of Oxford, and had refused to cancel his oath even +when the King repudiated his own, and had bribed the Roman Pontiff to +grant him absolution therefrom. The Prince was the true friend to his +country, and when he should sit upon the throne all would be well. +Meantime the most true and loyal servants of the King were those who +sought the true welfare of the realm, and would withhold him from +spoliation at the hands of foreign hirelings. + +Then holding his head very high, De Montfort spoke of the taunt +sometimes levelled at himself of being a foreigner. He admitted freely +his foreign birth, and pointed out how he had been the first to deliver +up his castles of Kenilworth and Odiham after the Provisions of Oxford +had been agreed upon. He had even retired altogether to Gascony after a +stormy quarrel with the Earl of Gloucester; and were it for the good of +the realm, whose welfare he had so deeply at heart, he would return +thither willingly, and never again set foot on these shores. But over +and over again he had discovered that he was necessary to the welfare of +the party. At this moment he had been summoned across the seas to help +in their deliberations. No one had the true welfare of the English +nation more at heart than he; and alien though he might be by birth, he +loved the land of his adoption with a changeless and passionate love, +and would live for her or die for her whichever might be for her good. +He had put his hand to the plough; he had pledged his honour and his +reputation to save her from papal thraldom and the spoliation of +self-seeking men; she should have her Great Charter, for which men had +bled and died before, or he himself would leave his dead body upon a +blood-stained battlefield! + +Roars of applause followed this masterly speech, spoken with all that +charm of manner and lofty dignity of which De Montfort was master. Not +one word did the great Earl speak of the personal wrongs inflicted upon +him by the capricious monarch. Every one present knew how greatly he had +suffered from the injustice of Henry--how he had spent money like water +in his service in Gascony, only to be reviled and abused upon his return +by a master who gave greedy and credulous heed to every word spoken +against one whom he ofttimes feared and hated. + +True, there were moments when the old affection would break forth, when +the love for his sister was in the ascendant, and a temporary peace was +patched up. But far more often was the Earl the butt for the King's +injustice and extortion, and the troubles over the payment of the +Countess's dowry added to the chronic friction between them. + +But of this the Earl made no mention. He spoke always of the King in +terms of loyal affection, only deploring and denouncing a state of +things which made him the prey of foreign extortion, and the tool of +those who would have him grind his people to the very dust to supply +their endless demands. From this condition of affairs the kingdom must +be rescued at all cost; and even if force alone would do it, that last +and fearful remedy would be better than the curse of slavery and foreign +tyranny. + +His hearers were with him to a man. Cheer after cheer went up, making +the great rafters of the hall ring again. Even the youthful Demoiselle +clapped her hands and joined her voice with that of others, and Alys's +fair face flushed and paled with varying emotions as she listened; and +she turned impulsively upon Leofric and asked,-- + +"Oh, surely it will never come to that! The King will not suffer himself +to be so led astray!" + +"The King is a puppet in the hands of his Queen and her relations!" +cried the Demoiselle, with the assurance of extreme youth. "I have been +to Court; I have seen it all. And there are all the De Lusignans, his +half-brothers--they are more to him than his true kindred. He has them +ever about him--them and the Queen's relations, who are legion. They +stuff his head with all sorts of falsehood. They foster his pride and +folly, and they prey upon him like vultures. Only when my father and his +friends can get speech of him and take him away from these harpies does +he ever behave himself as a monarch should. As soon as he makes his way +back to them, they make of him their tool and their slave. And then he +seeks to sink England into slavery like his own!" + +It was amusing to hear the child speaking thus, with sparkling eyes and +a mien oddly like that of her noble father. She had all the spirit of +her sire and her royal mother, and her companions regarded her with +admiration. + +"If his Majesty the King had but half the spirit of my lady mother," +cried the child once more, "all this trouble would speedily be at an +end. Methinks Providence made a blunder in fashioning him the man and +her the woman. Had it been the other way, things in this realm would be +vastly different now." + +The stir within the hall had drowned the sound of another kind of tumult +without; but had the revellers been less excited by the great Earl's +speech and their own enthusiastic reception of it, they might have been +aware of some unwonted stir going on in the courtyard. The stone +pavement had been ringing to the clang of horses' hoofs; voices had been +raised in eager challenge and greeting. + +At this moment a servant quickly entered the banqueting-hall, and made +his way up to the Earl, to whom he spoke in a rapid undertone. Leicester +rose instantly and spoke to his wife, who also rose to her feet, a look +of surprise upon her face, though none of displeasure. + +"What can have chanced?" questioned the Demoiselle eagerly; "it is no +trifle that would cause my father to rise and stride from the hall at +such a moment as this. And see! all at the high table have risen, and +are looking towards the door; and now the whole company is afoot. Some +strange thing is about to happen; what can it be?" + +They were not kept long in suspense. The great doors at the bottom of +the hall were flung wide open. A trumpet note rang through the building, +till the rafters themselves echoed to it; and it was answered by the +shout from hundreds of voices as the company saw whose was the stately +figure that the Earl had gone forward to meet. + +The Demoiselle suddenly clapped her hands, and waved her scarf in token +of joyous greeting. + +"It is my noble cousin, my well-loved cousin!" she cried, in tones of +childish rapture; "it is Prince Edward himself!" + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + +_PRINCE EDWARD._ + + +The Demoiselle was right. The tall and kingly-looking youth now striding +up the great hall of Kenilworth, greeting first his uncle the Earl and +then the Countess his aunt, was none other than the King's eldest +son--that Prince Edward who was to play so great a part in the history +of the English nation. + +At that time he was a youth of some two-and-twenty summers, and had long +been held to have arrived at man's estate. He was becoming a power in +the kingdom, and was developing an aptitude for government which +sometimes delighted and sometimes alarmed his father. He was no +favourite with his father's foreign flatterers, and was an ally of those +who upheld the gradually moulding constitution and the liberties of the +people. He had subscribed willingly to the Provisions of Oxford, and had +remonstrated hotly with his father when the latter resolved to ignore +his oath, and later on to obtain absolution from it. + +Prince Edward at that time had practically embraced the cause of the +Barons, although taking no public action against his father. Henry, in +dismay, had sent him to Gascony; but the move had not been a happy one, +for it had thrown him into the society of the young De Montforts, his +cousins, who were also there, and had increased his intimacy with that +dread man their father. His appearance at Kenilworth at this juncture +was startling to all, for he was believed by the Earl and his family to +be still in Gascony, and they had not the smallest premonition of this +visit. + +But the Prince had been at Kenilworth before, and was fond of the fine +old place and of the life led by its inhabitants. It was nothing very +wonderful for him to come hither, though the manner of his arrival +to-day was somewhat startling. + +Standing upon the daïs, and looking round upon the assembled company +with his keen, fearless gaze, the Prince motioned to the guests to be +seated. + +"I come hither, as it seems, in a good time, my friends," he said, his +face, naturally stern of aspect, softening to a slight smile; "for I see +here to-day many gathered together to whom I have a word to speak. I +have come from France in part for that very purpose; and I am glad that +not only do I find here my noble Uncle of Leicester, but others who are +bound together with him in a cause that is dear to the heart of this +nation. He has himself but lately addressed you. Methinks I can guess +full well what he has said. In sooth, I heard the final words of his +speech through yon open window as I rode into the court." + +The Prince paused for a moment, his eyes sweeping round the hall, and +resting upon several faces there with a curious, searching expression. +The knights and nobles were still as death, hanging upon the words of +the Prince. After a brief pause he spoke again, very clearly and +trenchantly, and in tones that all might hear. + +"My lords and gentlemen," he said, "I am not come at this moment to +England to enter into the dispute which is ever waging between the King, +my father, and those of his subjects who form the so-called Barons' +party. I have come, by my father's desire, to quell the troubles in +Wales, and thither am I bound. I have, however, made this deflection in +my line of march that I might have speech with mine uncle before I go +thither, and I am well pleased that what I have to say should be said in +the hearing of this goodly company of his adherents." + +The Prince paused for a moment and then took up his discourse. + +"All men here assembled know right well that I have the welfare of this +nation deeply at heart. All know that I have been a friend to the +friends of liberty, and that I have even opposed the King, my father, +when I have thought him wrong. I have observed my oath as sacred, even +to mine own hurt. I have sought in all things to do the right. If I have +failed, my youth and ignorance have been in fault, not my will. Have any +here present aught to bring to my charge?" + +The answer to this strange challenge was a ringing cheer. Prince Edward +was always beloved by those who knew him personally, whilst his +dauntless courage and his high sense of honour had brought him into +esteem with all men. Every person present regarded him with admiration +and respect, and all were proud to know that he was with them at heart, +however small a share he had taken in the dispute. + +"I thank you, my friends," said the Prince, as the cheers died away. +"And now, having done me thus much honour, I will ask you to have +patience whilst I speak a few more words. It is said by some, it is +feared by more, that ere the kingdom sees peace and stability once +again, the sword will be unsheathed, and Englishman will meet Englishman +upon a field of battle. I pray God that this may not be. War with a +foreign foe is a glorious thing, provided the cause be just; with those +of our own race and name it is a horror and a disgrace! But such things +have been before, and they may be again. I stand before you this day, +whilst the realm is still at peace and before that peace has been +broken, to say a thing in your ears from which I shall not go back when +the day for action comes. You know that I love liberty and hate +oppression. You know that I honour and respect the men of the realm who +have made so bold a stand for liberty. I have been one with them--I have +their cause at heart still. But listen again. I am the King's son. He is +my father; I owe him filial love and obedience. If his subjects take up +arms against him, thus breaking their oath of allegiance, I, his son, +repudiate my own oath sworn at Oxford, and I fly to his side to help him +with all the power that I have. At such a moment as that, if it come +(which God forbid), it could not be that I should stand by an idle +spectator. I must and I will join myself to one side or the other; and +here I tell all ye assembled that no power on earth shall induce me to +take up arms against my father and my King. The moment danger of +personal violence menaces him, I, his son, fly to his side, and in his +cause I fight to the last drop of my blood!" + +The Prince stood perfectly still for several seconds after he had spoken +these words, his head slightly thrown back, his eyes full of fire. + +Dead silence reigned in the hall. Not a man there but felt the power of +the challenge thus thrown down, and a sense of reverence for the royal +youth who had uttered it. But to many the words seemed those of evil +omen, for these men were bound heart and soul to the cause of the +Barons, and they had begun to count upon Prince Edward as their ally, +and even to whisper sometimes between themselves as to the possibility +of setting him upon the throne in his father's place. + +The minute after the Prince had spoken these words his face changed. A +kindlier, softer look came into it, and turning towards his uncle and +aunt with a courteous mien, he said in an altogether different tone,-- + +"And now a truce to these vexed questions of state. Let us forget all +but that we are closely akin, and bound together by cords of love.--Why, +Amalric, thou hast grown marvellously since I saw thee last, and art +like enough a notable scholar by now.--Guy, I have a pair of rare +coursing dogs for thee, with which we will hunt together in Kenilworth +forests ere I move towards the Welsh marshes. I must needs wait awhile +for my forces to reach me.--Thou wilt give me house room at Kenilworth +meantime, wilt thou not, fair aunt?" + +The Prince was a great favourite at Kenilworth--that was patent to all. +The Earl of Leicester was eager to do all honour to his young kinsman, +despite the bold challenge thrown down by him on his arrival. + +The best rooms in the castle were put at his disposal; he was made much +of alike by uncle, aunt, and cousins. The little Demoiselle showed him +marked favour, and was ever to be seen riding beside him, or showing him +through the gay gardens, dancing a measure with him in the hall after +supper, or playing some game in one of the many long galleries. + +The Prince was the most congenial of companions, and seemed to enjoy the +free life of Kenilworth not a little. After the departure of the bulk of +the guests whom the Earl had brought with him, the life within those +massive walls partook of a free and family character very pleasant to +all concerned. Sir Humphrey was pressed to remain, but he was almost the +only guest not immediately connected with Kenilworth; and Alys was +delighted to stay in this stately place, and cement her friendship with +the little Demoiselle, who had taken so great a liking for her. + +The Demoiselle was, however, considerably taken up with her cousin +Prince Edward, and Alys was often left to the companionship of the +Countess. That lady was availing herself just now of Leofric's presence +in the Castle to have some of the writings of authors past and present +read aloud to her, as she sat at her embroidery or tapestry frame; and +Alys seemed to delight in being present at these readings, and taking +her part in the discussion which often arose. + +The Lady Eleanora was a woman of much culture and insight, although she +was not fond of the trouble of reading for herself. She was also +familiar with the Latin tongue, and was seldom obliged to interrupt the +young scholar, or ask him to translate the passages read. Not +unfrequently Amalric was one of those who sat in the pleasant oriel room +and listened and discussed, although the sharp eyes of the Demoiselle, +who flitted all over the Castle like a veritable sprite, detected +another reason for his love of study. + +"Thy sweet eyes, methinks, are the book that Amalric loves best to +read," she said to Alys one day, as the twain sought the room they +shared together. "My cousin Edward marvels that he comes not a-hunting +in the forest with the rest; but I know what it is that keeps him thus +within the walls of home." + +Alys coloured crimson, and put her hand to the lips of the laughing +maid. + +"Nay, nay, thou must not speak so. I am but the daughter of a humble +knight. Thy brother is a King's nephew and the son of a notable noble. +Such thoughts would never come to him. It is not well to speak so +recklessly." + +But the Demoiselle only laughed, and skipped round her friend. + +"I can see what I can see!" she answered merrily; and as she looked into +the face of Alys, through her long, dark lashes, she wondered what had +brought there that look of sudden pain and bewilderment. Surely she must +have known ere this that she was the light of Amalric's eyes! + +However, she spoke no more upon the subject, only saying in her heart,-- + +"I wonder if she does think more of the gentle, chivalrous Leofric than +of the knightly Amalric! It might be so. One may never read the heart of +a maid, as I have often heard say. But I fear me that her sire would be +sore displeased at such a thing. Methinks he has noted Amalric's amorous +regards, and is well pleased thereat." + +It was not altogether strange that the Demoiselle should have shrewd +notions of her own on these points, for marriages in those days were +often arranged between mere children, and her own hand might at any time +be solicited in wedlock. Association with her seniors had ripened her +powers of observation somewhat rapidly, and she had come to have a +certain belief in her own shrewdness. Moreover, her cousin Edward had +asked her about Amalric and his indifference to sport, and that had set +her sharp eyes to work to some purpose. + +The Prince himself, however, was very well disposed towards learning, +and often engaged Leofric and Amalric in conversation, asking with +interest of the student life of Oxford, and professing himself well +pleased with the scholarship of his cousin. + +He was much interested also in the stories of the strange life there, +and was greatly entertained by what he heard. He declared that if he had +not been born a prince, he would be an Oxford scholar; and the tale of +Hugh's kidnapping and escape was listened to with the keenest attention. + +The Prince, however, had not come on a mere visit of pleasure, and +although he was detained longer than he had expected by the delay of his +forces to muster at the appointed place, he spent much time closeted +with the Earl, talking over the situation in Wales, and making plans for +the subjugation of the unruly sons of the mountains and marshes, who +were for ever causing trouble in the west. + +Nevertheless he was too fond of the pleasures of the chase not to take +advantage of the forests of Kenilworth, and when news was brought, just +before his departure, that a marvellously large wild boar had been +sighted in the forest, he must needs go forth for one last expedition, +to strive to slay that monster of the woods. + +The young De Montforts were ardent sportsmen, as the household roll +testifies, entries being made for the feeding of six-and-thirty dogs +belonging to Lord Guy, and again for forty-six belonging to Lord Guy and +Lord Henry. Entries also occur for the keep of their horses when stabled +at Kenilworth. + +So as soon as the Prince expressed his wish for one more grand hunt in +the forest, preparations were at once commenced, and the Demoiselle +rushed eagerly to her mother to obtain permission to accompany the hunt. + +"Prithee let me go, sweet mother! I do so long to see the great fierce +boar which has escaped the huntsmen these many years. Old Ralph says he +has known him ranging the woods longer than any other of his kind; but +he is so artful and so strong that he has ever eluded chase before. Now +they think they have so managed that he cannot escape them. I would be +there to see; and my cousin Edward has said that I shall not be in their +way, and that he will take care of me." + +The Countess smiled as she smoothed the child's hair; but she came of a +fearless race herself, and desired that her daughter should be fearless +also. + +"Thy cousin Edward will forget all when he sees the fierce creature face +to face; but if thy brother Amalric will ride at thy side and take care +of thee, I will let thee go." + +Amalric eagerly assented, looking the while towards Alys, and then he +said to his sister,-- + +"But thou must ask thy friend and playmate to ride forth with thee to +see the sight. Methinks Mistress Alys scarce knows what a hunt in our +forest is like." + +"Oh, she will come, I doubt not," answered the Demoiselle gaily; "and +Leofric shall come too, and ride with us, so that we may be well +escorted even if our servants be all lured away in the ardour of the +chase, as is ofttimes the way." + +All this was speedily settled. The orders went forth for the huntsmen to +make a cordon round a certain part of the forest, enclosing the lair +wherein the great beast had been known to secrete himself for many days +past. It was to be their business to see that he did not break bounds, +and escape to the more distant portions of the forest; whilst the +Prince, at the head of his hunting-party, was to follow and track him +down, and seek at last to slay him. + +It was like to be an exciting day's sport; for the fierce old boar was a +wily customer and a tough one, and he would probably give no small +trouble to dogs and men alike. + +This, however, only added to the ardour of the chase, and it was with +feelings of elation and excitement that the party rode forth from the +gates of Kenilworth on that bright summer's morning, long before the dew +was off the grass--dogs baying, horses prancing, riders exchanging gay +sallies as they took the road to the forest under the direction of the +head huntsman. + +For the moment the Demoiselle rode ahead with the Prince her cousin, +Lords Henry and Guy being of the group. A little behind them was +Amalric, keeping close at Alys's bridle rein; whilst Leofric rode at his +side, enjoying the exhilaration of the fresh morning air and the +excitements of the gay scene. + +He knew the country in the immediate vicinity of Kenilworth pretty well +by this time; but he had not often penetrated deeply into the forest +tracks, and to-day he was greatly impressed by the grandeur of the +stately woodland trees and the beauty of the long glades of grass and +bracken, where deer browsed or scampered off at their approach, and +small game scuttled away in hot haste at sound of the horses' feet. + +But though several tempting quarries crossed its path, the hunt turned +neither to right nor left, but pursued its way along a narrow track +which seemed to lead to the very heart of the forest. + +They were now approaching the region where the boar was known to be +lurking, and the dogs began to whimper and show signs of uneasiness. Old +Ralph, an aged huntsman who had lost an arm, but whose sagacity and +fidelity were always to be depended upon, here rode up, and told the +Prince that the boar was in a thicket not far away. Then he coaxed the +Demoiselle and her companion to separate for a time from the rest of the +party, and put themselves under his protection; and he promised them +that if they would but obey and follow him, he would place them where +they should see the end of the hunt, without peril to themselves or +embarrassment to the huntsmen. + +The child was rather loth to accede to this, but Prince Edward advised +her to do so; and finally, whilst the rest of the party rode onward +warily towards the thicket, the two girls, together with Amalric, +Leofric, and Ralph, pursued a different and circuitous path, being only +made aware by the baying of the dogs and the shouts of their men that +the quarry had been found, and that the chase had begun. + +"We shall miss it all! we shall miss it all!" cried the Demoiselle +petulantly; but old Ralph assured her to the contrary. + +"Bide a bit, my little lady, bide a bit, and you shall see the best of +the sport yet. Think you, fair ladies and brave gentlemen, that yon old +brute will be slain in half an hour? Nay, but the chase will be long and +sore, and many a good dog will get his death-wound ere the savage +creature falls to rise no more. Pray Heaven no hurt come to the brave +young Prince; for men have been done to death ere this by savage boars +of the forest. Yet methinks he has stout heart and cunning hand, and a +score of good riders to come to his aid." + +The Demoiselle might pout and fret in impatience, but there was nothing +for it but to follow old Ralph, who could guide his horse cleverly +enough with his left hand, though helpless now to draw bow or wage war +with any fierce denizen of the wood. But he had strung to his saddle a +steel-pointed spear of wonderful sharpness and temper, and several times +he excited the admiration of his companions by the skill with which he +threw it, and brought to the ground some small beast against which he +had launched it. + +Talking with old Ralph and hearing his woodland stories made time pass +fast, and the Demoiselle was quite coaxed from her fit of ill-temper ere +sudden sounds broke upon their ears telling them that they were +approaching to the hunt or the hunt to them once more. + +"It is as I thought!" cried old Ralph, in some excitement. + +"They have brought him to bay in the elves' hollow! I knew he would take +them there at the last. Now come quickly this way, my little lady, and +you shall see what you shall see." + +They cantered their horses up the brow of a wooded knoll, and all in a +moment the scene of the hunt broke upon their eyes. The hunt indeed! for +there was the fierce old boar down in the shallow pool, with the rock +behind him, and five dogs, dead or dying, lying on the banks or in the +blood-stained water. He was there, and a handful of huntsmen in a ring +round him; but of these one was wounded, several more were weary. It +looked indeed as though the monster of the woods were getting the better +of his adversaries. + +But with a sudden shout as of triumph the Prince came charging down the +hillside. He sprang from his horse and seized his spear, and before any +one could hold him back he had sprung into the water, and was facing the +furious creature, who looked ready and able to tear him in pieces with +his gleaming tusks. + +"Nay, but that is madness!" cried old Ralph; "the Prince will lose his +life!" Others, it seemed, were of the same opinion; for there was a +forward dash amongst the group around, some seeking to withhold the +Prince, others to plunge their weapons in the body of the boar. A scene +of wild confusion ensued, in which more than one sharp cry of human +suffering rang out; and Amalric, unable to contain himself longer, +rushed down to join the fray, crying out in his dread,-- + +"The Prince! the Prince! have a care for the Prince! Pray Heaven he be +not wounded!" + +The face of old Ralph was white, and working with emotion,-- + +"Would that I had the strength of my good right arm!" he cried; "then +would I give the monster his quietus." + +"How?" asked Leofric, shaking with excitement. "Tell me, and give me thy +good spear; I trow I could wield it well!" + +It seemed time indeed that something should be done, for the furious +creature was goring and fighting like a mad thing, and one blow from +those terrible tusks might mean death to man or dog. The Demoiselle had +covered her face, and was shrieking with fear; whilst Alys, white and +wild-eyed, felt as though turned into stone. + +Eagerly did old Ralph talk to Leofric, giving him the pointed spear and +filling his ears with directions and cautions. Thus fortified did +Leofric creep quietly down the little bluff on which they were standing, +fetching a circuit, and approaching to the scene of the fray from behind +the rock, against which the boar had planted himself. With snake-like +movement did he work himself upon the rock, the sound of his approach +being lost in the hideous din of the fight; then suddenly springing to +his feet, he drove the sharp-headed spear into the shoulder of the +savage monster, who turned suddenly upon his new assailant with an +impulse of awful and ungovernable fury, and in making a furious lunge at +him with his bloody tusks, fell helplessly into the crimson water and +expired without a groan. + +"By the arm of St. James," cried Henry de Montfort, using a favourite +expression of his father's, "that was well and bravely done!" + +Next moment Leofric felt his hand taken by that of the Prince, who said +in a low voice,-- + +"Leofric Wyvill! methinks that thou hast saved the life of the King's +son this day. Thou shalt not find him ungrateful if the occasion when he +can serve thee shall arise." + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + +_BACK AT OXFORD._ + + +The narrow streets of Oxford, the crowds of clerks and scholars, the +grey old walls and the frowning Castle--all looked wonderfully unchanged +as Leofric, after hard upon a year's absence, returned to his _Alma +Mater_. + +He had seen something of the world during this time of absence. He had +had a glimpse of warfare under the auspices of the young De Montforts +and Prince Edward in Wales. His ideas upon the political situation had +considerably enlarged. He had also earned a very fair sum of money, +sufficient to enable him to cover all expenses of tuition for a +considerable time to come. The breviary he had transcribed for the +Demoiselle had brought him a liberal reward; he had also received +remuneration for his readings with the Countess and her daughter. + +Leofric had spent the greater part of the winter at Kenilworth Castle, +after having been into Wales with the Prince. The King's son had taken a +strong liking to Leofric after the incident of the boar-hunt, and the +young student had been glad to accompany him into Wales, to gain new +experience in that strange, semi-barbarous land. Amalric had been one of +the party, as well as his brother Guy; and having been wounded in a +fray, he was put in charge of Leofric and sent back to Kenilworth, where +the two had remained together during the winter months. + +It had been a very happy season for those within the walls of the great +fortress. The Earl and his sons were away in France again; but the +Countess and her daughter remained in England as usual, and Alys de +Kynaston had been persuaded to remain and be the companion of the +Demoiselle, who had formed so strong an attachment for her. + +In addition to this, at the instance of the imperious little lady, +Edmund had made by slow stages the journey to Kenilworth, and had been +one of the party. The change had been beneficial to him, and upon the +return journey he had been able to ride the whole way without trouble or +pain. They had journeyed by easy stages, and reached Oxford safely and +without adventure. + +It was a very different arrival from that which Leofric could well +recall when as a poor lad, with his way in life to make, he had entered +the city, scarce knowing where he could find shelter or how he could +maintain himself. + +Now he had many friends, some of them the highest in the land; he had +won a certain modest renown by his scholarship, and had small fear of +failing to attract pupils to his lectures when he should commence them. +The Master under whom he had studied rhetoric and logic had invited him +to teach in his school; and as he would still have his own lectures and +studies to prosecute with diligence, if he were to go on to the degree +of Master, upon which his mind was set, he would have his time and +thoughts pretty well filled, and require more than ever some quiet place +of study. + +His thoughts turned lovingly towards that little spot where he and Jack +Dugdale had made a home so long. Would Jack be there still? What had he +done with himself all these months? Naturally he had heard nothing from +his friend during his absence; but he hastened his steps eagerly as he +approached the Smith Gate, and was rewarded by hearing a regular whoop +of joy as Jack suddenly dashed out to meet him and fell on his neck in a +rapture of greeting. + +"I have been on the watch for thee all day, good comrade. It was told to +me that Edmund of the Castle and Mistress Alys had returned, and +methought it like that thou hadst come with them, since they said there +were others in the company. How good it is to see thy face again! But +thou hast come to be so great a man now thou wilt never deign to dwell +again in our humble little chamber with poor Jack." + +"Nay, but I have been longing to see again thy face, good Jack, and the +little turret chamber where so many happy hours have been passed. I have +no wish to lodge in any other place. Let us go thither, and talk of all +that has chanced since we parted. Art thou a bachelor thyself by this +time? Thou shouldest have determined this late-past Lent!" + +Jack made a wry face. Study was pleasant to him up to a certain point, +but he lacked the courage to present himself for the ordeal of +Responsions and Determinations. He was ready enough to learn, but shrank +from the thought of becoming in any sort a teacher; and, moreover, in +the absence of Leofric he had been taking something of a holiday +himself, and the woods and streams had of late seen more of him than the +schools and lecture-rooms. + +"I could not travel away like thee, Leofric," he said, apologetically, +"but methought a holiday would be no such bad thing. What says the wise +old adage? All work and no play makes Jack a dullard." + +Leofric had no mind to chide his friend and comrade, albeit he thought +it would have been wiser had Jack postponed his holiday till he had +passed the ordeal of Determinations. + +"Now that thou art back, I will study might and main, and next year will +dispute with thee, good friend, so that men shall flock to hear us;" and +Jack laughed aloud in the happiness of his heart, knowing that many long +months had to pass by ere he would be called upon to stand up and +maintain a thesis or proposition in the teeth of his opponent's +arguments, and in the hearing of all who chose to come and listen. He +had listened with admiration and delight to Leofric when he had won his +academic spurs (if the term can be permitted), and so delighted was he +at his friend's prowess in argument, that he had many times dashed out +into the streets to invite the passers-by to come in and hear the +candidate for bachelorhood holding his own so gallantly and brilliantly. + +Jack's loving admiration was very sweet to Leofric, who felt he had in +him a true brother. This fraternal welcome was further displayed in the +simple preparations made for his return--the fresh rushes upon the +floor, the brightening up of the familiar chamber, the simple luxuries +set out upon the little table, and the flowers filling the empty hearth. + +Leofric looked round with brightening eyes, delighted to find himself +once more in this home-like place. Tiny indeed did it appear after the +spacious apartments of Kenilworth; and yet it had the charm of being his +own--here he was no guest, no hireling, but a joint-owner of the +primitive abode. Here he could keep his few precious books, study in +quietness, and be secure from interruption. + +"Ah, it is good to be at home once more; I want no better home than +this!" he cried. "And now, whilst we set to upon this excellent dinner, +tell me all that has betided in Oxford since I left. How goes it with +all our friends--and foes? Has aught been heard of Tito Balzani or Roger +de Horn? And has Hugh been molested in any wise by them? But, indeed, +that was a matter almost forgotten before I left the place." + +"Yes; I trow the fugitives might now return, and nothing would be done +to them. Men quickly forget such matters, new stirs and quarrels ever +cropping up that require adjusting. But I have seen naught of the men, +and Hugh has likewise been away for a time with his father. But he is +back now, and is studying hard, for he would become a Master in Arts ere +he quits Oxford, and he thinks his father desires his presence at home +ere long." + +"And Gilbert?" + +"Oh, Gilbert is a bachelor, and he is betrothed to Joanna, the Seaton +maid. His father came to see the damsel, and was pleased at his son's +choice. Master Seaton will give her a dowry, and they will be wed anon, +and go and live in the seaport of Southampton, where Merchant Barbeck's +business lies. He thinks his son has now wellnigh scholarship enow, and +that he had better soon begin to learn the secrets of the merchant's +trade. So we shall lose one of our comrades." + +Before the pair had finished telling and hearing the news of the place, +there was the sound of a hasty footfall on the stair, the door was burst +open, and Hugh le Barbier strode in, grasping Leofric by the hands, and +embracing him with all the delight of a brother. + +"I heard at the Castle that thou hadst returned!" he cried, "and +methought I should find thee here, back in the old place. And so thou +hast been the friend of nobles and princes, and the guest of the +greatest man in this kingdom! Well, thou dost merit all the good that +comes thy way; for thou art a good and godly youth, and right glad shall +we all be to welcome thee back." + +Hugh looked a very fine specimen of youthful manhood. He had been moving +about with his father from time to time during the past years, and his +studies had been somewhat interrupted. Still he had made excellent +progress even in these, and was regarded as a very promising youth, who +could wield sword and pen alike with dexterity and force. + +"Let us upon the river," he cried, when the first greetings and exchange +of news had died down; "I have much that I would say, and what better +place for talk than the silent reaches of the upper river?--Bring thy +rod and net, good Jack, and thou shalt fill thy creel with fish for +supper. I have seen wondrous fine trout in the stream above. Come, and I +will show thee the best of pools." + +Jack was known as a skilful and ardent fisherman, and was always +perfectly happy when engaged in his favourite pastime. The light boat +which he and Leofric had fashioned long ago was often in demand by their +comrades and friends. Hugh had of late borrowed it oft for many hours, +and he had lately contrived a small sail by means of which he could fly +through the water at a greatly increased speed. + +To-day, after they had left Jack, abundantly happy amid the sedges which +lined a most promising-looking pool, Hugh hoisted sail, and soon the +little boat was slipping rapidly along against the sluggish current of +the river, the low-lying banks on either side gliding past them, and the +wild fowl rising at their approach, and skimming away with short, harsh +cries. + +"Leofric," said Hugh, after they had navigated several reed-grown +reaches, and were now in more open water, "hast thou ever visited the +Priory and little hamlet of Eynsham?" + +"No," answered Leofric; "the way is something long for oars--a matter of +seven good miles at least. Sometimes we have gone forth with the resolve +to push there, but some tempting reach or shallow has always caught +Jack's eye, and we have halted. Why dost thou ask?" + +"Because that is our destination to-day. Leofric, dost thou remember +Linda Balzani?" + +"Ay, verily I do," answered Leofric quickly; "but methought thou hadst +learned to forget her." + +"I tried to do so," answered Hugh, a flush mantling his bronzed cheek. +"After that terrible time of which I scarce cared to think for many a +long month, I told myself that it were better, both for her and for me, +that we should see each other no more. She had suffered nothing but +trouble and pain from my love; and now that she had found a safe asylum +in some peaceful spot, I vowed that I would leave her alone, and let her +forget. They said that the memory of that time seemed to be blotted from +her mind; and if that were so, it were better she should forget." + +"Perchance so," answered Leofric thoughtfully: "she is scarce thine +equal, for thou wilt surely rise to be a gallant knight ere many years +have passed, and she is but a city burgher's daughter, albeit a very +fair maiden." + +The flush in Hugh's face deepened a little; he spoke in a strange voice. + +"Is an angel from the heavens the equal of any sinful son of this +earth? If I am to wait till I can claim equality with Linda, I shall go +to my grave unwed." + +Leofric looked at him with surprise. + +"Then thou hast seen her again?" + +"Yes, truly I have. I have avoided the house of the Balzanis for many a +year, thinking it better not to revive associations which must be +painful. But I have heard men speak of Lotta--the beautiful, daring +Lotta. Many there be who would serve for her, even as Jacob for Rachel; +but it seems that she will none of them. Hearing always of Lotta and +never of Linda made me question within myself whether that maid had +died. I asked, and found that she had never returned to Oxford, but +remained with her aunt at Eynsham, having grown to be as a daughter to +her. I scarce know what it was that first awakened within me the desire +to look upon her face once more, but once awakened the wish would not +sleep, and at last I accomplished my purpose." + +"Thou hast seen her again?" + +"Yes, verily; not once, but many times. Leofric, I am taking thee with +me to-day, that thou mayest see her too; for if ever the foot of angel +trod the paths of men, that angel being is the lovely Linda of my +boyhood's and manhood's love." + +Leofric was greatly surprised, having believed, with all the rest of his +comrades, that the youthful infatuation of Hugh le Barbier for Linda +Balzani had quite passed away. + +Her name had not crossed his lips, so far as any knew, since the +excitement following upon his rescue from the Magician's Tower had died +down. The whole episode seemed to have come utterly to an end, and those +who knew Hugh's circumstances thought it well, as he was of the stuff +which might cause him to rise in the world. + +The boat was riding at a fair rate of speed through the water, and the +Priory walls of Eynsham gradually loomed in sight. It was a quaint, +lonely, old-world spot, this little community lying hidden in the +winding valley, far away from any other abode of man. There was a charm +in the low-lying meadows, in the grand old trees, in the herds of deer +that came down from the forest to drink at the river. Fish and wild fowl +abounded in these solitudes, and the appearance of a white-sailed boat +wrought astonishment and commotion amongst them. It was a place where +life might well be dreamed away in pious meditation and contemplation. +It was an ideal spot for a monastery; but Leofric had come to feel of +late that more was desired of man than mere contemplation and +meditation--more even than mere study and the acquiring or propagating +knowledge. The life of the cloister had never greatly attracted him; now +he felt that it would be nothing better than death in life. + +A little winding backwater opened before them at this point, and Hugh, +furling the sail, took up the oars and rowed quietly into the dim, +narrow place. As he did this he uttered a low, sweet whistling call, not +unlike that of some bird; and very soon Leofric became aware of a +fluttering of white drapery, and a low, soft voice spoke out of the +fringe of alder bushes,-- + +"Beloved, is that thou?" + +The next minute Hugh had driven his boat up against a fallen willow that +lay athwart the stream, barring further progress, and leaving it to +Leofric, had sprung ashore, and had taken in his arms the slim form in +the white robe that had come to the margin of the stream to meet him. + +Leofric busied himself with the boat for a few moments, and only turned +his head when his name was spoken. + +Then indeed he saw before him the remembered face of Linda Balzani, but +so etherealized and beautified that he could not wonder at the way in +which Hugh had spoken of her. The deep, dark eyes shone like stars, the +dusky hair waved round the small and well-shaped head like the aureole +round the head of painted saint; and so pure was the expression upon the +lovely chiselled features, so sweet the lines of the exquisite mouth, so +graceful and sylph-like the slim figure, that Leofric gazed with wonder +and admiration. It was Linda who spoke first. + +"Thou art Leofric; I remember thee right well. I have heard from Hugh of +thy prowess and success. Thou art welcome, as any friend of his must be; +but thou art doubly welcome as being beloved by him." + +She would have led them to her aunt's house and refreshed them; for Hugh +was courting in no clandestine fashion, but had won the esteem and +affection of Bridget Marlow and her husband. Linda was now their child +by adoption, and they were responsible for her future. If Hugh were not +ashamed to wed with a simple burgher maiden, they would not say him nay. +They were simple-minded folks, and Hugh made light of his own +prospects. So far he was nothing but the son of an esquire, and a +scholar and bachelor of Oxford. Linda was his one and only love, and +that she was his in heart and in soul all who saw them together could +not fail to recognize fully. + +But to-day Hugh would not come in. They had not much time, and he spent +the precious moments with Linda beside the rippling water, Leofric +remaining in the boat and idly observing the objects about him. His eye +was caught by the grey habit of a monk, who was seated amid the alders +with a rod in his hand. Leofric observed that he seemed little engrossed +by his fishing, and certainly caught nothing. Perhaps he was engaged in +meditation or the telling of his beads. At any rate he sat wonderfully +still and quiet; indeed he never moved at all until Hugh and Linda +wandered away a little farther from his secluded nook, whereupon, to the +surprise of Leofric, the cowled figure rose up and crept stealthily +after them. + +True, it might be the way back to the Priory, and surely a cloistered +monk could have no interest in the lovers' raptures of a youth and maid; +but Leofric noted and rather wondered at the action, though he forgot it +again when Hugh returned, and they set to work to row down stream with +long, sweeping strokes. + +It was indeed several days later before he thought of the matter again, +and then the incident was recalled by a remark made by Hugh as they were +pacing the familiar streets together after morning lecture. + +"Leofric, I have a curious and perhaps foolish fancy that I am watched +and followed. It must be the merest fantasy, and yet I cannot rid myself +of it." + +"Has it been long so with thee?" asked Leofric quickly. + +"Not very long--so far as my suspicion goes. But how or when it +commenced I cannot tell; nor would I say with certainty that the thing +is not now the fruit of a disordered fancy. But I cannot rid myself of +it." + +"What form does the following take?" + +"I have a fancy that a certain grey-cowled monk is often near at hand +watching where I go and what I do. There be so many of these monks and +friars in the streets of Oxford, that I sometimes laugh at myself for +the thought; and yet methinks there is one--tall, and slim, and +active--who is more often in the same street with me than chance can +quite answer for. Thou dost start, Leofric; what means that?" + +"Only this, that as thou didst wander with Linda by the backwater at +Eynsham that day when I was with thee, a grey-cowled monk was sitting +beside the stream; and when ye twain moved a little off, he also moved +and seemed to follow, though I lost sight of him in the bushes almost at +once." + +Hugh looked rather perplexed. + +"And there is another whom I seem always to be meeting--a powerful +fellow in the habit of a clerk, but with a bearded face, and a scar +across his cheek which perhaps gives to him an evil aspect. Often when I +turn suddenly round in the street I see him behind me, but whether +there be anything beyond and behind I cannot tell. At first I heeded it +little, but there are moments when I grow uneasy. Last time that I and +Linda exchanged vows of love, some evil power threatened us, and seemed +like to separate us altogether. Is it that, thinkest thou, that makes me +fear, and puts fancies in my head for which there is no warrant?" + +"I know not," answered Leofric; "but I would have thee be watchful and +prudent. It is ill work stirring up strife and jealousy. If Roger de +Horn were in the city, I should fear for thee. He was always thy bitter +foe, and they say that he was very greatly bent on having Linda for his +wife." + +"Roger de Horn," spoke Hugh thoughtfully; "could it by chance be he? +Methought once there was something familiar in the gleam of the eyes of +that bearded fellow, but the scar has changed him if indeed it be so. I +did not recognize him. He seldom meets me face to face. Perchance that +is the reason;" and then Hugh's face became clouded with anxiety, and he +said between his teeth,-- + +"If indeed that wild hawk has flown back thither, it behoves me to warn +and watch over my tender dove. If hurt should come again to her through +me, I should never forgive myself." + +Leofric's suspicions were aroused, and he kept his eyes and ears open. +He took counsel with his kind friend the Franciscan friar Brother +Angelus, who had a warm welcome for him on his return; and he made +inquiries amongst the other brothers, and amongst those whom he visited +and tended. But none had heard a word of Roger de Horn since his +disappearance after the discovery of Hugh's imprisonment in the +Magician's Tower. Men were of opinion that he would hardly venture back +into the city, in case he should be called upon to answer for his +misdeeds there. Brother Angelus was of opinion that Hugh had better +exercise prudence and discretion, and keep his eyes open. It was +certainly a strange coincidence that this thing should be just when he +and Linda had renewed their vows of love; and yet if any other suitor +had desired the maiden's hand, why had he not come forward during the +years when Hugh had been seeking to forget his love? + +That was a question which Leofric could not answer, and just now he had +many other matters to think of which drove Hugh's affairs into the +background of his thoughts. He took up the academic life with renewed +zest and energy, and in his studies and pleasant intercourse with +kindred spirits passed many happy weeks. Hugh went about free and +unhurt, and gradually the fear for his friend which had assailed him +once died down into oblivion. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + +_THE BELL OF ST MARTIN'S._ + + +It was the day of the bi-weekly fair, and the High Street was +considerably crowded as Hugh walked along it on his way back towards his +quarters in the Castle. He had passed by the vendors of hay and straw +gathered near the East Gate with their horses and carts, and was picking +his way through the motley crowd who were chaffering on the one side of +the street with the sellers of poultry, meat, and fish, and on the other +with the sellers of gloves, hosiery, and those other articles of which +mercers were the vendors. The street was encumbered with stalls set up +by country folks for the sale of greengrocery, scullery-wares, and fruit +or cakes. At Carfax itself the sellers of white bread set up their +stalls and called their wares; opposite All Saints' Church stood the +tables of sellers of gloves, earthenware, and ale. Altogether it was a +busy and animated scene, and although Hugh was well accustomed to it, he +could not but look about him with amusement, and pause now and again to +listen to a piece of unwontedly animated bargaining. + +Clerks and scholars, and even some of the higher dignitaries of the +place, were abroad in the streets; and as the evening was approaching, +those who still wanted to buy were pressing forward eagerly. + +Hugh was detained for a time by meeting with one of the Masters who had +something to say to him, and the pair stood for some little time beneath +the shadow of All Saints' whilst they conversed. + +Meantime the aspect of the streets changed considerably: tables and +stalls were broken up and taken away by the country folk, who streamed +off through the various gates; town tradesmen took in their wares, and +began to close their shops; and the purchasers hurried home with their +goods, talking and laughing, and comparing notes upon their bargains. + +The shadows were falling in the narrow thoroughfares as at length Hugh +pursued his way eastward. There were plenty of passengers still afoot, +but the crowd had thinned somewhat. As he passed by the bull-ring in +Carfax, he thought he heard the sound of a small tumult from the +direction of the North Gate, where the cordwainers and mercers +congregated on market days; but he paid little heed to it, and continued +his way to the Great Bayly, where the drapers were putting up their +shutters for the night. + +Suddenly the great bell of St. Martin's overhead boomed out through the +startled air, and immediately all was hurry and confusion. + +The tolling or ringing of the bell of St. Martin's was always the signal +for the citizens to rally against the University, and showed that some +collision between clerks and townsmen had occurred. Hugh quickened his +steps, having no desire to be mixed up in one of those senseless +outbreaks of anger and jealousy which were constantly disturbing the +peace of Oxford. + +Just lately these riots had been more frequent than ever, the disturbed +state of public feeling seeming in this place to take the form of +incessant rioting in the streets. Several persons, both citizens and +clerks, had recently been killed, and a number more injured more or less +severely during the past weeks; and Hugh had heard the Constable of the +Castle speak in no measured terms of the need to take stronger measures +against the delinquents. + +Within the last few months a new Chancellor had been appointed to the +University, the celebrated Thomas de Cantilupe, who had just arrived at +the University (where he had previously taken the degree of Doctor of +Canon Law), and he had joined issue with the Constable for the +preservation of order. Indeed he had already adventured himself into the +streets to interpose between some riotous spirits of North and South who +had come to blows, and had himself received some injury in seeking to +pacify the insensate youths. + +It was said that he was about to make some fresh regulations, in the +hope of putting a stop to this perpetual nuisance; but so far his +decision had not been made public, as he had been obliged to keep to his +rooms till his bruises should be healed. + +Hugh, however, had heard and seen enough to feel indignant at any fresh +outbreak, and he quickened his steps in order to avoid any contact with +a gathering crowd. Already citizens were hurrying towards Carfax, eager +to learn what was betiding; several brushed past Hugh as he walked; and +then, before his very eyes, a strange and terrible thing happened. + +Suddenly he was aware that in a dark doorway close at hand a cowled +figure was standing. Then the figure moved, and Hugh saw the glancing +blade of a long, murderous stiletto flash out. It was plunged up to the +hilt in the body of a citizen hurrying by towards Carfax, and the +hapless man fell dead at Hugh's feet without so much as a groan. + +The young man stood stupified with astonishment and horror; then in a +moment he realized the peril of his own position. + +"Seize him! seize him!" yelled a dozen furious voices; "he has slain one +of our townsmen! Seize the murderer! Do to him as he hath done! Take him +red-handed in the act, and we will see that justice is done upon him!" + +"My good friends," said Hugh, looking at the angry faces surrounding +him, and striving to keep his head in face of this very real peril, "I +am innocent of the death of this unhappy man. I do not even know who he +is. The murderer was a man disguised in the habit of a monk, loitering +in yon doorway. Search, and you will find him yet, and I can testify to +the blow he struck!" + +Angry and excited, the crowd would scarce hear him. No such figure as he +described was to be found. No one had seen a monk in the street, nor +could Hugh declare in what direction he had fled after committing the +crime, so bewildered had he been by the suddenness of the deed, and by +its tragic sequel. His words were received with hisses of scornful +discredit; the angry townsmen, some of whom were neighbours to the +murdered man, clamoured more and more fiercely for the blood of the +destroyer. Overhead the bell of St. Martin's swung in the air, +increasing the excitement with every clang. The street was full of +wrathful burghers; yells, curses, threats, rent the air. Hugh believed +that in another moment the crowd would fall upon him and tear him in +pieces, and had almost given himself over as lost, when a loud voice +dominated the others in the throng, and yelled out lustily,-- + +"Take him to the Bocardo prison; lock him up there for the night, and +then let the Mayor and the Chancellor deal with him. They will avenge us +of the death of our neighbour. Let us not fall upon him ourselves, or we +shall, perchance, have our liberties again curtailed." + +Many grumbled, and showed a disposition to resist this counsel, crying +out that it were better to deal with the miscreant then and there, for +that clerks and bachelors were always let off far too easily by the +authorities. But the older men of the city knew well that the slaying of +a clerk was regarded with severity by those in authority, and had +sometimes been punished by the King himself in the withdrawal of certain +liberties and privileges from the city charter. If a clerk fell in open +fight, that was one thing; but for the citizens deliberately to doom him +to death, and to dispatch him with their own hands without form of +trial, was another; and it was this sort of summary justice which +brought the citizens into trouble. + +"To the Bocardo then, to the Bocardo!" cried the wiser of the onlookers; +and despite the mutterings of the malcontents, Hugh was hustled along, +not without receiving many sly blows and kicks by the way, in the +direction of the North Gate, where the Bocardo prison was situated. + +It was getting very dark by this time. Breathless, spent, and +bewildered, the clothes half torn from his back, his purse and clasp and +finger-ring filched from him by thieving hands, Hugh was thankful when +the gloomy gateway was reached, and he felt himself thrust up a dim +stairway and flung with scant ceremony into a dark and ill-smelling +room. + +A faint ray of light stole in through a grating overhead, and revealed a +small stone chamber with a truss of straw in one corner as its only +plenishing. He was given over to the custody of a surly-looking fellow, +who merely answered his questions with a grunt. Hugh greatly regretted +the loss of his purse, as he felt sure that a gold piece would have +worked wonders upon his custodian. He wanted to send a message to +Leofric, to Edmund, to the Constable himself; but at the very mention of +this wish the man broke into curses, and said he had other things to do +than run errands for prisoners. He could wait till he was brought out +for trial, and then see what was said to his fine tales! + +With that the jailer deposited a pitcher of water and a modicum of bread +within the door, and going out banged and locked it behind him, leaving +Hugh to meditate in silence and darkness upon the thing that had +befallen him. + +Little sleep was there for him that night, and the tardy daylight +brought small increase of comfort. He listened eagerly for any sounds +from without that should tell of approaching deliverance; but hour after +hour passed, and nobody came near him save the sullen jailer, who put +down the rough fare of his prisoner, and did not deign so much as to +answer a single question. + +Such treatment was hard to bear, and Hugh, unaccustomed to it, chafed +not a little against the helplessness of his position. He wondered +whether his friends were in ignorance of what had befallen him. Surely +if they knew they would do something for his release. It seemed +monstrous that he should lie under the imputation of this foul crime. +Surely no man of any standing in the city would believe him capable of +it. And yet how could he prove his innocence, when his foes would make +it appear that he had been caught red-handed in the act? + +His was certainly no enviable position, nor did his thoughts tend to +increase his peace of mind. He recalled his previous uneasiness with +regard to a tall grey-cowled monk, and could not but believe that the +figure lurking in the doorway had been that of the same person as he had +seen so often in the streets before or behind him. He remembered what +Leofric had said as to a monk at Eynsham spying upon him there. A thrill +of fear ran through his heart lest Linda should once more be +endangered--and through him. And then, again, had not he seen that +scarred and bearded face amid the rabble crowd that thronged and +maltreated him? Had not that man, so often seen of late, been one of his +foremost foes? He felt in a maze of perplexity and dread. Was he to be +the victim of some new plot, which had for its object to separate him +and his beloved? + +He paced his narrow cell hour after hour in mute misery and disquietude. +When would he be brought to trial? When would his friends find him? He +could hear the familiar sounds in the streets below. He could hear the +sentries at the gate relieving one another. Why did nobody come near +him? How long was he to be left thus? + +Gradually the hope of seeing any face (save that of the jailer) upon +this day faded from Hugh's mind. The light began to flicker and grow +dim. The prison chamber became dark as night. At last even the outline +of the grating above his head became indistinguishable. Hugh, with a +groan of disappointment and weariness, threw himself upon his sordid +bed, and after a time found oblivion from his woes in sleep. + +How long he slept he knew not, but he was suddenly awakened by the sound +of a stealthy movement outside the door. He started up and held his +breath. Yes, he was certain of it. Somebody was outside, feeling over +the walls and door as if in search of the fastening; and presently he +heard a key softly fitted into the lock. + +His heart beat fast as he heard the door open and a soft rustle bespeak +the entrance of some human intruder. Then followed a deep silence, +broken by the sound of a voice--a voice which like new wine sent the +blood coursing through the young man's veins. + +"Hugh--my beloved--art thou there?" + +"Linda!" he cried, in wild amaze, and the next moment had groped his way +across the intervening space, and had encircled her with his +arm--"Linda, my heart's joy! how comest thou here?" + +"Hush, dearest! speak low, lest we be heard. I have come to set thee +free--to fly with thee beyond the reach of pursuit. Dearest, wilt thou +trust thyself with me?" + +He pressed her hand to his lips. He thrilled from head to foot. But how +had she come to him in this dread place? He was enwrapped by the sense +of mystery. + +"Linda, sweetheart, how hast thou made thy way hither? Art thou a being +angelic, to whom closed doors offer no obstacle? How hast thou +penetrated hither?" + +"That will I tell thee anon, dear love. Dost thou not know that love +will ever find out the way?" She spoke in low, whispering tones, and he +followed her example, guessing well the need for caution and secrecy. +"Thou hast friends without these prison walls, and thy friends are +working for thee. Nevertheless thy case is somewhat perilous; and if +thou canst not make good thy flight, there are grave fears for thy life, +since there be many to swear thee guilty of the crime, and both +Constable and Chancellor are greatly resolved to make an example of any +disturber of the peace, be he citizen or clerk." + +"What then shall I do?" asked Hugh. + +"Listen, beloved," she answered. "How I have got access to this place I +will tell another time, for we may not linger here. But I have brought +to thee the habit of a monk. I am likewise attired in cowl and gown. +Once free of this prison, we can walk the city streets without fear; for +the good friars of St. Francis go about their works of piety and charity +by night as well as by day. Only we must not linger in the city, but +must flee forth ere thine escape is discovered; for there will be hue +and cry after thee, since thou hast at least two vindictive enemies, who +are sworn to thy destruction--and to mine undoing!" + +She shivered as she spoke, and Hugh muttered something between his +teeth. He had been about to say that he would take her back at once to +her aunt at Eynsham; but these last words seemed to show that she would +not now be safe there. + +"Are they molesting thee, sweetheart?" he asked. + +"It is that evil Roger de Horn again," she said, with a slight tremor in +her voice; "he has come back under another name. It is he who is the +disturber of the city's peace. He has found me out, and I am no longer +safe with mine aunt. If thou art in danger, beloved, so am I. Can we not +both seek safety in flight?" + +"Yes, if thou wilt marry me, so soon as we can find some holy man to +join our hands in wedlock!" cried Hugh eagerly. "Then will I carry thee +to my father's house, and I will seek to win my spurs in the service of +King or Prince, whilst thou at home dost play a daughter's part to my +sweet mother, who will, I trow, receive thee with open arms, when she +shall know what thou hast done and dared for my sake." + +All this had been spoken in rapid whispers, and now Hugh hastily donned +the monkish garment, which was in fact the habit of a Franciscan friar, +and entirely covered his whole person. The cowl was drawn over his head, +and he was completely disguised, although in the pitchy darkness they +could see nothing, and had to trust to the sense of touch. + +Then the soft hands guided him down the narrow stairs--he had discarded +his foot gear the better to personate a friar--his companion softly +locked the door behind him, and the pair glided down and unfastened the +outer door which opened upon the street. + +Close at hand, in a tiny chamber, sat the guard of the gate, sunk in +sodden sleep, an empty wine-flask lying at his side. The slender cowled +figure stole toward him, and replaced the keys at his girdle, whence +they had plainly been detached; and then, gliding forth again, she took +Hugh by the hand, and they made their way along the shadow of the wall +till the Castle loomed up before them. + +"Sweetheart," said Hugh suddenly, "why should we go farther? Within +these walls we shall find shelter and safety, and here we may be wed ere +we fare forth into the world together. I know my friends will not desert +me at this perilous moment, and Alys will be as a friend and sister to +thee till I can make thee mine own. The sentry at the gate will know me +and let me pass; or these habits will suffice to win us our way. Come, +beloved; I would not have thee wander longer through the darkness of the +night. Trust thy dear self to me, and all will be well." + +"Ah no, no!" cried his companion urgently; "thou wilt only run thyself +into greater peril. I have planned all. Come only with me. I will lead +thee where thou shalt be safe. Only do not delay!" + +At the sound of those words Hugh's heart suddenly stood still, and a +qualm of fear and mistrust shook him from head to foot. + +Was that indeed Linda's voice? Was it like his gentle, timid Linda to +refuse such safe shelter for the perils of the road and the +uncertainties which must lie before them? When the voice had spoken only +in whispers, he had never for a moment doubted; but now--now--his brain +felt on fire. He was bewildered--dismayed--apprehensive. If not Linda, +who could it be? Who save her twin sister could personate her thus? And +was it possible that any good purpose could be designed by those who +were practising this fraud upon him? Would not Linda have been the first +to snatch at the thought of seeking safety with the gentle Alys, of whom +they often spoke together? She might have braved much to get her lover +out of prison; but once free from those walls, and maiden modesty, as +well as her natural timidity, would have urged her to accept this +suggestion with gladness. Hugh knew the nature of his sweetheart too +well to be deceived. + +But the companion of his flight seized him by the hand and cried +eagerly,-- + +"Come with me! come with me! all is ready--all is planned. There is no +need for protection for me. I am safe with thee; and the priest already +awaits to unite us in wedlock. Come; I will guide thee to the place." + +"Nay, now I know well that thou art not Linda!" suddenly cried Hugh, +throwing back his cowl and gazing intently at his companion by the light +of a dying moon. "Who and what art thou, who hast come and succoured me +under her name? Thou canst be none other than Lotta, for thou hast her +voice and her form. What is the meaning of the masquerade?" + +With a fierce gesture Lotta flung back her cowl, and stood before him +with flashing eyes. + +"So thou hast discovered me? I said that thou wouldest; that I could +never play the part of puling love-lorn maiden such as Linda was ever +wont to be! But I hold thee to thy plighted word. This very night shalt +thou marry me. I have saved thy life, and thou art now my prey." + +"Nay, Lotta," answered Hugh, with manly dignity of bearing, "I am +grateful for thy help. I will not forget my debt, and I will be a true +brother to thee to my life's end. But not even if I stood at the point +of death would I forswear myself, and vow to love and cherish one I +cannot thus love. I am the betrothed of thy sister. To thee I can be +nothing but a brother; but I will remember always what thou hast done +for me, albeit I will sooner return to my prison walls than be false to +mine own true love." + +"Fool!" hissed Lotta between her shut teeth, "dost think thou wilt ever +wed her? I tell thee she has already been lured from Eynsham by means of +thy signet-ring, stolen from off thy finger by Roger de Horn. The same +priest who will wed thee and me will wed Linda and Roger ere the day be +done. I have loved thee always, Hugh. Even now when thou goest far to +make me hate thee, I love thee with a fierce and passionate love which +brooks no bounds. From my window I have watched thee go to and fro in +the city these many years. Though thou hast forgotten me, I have never +forgotten thee; and now when thy life was threatened by evil men, I have +offered to save thee at this price. Marry me, and they will cease to +fear and hate thee, and will receive thee as kinsman and friend. Refuse, +and thy life will pay the forfeit! And make haste in thy choice, for +already we are waited for; and if thou dost longer delay, thou wilt be +set upon in these dark streets, and not even my voice will avail to save +thee." + +There were urgency and passion in Lotta's voice, and a part of her words +had filled the heart of Hugh with a great fear. Was it indeed true that +Linda had been lured away? It might well be, since she would know the +signet ring of her lover, and might take it to be a token from him. His +heart seemed to stand still within him; his brain felt benumbed by +horror. He attempted no reply to Lotta's rapid speech; and noting his +silence, she suddenly grasped his arm and shook it in her impatience and +urgency. + +"Come!" she cried, "come! Better a bridegroom than a dead corpse; and I +am as fair as Linda, and as meet a bride for thee. Come, I say, come!" +She paused for a moment, and then in more urgent accents cried, "If thou +dost not consent, thou art undone. Here come Tito and Roger to look for +us." + +And indeed at that moment Hugh plainly saw two figures creeping along +towards them--the grey-cowled monk and the bearded man with the scarred +face. + +That was enough for him. His only reason for standing thus long in talk +was his chivalrous dread of leaving a maiden alone in the streets of the +city. Now that her brother and his comrade were close at hand, he did +not hesitate a moment. + +They were just beneath the Castle walls. The Gate was half-way between +him and his foes. They might chance to reach it as soon as he, did they +guess his intentions. But he knew the place well, and knew of a small +postern close to the end of Bedford Lane (New Inn Hall Street now). +Making therefore a quick dash in the opposite direction, he fled like a +hunted hare, and a few loud knocks obtained him entrance from the +soldier on guard. + +"I am pursued! Shut it after me!" he cried; and the man instantly +obeyed, for he thought he was succouring a holy friar from the attacks +of some wanton roisterers, too drunk to reverence the habit of their +quarry. + +And thus it was that Hugh le Barbier escaped from prison and found his +way within the Castle walls. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + +_THE NEW CHANCELLOR._ + + +"Leofric, Leofric! hast thou heard the news? + +"I have heard the bell of St. Martin's," answered Leofric, scarce +raising his head from his task; "I trow the new Chancellor will have +cause for displeasure and stern judgment. This is the third time there +has been a disturbance since he arrived within the city." + +"But listen, Leofric, there is worse than that. They say that our good +friend Hugh has been dragged off to prison for the murder of a citizen, +and the whole place is clamouring for his blood--all the citizens, that +is!" + +Leofric was aroused now, and started up in excitement. + +"What--what!--Hugh charged with such a crime? Impossible! It must be +some mistake." + +"Or some foul play," said Jack significantly. "I could not get at him +for the press, but I got near enough to hear them say he declared the +murder had been done by a man in a monkish habit, lurking in a doorway, +who had vanished the moment the crime was committed, leaving the +murdered man lying at Hugh's feet with the stiletto in his heart. But +not one word of this story will the crowd believe, and Hugh has been +haled off to the Bocardo prison!" + +Hardly had Jack finished these words before Gilbert, together with Hal +Seaton, hurried in full of the same news. + +"It is some vile plot against Hugh!" cried Gilbert. "Have we not +suspected for long that his enemies have returned, and are plotting evil +against him? For my part, I have long believed that Tito Balzani has +returned, and is masquerading beneath the cowl of a monk; and that yon +evil-faced, bearded braggart whom men are beginning to know and note in +the streets, is none other than our old friend Roger de Horn--much +changed by his three years' absence, and by staining his face and +growing his beard. If those two are in league together again, be sure +they are after no good." + +"And it behoves us to do something, and that something quickly," said +Hal, "if Hugh is to be saved from disgrace, if not from imprisonment or +worse. For upon the day after to-morrow the new Chancellor is to hold a +court, and all turbulent citizens and clerks are to be brought before +him. I trow if Hugh is charged before him with murder in the open +streets--and there be some ready to swear to seeing him strike the +blow--it may go hard with him. For all men say that the Chancellor is an +upright and just man, and will not favour the clerks more than those of +the city; that he has spoken stern things as to the riots so frequent +here, and has resolved to put them down with a strong hand." + +Leofric stood lost in thought, revolving many things in his mind. The +original cause of jealousy between Hugh and Roger had been Linda +Balzani. So long as she played no part in Hugh's life it had been +undisturbed; but directly he recommenced his wooing, he began to feel +himself watched and spied upon, and now this evil thing, carefully and +craftily plotted, had happened to him. Did it not all point to some +jealousy with regard to the beautiful Linda? They had contrived that her +lover should be helpless to fly to her aid; did not that show that some +evil was purposed against the maid herself? + +Quickly and anxiously did he communicate these thoughts to his +companions, and as he spoke Jack smote his hand against his brow and +cried excitedly,-- + +"Now I think of it, I heard somewhat but just now which goes to +substantiate thy suspicions, Leofric. I was wedged into the crowd, and +seeking to press up towards Hugh, when that black-browed fellow whom we +all believe to be Roger de Horn came elbowing his way out, and went up +to the side of some tall fellow, whose face I did not see in the press, +albeit we were close together; and to him he spoke in a hissing sort of +whisper, every word of which I heard. 'I have the signet-ring,' he said; +'now we can get her into our power easily. She will go anywhere at sight +of that!'" + +Leofric and the others uttered in low tones exclamations of wrath, +whilst Jack continued quickly,-- + +"I did not heed the words at the time--I did not think they concerned +our friend Hugh; but verily I believe that it was his ring they +plundered, and that they mean to use it for some evil scheme of their +own." + +"Which we must frustrate!" cried Leofric excitedly; "we must to the boat +as soon as the day dies, and we must be at Eynsham with the first light +of dawn. They will not appear there before daylight to-morrow. They will +not desire to raise suspicion by appearing at untoward hours. We shall +be before them, and I trust we may circumvent them yet; but we shall +have a pair of wily foes to deal with." + + * * * * * + +Oxford was in a ferment of excitement. It was known all over the place +that Hugh le Barbier had escaped from the Bocardo prison, but had +surrendered himself to the Constable of the Castle, claiming his +protection against false imprisonment, and desiring to be brought before +the new Chancellor to tell his tale and be confronted with those who +dared to accuse him of the murder of an unoffending citizen. + +It was also said that the Constable was determined to make the most +searching inquiry into the matter, in which the Chancellor would aid +him. Both were greatly disturbed by the state of chronic feud that was +growing up betwixt citizens and clerks, and were resolved to put down +with a high hand this perpetual rioting. The court was to sit in the +largest building which could be found in all Oxford, and the citizens +and clerks were to attend in a mass, and hear what the Chancellor and +the Constable had to say to them. All the ringleaders in the recent +riots would receive some sort of trial and punishment, and the case of +Hugh le Barbier would be thoroughly investigated. + +There was a feeling of considerable excitement throughout the town, and +the ways to the place of judgment were thronged to suffocation upon the +appointed day. + +Of course it was impossible for all the city to throng into one +building; but a very large concourse was admitted there, whilst the +streets and open places in the vicinity of the Castle were thronged with +eager faces, and the space within the Castle walls was one sea of heads. + +Within the great hall were seats for Chancellor and Constable, and in a +place set apart stood a number of citizens and clerks who had been +specially called upon to attend. These were stationed somewhat apart +from the rest of the crowd, and upon the faces of some could be read a +certain anxiety and apprehension. + +For the most turbulent spirits within the city had been gathered +together and summoned to answer for their conduct. It had been whispered +that the new Chancellor intended to make a protest against the habit of +carrying arms which prevailed almost universally at that time amidst +persons of all classes. It was this habit which led to such constant +bloody quarrels. Men in the heat of argument would suddenly break into +abuse and invective, and then it was but a short step to blows, which if +from fists would matter little, but when struck with sharp, shining +blades became quite another matter. Peaceable citizens declared that +they were forced to carry arms for self-defence amid the hordes of +savage youths who infested their streets, calling themselves clerks and +scholars. But if the more turbulent of these could be denied the use of +arms, then they would willingly consider laying down theirs. + +These and such like things were passing from mouth to mouth whilst the +expectant crowd waited for the judges to appear, and gazed curiously +upon Hugh le Barbier, who occupied a seat by himself near to the daïs of +the Chancellor and the Constable. His face looked somewhat anxious, and +he kept searching the crowd with his eyes, as though looking for faces +which he had expected to see, but had missed. It was only upon the past +night that he had escaped from the Bocardo prison, and speculation was +rife as to how the matter had been managed. + +A stir and a rustle and a surging movement through the crowd showed that +the judges were coming at last, and every face was turned towards them, +and every eye fastened upon them as they took their appointed places +amid a deep silence. + +The aspect of Sir Humphrey was familiar enough to all; but many had +scarcely set eyes as yet upon the new Chancellor, and these fixed their +regards steadfastly upon him, the guilty and rebellious clerks in +particular being full of anxiety to learn what they could of the temper +of this new dignitary, in whose hands so much power lay. + +He was attended by the Proctors and a number of the Doctors and Masters +in their robes, and he wore his own state robes of office. Sir Humphrey +was accompanied by some knights and gentlemen of his household, and the +face of Amalric de Montfort could be distinguished amongst these, +though the young man detached himself from the group round the chairs of +state and placed himself near to Hugh le Barbier, who greeted him with a +smile. + +The Constable spoke first. He addressed himself mainly to the citizens, +who were regarded as being under his control. He rebuked them for their +readiness to fight--for their impatience and irritability with the +clerks and scholars, who, when all was said and done, were a source of +profit to them and of prosperity to their town. Instead of setting them +a good example, they fell into all the wild ways of raw lads who might +not have had opportunity to learn better. He chid them severely for +this, and warned them that they were seriously in danger of the royal +displeasure, and of infringements of their charter, if they continued in +this turbulent manner to disturb the peace of the realm. They had felt +this sort of displeasure many times before. Why could they not learn +wisdom and discretion, and strive to put down these disgraceful scenes, +instead of taking an eager share in them, and being no better than the +youths to whom they ought to set an example? + +After the Constable had spoken in this key, the new Chancellor arose. He +had a dignified mien, a tall and commanding figure, and a face which at +once inspired confidence and affection. He could look stern and kindly +at the same time, and his sonorous voice, which penetrated right through +the hall and into the open space without, was full of fire and +earnestness; yet there was withal something so winning in his address +that all eyes were riveted upon the speaker, and men held their breath +to catch his every word. + +He first spoke of the pleasure he had in this return to a city he had +always loved, and of his promotion to a position in which he hoped he +would prove of service to it. He spoke of changes for the better which +he had noted, but quickly passed on to his deep regret at finding +matters in nowise better betwixt the citizens and scholars, and betwixt +the clerks themselves. He had been shocked and grieved to note the +violence with which quarrels raged and blows were struck upon the +smallest provocation, or upon no provocation at all. That was a thing +which must and should be stopped. Valuable lives must not be sacrificed, +nor lifelong injury inflicted, just to satisfy the wanton passions of +the moment. Two men had been killed, and quite a dozen more injured, in +street brawls during the brief space in which he had resided amongst +them. Against such a state of things as this strong measures must be +taken, and any delinquent convicted of deliberate crime must be punished +with impartial justice, be he citizen or be he clerk. Their good +Constable was of one mind with himself on that point. + +Of the two men who had lost their lives, one had been killed in open +fight in the streets, rather by accident of the riot than by deliberate +intention. With that matter he would presently deal, as no person in +particular was charged with the crime. But the other was altogether +different. A peaceable citizen had been stabbed to the heart by an act +of deliberate murderous intent. Hugh le Barbier had been found beside +the murdered man, and had been charged with the deed, and even +imprisoned somewhat informally in the Bocardo. But he was not only a +gentleman and bachelor of good repute in the University; he also +solemnly declared that he had seen the blow struck by another hand, and +he had proved his fearlessness of inquiry in having refused to fly from +the city (on being released in a romantic fashion by some maiden, whose +name he asked not to divulge), and in having placed himself under +protection of the Constable, demanding that he might be heard in his own +defence, and that the whole matter might be diligently investigated. +This inquiry was forthwith to be made, and any person who had any +knowledge of the matter was to stand forth and bear witness. + +A slight commotion now stirred through the crowd, and certain persons +pressed forward to give their evidence. Several bore witness to having +found Hugh standing beside the murdered citizen, but none would swear to +having seen him strike the blow, though several declared that there was +a man who had seen the act, though he had not been seen in Oxford since. +His name was Robert Holker, and little was known about him. He attended +lectures, but had put himself under no tutor. He was known to be a good +fighter, and had been mixed up in every riot in the place since his +arrival there. Somebody testified to the fact that he had boasted +himself able to hold his own against twenty adversaries. + +The face of the Chancellor darkened slightly as this fact was elicited +by questions from the Constable. Then a slight sensation was caused in +the hall by the sudden stepping forward of Lord Amalric de Montfort, who +asked leave to bear a certain testimony about this very man. He declared +that he was very decidedly of opinion that this man's name was not +Robert Holker, but Roger de Horn, a famous braggart and bully in Oxford +during past years, who had been forced to fly the place on account of a +murderous outrage upon the person of Hugh le Barbier; and he believed +that his evidence against him now was all part and parcel of some fresh +plot against the life and liberty of a good man and a faithful comrade. + +Amalric as he spoke laid his hand affectionately upon the shoulder of +Hugh, and immediately public opinion began to turn in favour of the +supposed criminal. + +A buzz of talk instantly arose. The former episode, long since +forgotten, of the Magician's Tower and Hugh's imprisonment there by +Roger de Horn and Tito Balzani was at once on all lips. The Chancellor +desired to learn some details of that occurrence, and Hugh stood up and +told the tale, carrying the sympathy of all hearts with him. When he +went on to speak of the occurrence of two days back, and of the stealthy +cowled figure in the doorway who had struck the murderous blow, his +words, instead of being heard with scorn and disbelief, carried the +convictions of all, and a voice in the crowd called out,-- + +"If thine accuser is indeed Roger de Horn, then mark my word, the +accomplice-monk is Tito Balzani!" + +A strange, strangled cry went up from the crowd. Sudden conviction of +the truth of these words seemed to come home to many hearts. Voices were +heard declaring that Tito had been seen in the streets of late--or one +singularly like him. Others declared that they had certainly seen Roger +de Horn, only they had not remembered whose the familiar face was under +its beard and bronze. Excitement rose high; there was a call for these +two men. Constable and Chancellor alike desired that if in the city they +should be brought before them, and there was hurrying to and fro of many +persons. + +Then suddenly and unexpectedly a cry arose,-- + +"They come, they come! they are being brought bound and fettered before +the Court. That is Tito Balzani in the habit of the monk, and there is +Roger's sullen face glowering upon all! Who are these that be bringing +them in? Leofric the bachelor, and honest Jack Dugdale, together with +Hal Seaton, our good citizen's son, and his future brother-in-law, +Gilbert Barbeck. Now this is a marvellous strange hap; and there be +others of the company too. Who are they? and whence come they? Marry, +but it is a happy chance that brings them here to-day!" + +The crowd, uttering these and many like words, gave way right and left +before the group of persons who had solicited the right of entrance to +the Chancellor's presence, as they had a matter to lay before him that +brooked no delay. + +The leader of the band was a fine-looking old countryman, and just +behind him walked a buxom dame, probably his wife, who led by the hand a +maiden with veiled face, whose form could not be distinguished through +the folds of the habit she wore. Behind these, again, walked the two +bound prisoners, whose faces expressed the extreme of terror. One of the +pair was guarded by Leofric and Jack, the other by Hal and Gilbert. As +this strange procession made its way into the hall the crowd set up a +great cheering, and Hugh le Barbier gave a violent start and fixed his +eyes eagerly upon the veiled figure of the girl. For although he had +spoken nothing of this matter, being unwilling to speak Linda's name in +the audience of the Court, he had been suffering a terrible anxiety all +this while on her account, wondering what had befallen her, and if, +indeed, some evil plot menaced her. Amalric had vowed to ride across to +Eynsham and make inquiries there directly the Court rose, but he knew +that it was of the first importance for him to stand forth as Hugh's +friend and champion here; for as a son of the great Earl his popularity +in Oxford was immense, and the Chancellor himself had a great friendship +and reverence for De Montfort. + +Chancellor and Constable alike looked with surprise upon the group now +standing before them. The weather-beaten countryman had bared his head, +and having made a clumsy reverence, he began to speak in short, abrupt +sentences, as though unaccustomed to the task, yet stirred by unwonted +indignation and stress of feeling to make the effort. + +"My noble lords and masters," he said, "I have come hither to-day, +hearing of the court to sit in judgment on the misdeeds of certain +persons in this town, to bring before your worshipful notice the tale I +have to tell. I am a man of Eynsham. I carry water for the monks, and +keep the gate. My wife dwells with me hard by; and we have a niece +entrusted to our care. This maid is virtuous and beauteous. She is the +light of our eyes. In her youth, when little more than a child, she was +loved by and she loved a student of this city called Hugh le Barbier. I +see him standing yonder. They were separated by the machinations of evil +men, and the maid went nigh to lose her life. We cared for her, and she +grew sound again. A short while since her lover came back. He wooed her +openly before our eyes. We loved him, and the maid loved him, and they +plighted their troth anew. Some happy months fled by. Nothing disturbed +her mind save a fancy, once whispered to my wife, that one of the monks +was ever watching her. We chid her for this, knowing the monks to be +godly men, and she spoke of the fancy no more. Yester morn there came in +haste to us these four youths you see here, all of whom have been known +to us from coming sometimes to Eynsham with Hugh le Barbier. They told +us that a plot was on foot against him, and they feared against the maid +likewise. They told us that they believed some men would come ere the +day was over, and seek by a well-contrived plan to get possession of the +maid, by showing the signet-ring of her lover. Not to make my tale too +long, I will only tell what, with much debate, we decided on. These +youths I concealed in the house, taking their boat well out of sight. +The maiden kept close to the side of her aunt; and things went on as +usual in the house. + +"Shortly after noon come yon two miscreants, the one wearing the cowl +and habit of the monk, even as you see him. They bring with them a +pitiful tale. The maiden's lover is ill. He desires to be soothed by +sight of her. He sends his ring by a faithful messenger and a holy +father confessor, who will bring her to him. My wife appears to +hesitate, and asks if she may not accompany her niece. Plainly they are +prepared for this, and reply readily that she may do so. I know well +what is meant by that complacency. They would wait until they had +reached some place where the river runs smooth and swift, and then they +would wind her clothes about her and throw her into the depths, and +never a sign would be seen again of my good wife Bridget Marlow!" + +A groan went round the crowd; the Chancellor's face grew stern, those of +the criminals were blanched with terror. The man went rapidly on with +his story. + +"We had planned what to do. We gave them patient hearing. We showed no +sign of distrust, and the maid and her aunt went to their room as though +to prepare for the journey. I set food and wine before our guests, and +they refreshed themselves, talking in low voices between themselves the +while. Methought the man in the habit was strangely little like a monk; +and, moreover, I saw in his girdle, from time to time, the glint as of +some long, sharp weapon, such as certes no monk ever carries. Nor have I +ever seen monk eat and drink as yon fellow did, albeit the ungodly are +fond of jibing at them as gluttonous men and wine-bibbers. + +"After they had refreshed themselves they desired to be going. They had +come by boat, and would return the same way. I asked the monk if he +would not like to visit his brethren of the abbey; but he replied rather +uneasily that he had not the time to do so to-day. He was anxious above +all things to return to the bedside of the sick man, and bring back with +him the medicine which he knew would be the best cure--meaning the +presence of the maid. + +"Whereupon a great wrath seized upon me, and I suddenly rushed at him +and pulled back his cowl, and then, seeing well his dark face and +untonsured head--which ye can see well for yourselves--I cried out, +'Thou art no more monk than I. Thou art Tito Balzani, my sister's +stepson, a dog of an Italian, who has been hooted out of Oxford before +now!' Well, in a moment he had whipped out a long stiletto--I have it +here to show you--and was at my throat like a tiger. But I had given the +signal already, and yon four doughty lads were at my side in an instant. +Even then, albeit we were five to two, we had no small trouble with +them: for we did not desire their hurt, but only to take them prisoners; +whereas they would have done to death the whole of us to gain their +liberty, had we not been too quick for them. But at last we overcame +and bound them, and they have been bound ever since. I bring them here +before your worshipful presences, that ye may do with them even as ye +list." + +And here the narrative of honest Marlow came to a sudden end. He +tendered to the Constable the long, sharp stiletto he had wrested from +Tito, and retired to the background. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + +_THE CHANCELLOR'S AWARD._ + + +The story was told. Amalric stepped forward and offered to the +Chancellor a second long stiletto, the very fellow and counterpart of +the one just tendered by Marlow. + +"This was the weapon found buried in the heart of the dead man," he +said; "I can testify that my friend and comrade Hugh le Barbier, whose +room at St. George's I share, never possessed such an one. It is of +Italian workmanship, and the two weapons are a pair from the same +maker." + +A low murmur had been for some time rising from the crowd; now the +people broke forth into execrations and menaces. Somebody pulled the +cowl from the head of the would-be monk, and when the untonsured head +and foreign face was seen by all, the clamour of wrath and fury could +not be kept down; indeed it needed all the authority of those +surrounding the Constable and the Chancellor to restrain the angry +clerks and citizens from setting upon the wretched criminals and tearing +them limb from limb. + +But the tumult was appeased after some little delay, and the Chancellor +spoke in clear and ringing accents. + +"Tito Balzani, you are here confronted with the evidence of your crime. +Have you anything to say in your own defence?" + +The wretched criminal, cowering with fear, confessed his guilt, only +pleading in extenuation that Roger de Horn had been the leading spirit +all through, and had devised the plot, whilst he had been only a tool in +his hands. + +The Chancellor heard these words with stern coldness, and, deigning no +reply, contented himself with handing the culprit over to the Constable, +as he had no jurisdiction over the persons of other than members of the +University. Roger, however, claimed to be a clerk, and to be under the +authority of the Chancellor; so whilst the hapless Tito was led away to +the Constable's prison, to be dealt with hereafter by a different +tribunal, Roger remained amongst the unruly clerks, who awaited the +award of the Chancellor in some fear and trembling. + +Every eye was fixed upon the face of the great man as he rose to speak. +He had conferred for a while with the Constable, and now addressed +himself in the first place not to the dark-browed Roger, whose face was +a picture of lowering malignity and craven fear, but to the throng of +minor defaulters who had been accused of indiscriminate rioting in the +streets during a period of many weeks, and of acting as ringleaders in +the disturbances which were growing almost intolerable. + +The Chancellor spoke with moderation but with great firmness, pointing +out the folly and danger of such conduct, the interruption to study, and +the peril to the peace of the city. He then went on to say that he +greatly reprehended the practice of carrying arms--a custom which, in a +city surrounded by walls and inhabited by members of a peaceful +fraternity, ought not to be needful, but which the lawless violence of +the clerks had rendered necessary. He hoped that in days to come this +custom would die out; but for the present he should not attempt +legislation for the well-disposed and orderly members of the University. +But he called upon all the turbulent clerks who had been convicted of +disturbing the peace on many different occasions to deliver up their +arms at once into his keeping, and to refrain from bearing them again +until they had licence to do so. The names of these persons were to be +taken; and if they were found with arms upon them after this injunction, +they were to be brought before him by the Proctors, and would then be +dealt with more severely. + +The Constable then rose and said he should make a like rule for +turbulent citizens; and the ringleaders of the recent riots were brought +up one by one and bidden to lay their arms upon a table placed there for +the purpose, after which their names were taken, and they were, as it +were, bound over to keep the peace. + +This act, which combined clemency with firmness, was very popular with +the multitude, and the culprits themselves were thankful for having been +treated with such leniency. A number of them left the hall on hearing +this award, but others remained to hear what would befall their old +comrade Roger de Horn, who had not been recognized by many in his +changed condition, having in fact taken some pains to keep himself away +from former associates until he had carried out his plans. + +The braggart and bully was led in his turn before the Chancellor, his +hands still bound, but the arms he had upon him still in their place. +Roger was one of those men who always carried a sword, and was of the +regular swashbuckler type so common in the Middle Ages. He looked a +pitiable object now--fear and rage struggling for mastery in his face as +he met the steadfast gaze of the Chancellor. His spirit had deserted him +under his misfortunes, and his blotched face was white with craven fear. + +"Roger de Horn, calling thyself Robert Holker, thou hast been caught +red-handed in an act of unpardonable wickedness, and hast been (if thy +comrade speaks truth) deeply concerned in a murderous plot. Thy case +will be considered at leisure, and thy punishment made known when that +of Tito Balzani is likewise decided. Meantime thou wilt be kept in +restraint, and taste the wholesome discipline of prison. Take off that +sword and deliver it, in my presence, to Hugh le Barbier, whom thou hast +sought so greatly to injure. Thou shalt never wear arms in this city +again. Thou wilt do well, if ever thou dost receive liberty, to quit +Oxford and seek to live a different life in some other place. Here thy +record has been nothing but one of black treachery and disgrace!" + +A murmur of approbation followed these words. Gilbert Barbeck, who was +standing guard over the prisoner, so far loosed his right hand as to +enable him to obey the Chancellor's command. With sullen brow, and eyes +that gleamed fiercely as those of a wild beast caught in the toils, +Roger detached the sword from his belt and tendered it to Hugh; but so +malevolent was the look upon his face that a faint cry broke from the +veiled maiden who stood nigh at hand, and drew the Chancellor's regards +upon her. + +"Remove the prisoner," he said sternly; and Roger was led away, the hall +almost clearing itself as soon as the people had seen the last of this +procession. + +Around the daïs at the upper end there still remained the knot of +persons who had brought in Roger and Tito, together with those who had +accompanied the Constable and the Chancellor. The latter turned towards +Linda, and asked in a gentle tone,-- + +"What dost thou still fear, fair maiden?" + +She made a humble reverence and put back the hood of her cloak, +permitting for the first time her fair, pure face to be seen. Her eyes +looked like those of a startled fawn, and the flitting colour came and +went in her cheek, but she spoke with a soft and gentle steadiness which +bespoke a well-ruled spirit. + +"I have come to fear those evil men with a great fear," she answered. +"Twice have they sought to compass the death of him I love, and to +obtain possession of mine own person. They are crafty and wily, as well +as fierce. I fear them sorely. No place seems safe from them; and yet +one of them is mine own kinsman--my half-brother. But I fear me he has +sold himself to do evil, and is the tool of a spirit more wicked than +his own." + +Here Bridget Marlow, who had been speaking apart with her husband, +stepped forward and said,-- + +"Reverend sir, the maid speaks no more than the truth; and if Roger de +Horn be let loose again, methinks peril will again threaten her safety +and ruin the peace of our home. But for the promptness and courage of +these young gentlemen, I trow I should have been murdered and the maid +carried off ere the sun set yestere'en. Although I love her as the apple +of mine eye, I fear me that our home is no safe place for her--or will +not be when Roger de Horn is set at liberty. Wherefore we do ask counsel +and help of thee what we shall do for her, for she was sent to us from +her father's house because that was no safe place for her; and now our +home seems little safer, and were hurt to come to her from thence, our +grey hairs would go down with sorrow to the grave." + +Edmund de Kynaston, who had been present at this function, had been seen +a little while before to step to his father's side and speak earnestly +with him for a few minutes; and now the Constable stood forth, and +addressed himself partly to the Chancellor and partly to the kinsfolk of +the maid. + +"I have somewhat to say about that. This maid is of our city, and +therefore has a claim to what protection I, as keeper of the city, can +afford her. I grieve that twice over she has been subjected to the +machinations of evil-doers; and since the man who plans these evil +deeds may probably (since he has been artful enough to keep his hands +free from actual blood-guiltiness) be sooner or later set at liberty, it +behoves us to take measures to thwart any further schemes on his part. +So, my lord Chancellor, I have a proposition to make. Within the walls +of the Castle the maid would be safe. I myself have a daughter who has +ofttimes begged of me to find for her a companion of her own age and +sex, to assist her in her tasks and be her friend and confidante. This +maid is virtuous and fair; she is beloved by Hugh le Barbier, of whom +all men speak well. He is ready to make her his wife so soon as his +father shall be willing; and pending that time, I will give her an +asylum in my household, and my daughter will make of her a companion and +friend. Will that content you, good people, who have played the part of +parents to the maid?" + +The Marlows were overjoyed at the proposition. Greatly as they regretted +parting from Linda, they felt that their home was no safe asylum for +her, and that it was scarce the fit home of one who was to wed with a +scholar and a gentleman in the position of Hugh le Barbier. Linda +herself, although with some tremors, gratefully accepted the proffered +boon; for she remembered pretty Alys of old, and had always loved and +admired her. To dwell near to her, in a place where she could sometimes +see her lover, and have news from day to day of his safety, was an +enchanting prospect; and though she shed some tears at parting from her +kindly aunt and uncle, her face kindled into smiles of hope and +happiness as Edmund and Hugh presently conducted her into the presence +of Alys, who started up from her embroidery frame with a little cry of +surprise and pleasure. + +Although she had charged Edmund to carry a message to her father when a +rumour of what was passing below had reached her, she scarcely expected +that the result would be so prompt and satisfactory. Ever since Hugh had +recommenced his wooing of Linda, Alys had been to some extent in his +confidence, and had been full of keen interest in the matter. Hugh's +disappearance, and his sudden return with his story before dawn to-day, +had filled all his friends with excitement, sympathy, and wrath; and his +fears for Linda's safety had awakened in Alys the vehement desire to +befriend her. Edmund had even gone forth to see if he could find any +trustworthy friend to dispatch to Eynsham (marvelling what had become of +Leofric, Jack, and Gilbert, who were wont to be forward with help where +any comrade was concerned), when he had met the procession coming in, +and had hastened to Alys with a hurried account of what he had gleaned +from the brief explanations of his friends. After that he and Alys had +made this plan of befriending Linda, and now she had been brought to her +apartment to be her "friend," as the girl herself called it, though +Linda declared that it was as tirewoman or serving-maid she had come. + +"For I am but a city maiden, and thou the daughter of a noble knight," +said Linda; whereat Alys smilingly rejoined,-- + +"Nay, but thou art the betrothed of one who will one day win his spurs, +and rise to be as great a man as my honoured father. We love Hugh here +even as a brother, and I have so ofttimes longed for a sister." + +So the gentle Linda took up her new duties within the safe shelter of +the Castle walls, and the life of Alys was the brighter and happier in +consequence. She was in need of a friend and confidante of her own age +and sex; for her mother kept her with strict hand, and now that she was +growing older, and Edmund was stronger than of yore, he and his friends +came less to that upper room which had come to be called "the maiden's +bower." Her brother was able to go forth for some of his studies, and it +had even been thought that he might soon enter as a scholar at St. +George's in the Castle. Alys rejoiced in his return to greater health +and strength; but it had left her somewhat more alone, and she rejoiced +greatly when Linda came to be her companion, for she learned from her +the soft Italian tongue, and a greater proficiency upon the lute; whilst +she taught her friend those things which she had studied with her +brother, till Linda felt that a whole new world was opening out before +her. + +Those were peaceful and happy days for the two maidens. Although the +world without was full of strife, the echoes of which sometimes reached +them in their quiet chamber, they lived with their books, their music, +their needlework, and their birds, seeing the familiar faces of Edmund +and his comrades day by day; but jealously watched and guarded by Dame +Margaret de Kynaston, who felt Linda now to be her charge, as well as +her own daughter, and was well pleased--after the first surprise at +Alys's "whim"--with the working of the arrangement. + +It had by this time become pretty evident to the parents that Amalric de +Montfort was wooing their daughter, although he had not yet declared +himself. Sir Humphrey was well pleased, for he believed that the Earl of +Leicester was and would remain the greatest man in the kingdom--not +excepting the King himself. Dame Margaret, however, was less sanguine on +this point, and had misgivings sometimes as to the ultimate fate of the +great leader of the Barons' party. She was not anxious for her +daughter's hand to be irrevocably pledged, and did not encourage the +visits of Amalric more than the duties of hospitality required. She was, +however, willing that her Alys and Linda should have instruction in +book-learning, which they so keenly desired; and Leofric continued to +come from time to time to read to and instruct them, although Edmund was +not so regular at these readings as he was when unable to attend +lectures in the schools. + +It was from Leofric that the girls learned the ultimate fate of Tito and +Roger. There had been talk of condemning both to death; but since Roger +had not struck the murderous blow, and had claimed benefit of clergy (to +which, however, he was hardly entitled), he had escaped with his life; +and it had seemed hardly just to take the life of his comrade in evil, +who had been his tool in this crime. Also Balzani had made a great +effort to save the life of his son, and in the end the two men had been +sentenced to banishment--Tito from the realm altogether, Roger from +Oxford and its environs. Both had disappeared promptly. Tito had been +guarded out of the kingdom, and was outlawed, and it was thought that +Roger had accompanied him; but although this was not certain, it was +believed that Oxford had seen the last of him. If he came back, he would +certainly be arrested, and some worse punishment dealt to him for his +insubordination. + +Hardly had these things taken place before all the city was thrown into +a state of wild excitement by the arrival of the great Earl of +Leicester, who came there on his way to the south coast, and was +received with open arms by the University, from the Chancellor down to +the rawest clerks fresh from the country. + +By the people De Montfort was regarded as the champion of their +liberties and the defender of the realm from foreign rule and foreign +spoilers. The friars supported him, and their influence went far with +men of all classes. Save for this many might have feared to give +adhesion to the cause, for the papal part of the Church sided with the +King. But the friars, and particularly the Franciscans, in this land +were no tools and slaves of papal tyranny. They were thinking men of +deep personal piety, lovers of mankind, and champions of the poor and +oppressed. They were zealous advocates of the cause of constitutional +liberty, of which De Montfort had made himself champion; and in Oxford, +where their influence was widely felt, the Earl was certain of an +enthusiastic welcome. + +Many songs were composed in honour of the idol of the city; and as he +rode into it, escorted by a large following of clerks who had gone forth +to meet him, they burst into the following ditty, sung in Norman-French, +but which may be translated thus:-- + + "Right many were there men of fame, + But all of them I cannot name, + So great would be the sum; + So I return to Earl Simon, + To tell the interpretation, + From whence his name has come. + + "Montfort he is rightly called-- + He is the _mount_, and he is _bold_ (fort), + And has great chivalry: + The truth I tell, my troth I plight, + He hates the wrong, he loves the right, + So shall have mastery. + + "Doubtless the _mount_ he is indeed; + The Commons are with him agreed, + And praise is due to them: + Leicester's great Earl right glad may be, + And may rejoice full heartily, + To gain such glorious fame." + +And then, excitement and enthusiasm working mightily within them, the +clerks commenced shouting and singing all manner of couplets which had +been made at different times whilst the Provisions of Oxford had been +under discussion. + + "Totam turbat modica terram turba canum, + Exeat aut pereat genus tam profanum." + +Which may be rendered in English,-- + + "A paltry set of curs is troubling all the land, + Drive out or let them die, the base ungodly band." + +The Earl received the adulation of the motley crowd with a courteous +dignity; but he could not linger long in Oxford. It was part of his +policy to make sure of the hearts of his friends, and show himself in +various places where a welcome was certain. But just now he was on his +way to Dover, which it was necessary to secure for the cause. He had +been already in Wales and the West, taking practical possession of many +cities--expelling the King's sheriff from Gloucester because he was an +alien, and the Savoyard Bishop of Hereford on the same ground. It was +small wonder that the clerks greeted him with songs of praise, or that +the old couplet anent the "foreign dogs" should be lustily revived. + +The Earl was in arms, and had a following of nobles with him, but as yet +the peace of the country had not been materially broken. The Welsh war +afforded excuse to the Barons for mustering under arms; although all +far-seeing persons felt that it would scarcely be long before the sword +was unsheathed in England also. + +During the weeks and months which followed, news came in which kept the +whole city in a tumult of excitement. From the fact that Amalric +remained as a student in Oxford, it was natural that intelligence of the +great Earl's movements should be brought regularly and constantly to the +town. Sometimes it was Guy de Montfort who came himself, and stayed for +a few nights at the Castle; sometimes dispatches were brought to +Constable or Chancellor by a travel-stained messenger, and more than +once the whole city and University had been on the tiptoe of excitement +and uncertainty, expecting every day to hear that some collision had +taken place, and that the long-expected conflagration had burst out. + +Dover and the Cinque Ports had declared for De Montfort and the Barons. +London had received him with open arms, and the King was practically a +prisoner in the Tower. + +Once the Earl had been in great personal peril. He had ridden forth from +London with a following of only a few men-at-arms, when some followers +of the King's managed to get possession of the keys of the Southwark +gate, and threw them into the river. After this they gathered a number +of troops together, and lay in wait for the Earl upon his return, hoping +to cut him off and slay him on the spot. Indeed, so great was the peril +that De Montfort and his followers gave themselves up for lost, signed +themselves with the cross, and prepared to sell their lives as dearly as +possible; but the citizens of London, hearing of his danger, rushed out +to his defence, broke open the locked gate, and drove back the King's +soldiers with much loss. They carried their hero in triumph into the +city, and demanded the instant death of the traitors who had planned the +deed. The Earl, however, interposed on their behalf, and they were let +off with a heavy fine, which was employed in strengthening the defences +of the city. + +Later on, the Earl returned for a while to Kenilworth, and there set +about strengthening that already formidable fortress. He garrisoned it +more strongly, and brought thither many warlike engines which he had +transported with him from the Continent. For he was beginning to see +that there was imminent danger of civil war, although for the present +moment he hoped to avoid it. + +What gave to him and his followers the keenest anxiety was the attitude +taken up by Prince Edward. He had succeeded in escaping from the Tower +to Windsor, and was now gathering about him a party of moderate men who +had the welfare of the realm at heart, yet who had no desire for any +upheaval of existing conditions. He had drawn to himself a number of +important personages, one of whom was his cousin, Henry of Almain, son +of Richard King of the Romans, the King's brother, who until now had +been sworn to the cause of the Barons. + +This latter had had the courage to go and tell De Montfort of his +defection, though ready then to promise never to take up arms against +him; but the Earl's reply had not been conciliatory. It was one of the +things which militated against De Montfort that he could not always +command his temper in moments of irritation. + +"Lord Henry," he said, "I grieve not for the loss of your sword, but for +the inconstancy which I see in you. Go and take arms as you will, for I +fear you not at all." + +Young Henry had joined his cousin at Windsor with many other good men. +All now knew that war must come--unless, indeed, the arbitration talked +of by the French King should lead to pacification. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. + +_TURBULENT TIMES._ + + +"Surely they will not submit!" + +"To give up all at the bidding of a King of France! Why, as well might +we be slaves at once!" + +"I always said no good would come of seeking aid from such an one as he. +England is no fief of France. What has Louis to do with her affairs?" + +"The brother-in-law of the King!" + +"Himself a tyrant, always seeking to curtail the rights of his own +nobles and people!" + +"A tool of the Pope's and a foe to England!" + +"It was shame they should seek to such a man as he! But surely--oh, +surely our noble Earl will not be holden back from his righteous work by +that Mise of Amiens!" + +All Oxford was in a state of intense excitement. The news had just been +brought that the French King, whose arbitration had been sought upon the +dispute between the King and the Barons of England, had just given his +decision. + +In every point he sided with Henry. All that the Barons and Commons of +the realm had been struggling for these many years was to be set aside. +England was to be given over to the Pope, and to be governed by aliens; +for the award gave the King full power to choose his own counsellors, +and as all men knew, he had scarce a single favourite who was not a +foreigner. Everything was to be as before the Provisions of Oxford had +been drawn up; and the French King wound up by counselling both parties +to lay aside rancour, and live at peace, whilst he urged upon his +brother of England to grant an amnesty to his Barons. It was the kind of +award which any discerning man might have expected from one like Louis +of France. He was a king who desired absolute power in his own realm, +and although he had not abused that power as Henry had, he would not on +that account uphold the subjects of the neighbouring kingdom against +their sovereign. The marvel is that a man so far-seeing and astute as De +Montfort had ever pledged himself to be bound by the award of France. He +might surely have foreseen, as it seems to us, what the nature of that +award would be. + +England was furious--that part of it at least which followed the +fortunes of the Earl. The bulk of the nation at that time, at any rate +in the large and populous districts, was all for the cause of +constitutional freedom; and the King was hated and distrusted by his +subjects, not without cause. Had his son been on the throne, matters +might have taken a different turn; but although Edward was personally +beloved, and was becoming a strong power in the state, he was not yet of +sufficient account to change the aspect of affairs. He was acting with +his father, as was right and natural in the circumstances. He could not +form a third party in the state. Had his father abdicated in his favour, +the war might perhaps have been averted; but such a thing never entered +Henry's head. He was by no means weary of the task of ruling even such a +turbulent people as his own was fast becoming. + +All Oxford was in commotion. Keen excitement reigned everywhere. The +news was three days old, yet the populace was as greatly stirred as at +first. For once clerks and citizens were in accord, and denounced in +unison the French King and the Mise of Amiens. The greatest eagerness +for fresh news prevailed throughout, and every traveller entering the +city was besieged for intelligence. + +"When Lord Amalric comes back, then we shall know!" was a frequent cry. +For Amalric had gone to Kenilworth for Christmas, and had not yet +returned. He was said to have been detained there by the accident to his +father which had prevented the Earl himself from being present at the +Mise of Amiens. + +Some thought that had De Montfort been there to urge his cause in +person, a different award might have been given; but this seems hardly +probable in face of the French King's attitude all the way through. The +Earl had, however, intended being present; but just before he would have +left the country his horse fell with him, breaking his leg, and he had +perforce to remain behind at Kenilworth, and appoint a commission to +represent him before the French King. + +Amalric, however, would not be likely to remain long away from Oxford, +and his friends awaited his coming with the same eagerness as the whole +city. When it was rumoured that he was on his way, and might be expected +at any hour, a constant watch was kept for him; and upon his arrival he +was received with the greatest enthusiasm, and found himself obliged to +halt at Carfax, and respond to the acclamations of the people, whilst +his ears were assailed by a thousand questions which he could only +partially answer. + +Amalric had awaited at Kenilworth the arrival of the news from France, +and he was in a position to assure the citizens and clerks of Oxford +that his father would not abandon the cause of liberty, despite the +award of Amiens. + +This statement was received with thunders of applause; hats were waved +and weapons brandished, as though every man there was ready to go forth +and fight for the liberty of the realm. + +What would be the next step, and whether there was any chance of +pacification, Amalric could not say. His father, he averred, was very +loth to press matters to extremity; but he would sooner draw the sword +and die wielding it, than see his country brought a second time under +the yoke of papal tyranny and foreign greed. If the King (as was +probable) was now resolved to continue in these evil ways, the Barons, +with the Earl of Leicester at their head, would stand forth against him. +More than that he could not say, but upon that point they might rest +assured. + +That was enough to raise shouts and cheers of enthusiastic joy. The +people crowded about Amalric, blessing him, and calling him by every +sort of high-sounding name. To them he represented his father, and the +great Earl was at present the idol of the city. + +Amalric had some ado to get through the crowd and ride to the Castle, +where he was received with great eagerness by his friends there. The +whole family, together with Hugh le Barbier, had assembled in one of the +lower rooms to meet him, and he had scarcely returned the greetings +showered upon him ere he was called upon to tell his news, and to say +how his father had received the tidings from Amiens. + +At greater length than he had spoken to the crowd, he told the Constable +and his friends of the resolve of the Barons to resist to the death. It +was no more than Sir Humphrey, and indeed all thinking men, had +anticipated. To forego all that had been struggled for during these many +years, and to tamely yield up the spoils of hard-fought fights, was +altogether foreign to the nature of the English people, and to that of +their leader. + +"I would they had never asked the King of France," said the Constable, +expressing the general sentiment; "I always said no good would come of +it. Louis of France may be a saint--of that I know nothing--but he is +very much a King, and as such would certainly uphold the royal +prerogative on every point." + +"And now, will there be war?" asked Hugh, speaking very gravely as he +leaned over the back of the chair in which Linda was seated. Dame +Margaret and the two maidens had been permitted to come below to +welcome Amalric back, and it might be noted how, as he told his tale, +his eyes kept seeking ever and anon the face of the fair Alys. Now he +came a few steps nearer to make his reply. + +"I fear me so. Unless the King hear reason, it can scarce be otherwise; +and bolstered up as he now is by his brother-in-law of France, he is +little likely to show even the amount of moderation that he has +sometimes done." + +The faces of all grew grave. War had many times been spoken of, but +always as a thing not immediately probable; now it seemed indeed at the +very door, and the faces of all betrayed a greater or less amount of +anxiety. Amalric looked around him, as though to ask how far his friends +would support his party even in extremity; for when once the question +came to be settled by force of arms, it was always doubtful how far men +would go. There were many who, whilst ardently desiring to see the King +advised for his good, would not take up arms against him, regarding him +as the anointed servant of God. + +This was indeed somewhat the view of Hugh le Barbier, and it was +therefore with keen pain that he contemplated the thought of civil war. +His sympathies were with the Barons. His personal affection for Amalric +inclined him to fight shoulder to shoulder with his comrade. But he had +a deeply-seated repugnance to fighting against the lawful sovereign of +the realm, and whilst others pressed round Amalric, declaring that they +would fight to the death for the cause of liberty, he stood in the same +place, behind Linda's chair, and did not join his voice in promise or +protest. + +Perhaps Amalric guessed at the struggle going on within him, for he did +not seek to draw him into the discussion so eagerly conducted. It was +Linda who, presently raising her eyes to her lover's face, asked +softly,-- + +"And thou, beloved, what wilt thou do?" + +"I know not," he answered, in a very low voice. "The choice is indeed a +grievous one. I would follow Amalric to the world's end in a cause which +I knew to be righteous; but when it comes to raising the standard and +taking up arms against the anointed King, I scarce know how I can do it. +Would that the choice had not to be made!" + +There were not, however, many in the city who seemed troubled with +Hugh's scruples. Almost to a man they were eager for the outbreak of +war; and most warlike preparations were set afoot by the clerks and +scholars, as though these latter expected to take the field and fight +under the banner of De Montfort as soon as ever the collision occurred. + +Beaumont meadows were alive from sunrise to sunset with a motley company +from the city, the most part of them being members of the University, +who spent their time exercising themselves in feats of warlike prowess +on foot or on horseback--shooting at targets with bow or catapult, +tilting one at the other with the lance, or practising sword-play with +such good-will that wounds and bruises were sometimes the result of +these encounters. Still, since these were given and taken in good part +and for the sake of the cause, no umbrage or ill-will was aroused +thereby. The Chancellor himself encouraged these warlike sports, and it +was known that he would put no hindrance in the way of students who +wished to join the mustering ranks of the Barons' army. + +The Chancellor was a warm supporter of De Montfort's cause, and he gave +every facility to the clerks for training themselves in the arts of war. + +The friars, as has been explained before, were equally in favour of the +cause of the people; and Leofric, who after hearing Hugh's scruples had +consulted Father Angelus, was quite satisfied by the answers he +received, and ready to throw himself heart and soul into the cause of +the Barons. The friar admitted that neither party had all the right on +its side. Good and evil mingled in both, and personal ambition would be +found on both sides, marring the perfection of fruition. But the friars +held that a King might lawfully be withheld by his subjects from +becoming the slave of evil practices, and that it was better he should +be ruled by his own nobles, who had the good of the country at heart, +than by foreign hirelings, who cared for nothing but to fill their own +pockets, and sell the land to the emissaries of papal tyranny. + +Then in the midst of all this seething excitement, when it seemed as +though a spark falling might set the city in a blaze, the news was +brought that Prince Edward would march through, on his way to the Welsh +Marches. + +Consternation reigned in the breasts of the authorities when this news +was made known. They saw in it a source of real peril to the city. At +present public opinion was so entirely in favour of De Montfort, that, +in spite of all the excitement and tumult within the walls, the students +were in excellent temper with one another, even North and South +forgetting their differences for the moment. But if the Prince should +appear--the Prince whose personal influence always made itself felt, and +who was probably coming this way with a view to enlist the sympathies of +some amongst the clerks and scholars on his fathers side--it was almost +certain that his appearance would result in a demonstration in his +favour by a certain number of students, who would then come into instant +collision with the bulk of their fellows, and a hideous and +indiscriminate battle would be the inevitable result. + + "Read but the records aright, and you'll see, + When the students in Oxford do once disagree, + 'Twill be but of months, at the most two or three, + Ere the conflict in England rage furiously." + +This was the common saying of the time, and although not always perhaps +borne out by facts, since Oxford was often in a ferment, it was +certainly thought advisable to check the possibility of a miniature +civil war within the walls of the city; and both Constable and +Chancellor sent messengers to the Prince, to request him not to attempt +to enter the city walls. + +Prince Edward was always reasonable and courteous. He received the +messengers with great good temper, and refrained from carrying out his +purpose. He could not, however, change his line of march, and he passed +close to Oxford on his way, lodging himself for a few nights outside +the walls, in the palace of Beaumont, though keeping his army at some +greater distance from the city. + +The authorities, of course, could not expect more in reply to their +request; but they were still uneasy at the thought of the presence of an +army so near to their town, although the students appeared to be unaware +of or indifferent to its proximity. To make assurance doubly sure, the +city gates were all locked, and the fiat went forth that none should +enter or leave the city without special permission from the authorities. + +Some amusement and some indignation were felt by the students at this +infringement of their liberties. However, for three days they submitted +with tolerable grace to the restriction imposed. On the fourth day +Prince Edward and his forces resumed their march, and the students saw +no reason why they should not resume their pleasures. Beaumont meadows, +being beyond the walls, had been closed to them for this period, and now +a great band sallied forth to resume interrupted amusements there. + +But when they reached Smith Gate, by which they expected to make their +exit from the city, they found it still locked and barred, and the +watchman told them that he had had orders to keep it shut all day and +only open it on the morrow. + +"Shame! shame! shame!" cried the crowd, surging round it like a swarm of +angry bees, those from behind pushing upon those in front, and adding +their voices to the clamour. + +It was perhaps rather unwise of the authorities to have been so slow in +restoring the liberty of the turbulent clerks. They had behaved better +than had been looked for during the time of detention, and it would have +been more politic had this detention been ended at the first possible +moment. But perhaps they reckoned too much on the temperate spirit +showed so far, and thought it more prudent not to be in haste. + +Leofric and Jack, coming homewards after morning lecture, were stopped +in their approach to their lodging by the presence of this surging +crowd, who were all armed, ready for their military pastimes, and who +seemed now actuated by an exceedingly warlike spirit. + +Jack quickly learned the cause of the commotion, and Leofric exclaimed +eagerly,-- + +"I will to the Chancellor, and get leave from him for the gate to be +opened; but I pray you, brother students, make not a disturbance in the +city. Wait only one short half-hour, and I will be back with an answer." + +Some heard the appeal, and gave a half-hearted assent; but those +struggling round the gate neither heard nor heeded. + +"Run upon thine errand, good Leofric!" cried Jack, "for they will not +have long patience. I will seek to stay them from violence, but methinks +they look like storming the city walls!" + +Leofric sped away, and Jack remained--sturdy Jack, who must ever be in +the heart of the fray. Soon he was more in its heart than he altogether +desired; for more and more clerks came flocking up, the birds of the +air seemingly having carried the news that mischief was afloat. + +"Shall we be pent up in the city, like rats in a trap?" + +"Shall we be treated like children, and not suffered abroad save at the +pleasure of nurses?" + +"Who dares to hem us in like this? Let us show them what free men can +do! Let us teach them a lesson! Shall we submit to tyranny, when all the +land is astir against it? Never, never, never! Oxford scholars never +shall be slaves!" + +It needed but words like these to set the whole crowd in a fury. Many of +the number had axes in their hands, and all were armed. Flinging +themselves upon the gate, they hewed it down with fierce strokes, +scoffing at the resistance and remonstrances of the sentries. The +woodwork could not long withstand their determined blows. The gate +crashed outwards; a fierce yell of triumph arose from the crowd. The +victors poured out into the fields beyond, carrying with them the +splintered fragments of the strong wooden door. + +The spirit of devilry had now got into them. They insisted that the +remains must be interred with due formality. They chanted over their +burden the office for the dead, and digging a huge trench in Beaumont +meadows, they performed mock obsequies in a very irreverent fashion. + +But hardly had this been accomplished before the cry was raised,-- + +"The Provosts! the Provosts! and the worshipful Mayor himself!" + +It was true. The city authorities had heard of this outbreak, and the +Provosts, or Bailiffs, had gathered together a body of bold citizens, +and were marching out to quell the disturbance and punish the rioters. +Indeed, it was said that they had already made some arrests amongst the +clerks, and this news ran like wildfire through the crowd. + +In another moment the bell of St. Martin's rang out in the city, and +more clerks came flying out to learn what had happened, and where help +was needed. Thus the luckless Mayor and Provosts were hemmed in between +two furious bodies of clerks, who inflicted grievous wounds upon many of +them, tore their banner, and put them to speedy and ignominious flight. + +Now the blood of the students was up. They had gone too far to stop +without doing worse. + +"We will teach the town varlets to interfere with our liberties!" roared +the excited and incensed youths, as they rushed back once more into the +city, filled with the desire for mischief and destruction which is +characteristic of a mob. + +"Teach the Bailiffs to mind their manners!" roared the excited students, +and dashed upon the houses of their foes. A bowyer's shop was plundered, +the house of one Bailiff was set on fire, those of the others were +plundered after being broken open, and a store of spicery was scattered +in all directions. + +"Now for the Mayor! now for the Mayor!" shouted the hot and panting +depredators, flushed with victory and carrying all before them. + +The Mayor was a vintner by trade, and had a fine cellar stocked with +goodly wine. This cellar was on the street level, but was strongly +barricaded. Nothing, however, could withstand the fury of the attack +made upon it. The mob of unruly clerks rushed in, drew all the taps, +drank their fill of intoxicating beverages, and let the rest flow out +into the street. + +When the Chancellor and the Proctors, who had in the first instance +proceeded towards Beaumont meadows through the Bocardo Gate, returned to +the city to seek to quell the unseemly riot, it was to find one house in +flames in the south part of the city, whilst the drunken mob was +clamouring around the vintners store, singing wild bacchanalian songs, +and disporting themselves like veritable demons. The street ran red with +good wine, and the Mayor, white-faced and terrified, watched helplessly +from an upper window the destruction of his property and the wanton +waste of his stock in trade. + +The appearance of the Chancellor, however, produced an immediate and +extraordinary effect. Clerks upon the outskirts of the crowd took to +their heels, flying hither and thither in all directions, uttering cries +of warning to their fellows. Of these, some were too drunk and some too +wildly possessed with the spirit of devilry to move even for this +warning; but most of the men fled as for dear life, the authorities +taking note of as many as possible, who felt, as they scudded away under +those cold, clear eyes, that they would have to answer for this day's +proceedings, probably in a fashion they little liked. + +The Chancellor strode up to the nucleus of ringleaders, who alone stood +their ground. + +"The King shall hear of this!" he said, in calm, cold accents. "It is a +case for his Majesty to decide. Go back to your Halls and lodgings, +every one of you. You are a disgrace to the city and to the kingdom!" + +The abashed clerks obeyed that voice, and retired to their various +domiciles; but before three days had passed, Oxford had lost hundreds of +her scholars and a considerable number of masters also. An exodus like +this not unfrequently followed upon an outbreak of ill-will betwixt +"town and gown." + +Afraid of what the King's verdict might be, and perhaps with a view to +greater liberty upon the outbreak of war, scholars and masters alike +vacated their quarters, and made their way to Northampton, where +fugitives both from Oxford and Cambridge often assembled, and where +there was talk of establishing a third University. + +And so ended the "great riot of 1264." + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + +_KING AND STUDENTS._ + + +Oxford was all in a ferment. The ordinary life of the University was +suspended. Lecture-rooms were deserted alike by masters and scholars, +and these were to be seen standing in knots about the streets, talking, +gesticulating, arguing--excitement written on every face, and generally +wrath and scorn as well. In other quarters clerks were to be seen +issuing forth from their lodgings with their worldly goods strapped upon +their backs, calling out farewells to their friends, and marching away +towards the city gates, generally in parties of six or eight, and +singing songs in praise of De Montfort or in despite of the King, but +betraying beneath their jauntiness of outward mien an inward secret +wrath. + +The citizens, too, looked anxious and perturbed, and there was a +prevailing unrest throughout the town. The wealthier scholars might be +seen talking earnestly together, looking to their arms and +accoutrements, and comparing notes as to their horses. It was plain that +something very unusual was afoot, and that, too, of a nature disquieting +to all. + +In point of fact, the King had sent a decree ordering all the students +of Oxford to depart to their own homes. The Chancellor had reported to +his Majesty on the subject of the recent riot, and it was supposed by a +great number of the students that this decree was made as a sort of +punishment for their unruly behaviour. But there was another and more +personal motive as well. + +The King had just summoned a Parliament to Oxford, and it was generally +shrewdly supposed that this Parliament would practically annul those +famous Provisions of Oxford which had, during the past six years, been +the war-cry of the Barons' party. Now the temper of the city was known +to be easily aroused, and Oxford was almost unanimous in its support of +the cause of the Barons. It would be a bold act on the part of the King +to trust himself within the city walls had he come as the confessed foe +of De Montfort--at least if the members of the University were assembled +there in force; so to get rid of them by some plausible expedient was a +wily and politic move. + +"He fears us! he fears us!" was a constantly-heard cry as bands of +clerks took their way out from the city, some in high dudgeon, others +rejoicing in the liberty thus accorded them of openly throwing +themselves into the civil war if it should chance to break out, as all +men knew must quickly be the case. + +The young nobles did not for a moment disguise what they were about to +do. Many of them had fathers or friends in the opposing ranks, and they, +if expelled from Oxford, intended joining them. Most were on the +Barons' side, but a few leaned towards Prince Edward. Personally he was +beloved by many more than hastened to join him; for the unpopularity of +the King's cause, to which the son was pledged, held back many a +youthful admirer. It was to De Montfort's banner that the warlike +spirits of Oxford desired to flock, and Amalric was daily besieged with +eager offers from ardent lads to follow him to his father's camp, if he +would only accept their services. + +"My father will not fight unless forced to do so," was the reply he +returned to many. "He is not in haste to plunge the land into the +horrors of war. But if the King will persist in his evil ways, and will +refuse all counsel save from those who advise him to the nation's hurt, +then must swords be drawn, though not till all else has been tried." + +And in fact, as the King drew near to Oxford, the Barons sent +representatives to Brackley, with powers to seek for a reconciliation +and agreement before recourse was had to extreme measures. + +Within the Castle was great excitement as the days passed by. The +Constable, by virtue of his office, must needs stand aloof from any open +expression of loyalty towards the enemies of the King; and the +Chancellor observed an attitude of grave neutrality. And yet it was well +known that both these functionaries had the cause of the people at +heart, and that they were beloved of De Montfort and loved him well. + +Alys was working a beautiful banner for Amalric; and many were the +visits he paid to the upper chamber where she and Linda were to be found +plying their skilful needles. Linda's heart was ofttimes rather heavy +within her just now; for Hugh had left Oxford immediately after the +Kings decree had become known, and she believed that he had departed +home, intending, with his father's approval, to join Prince Edward in +Wales, or wherever he might have now marched. In times of peril, such as +seemed approaching, it was hard to lose sight of a loved one, not +knowing when or how the next meeting might be. Sometimes Linda's tears +would fall as she worked, and Alys would say gently,-- + +"Do not grieve so, sweet Linda; the war will not last long, and then he +will come back. We shall not love him less--even Lord Amalric says +that--because he follows with the Prince. If the Prince were the only +leader in the land, we would all follow him too, and this war would be +averted." + +"War is so terrible, so cruel!" Linda replied. "It goes to my heart to +think what may happen when army meets army in the bloody field." + +"And yet there is glory in war as well as pain!" cried Alys, with a +light in her eyes. "I would think of that were I in thy place, dear +Linda." + +Linda raised her glance to Alys's face, and asked softly,-- + +"Thinkest thou that thou wilt be able thus to speak when my Lord Amalric +goes forth to fight?" + +"Why not?" asked Alys innocently; and then seeming to divine something +of her companion's meaning, she added, "The Lord Amalric is a very +proper gentleman, but he is no lover of mine." + +"And yet methinks he has no eyes for any but thee, sweet Alys; and has +he not said many times that this banner will be his talisman in times of +danger and heaviness? Methinks he worships the very ground upon which +thou dost tread." + +"Oh no, no," said Alys, with a look of trouble in her eyes. "Lord +Amalric has been a kind friend to us all, and we all love him. But it is +not so with us--nay, Linda, say, have I ever said or done aught that +might seem to speak of this?" + +"Nay; it is he who has looked this long time at thee as a man looks at +his heart's beloved," answered Linda. "And he is such a proper gentleman +and such a gallant spirit that I had thought perchance--" + +She did not complete her sentence; but Alys understood, and shook her +head. Her cheek glowed, and there was a light in her eyes which looked +strangely like that of love. Linda's needle went in and out rapidly, and +she bent her head over her task; but bending towards her companion, she +asked in a low whisper,-- + +"Dearest, tell me, is it Leofric?" + +Alys started, and the crimson flooded her face. She made no reply, only +bending lower over her frame, so that even Linda could not see her +expression. But somehow from that moment a new bond seemed to establish +itself between the two girls; and when Linda ventured to ask presently, +"But what would thy parents say? He is but a poor clerk, though a +bachelor and like to become a doctor in time," Alys made low-toned +answer,-- + +"I ofttimes think that the lot of the great ones of the earth is far +less happy than that of those less lofty in the eyes of the world. I +have even heard my father say the same, and methinks he would deny me +nothing that was for my happiness, were his heart but once convinced." + +"And truly," added Linda, with a sigh, "these be dangerous and troublous +days in which to live. The victor of to-day may be the vanquished of the +morrow. In very sooth, a humbler lot is sweeter than one where the cup +of prosperity may be dashed from the lips, and adversity follow swiftly +on the heels of triumph. All who know him love Leofric, and speak well +of him." + +Again the cheek of Alys glowed; her voice faltered as she spoke the next +words,-- + +"Thou hast read mine heart, sweet Linda, but thou must keep its secret +locked within thine own. I scarce dare to think of it myself, for never +by word or sign has he showed me aught of his heart; and yet +methinks--methinks--" + + +"Ay, verily, love has a language of its own," said Linda, in sympathetic +accents, "and souls may meet when words there be none. He would not dare +to lift his eyes to thee, fair Alys, thinking, perchance, that thou art +half plighted to my Lord Amalric--as, indeed, others think. Yet, should +time pass and he become learned and famous, and shouldst thou remain +unwed--ah, well, methinks he will find his tongue; and thy father will +not say him nay when he knows how thine heart inclines." + +Alys listened to these welcome words with glowing eyes and blushing +cheeks. Never before had she dared, even to herself, so openly to admit +how her childish friendship for Leofric Wyvill was ripening into +something deeper and more earnest. Of late she had seen less of him, but +he still came and went at the Castle, and was the friend of all. He was +thought to be a youth of great promise; and in those days almost any man +of learning, however humble his birth, who rose to academic distinction, +might hope to win his way to affluence and influence before his beard +was grey. There would be no presumption a few years hence in a Regent +Master or young Doctor aspiring to the hand of a knight's daughter. The +only bar likely to arise would be that imposed by the Church, were the +student to desire orders; but Leofric had never showed a leaning towards +the religious life, and was the less likely to think of it now--unless, +indeed, he believed Alys lost to him as the affianced bride of Amalric, +and entered upon the career of an ecclesiastic as a salve for a wounded +spirit. + +This danger did suggest itself for a moment to Linda, and she resolved +to watch earnestly the turn of affairs. The conversation at that moment +was interrupted by the entrance of Edmund and Leofric into the room +where the girls were sitting. Alys bent over her frame to hide her +momentary confusion, but it passed unobserved in the excitement of the +moment. + +"The King is on his way thither!" cried Edmund; "he is to enter the city +to-morrow. The students are pouring out as though the plague were +threatening. In a few hours' time, they say, there will be scarce three +hundred left, and perhaps not so many. The townsfolks are all agape and +disturbed; for many there be of the clerks who vow they will never +return, but will set up their abode in Cambridge or Northampton, and +establish a rival University there. The masters have followed their +scholars, as is but wise; and the citizens are crying out that the King +has ruined the town. It is but a sorry welcome he will have on the +morrow when he makes his entry here." + +"Methinks his Majesty will repent him of his mistake," said Alys. "Why +did he drive forth the clerks? My father could surely have kept order in +the city." + +"Marry, he was afraid," answered Edmund; "and indeed he had some cause, +for in his mandate to my father he speaks of his own lords who will +attend him as being 'so untamed and fierce' that he dare not trust them +so near to an army of turbulent clerks, famous for their unruly +conduct." + +Alys's lips curved to a smile of some contempt. + +"Methinks our monarch is but a poor poltroon," she said. "Small wonder +if the realm sink beneath his sway." + +"Nevertheless he is about to do a bolder thing than any King has +attempted since the days of the Saxons," answered Edmund, laughing; "for +he declares that his first action will be, on entering Oxford, to pay a +visit to the shrine of St. Frideswyde!" + +"And wherefore should he not?" asked both girls in a breath; whereupon +Leofric was called upon to tell the legend of St. Frideswyde--how she +had taken the vow of chastity, but was pestered without ceasing by the +King of Mercia, who desired her hand in marriage. She fled from him to +Oxford, where he pursued her, laying siege to the town; but in answer to +her prayers he was struck with blindness, and returned to his own +country, leaving her in peace to found her nunnery and devote herself to +the religious life. But since that date no King had ever ventured to +intrude himself even to lay offerings upon her shrine, and the +resolution of Henry the Third to brave the anger of the virgin saint was +regarded as a proof of piety and courage, since he openly declared that +he could not believe any ill would be suffered to follow an act of +homage to one whom he revered and desired to honour. + +Upon the morrow the city was bedecked with banners and costly cloths, +and the Constable, together with the Chancellor and all men of +importance in the city, went forth to meet the King and his nobles, to +bid them welcome to the city, and to conduct them to the church of St. +Frideswyde. Here a procession of Canons, with the Abbot at their head, +would be waiting to receive the monarch, and to conduct him to the +shrine, where miracles were still said to be worked. + +Alys and Linda rode forth with the company from the Castle to see the +sight, and Edmund, with Leofric and one or two other comrades, formed +their body-guard. It was strange to see the streets of Oxford so empty +of their crowds of eager students, who, upon an occasion like this, +would naturally have been thronging out with songs and garlands, ready +alike for a riot or a reception. But although there were still some +scholars who had given no heed to the King's arbitrary decree, they had +no intention of showing him any honour, and remained within their own +quarters, save a few who, like Edmund and Leofric, had some cause to go +forth in one of the processions. + +Amalric, of course, would in no case have been one to offer personal +reverence to the monarch. He was not, however, in Oxford at the moment, +having left to gain news as to the attempt at negotiation which was +still to be made, and quite a band of clerks who had arms and horses had +accompanied him, eager beyond measure for the coming fray, and, if the +truth were to be told, by no means anxious that peace should be restored +before the appeal to arms had been made. + +"I scarce know the city," said Alys to Leofric, as they rode through the +streets, in which the citizens were grouped about, but which were so +strangely bereft of their crowds of gowned scholars. "Methinks his +Majesty will repent him when he sees what his decree hath done. And +methinks he would repent him still more did he know how many +stout-hearted soldiers he has dismissed to join his foes. I trow that if +the rival armies meet face to face, there will be many an Oxford clerk +in the ranks who will deal deadly blows to the King's cherished troops." + +Leofric was of the same opinion. He had had some ado in restraining Jack +from joining himself to one of the bands sallying forth in search of +adventure and warlike pastime. Leofric was of opinion that sooner or +later the rupture would come, and they would have to range themselves +beside their champion, and perhaps strike a blow in defence of their +cause; but he had no desire to anticipate this moment, and still hoped +that some good might come of the impending negotiations, although the +haughty bearing of King Henry's knights and nobles as they rode into +Oxford went far to quench this lingering hope. + +The King was haughty in his bearing towards both Constable and +Chancellor, whom he knew to be friends of De Montfort. He chided them +somewhat roundly in face of all his company for the recent riot, and +even threw out a hint of displacing them from office if this sort of +thing went on. + +He was more gracious in his bearing towards the municipal authorities, +but was still very much the triumphant monarch, visiting a turbulent +city which had once caused him trouble, but where he meant for the +future to be very much the master. + +His demeanour did not inspire either respect or confidence in the hearts +of those who saw him, and only when he approached the precincts of St. +Frideswyde's shrine did he begin to comport himself differently. + +When, however, he ceased to have men of the world to deal with, and +found himself confronted by those ecclesiastics who had always been the +supporters of the royal and papal power, he became another creature +altogether. He dismounted from his horse, begged the blessing of the +Prior, made costly gifts to the Priory, and finally presented himself at +the shrine itself, prostrating himself with every token of outward +reverence, and placing there his offerings, which were on a lavish and +princely scale. + +Only a few of his own followers accompanied him into the church, and the +procession which had ridden forth to meet him did not attempt to enter +so much as the precincts. It was plain to all that the King had come in +no conciliatory mood, but that, puffed up by the award of France, he now +intended to rule the realm with a rod of iron, and to listen to neither +remonstrance nor condition. + +"Pray Heaven the saint may send him a vision that shall change his +heart," spoke some one from the crowd, "else the sword will be +unsheathed ere many weeks have passed!" + +Alys's eyes sought the face of Leofric, and she asked,-- + +"Does the saint in truth ever send warnings and visions to those who +worship at her shrine?" + +Leofric looked doubtful; he was not very clear as to the capacities of +the saints in this respect. + +"In truth, fair lady, I know not. It seems to me that visions and +wonders are seldom vouchsafed to those who are puffed up with pride and +self-esteem. It is the poor and humble in spirit to whom the Lord +reveals His mind--so at least Father Angelus teaches. Yet they say that +miracles are worked at the shrine, and I heard that the son of one of +the burgesses of the city was raised from the dead not so very long +since by being brought hither and laid before the shrine, whilst the +monks offered prayers for him. He had died beneath the knife of the +surgeons, they say, who had worked upon him some hoped-for cure, which +had caused instead his death; but he was restored, they say, by the +virgin saint. Would that she could restore to his Majesty that +willingness of spirit towards our noble Earl which in times past he hath +been known to show!" + +But the saint seemed to have no message or warning for the King. No +immediate hurt, however, followed upon his bold act in presenting +himself at her shrine. He retired thence puffed up with pride and +vainglory, reversed in his assembled Parliament every previous Provision +of Oxford, and scornfully dismissed the representatives of the Barons +who came to suggest a compromise. + +"I will be King, and rule by mine own power!" was the motto he seemed +now to have adopted. Men shook their heads and looked gravely at one +another, echoing the words Brother Angelus had been heard to speak,-- + +"Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall." + + + + +CHAPTER XXII. + +_IN ARMS._ + + +"Fair Mistress Alys, we have come to say farewell." The Constable's +daughter, with her banner in her hands, was waiting for this farewell +visit from Amalric de Montfort. All knew now that the red flame of war +was about to leap forth and devour the land. The King, having scornfully +refused all overtures, was already marching upon Northampton, whither so +many Oxford students had fled. The Earl of Leicester was in the +neighbourhood of London, where Amalric was about to join him; and with +him was to march an eager, gallant little band, which included a number +of his comrades in this city, and in particular Leofric Wyvill, who for +the nonce was acting as his esquire and personal attendant. + +The thought of regular study had become impossible even to a studious +mind like Leofric's. Confusion reigned at Oxford, and for the time being +the students had dispersed in all directions. Masters and pupils had +alike caught the infection of excitement. Doubtless the city would +return to its normal conditions in time, and the scholars would flock +back in great numbers during the course of the ensuing months; but for +the immediate present nothing was talked of but the approaching appeal +to arms, and books were laid aside for the sword, which was the weapon +that must decide this next crisis of the country's history. + +Since the King's scornful rejection of the Barons' moderate request, all +thoughts of peace had been abandoned. Amalric had got together his eager +little band, and now he had come, with a few picked comrades beside him, +to say farewell to Mistress Alys, and to receive at her fair hands the +silken banner that she and Linda had spent so many long hours in working +for him, with his father's coat of arms. + +By this time the friends and followers of Amalric had come to regard +Alys as his plighted lady-love, albeit in reality no troth-plight had +passed between them. It was scarce the right time for proffering +love-suits, but yet the Constable and his wife could not be ignorant of +the fact that young Lord Amalric had set his affections upon their +daughter. + +She stood now beside her parents, with the silken banner in her hands, +her fair face flushed, her heart beating rather fast, for she had never +before taken so public a part as she was to-day called upon to do in the +presentation of the banner; and remembering some words spoken to her by +Linda not many days before, she wondered whether indeed this act in any +way committed her to a step which she had never seriously contemplated, +and did not desire to contemplate. + +But maidens in those days had little choice of action. She had been +bidden by her parents to appear in the great hall and give the Lord +Amalric the banner. Now she was holding it out towards him, a blush on +her cheek, a bright light in her eyes; and perhaps it was only Linda, +out of all those standing by, who noted how the timid glance of the +girl's eyes went past the gay and gallant figure of Amalric and rested +upon the graceful form of Leofric, who in his shining armour, and with +his bared head from which the golden locks floated in a soft cloud, +looked the very image of some pious knight going forth upon a sacred +quest, not in search of gain to himself, but for love of the good cause. + +And this was indeed the feeling which actuated Leofric. He had small +expectation of any personal advantage from this war. Probably he would +have gained more of that by remaining in Oxford and continuing his +studies there, for he was more of the student than the soldier by +nature. But he was convinced of the righteousness of the cause on which +the Barons were embarked. He had imbibed the teachings of the +Franciscans, and believed that duty and love of his country demanded +this sacrifice and effort. True, he was sufficiently imbued with martial +ardour at this moment to go forth proudly and eagerly; but the guiding +motive was love for his fellows and for his country, as distinguished +from personal ambition. + +The same could not, perhaps, be said so entirely for Amalric. If this +war ended in a victory for the Barons, his father would be the greatest +man in the kingdom, and his sons must of necessity become men of +importance, if not of wealth. Already he was treated with greater +deference and respect than he had ever been. It was natural that his +heart should swell with pride and joy at thought of the coming struggle; +for with the country so entirely with them, how could they think of +failure? + +It was a pretty sight to see the gallant youth come forward and take the +banner from the hands of Alys, kissing those fair hands at the same +time, and vowing that the very sight and touch of that banner would act +as a talisman and charm. + +Alys spoke a few low-toned words of encouragement and hope which she had +conned over beforehand; then the banner was laid before Brother Angelus, +who was there for the purpose, and he was asked to bless it ere it went +forth to do its appointed work. + +The friar performed this office very reverently, and gave the banner +once more into Amalric's hands, charging him to be a true and faithful +servant to his heavenly as well as to his earthly father; to show mercy +and kindness to his foes in the hour of triumph; to look for help to +God, and not to man; to avoid all haughtiness of spirit in the time of +prosperity, and lack of faith if adversity should come; always to +remember the poor, and seek to mitigate by every means possible the +inevitable horrors of war: this was the duty of the soldier who loved +the Lord as well as the cause. The prayers of all good men would follow +and aid those whose hearts were pure and their hands vowed to the +righteous work. + +Whilst this charge was being given in one part of the hall, taking up +the attention of the spectators, Alys had watched her opportunity, and +had drawn Leofric towards her by a little gesture of the hand. It was +natural that she should wish to say farewell to her brother's friend, +and one in whose company she herself had passed so many happy hours. +None noted anything strange in the action, and few heeded it. + +"Thou art going to the war, Leofric?" she asked, in a voice which +faltered a little in spite of herself. + +"Yes, truly am I, fair Mistress Alys. I love not war, and yet methinks I +cannot keep away. The Lord Amalric is my friend, and he and his have +shown me great kindness; besides this, I have at heart the cause of the +people. Methinks I would fain strike a blow against the iniquitous +pretensions of the Pope, and the tyranny of false sycophants, who turn +his Majesty's heart from his own loyal subjects." + +"But thou wilt come back?" said the maiden, with the sparkle of tears in +her eyes. + +"I trow yes," he answered earnestly. "I shall ever look upon this city +as my home. If I come safe through what lies before us next, I will +return when the sword is laid down, as pray Heaven it soon may be." + +"I pray so indeed," answered Alys earnestly; "I shall pray for thy +safety night and day." + +For a moment their eyes met, and a flush arose in the cheek of both. +They stood thus for several seconds, as though no words would come to +either. + +Alys first recovered herself, and unwinding a scarf of crimson silk +which she wore about her waist, she lightly threw it over Leofric's +shoulder, saying softly,-- + +"Wear it as thy sword-belt, and forget me not." + +The moment was past. Like one awakening from a dream, Leofric followed +the rest from the hall into the courtyard, where their horses were +standing. He knotted the scarf across his shining breastplate, and gave +one long look at Alys as he passed from the hall. But although she came +out to see them all mount and ride away, he did not even seek to catch +her eye or to exchange a word with her again. His heart was in a strange +glow. He felt like a knight who has received a token from one almost too +sacred and high above him to be dreamed of as lady-love; yet in the +strength of that token he felt that he could work prodigies of valour. +What could he not do for her sweet sake? And yet the idea of asking +anything in return never entered his head. Was it not enough that she +had shown to him, the poor student and bachelor, that she regarded him +with interest, and thought of him as of a friend? + +Away rode the cavalcade in the bright sunshine of the early spring, the +citizens cheering them to the echo, the friars pausing to bless them and +their crusade, their own hearts full of joy and the anticipation of +coming triumph. + +The King had marched to Northampton, as has already been said, therefore +to take a northerly route would be unsafe for the little band. Amalric +believed his father to be in or near London, and anyhow the metropolis +was known to be favourable to the cause of the Barons. He had therefore +made up his mind to proceed thither, and all through the hours of the +daylight the little band of horsemen trotted briskly on their way, +receiving warm greetings from the inhabitants of the towns and villages +through which they passed, and becoming more and more confident as to +the feeling of the nation, at least in these regions. + +They avoided the road which would take them near Windsor, for there they +feared the power of the King was still in the ascendant. They kept a +more northerly course, and by the time the daylight waned found +themselves close to Watford, where they resolved to encamp for the +night. As they approached the place, they were aware of a considerable +excitement going on; and when they rode into the streets with the banner +of the De Montforts floating before them, the people crowded round them +in great excitement, clamouring to know the news. + +"They say the war has broken out! They say the people have attacked the +King's brother's house at Isleworth, and devastated everything. The +Temple is broken open, and the money carried off. The Jews have been +pillaged, and their houses burnt. The bell of St. Paul's was ringing all +yesterday. They say great things are being done in the city!" + +Amalric knew nothing of this; but it sounded like the beginning of war, +and he eagerly asked for news of his father. + +At the moment none could tell him more than that the Earl was in London, +and that this insurrection had been made in his favour. Amalric would +fain have pushed on through the night to join him, but was restrained by +the unfitness of their horses for a longer journey. The inhabitants of +the little place received them most hospitably; and whilst they were yet +at supper after their long day's travel, a messenger came bursting in +full of exciting news. + +"The Earl is at St. Albans! The news has just come! He is on his way to +relieve Northampton, which has sent to him for help against the King. He +rests there to-night, and on the morrow he resumes his march. God be +with him in his undertakings; for we were sick to death of the exactions +of foreigners and the taxes of the Pope. 'Let us break their bands +asunder, and cast away their cords from us.'" + +A great cheer went round, and was taken up by those without. Now indeed +did it seem like the longed-for liberation, when an army was in pursuit +of the tyrannical monarch to defeat him, and rescue a besieged city. +Amalric could scarce sleep at night for excitement, and early next day +he was astir, visiting his own charger himself, and assuring himself +that a night's rest had put the gallant creature in trim for his day's +work. + +All the place was astir. Recruits had joined the little band. The spirit +of enthusiasm and enterprise was working mightily; the consciousness of +the near presence of the Earl acted like new wine on the spirits of the +men. + +The ride from Watford to St. Albans was but short, and soon after nine +o'clock the little band approached the city Walls. The same air of +excitement and animation pervaded that locality, and as soon as +Amalric's banner was seen, the people rushed out and gave him eager and +joyous welcome. Leaving the bulk of his followers drawn up in the +street, and taking with him only Leofric and a couple of others, Amalric +went straight to the quarters of his father. All the place was full of +soldiers, the clang of arms was heard everywhere, and the tale of the +uprising of the citizens of London in their hero's favour was passing +from mouth to mouth in the crowd. Amalric was received with shouts of +welcome when it was known that he was indeed a son of their chief and +idol. The cheering brought De Montfort out from his house, and it was +touching to see the eager greeting betwixt father and son. + +Amalric was off his horse in a moment, and had bent his knee to his +father; whilst the Earl's eagle face softened at sight of his youngest +son, and he embraced him tenderly, with many tokens of welcome and +greeting. + +A few words served to explain the mutual position of father and son. The +Earl was glad of any reinforcements of trained men at this juncture, and +spoke very courteously to Amalric's gallant little Oxford contingent +when he rode up at his son's side. Already preparations were afoot for +the moving on towards Northampton, and De Montfort explained to Amalric +that the younger Simon was there, conducting the defence, and had sent +an urgent summons to his father to march quickly thither to his relief. + +"Simon is rash," said the Earl gravely: "he has courage, but lacks +discretion. I shall not rest till I am there myself. I would that I +could be in a score of places at once!" + +It would not be possible to reach Northampton till the morrow; but the +army was being marshalled into array for the start, when suddenly there +came dashing into the town a mud-bespattered messenger, riding a horse +that looked ready to drop, and Amalric suddenly cried out in alarm,-- + +"My lord father--see! it is my brother Guy!" + +Guy de Montfort it was. He had outstripped all his followers in his +eagerness when he knew that his father was at hand. His horse reeled in +his tracks, and fell panting and exhausted in the streets the moment his +task was done; whilst the rider, weary and worn as he was, flung himself +upon his father with an eager demonstration of joy, albeit he was the +bearer of evil tidings. + +"The city is lost to us! Northampton is in the King's hands! It is all +the treachery of the foreign foe!" and there and then in the ears of the +indignant people he poured out his tale--how the Prior of the monastery +of St. Andrew, just outside the walls, had undermined the wall, and so +let in a party of the King's soldiers, whilst an attack had been feigned +at the opposite end of the town. It was no lack of gallantry on the part +of the besieged; for so well had they defended the walls, and in +particular so great had been the damage done to the assailants through +the slings, the bows, and the catapults of the Oxford clerks, who fought +under an independent banner of their own, that the King had vowed he +would slay every man of them once he got into the city; so that these +had had to fly helter-skelter when the news came that the town had been +taken by strategy, and that the King's troops were already within. + +"And thy brother Simon?" asked De Montfort, who listened silently to +this tale, without breaking into the lamentations which filled the air +from those who stood round. + +"Alack, he is a prisoner in the King's hands!" answered Guy--"a fate I +narrowly escaped myself. For we ordered a sortie as a last hope, and +Simon's horse, terrified by the noise and confusion, became +unmanageable, and carried him whether he would or no into the camp of +our foes. I was riding after him to seek to aid him, when I was +surrounded and carried off, not by enemies, but by friends. The Oxford +clerks having got wind of the King's special wrath against them, were +flying from the city ere they should be taken, and seeing me in peril, +they dashed round and bore me away with them. I could scarce thank them +at the time; but methinks it is little I could do for Simon, and liberty +with the power to fight is sweet." + +Great dismay and anger reigned in the ranks of De Montfort's soldiers at +the news of this disastrous event; but the Earl himself reminded his +followers that it was but the fortune of war. They could not look for +unqualified success in any campaign, but must take the evil with the +good, not being over-elated by the one, nor unduly cast down by the +other. + +But the news brought by his son changed the tactics of the Earl. To +march upon Northampton would now be useless. He was in some ways glad to +be spared that task, and to carry out his former plans of securing +Rochester, which had fallen into the hands of the Earl of Warenne and +some other nobles, and was now holding out for the King. + +But before the army started forth on this counter-march, the heart of +Leofric was gladdened and lightened by the sudden appearance of his +comrades Jack Dugdale and Gilbert Barbeck, who had been amongst that +band of Oxford clerks who had made their way to Northampton, and had +narrowly escaped falling into the hands of the enraged monarch. + +Now they came riding after Guy de Montfort in straggling fashion, weary +and worn with their rapid flight, but full of hope and courage, and +eager to join forces with the great Earl, to whose cause they were bound +body and soul. It was a gladsome meeting between the comrades, and the +Earl himself gave cordial welcome to the gallant little band, and even +postponed his march for a few hours, to give them time to rest and +refresh themselves, and to obtain fresh horses from the friendly +citizens. + +"Now, this is like adventure!" cried eager Jack, as they rode forth at +last, a gallant company, he and Leofric side by side, to their own +infinite content. "I tell thee, good comrade, I have tasted war, and I +like the flavour of it mightily. I hewed down with my good sword three +fellows who came spurring after us, and from the walls I slew a goodly +number. Yes, the King himself stormed at the havoc we clerks of Oxford +wrought amongst his followers. I tell thee, Leofric, if he did put +slight upon us, we have revenged that slight in baths of blood!" + +From his talk, merry Jack seemed almost to have turned into a +bloodthirsty soldier; yet he was the good-natured, kindly comrade as of +old to those who came across him. He became a favourite with all during +that quick march, and even the grave Earl was seen to smile sometimes, +either at some of the youth's sallies, or at the mirth they provoked. +For Amalric would have him in his company, enlisting him as an esquire, +second only to Leofric; so that De Montfort could not but notice him +from time to time, and once he called upon him for his account of the +fight on the walls of Northampton. + +But Jack was destined to distinguish himself in another way ere many +days had passed. He was burning with zeal in the cause of the Barons, +and intensely eager to avenge the slight put upon that cause by the +stratagem of Northampton. + +"If they outwitted us once, surely we may outwit them here," he +remarked, as he looked at the solid walls of the city of Rochester, and +wondered how they were to be captured. + +He took counsel with one or two bold spirits, Leofric amongst the +number, and presently the vague idea which had suggested itself grew +into a definite plan. + +Amalric himself led the youth into the presence of his father to tell +the thing he had conceived, and Jack spoke out boldly, being a stranger +to fear. + +"Sir," he said, "I have been used to the water all my days, and +yestere'en I took a boat and dropped down with the tide into the city. +There is a bridge in the heart of it, and I thought how that if, whilst +we wait without the walls, we should send a fire-ship up the river's +mouth with the tide, and fire it against the bridge, it would so +affright and disturb the city, drawing all attention to the centre of +the town, that our brave soldiers at the gates could soon force an +entrance, even as at Northampton the false attack drew off the attention +of us all from that spot where the false foreign Prior had undermined +the wall. If a base foreign traitor can outwit honest Englishmen, surely +it is a game we can pay them back!" + +The Earl turned over the idea many times, and it found favour in his +sight. A small fire-ship could be easily made ready, and the ruse might +prove successful. + +"And how shall we know that the ship will come to anchor by the bridge +and fire there?" he asked thoughtfully. + +"Sir," answered Jack boldly, "if you will accord your gracious +permission, I will guide it thither myself, and having fired it will +dive off, and secrete myself somewhere amongst the shipping until the +tide turn and I can swim away. Or perchance my comrade, Leofric, will +accompany me in a small boat, and take me aboard when my task is done." + +The idea took hold upon the mind of De Montfort, and with great dispatch +and secrecy the fire-ship was prepared. The strong walls of Rochester +hardly invited assault unless there were some counter-distraction within +the city to render such assault less perilous to those without. + +The warlike Earl was daily weakening the walls by the resolute action +of his engines. He had machines almost unknown as yet in England, and +gave the besieged little rest night or day. But for all that the solid +walls still defied him, and the idea of assault was too perilous even +for the courage of the fearless De Montfort. He must not risk a second +repulse, lest the spirit of his soldiers should give way. He must not +attempt anything till success was assured. + +But Jack's stratagem was destined to prove a complete success. +Accompanied only by Leofric, in a light boat towed behind, the bold +young soldier guided his phantom craft up the mouth of the river upon a +dark, moonless night. By this time he had learned the river by heart, +and had no difficulty in quietly grounding the vessel against the +bridge. Then silently setting light to her fiery contents, he slipped +overboard to Leofric, and the two cast off, and rowed with muffled oars +to the appointed landing-place, where their friends awaited them. + +Long before they reached it the whole sky was in a glow, and they even +caught glimpses of hurrying throngs of people, all hastening to the +scene of the conflagration. That the whole town was in an uproar of +confusion they could tell even from a long distance. And Jack sang aloud +and cheered lustily in the joy and triumph of his heart. + +But a greater triumph was in store for the comrades when they finally +reached shore, and were brought by their companions into the lines once +more. + +The stratagem had been completely successful; the people had all rushed +down to the scene of the fire, even the soldiers quitting their posts to +assist. De Montfort, with a picked body of men, had made a grand assault +where the walls near to the gate had become greatly weakened. Wall and +gate had alike given way with a crash, and the besieging army had +streamed in in triumph. Rochester had fallen into the hands of the +Barons! + + + + +CHAPTER XXIII. + +_ON THE FIELD OF LEWES._ + + +They stood looking down upon the green plains and the venerable Priory +of Lewes. The cup-like hollow presented a strange appearance, being +dotted over with tents, and filled with armed men, moving hither and +thither like human ants, intent upon some important task. Within the +walls of the Priory the King was lodged, with his brother, his son, and +his counsellors. + +The little knot of youths, stationed upon the knoll that commanded a +view of these things, had their eyes fixed upon a small party of riders +who were moving forward towards the Priory, carrying a white flag before +them. + +A nearer view would have told an observer that two of this party were +ecclesiastics in their robes of office, being in fact none other than +the Bishops of London and Worcester; but those spectators on the knoll +did not need the evidence of eyesight to tell them that. They were well +aware of the embassy of the Bishops, and of the import of the message +they bore. + +"If that fails to bring his Majesty to his senses," said Amalric +gravely, "nothing can avert a bloody battle." + +"I would we might settle the matter by force of arms!" cried Jack, whose +blood was up, and who was eager for the ordeal of battle. "Even if the +King doth make promises, who knows if he will keep them? I am sick of +parley. I want the sword to be loosed from the scabbard. The King has +wrought desolation and ruin wherever he has gone. It is time that he +tasted that which he has inflicted." + +Jack spoke with eager impetuosity, which seemed suited to the martial +aspect of his strong, well-knit figure. He had gone up in the world +since his escapade with the fire-ship. He had now a fine charger of his +own, and a suit of mail. He was ranked as one of Amalric's esquires, and +was a favourite even with the Earl himself, who spoke kindly to him +whenever they met. + +London had of late been the headquarters of the Barons' army, whilst the +royalists had been marching hither and thither over the country, +"accompanied," as the chronicler of the time described it, "by three +comrades--plunder, fire, and slaughter. There was no peace in the land; +everything was destroyed by sword, fire, rapine, and robbery; everywhere +was clamour and trembling and woe." + +It was a state of things which could not continue, and the hearts of the +nation turned to the Earl as to a deliverer who alone could save them +from such misery. The men of London were with him heart and soul, and +had furnished him with a contingent fifteen thousand strong, with which +to meet and overcome the tyrant. But still De Montfort hesitated to draw +the sword in open battle against his sovereign; and even now, at the +eleventh hour, when the two armies had mustered about the field of +Lewes, he had sent two Bishops of known probity and piety, to endeavour +to bring the King to reason before the last appeal to arms was made. + +"What said the letter of the Earls?" asked Jack eagerly of Leofric, who +as a ready scribe was often employed in such matters as these. "Thou +wert closeted long with them last night. What did they say that hath not +been said a hundred times ere now?" + +Leofric drew from his tunic certain fragments of parchment, closely +written, which he scanned several times over, and then made reply to +Jack's question. + +"The Earls of Leicester and Gloucester did but repeat for themselves and +their party what has been said a hundred times before--namely, that they +desired peace, and to serve the King faithfully, and only to put down +the enemies of the realm, who deceive both his Majesty and the Prince, +and do despite to the realm. They offered to pay a large sum as +compensation for hurt done to the King's property, if he would make +peace and observe the Provisions of Oxford, and submit to the decision +of 'certain chosen Churchmen' what statutes ought to be observed, and +how far the oaths taken ought to be binding, saying that they wished to +keep their faith as Christians, and avoid the stain of perjury." + +Long and eagerly did the comrades upon the hillside talk together, +wondering whether this embassy of the Bishops would succeed where other +things had failed, or whether the King, blinded by pride and advised by +evil counsellors, would press matters on to the bitter end. They could +observe the signs of commotion below, round and about the Priory, and +finally they watched the great gates being flung wide open to admit of +the exit of the ambassadors. + +"What news will they bring--what news?" cried Amalric breathlessly, and +he turned and hastened towards his father's quarters, mounting his +horse, which stood tethered a little way off, and galloping away without +waiting for his companions. + +Leofric had paused when about to follow, for his eye had been caught by +an advancing figure that looked somehow familiar, and which seemed +making straight for them upon the knoll. Just as Amalric rode off, Jack +broke into a quick exclamation,-- + +"By my troth, here is our quondam companion Hugh!" + +The next moment Hugh le Barbier stood beside them, grasping their hands +and looking with eager affection into their faces. + +Although he came from the hostile camp, there was no hostility in the +hearts of the Oxford students as they stood together once more. Eagerly +did Hugh ask of their welfare, eagerly did they question him as to his +adventures during the past months, and, above all, most eagerly did they +ask him if he knew what sort of answer the King had returned to the +messengers just sent, and whether there was any chance of a cessation of +hostilities. + +Hugh gravely shook his head. + +"His Majesty is greatly incensed against the Barons. He would scarce +listen with patience whilst the letter was being read. Had it been +brought by others than Bishops, I fear me he would not even have heard +it. His brother sat beside him, and in scorn he declared that he alone +claimed the full sum offered by the Barons, as indemnity against his own +personal losses. He and the Prince were equally indignant with the King; +and whilst his Majesty dictated the terms of a wrathful letter in which +he defies the Earls, and throws back their allegiance and their oaths of +fidelity in their teeth, the Prince and his uncle together wrote another +letter even more haughty and insulting than the one composed by the +King, calling the Earls of Leicester and Gloucester 'faithless +traitors,' and I know not what besides, and hurling defiance at them in +a fashion than can but lead to one end. There will be no avoiding a +battle now!" + +Jack's eyes lighted with triumph, but Hugh spoke sorrowfully. He loved +the Prince, and he felt bound to the royal standard by his duty as a +subject. But the cause was not dear to his heart. Henry was not a +monarch to inspire either confidence or love, and his embracing the +cause of his foreign favourites--against whom this movement was really +directed--and telling his own English Barons that any opposition to them +was opposition to him, and that their quarrel was his, rendered him but +a pitiful creature in the eyes even of those who desired to serve him +loyally and well. None could stand near the royal presence without being +continually galled and chafed by seeing aliens and sycophants preferred +to honest and noble subjects of the realm. Hugh had had a fair insight +of late into the methods of the King, and his heart was somewhat heavy +within him at the thought of what must lie before the kingdom if the +issues of the day should be favourable to the royal cause. + +"If only the Prince were King!" he breathed. "He is hot and rash now, +stirred up to filial emulation in his father's cause; but his heart is +true and his judgment sound. Were he to be at the head of the state, we +should not have to groan as we are groaning now." + +And then turning suddenly away to another subject, he asked news of +Linda, where and how his comrades had seen her last, and if she were +still safe in the care of the Constable. + +"Yes, and like a sister to Mistress Alys," answered Leofric. "I trow she +is safe from any threatened peril there. But we have heard and seen +naught of her foes since they were driven forth from the city by the +Chancellor. I misdoubt me if they will ever seek to return." + +"And Lotta--is aught known of her?" asked Hugh. + +"She dwells with her parents yet," answered Leofric. "I seldom see her; +but Gilbert Barbeck tells me sometimes of her. She refused to visit +Linda in the Castle, and spoke fierce words which show that her heart is +yet bitter within her. But more than that I know not. She was always a +strange creature. Her own mother knows not how to deal with her." + +"Some say she hath a familiar spirit, and some that she is mad, which +perhaps is one and the same thing," said Jack. "All I know is that she +looks at you with eyes that burn like live coals. Methinks she has been +dabbling with Tito's evil books. If she takes not care, she may be +ducked or burnt as a witch yet!" + +But this was scarce time or place to dwell on private topics. Little +doubt could now exist that they were on the eve of a great battle. Hugh +looked regretfully into Leofric's eyes as they clasped hands before +parting. + +"I would we could fight side by side, instead of in hostile camps," he +said; "but when this cloud of evil and misery has swept by, I trust that +we may be comrades once again, in Oxford or elsewhere." + +"To be sure! to be sure!" cried cheery Jack. "Let once the King be +brought to reason, and all those vile foreigners sent back to their own +country, and our good Earl (foreigner though he be in race, yet not at +heart) at the head of his Council, then we shall forget our troubles and +feuds, and all will go merry as a marriage-bell." + +Yet for the moment there was nothing of merriment in the hearts of men, +but a stern nerving of themselves for coming strife. + +Leofric and Jack were met by the news that the King had received the +embassy with coldness and hostility, and had sent back an answer so +insulting and uncompromising that nothing was now thought of but the +appeal to arms. + +Leofric, going in search of Amalric, found himself in the midst of an +earnest gathering of knights and nobles, and heard the clarion voice of +De Montfort raised in solemn protest. + +"By the arm of St. James, I have done all that man can do to keep the +peace of the realm and my oath of allegiance. Be the result of this +day's work upon the head of his Majesty! He has brought all upon +himself. I would have saved him from it if I could." + +The Earl had had a presentiment, of which he had spoken before, that May +was to be a fortunate month for him, and an unlucky one for the King. He +went about amongst his people now with a look of serene courage upon his +face; and whilst stimulating them to do their best in the coming fight, +he urged them not to forget that their foes were also their brothers, +and that they must show mercy to the vanquished in the day of victory. + +A sense of great seriousness and earnestness prevailed in the ranks of +the Barons. They trusted their cause to the God of battles, assured of +its righteousness, and inspired by a religious as well as a patriotic +zeal. Many friars were with them, encouraging them by their presence, +and filling their hearts with fervent and pious thoughts. The soldiers +regarded their cause as a holy crusade against tyranny and slavery, and +in token of this feeling they fastened upon their arms a white cross, as +an outward mark of their faith. In a battle with their own countrymen +some such sign might be needed to distinguish friend from foe. A stern +enthusiasm filled all hearts, and the confidence of the soldiers in +their leader was unfaltering. + +De Montfort had won great renown as a soldier in Gascony, and his troops +had implicit faith in his powers. Moreover he set them an example even +in faith and piety; for upon the eve of the battle he spent the night +in prayer, whilst the Bishop of Worcester--one of the emissaries to the +King, and himself a notable patriot, Walter de Cantilupe by name--rode +through the ranks, and urged the men to confess their sins and receive +absolution, that they might ride forth upon the morrow in the full +assurance that the power of God was with them. + +Early upon the morning of the fourteenth of May, before the sun had +risen, the army of the Earl set itself in battle array, and prepared for +the march. In sight of all his men De Montfort bestowed the honour of +knighthood upon his brother-in-arms and brother Earl the young Earl +Gilbert of Gloucester, and two others; after which, with brave hearts +and cheery faces, the men marched in capital order towards that very +crest of rising ground from which a few days before Leofric and Jack had +looked down upon the town and Priory of Lewes, when the Bishops had gone +forth with their embassy. + +Since his accident in the winter, the Earl of Leicester had not been +able to ride as much as formerly, and he had a litter in which he was +carried. In that he travelled as far as this halting-place, although he +was to mount his charger during the battle. His litter would, however, +be kept in readiness upon the field, in the event of his requiring it; +and it was to remain beside the standard upon which his arms waved +proudly. For the nonce, instead of himself or any of his own followers +occupying it, there were placed inside for security those four traitors +of London who had once plotted his destruction, and who had been +hostages in his hands ever since. These men, bound, were placed in the +litter when it was vacated by De Montfort in favour of the charger now +led up for him to mount. + +But before doing so, the Earl turned to his soldiers, and addressed them +in his clear, ringing tones,-- + +"Beloved comrades and followers, we are about to enter upon battle +to-day in behalf of the Government of the kingdom, to the honour of God +and of our mother Church, and moreover for the maintenance of our faith. +Let us pray for grace and vigour, that we may overpower the malice of +our enemy. Since we are His, to Him we commend our bodies and souls." +With these words he fell upon the ground, stretching out his arms in the +form of a cross, all his soldiers following his example, whilst the +Bishops cried aloud,-- + +"Grant us, O Lord, our desire of a glorious victory, to the honour of +Thy name." + +Then the battle was set in order, and Leofric and Jack found themselves +placed in the right wing, which was to be led by Henry de Montfort, with +Guy and Amalric as his assistants. The centre was under the command of +the newly-made knight, Gilbert of Gloucester, who was to show his valour +to-day. The left wing was composed mainly of the Londoners, many of whom +had never seen war. They were commanded by three young nobles of known +courage. As for De Montfort himself, he took up a position where he +could watch the progress of the fight, and give help to that portion of +the army which seemed most to require it. + +The situation was a good one, on rising ground; and the tents and +baggage were piled on the crest of the hill, where the banner of De +Montfort floated by the side of his vacated litter. + +They had marched rapidly, in order to surprise the King's party; but +warning had reached them, and already there was a great stirring in the +hollow, which was alive with bands of soldiers being drafted into +position. + +Jack looked down with kindling eyes and flushed cheeks, and almost +immediately a strange sort of roar began to run through the ranks. The +cause of this excitement appeared to be the banner which had just been +unfurled in the royalist ranks. + +"The red dragon! the red dragon!" + +Leofric and Jack looked wonderingly at each other. + +"What mean they by that? What is the red dragon?" they asked. And +Amalric, looking over his shoulder with a stern, set face, made reply,-- + +"When the ensign of the red dragon is unfurled in the ranks of the King, +it is the sign that no quarter is to be given. We are to be slaughtered +like sheep in the shambles if it pleases Heaven to give our foes the +victory." + +At the sound of those words a strange murmur ran through the ranks. Men +gripped their sword-hilts hard, and set their teeth with a sense of iron +resolution, and an indignation which would go far to win the day. + +The field was in motion. The quick eyes of those posted upon the +hillsides saw that the royalists had begun to move. Prince Edward on the +right, was bearing vehemently upon their left wing, which consisted of +the London levies. The Prince had been bitterly angry with the men of +London ever since they had stoned and insulted his mothers barge, as she +tried to escape by water from the Tower, but was driven ignominiously +back by the citizens, who hated her for her many extortionate charges +upon the city. Now he was rushing furiously against his foes, who +wavered before the charge of trained horsemen. But no more of that could +Leofric and Jack see, for at this moment their own ranks were called +upon to move forward, and, behold, the battle had begun! + +The King's brother, Richard of Cornwall, King of the Romans, was leading +his forces against them. In another moment the rival armies had met with +a crash of arms. There was a stifling sense of pressure, and then a +recoil; whilst over the heads of their own men came hurtling showers of +stones cast from above at their assailants, and soon the closely-serried +ranks both of friends and foes were a little broken and scattered, +whilst man met man and horse charged horse in the indescribable _mêlée_ +of a hand-to-hand battle. + +Side by side, shoulder to shoulder, rode Amalric, Leofric, and Jack. +They felt rather than saw the recoil of their foes, who at first had +been pressing upon them with such fiery vehemence. Charging down the +hill, they met the answering charge of mail-clad warriors; but the slope +of the field was in their favour, and they hewed them down and routed +them, despite the fiery resistance they met. + +They were down upon the level now, and before them stood the serried +ranks of the centre of their foes' army behind which floated the red +dragon, marking the spot where the King himself was posted. + +But from behind, the ranks of the young De Montforts had been reinforced +by the contingent commanded by the Earl himself, and the knowledge that +their great leader was with them and amongst them seemed to turn to +steel the muscles of the soldiers, and with shouts and cries of fury and +anticipated triumph they hurled themselves again and again against these +opposing warriors, till at last they felt the solid wall give way before +them, and with a yell that rent the firmament they dashed into the +breach. + +"For God and Earl Simon! for God and Earl Simon!" was the cry upon the +lips and in the hearts of the soldiers as they felt the breaking up of +their royalist foes. + +Leofric had been fighting might and main, blindly sometimes, and +breathlessly, yet with a skill and fury which surprised even himself. +Suddenly he began to feel everything swimming around him. He had been +conscious of no wound, but he saw that his blood was flowing fast. If he +fell in the midst of this _mêlée_, he must surely be trodden to death in +a moment. But he was becoming so faint that he scarce cared what became +of him, when he suddenly felt an arm cast about him, and heard a voice +say in his ear,-- + +"Hold up, good comrade, hold up! I will get thee out of this. The +victory is won! The King is wounded and in full flight! We may quit the +battlefield with glory now. The day is ours!" + +An hour or two later Leofric opened his eyes to find himself lying in a +tent, amid a number of other wounded men, the honest face of Jack +bending over him with kindly solicitude and concern. + +"How goes the day?" he asked, as soon as he could find voice; and Jack's +face beamed all over as he replied,-- + +"Why, right gloriously! The King's forces are routed. He has taken +shelter in the Priory. The King of the Romans has shut himself up in a +windmill, whence he has been besieged by our men, who will shortly have +him out--treacherous Richard, as all call him, who once called himself +the Barons' friend. I trow there be no man in all the kingdom more hated +than he!" + +"And the Prince?" asked Leofric, striving to sit up in his excitement, +but finding himself exceeding weak. + +"Why, the Prince might have made things worse for us, had he been as +wise as he is brave. He routed the London wing, but pursued them so +furiously and so far that whilst he was slaying and hacking the fortunes +of the day went against his father. Then on his return, ere he knew +this, he set his men against the litter which stood beside the standard, +and where he thought to find our great Earl seated. His men came +furiously up the crest of the hill, and surrounding the litter began to +cry out, 'Come forth, come forth, Simon, thou evil one; come forth from +that litter, thou worst of traitors!' And at last, getting no response, +they broke open the litter, and in the confusion which followed, all the +four hostages, men of their own party, were hacked to death by their own +friends!" + +"Poor creatures!" said Leofric, with compassion; "that was a gruesome +fate. But what did the Prince next?" + +"He made a circuit to get to his own side of the plain once more, and +only a while back was about to make a sally; but the Earl sent proposals +for a truce, and these were accepted: for indeed what could even so +brave a Prince do, with a band of men exhausted by fighting and +marching, and dispirited to the verge of despair by the knowledge that +the cause was lost?" + +"Hast thou seen aught of Hugh?" asked Leofric; but Jack shook his head. +He had had his hands full in helping first his own wounded comrade, and +afterwards those who lay stretched upon the field of victory. He had +been working and toiling from dawn till now--marching, fighting, and +carrying in the wounded. He had had no thoughts to spare for any but his +own side. + +A shout of laughter, and the tramp of many feet, announced that +something fresh had happened. There was a great tumult of sound, and +Jack darted out to see what was happening. + +He came back with his face bubbling over with mirth. + +"They are bringing in Richard, treacherous Richard, the King of the +Romans," he cried--"he who, in his letter but the other day, called +himself 'always august,' They are calling him a bad miller, and twitting +him with his august windmill! Oh, thou shouldest see his face! He looks +like a dozen thunder-clouds all rolled into one!" + +A great burst of cheering from some place hard by told that the prisoner +had been brought to Earl Simon's tent; and with the failure of the light +came the knowledge that the battle was fought and won. The field of +Lewes had decided the fate of the country for the present. The Barons +had achieved an undoubted victory. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIV. + +_AFTER THE BATTLE._ + + + "Sitteth all still, and hearkeneth to me: + The King of Alemagne, by my loyalty, + Thirty thousand pounds asked he, + For to make the peace in the countree, + And so he did more. + Richard, though thou be ever trichard [treacherous], + Tricken [trick us] shalt thou never more. + + "The King of Alemagne gathered his host, + Made him a castle of a mill-post, + Went with his pride and his mickle boast, + Brought from Alemagne many a sorry ghost + To store Windsor. + Richard, though thou be ever trichard, + Tricken shalt thou never more." + +This was the song which resounded through the camp of the victors after +the battle of Lewes, together with others in praise of De Montfort, too +lengthy to be quoted here. + +Richard, the King's brother, King of the Romans and Earl of Cornwall, +was the especial butt of the popular disfavour, and his recent behaviour +had added greatly to his unpopularity. + +He had betrayed a very grasping spirit in claiming as his individual due +the entire sum of thirty thousand pounds, offered by the Barons as an +indemnity to the King; and his haughty note to the Barons afterwards was +taken in very bad part, seeing that once he had been their friend and +ally. He was looked upon as being both treacherous and vindictive; and +this song (which is remarkable as being the earliest specimen of its +kind in the English language, nearly all such compositions being in +Norman-French or Latin up to this date) was composed in the camp at +Lewes, and sung lustily by the soldiers in the very ears of the captive +Richard. + +Leofric, from his place in the tent where the wounded had been conveyed, +could hear the sounds of mirth and mockery as the triumphant soldiers +passed to and fro. His friends came in and out with various items of +news; and upon the second day a new face looked in upon him as he lay, +and eagerly stretching forth his hands, he exclaimed,-- + +"Hugh, is that truly thou? Right glad am I to see thee. I did fear that +thou mightest have been numbered with the slain. But how comest thou +hither?" + +"I came with the Prince, to give myself up prisoner, even as he hath +done. But they desire no captives save a few of the highest in the land. +Your great Earl knows how to use nobility and generosity in the hour of +triumph. He even spoke a kind word to me, and restored to me my liberty. +I heard that thou wert here, and came to visit thee. How goes it with +thee, good comrade? I trust thy wounds are not grievous." + +"Nay, little more than scratches; only there be many of them, and I did +lose much blood ere I was aware. Tell me of thyself, Hugh, what didst +thou do? I see thou hast thine arm slung in thy scarf. Thou hast not +come off scot-free." + +"A fellow broke the bone of my sword arm with his axe," answered Hugh; +"but that matters the less, since there will be no more fighting, they +say, these many days. All the talk is now of peace and brotherly accord. +There are messengers passing to and fro betwixt the Earl and the King; +and already the royalist troops are melting away. I cannot grieve that +the fight has ended thus, even though I fought upon the royal side. I +love not the crooked dealings of the King; and I hate the minions he +surrounds himself with, so that honest subjects cannot get anigh him. It +will be well for the land when these are banished. And yet I would that +the King should be a King, and not a puppet even in the hands of a +worthy man such as your Earl." + +Leofric made a sign of assent. He was enough of a student and scholar +himself by this time to be well aware that no subject, even though he +were the highest in the land, could long rule in the name of a +practically captive King. It was against the traditions and instincts of +the nation. The people might support a movement for the redress of +crying grievances, even at the expense of the King's liberty; but when +things had been put upon a better footing, jealousies were certain to +awaken, there would come disunion amongst those who had been united in +the hour of peril, and he who had been regarded as the saviour of the +nation at this crisis would doubtless come to be looked upon as a tyrant +and even a usurper, if he succeeded in imposing his will upon the King +for any length of time, and held the reins of government firmly in his +hand. Something of this had been seen already, after the Provisions of +Oxford had made De Montfort so great a man in the kingdom. It was likely +to be seen again more markedly now, when a great victory had put him in +actual possession of the person of the King. + +Nevertheless the news which reached the camp as to the terms suggested +by the Barons showed that these were characterized by great moderation. +"The Mise of Lewes," as it was called, provided that all foreigners +should be excluded from office, though aliens should have free entry +into the country for trading and private purposes. The royal revenues +were to be managed with greater economy, and the abuse of church +patronage to be checked. Other disputed matters were to be referred to +arbitrators--some French and some English nobles. + +For the rest, a general amnesty was to be declared, and a release of +prisoners on both sides effected. The King and the Prince, and a few of +their next of kin, would remain hostages in the hands of the Barons; but +all men of lesser account might return to their own homes. + +Indeed, it was the Earl's great desire that peace should be restored to +the troubled kingdom, and that the ravages of the recent campaign should +be forgotten. + +Jack came bursting into the tent where Leofric lay, his face alight with +excitement. + +"Hast heard the news? The Earl has made a proclamation throughout the +camp ordering all the clerks and students of Oxford to return to their +studies. As a token that he means what he says, his own son is to head a +party of returning students. Amalric has said that he will take me in +his train, and has sent me to see if thou canst likewise travel. On the +morrow Lord Henry sets out along the coast in charge of his cousin, the +Prince, who is to be taken for security to Dover Castle. Lord Amalric +desires to travel a part of the way with them, and then turn northward +and pass through London, which is said to be full of rejoicing and +triumph. They say the Earl and the King will go thither in company +shortly. I trow it will be a gallant spectacle, and I would be there to +see. Hugh will go with us, and Gilbert likewise, and others who have +followed the fortunes of the Earl's son. Prithee, say that thou wilt +also be of our party!" + +Leofric eagerly declared himself quite fit for the saddle. None of his +wounds was severe, as he had said; and he was much restored by those few +days of rest in the hospital tent. He would greatly have regretted the +necessity to remain behind when his comrades moved onwards, and he at +once left his bed and proceeded to array himself, and to walk forth +leaning on Jack's sturdy arm. + +The camp was in all the commotion of breaking up. Numbers of men had +already been dismissed to their own homes. Hugh came up to his friends +with a beaming face. + +"Right glad shall I be to see Oxford again!" he said, "and to resume the +peaceful life of study there. Battles and camps are well enough in +their way, and against a foreign foe would I serve most willingly. But +it is ill work drawing the sword upon a brother Englishman. Let me +rather meet him in disputation and strife of well-sharpened argument, +than in the bloody field of battle!" + +Leofric heartily agreed with this sentiment, and even Jack, who had +perhaps enjoyed the excitements of the campaign more than the others, +admitted that he would be glad enough to see Oxford again, and resume +his studies there. + +"It was the King's doing that ever we left at first," he said. "I trow +his Majesty has had good cause to wish that he had left the clerks of +Oxford to their books and studies. He has had reason to know that they +can wield other things than the pen, when the blood in them is stirred +up." + +The comrades visited their horses and looked well to them. A few days of +rest and feeding upon the green plains of Sussex had done them much +good, and they looked well able to carry their owners gallantly upon the +proposed journey. + +"We shall be too large a company to push on very fast," said Hugh. +"Moreover there will be interruptions in the march from our friendly +well-wishers, who will desire to show us honour as we go. And if thou +canst not ride with the party, Leofric, why, thou and I will tarry +behind, and send Jack forward to see all, and tell us what has betided +when we meet in Oxford again." + +Leofric, however, expressed a hope of being able to ride the whole way; +and upon the morrow a gallant-looking company started forth eastward +along the coast. + +Prince Edward and his cousin, Henry de Montfort, were the two most +noteworthy figures, the Prince being by far the more majestic and +dignified, although Lord Henry had an ample dower of good looks and a +corresponding amount of self-esteem. He and his brother Simon were +already giving their father anxiety by symptoms of that rashness and +pride which had a disastrous effect upon the fortunes of their house a +little later on; but in private life they were amiable and warm-hearted, +and towards their cousin Edward the whole family of the Earl felt a +great affection. The young men had been comrades and playfellows in +childhood and youth, and the fact that they had met in hostile fight but +a few days earlier did not seriously interfere with amicable relations +when brought face to face once more. + +Nevertheless it was Amalric who was really the greater favourite of the +Prince, and his face lighted brightly when he saw that he was to be of +their company. Guy and Amalric were far more lovable in disposition than +Henry and Simon, their elder brothers, and Edward greeted his younger +cousin with affection and pleasure. + +"So thou art on thy way back to Oxford? Would that I were going with +thee! If I am to be kept in durance awhile, why not as well there as in +another place? Had not Providence thought well to make a Prince of me, I +would verily be a clerk of Oxford. Tell me some of thy student tales as +we ride along, good cousin. I would hear of that great riot which +disturbed the peace of the town just after I had been asked to keep +away. I trow you clerks and students have other pastimes than the study +of your books!" + +The Prince laughed heartily at the tale told him of the obsequies of the +shattered gates, and of the attack on the property of the hapless Mayor. + +"So that is how you clerks learn to handle your weapons so well! I trow +your Chancellor must have as hard a task in ruling his city as a monarch +in ruling his kingdom." + +And then the Prince suddenly grew grave, and fell into thought, perhaps +revolving in his mind the events of his father's reign, and the +incapacity he had shown in ruling his people in lawful fashion. He sat +looking straight out before him with set lips and sombre eyes, and none +dared speak to him again till the mid-day halt was called. + +Then he roused himself, and was gracious and friendly of aspect to all. +He recognized both Leofric and Hugh, and spoke to them both. Hugh had +been with him in his band, and had fought lustily and well. He had won +the approval of the martial Prince on more than one occasion since he +had been with him, and now he greeted him with a smile. + +"So thou art going to exchange sword for pen, and the strife of arms for +the war of words? Well, I trust thy studies will not again be broken up +by warlike clamour; and yet if it should so betide, I would that I might +find myself surrounded by such trusty followers as thou hast proved +thyself to be." + +"My liege lord," said Hugh, slightly bending the knee, for he desired to +show even more reverence to a captive Prince than he might have done to +one having his liberty, "I trust that if such a day should ever come +again, thou wilt find my poor sword again beneath thy banner. The Prince +has but to command, and the soldier must obey." + +Edward gave him a slight smile of gratitude and approval, and turned his +keen glance towards Leofric. + +"Ah, my friend of the boar-hunt! said I not that we should meet again +some day? So thou hast been in the fight, and hast gotten some wounds? +Well, well, it is but the hap of war. I know that thou canst strike a +lusty blow when the fighting mood is on thee." + +Leofric bent the knee, but made no answer. He loved the Prince, and +found it hard to realize that they had fought in hostile camps. Edward +asked no question; but Leofric knew he must be aware of this, and +something like remorse filled his heart. War which pitted brother +against brother, and subject against Prince, seemed to him a horrible +thing, abhorrent in essence both to God and to man. The disease that was +eating into the heart of the country might need the remedy of the knife; +nevertheless the application of it was painful and terrible, and at that +moment Leofric was keenly conscious of it. + +Perhaps Edward guessed at the thoughts which were passing through his +mind, for his own face softened slightly in expression as he said,-- + +"Think not that I reproach thee, good youth; I tell thee of a truth that +were I in thy place, methinks I should act as thou hast done. These +hideous things must needs be for the sake of the realm. But pray Heaven +there be brighter and happier days in store for England yet. Leofric +Wyvill, I once did promise thee the reward of thy lusty stroke which +perchance saved the life of thy Prince. Not yet has come the day for the +redemption of that promise. What can a captive Prince do for the +recompense of those who have served him? But my word is passed, and I +shall not forget. The time may come when I shall redeem that pledge. +Till then I have naught but thanks to offer." + +Then he passed upon his way into the interior of the inn, and Leofric +turned upon Hugh with something almost like bitterness in his voice, as +he said,-- + +"Why, why does such a son league himself to the crooked policy of such a +father?" + +Hugh slightly shook his head. + +"It is no love for the policy, believe me; it is filial duty towards his +sire. How could a son take up arms against his father, without incurring +the wrath of God? Or how can a son of the spirit of young Edward stand +aloof whilst the sword is drawn against his father and his King? No, no, +he can do nothing else than fight for him; but thou canst see for +thyself how he feels in his heart. He hates the methods and the crooked +ways of the King. Once let him sit upon the throne, and we shall see a +different rule indeed." + +Leofric was not destined to travel far with the cavalcade which escorted +the Prince. That very night he was attacked by an access of fever, +brought on probably by riding too soon; and he had perforce to remain +behind when the troop started forth the next morning. + +Hugh remained with him of his own accord, bidding Jack go on with the +others, and bring them all the news when they met in Oxford. Hugh found +his broken arm rather stiff and painful, and was not sorry to be spared +the long days of riding; whilst his heart was turning ever more and more +impatiently towards Oxford, where Linda would be waiting for them, and +whither they would travel by easy stages so soon as Leofric was fit for +the saddle. + +They were detained a week at this place before they attempted to resume +their journey, and then they travelled very leisurely. They found the +country full of rejoicing at the termination of the war and the success +of the people's party, as they liked to call it. Rumour declared that +there was to be a Parliament in London almost at once, and that, besides +the nobles and knights, "four discreet men" from some of the leading +towns were to be summoned to attend. This was a distinct step in the +direction of constitutional government, and the policy of the great Earl +was warmly commended on all sides. Little feeling at present existed +with regard to the captive condition of the King. The nation began +openly to say that he was always the slave and captive of his own +favourites. It was better he should be in the hands of those who cared +for the liberties and rights of the English people than in the hands of +those who sucked the blood of the nation and reviled its down-trodden +sons at the same time. + +Everywhere the name of Earl Simon was in all men's mouths. His praises +were chanted aloud in rude songs, in which he was described as the +saviour of his country, the instrument of God, the upholder of right and +justice, the wisest, most valiant, and noblest of men. + +Leofric began to wonder whether, indeed, the country would settle down +contentedly to what was practically the reign of a subject, and that +subject by birth an alien. For the moment they seemed to desire nothing +better than that De Montfort should reign in the name of the King; but +was it possible that such an anomaly could long continue? And what would +be the result of the release of the King? for it was not possible that +he should remain a permanent captive in the hands of his Barons. + +These, and many like points, were discussed with keen interest by +Leofric and Hugh as they pursued their leisurely journey. Hugh had a few +stout serving-men in attendance on him, afterwards to make their way +northward to his father's house. So the two youths travelled in comfort +and safety, and were welcomed everywhere along the route as having been +eye-witnesses of and partakers in the battle of Lewes. + +But as they neared the familiar town of Oxford, public matters sank into +a secondary place in the interest of the anticipated meeting with +comrades and friends. Leofric's heart could not but beat with the +thought of seeing Alys once more--although to him she was as a bright +particular star, far, far above him, whom he loved and worshipped from a +distance, with no conscious sense of anything nearer and more personal; +whilst Hugh was engrossed by thoughts of Linda, from whom he had been +long sundered, although, knowing her to be safe and happy, he had left +her with a mind at ease. + +Had their approach been seen? Surely it must have been; for as they +approached the Castle by the Quaking Bridge, there was a little +commotion at the gate, and in another minute Edmund came hastily forth, +bare-headed, as if taken by surprise, his face alight with eager +welcome. + +"Now welcome, welcome, good friends! We have been wearying for news of +ye twain. Many of our clerks and students have been flocking back from +all parts of the country, some even from the field of Lewes; but none +could give us tidings of you. One indeed declared that thou, Leofric, +hadst been sorely wounded; but whether for life or death the fellow +could not say. Come in, come in, and tell all thy tale.--Come in, good +comrade Hugh; right glad are we to see thy face again! Peace and +good-will everywhere abound. Oxford has begun to look like herself +again. Come in and see my father. We have much to hear and to tell. Come +and give us news of young Lord Amalric, for our Alys has been like a +drooping flower ever since he departed; albeit, as I kept telling her, +we should speedily have heard had any hurt happened to one of the sons +of the great De Montfort." + +Thus speaking, Edmund led the way into the Castle hall, where already +the Constable, his wife and daughter, and Linda had gathered. Rumour had +already gone forth that some arrival had taken place, and Sir Humphrey +had a warm greeting for the two young student-soldiers returned with +news from the campaign. + +But Hugh had no eyes for any save Linda. He could not speak or think of +anything in the happiness of that meeting. It was Leofric who was forced +to be spokesman, and he was set down in the midst to tell his tale; +whilst Alys, from behind her mother's chair, hung upon his words with +kindling eyes, flushing and paling cheeks, scarce drawing breath as he +spoke of the perils of the fight, and how he had been brought out of it +by trusty Jack. She did not look like a drooping flower any longer as at +the supper board she took her accustomed place, Leofric being at her +right hand. Father and mother both noted the sudden change in her; and +Sir Humphrey said to his wife that night,-- + +"See what the news of Lord Amalric has done for her! She is a changed +being since we have known him to be well and sound." + +But Dame Margaret uttered a slight snorting sound, as if she were less +satisfied with what she had observed. + +"If my Lord Amalric desires the hand of our daughter, he had best lose +no more time in the winning of it," she remarked. "Else may he chance to +win the casket when the jewel it encloses has been stolen thence." + +"What mean you, wife?" asked Sir Humphrey in dismay. + +Dame Margaret snorted again. + +"Men have no eyes!" she remarked scornfully. + +"But what mean you, wife? I would know more of this." + +"Marry, then thou shalt. But I say not things are so; I only say what I +fear. If the maid's heart be not rather given to Leofric Wyvill, the +bachelor, than to the Lord Amalric, the Earl's son, then are mine eyes +wofully at fault!" + +Sir Humphrey looked first astonished and then scornful. + +"Tush, woman!" he said impatiently; "the thing is impossible." + +Dame Margaret pursed her lips and said nothing. + +"It must not be!" cried the Constable, rather excitedly; "it must not +and shall not be! The Earl is now the first man in all the realm. His +sons will rise to be nobles themselves. It will be a great match for our +little daughter, and she hath always been well disposed towards Lord +Amalric." + +"True; yet is she not better disposed towards another?" + +"It shall not be!" cried the Constable once more. "I will put a stop to +it at once. A daughter's hand is disposed of by her father. None shall +dispute my right to give that of Alys where I will. The Lord Amalric has +shown every disposition to ask it in marriage. And this I say and mean: +if he ask it, he shall have it. The maid shall be a great lady yet, and +I pray I may live to see the day." + +The mother said nothing, only pursed up her lips a little. In her heart +she was thinking that a sudden elevation to great power had often been +followed by as sudden a fall. What if that should happen to the house of +De Montfort? + + + + +CHAPTER XXV. + +_CHRISTMAS AT KENILWORTH._ + + +"Alys! Alys! Alys!" cried a clear young voice from above. Alys, muffled +to the very eyes in her furs, and stiff from the exposure of her long +ride, had been almost lifted from her saddle by strong arms, and carried +within the hospitable portals of the grim-looking fortress. She was +dazed with the change from snowy darkness to the blaze of light, +confused by the number of strange voices and faces around her, and not +even reassured by the welcome of Amalric, who was seeking to win from +her one of the smiles that had become so much to him. + +"Alys! Alys! Alys!" + +The call was repeated in clear, imperious tones of bell-like sweetness; +and Alys, lifting her eyes to see whence they came, saw the laughing +face of the Demoiselle looking over at her from the dimness of the +gallery above. + +"Amalric, bring her hither to me; she is my lawful prey--my prisoner! +Don't keep her standing down there in that crowd! I am waiting for her +here. Bring her to me; I will warm her and make her happy. You clumsy +men never understand how to do that!" + +The next minute the two girls had met half-way up the great staircase, +and the imperious Demoiselle, who had changed but little from the day on +which she and Alys had last seen each other, dragged off her willing +captive to the bedchamber which the little lady had insisted that her +friend should share with her. It was lighted only by the glow of a +roaring fire of pine logs, but it looked so bright and cheery and +comfortable that Alys uttered a little exclamation of pleasure, and sank +down before the grateful blaze, chafing her numbed hands and smiling up +gratefully at Eleanora as she loosed her heavy cloak and hood and +smoothed the ruffled hair beneath. + +"It has been such a cold, cold journey!" she said. "Right glad am I that +our mother and Edmund did not attempt it. Fifty times I was minded to +implore my father to turn back; but I misdoubt me if he would have done +so." + +"Nay, fie upon thee for a coward," cried the Demoiselle, with uplifted +finger, "with me, thine own friend, waiting for thee at the other end! +To turn back is but the act of a poltroon! Fight and not flight is the +motto of the brave. O Alys, what a world of things have happened since +we said adieu! Didst ever think that men would say of my noble father +that he was the uncrowned King of England?" + +The maiden spoke with a great pride in her voice, and with a flash in +her eyes that bespoke a sense of keen triumph. Alys shivered a little at +the words; for she had heard them spoken with different intonation by +others not very long before, and knew that a leaven was working in the +country of which this child knew nothing as yet. + +"My father leads the Council of Three, who really govern the realm," +continued the Demoiselle, talking in her eager, rapid way. "They say +that Gilbert of Gloucester will give trouble; he is showing himself +unruly and rapacious. But I trow my father can control him. Oh, it is a +wonderful power which my father has gained! All men bow down before him. +And yet his heart is not puffed up; he is grave and sober in his +bearing. Why was he not born the King, instead of Henry of +Winchester--poor puppet, who can never stand alone, but must be propped +up by the will of those about him? Why, my father is ten times more a +King than he!" + +"And so is his own son," said Alys gently. "If any ruled in the place of +the King, methinks it should surely be the Prince." + +"Ah yes," cried the Demoiselle quickly--"my cousin Edward. He is +different indeed from his father, but he cannot be set upon the throne. +If he could, perchance that would end the troubles. Didst know that he +is at Kenilworth now? He has been in gentle captivity in many places +these past months, and from the Castle of Wallingford but lately his +friends sought to obtain his escape. But he is on parole, so he bid them +depart. Nevertheless my father thought it not safe to leave him there +longer; and now he is here, sharing our Christmas gaieties. I trow we +will have a merry time." + +But the little lady had much to ask as well as much to tell. She wanted +to know where Leofric was, who had been so faithful an esquire to her +brother, and had won her own esteem and good-will. + +The colour rose in Alys's face as she made reply,-- + +"In sooth I have seen less of him of late. He is growing to be much +sought after for his lectures, and in the spring he will take his degree +as Master in Arts. Since that mandate from the King nigh upon a year ago +there have been changes in Oxford. Many of the masters who went forth +then to other places have not returned, having found pupils and work +elsewhere. This has made it the easier for bachelors with good store of +knowledge, like Leofric Wyvill, to gain pupils, and obtain the +Chancellor's licence to lecture on many books. Men say that he will be a +Regent Master ere long, and likely enough a Doctor in time. But for +myself, I have not seen him oft of late. He is busy, and Edmund hath his +own tutors and lectures now." + +The Demoiselle glanced rather sharply into the face of her friend, and +said questioningly,-- + +"Is that a note of melancholy I hear in thy voice?" + +Alys shook her head, and her cheek flamed. + +"I know not what thou dost mean by that, Eleanora. Come, let us talk of +other things; and I must see to my toilet, if I am to be taken to thy +lady mother for her greeting." + +The Demoiselle put her arm about Alys as she looked into her face half +archly, half pleadingly, and said,-- + +"Nay, chide me not, sweet Alys; for thou dost know I love thee, and that +I would not even desire the happiness of calling thee sister, were it +not for thine own happiness too." + +At those words Alys caught her breath in a little gasp, and Eleanora +tightened the clasp of her loving arms. + +"My mother will indeed desire to see thee and to welcome thee, sweet +Alys. Thou must know that well. But fear not what may befall. My +father--ay, and Amalric too--will never urge thee to any act against +which thy heart rebels. We cannot give our love as if it were a toy. Our +hearts will speak, and they discourse eloquent music that no man hears +save ourselves. I would fain call thee sister, but I will be thy friend. +It shall never be said of the house of De Montfort that its sons wooed +unwilling brides!" + +The Demoiselle threw back her head with a gesture of pride, and then +kissed Alys on the mouth. It was no revelation to Alys that she had been +brought to Kenilworth with the idea of being shown there as the future +bride of the Lord Amalric. Her father had never said as much openly, but +she had had an instinct of this, and now these words from Eleanora +showed her that she had not been deceived. + +But it was not a subject on which she could speak. Her heart and mind +were alike in a chaotic state. She revered the house of De Montfort; she +had the warmest liking for Amalric, and would hate to give him pain. She +might well have loved him, and she knew it, had there been no other +image graven on her heart. And now it was hard to know what to say or +do. Indeed she felt, whatever the Demoiselle might aver, that little +option would be given her in the matter. Her father would decide the +question of his daughter's betrothal. She would be expected simply to +obey. She could not urge any dislike to the chivalrous young lord who +had honoured her by his preference, and to confess that she had given +her heart to one who had never spoken a word of love to her was not to +be dreamed of. + +Just now, however, there was little time to think of such matters. +Kenilworth Castle was filled from end to end, and all the wild revelry +incident to the Christmas season was in full swing. + +Alys had seen nothing like it in all her life, and her whole time and +attention was engrossed by watching the brilliant scenes about her. She +was admitted into the immediate family circle at the Castle--ranked as +the companion and friend of the Demoiselle, tenderly treated by the +Countess, and evidently regarded by the Earl and his sons as the future +bride of young Amalric. + +His own attentions were unfailing, but so chivalrously and deferentially +proffered that she could not repulse him. Indeed, she had no desire to +give him pain, although in her heart of hearts she shrank from any open +step which should force the thought of marriage upon her. + +Just now, however, there seemed too much on hand for any one to press +such a matter to a conclusion. The Earl had his hands and his thoughts +full to overflowing, and although he went about with a face full of +courage and serenity, it could not be disguised that the clouds were +gathering ominously round him in many quarters. + +For one thing, the Pope had excommunicated him; and that was in itself a +serious matter in those days. True, he had appealed against the +interdict, which had been brought by a legate, and having been lost at +sea had never been delivered. The clergy of the realm had joined with +him in his appeal; and the Pope having died meantime, the matter was +still in suspense, and could not be settled till a successor was chosen. +So that for the present the Earl's household received the benefits of +the church, and were not cut off from communion; but the cloud of +uncertainty rested over them, and made some even of their friends look +slightly askance upon them. + +Nor was it any light matter that they held in their power the person of +the King's son. + +Edward showed no resentment against his kinsfolk for his captivity +amongst them. He went about the Castle and its precincts with a brave +face and a light heart. He played with the Demoiselle in the long +corridors, helped Alys with the intricacies of her embroidery silks, +when in the long evenings the party gathered together in some of the +family apartments. He tilted in the yards with his cousins, and joined +in all the revels which made the walls of the Castle-fortress ring +again. No word of complaint ever crossed his lips. He never betrayed +even a consciousness that he was followed and watched, and that he might +not walk or ride abroad without a goodly retinue. + +There was about him, as the girls oftentimes agreed, a nobility and +magnanimity which was something remarkable in one so young. He even +talked of public matters with his uncle without rancour, and with a +certain sympathy in the difficulties of the situation. + +Personally, the Prince was greatly beloved by all at Kenilworth, and +perhaps this made the position all the more difficult. None knew better +than De Montfort that it would be impossible to keep the King and the +Prince in permanent captivity, however easy and honourable that +captivity might be. Yet, let young Edward once be at large, and so great +a following would muster round him that he would have it in his power +before long to reverse the success of the Barons, and once more set upon +the throne his inglorious father, whose incapacity and powers of +mischief-working had been so abundantly tested before. + +"And my brothers do nothing to help my father!" once lamented the +Demoiselle, with tears of anger in her eyes, coming to Alys to discuss +some of the anxieties which from time to time she learned from her +mother. "Guy and Amalric are too young to be entrusted with much power, +else they might perhaps help. But Henry and Simon do naught but stir up +strife and ill-will. As if it were not bad enough to have the Earl +Gilbert desert our cause, they must go and challenge him in a tourney +they desire to hold at Dunstable--openly showing that they hold him to +be a foe. My mother says that my father will forbid the tourney, but +that the rash and haughty spirit of Henry and Simon give him much pain +and trouble. They are so puffed up they will not heed a word that is +said to them. They are not worthy to be called my father's sons!" + +It was no wonder that the brow of the Earl was often lined with care, +and that the glance of the eagle eye was often dimmed by clouds of +anxiety and presage of coming woe. The old trouble with Richard of +Gloucester was being repeated now with Gilbert, the son. Young as he +was, he would not brook the control of Leicester's guiding hand. He +resented his assumption of power, and was almost openly breaking away. +None knew better than De Montfort that if once Prince Edward were at +large, the whole Gloucester faction, and doubtless many more with them, +would go over to him in a body. Already the nation was forgetting its +grievances, and was pitying the royal captives. A spark would suffice in +many quarters to cause an explosion of anger against him and his +"usurpation" of practical monarchy; and yet, as matters now stood, there +seemed nothing for it but for him, in the name of King and Council, to +sway the sceptre of the kingdom. + +On New-Year's Eve a great banquet was to be held in the vast hall of +Kenilworth. Despite the carking care that was gnawing at the heart of +the Earl and Countess, the revelries of the season were kept up in full +measure. Nothing was omitted which had ever had place before, and the +close of the old year had always been celebrated by a great feast, which +was kept up until the new year had been ushered in with shouts and +songs and the draining of bumpers. + +Alys and the Demoiselle had asked to witness the feast from the gallery +above, as upon another occasion now several years distant. And as the +Countess had no desire to be present herself, ready permission was given +them, and they established themselves there, with Amalric as their +companion, he having excused himself from sitting at the feast below. + +Prince Edward was, however, there, seated upon the right hand of his +uncle. His handsome face wore a rather set expression, and although he +smiled and jested as the wine circulated and the huge dishes were +brought in one after the other by staggering servants, he continued to +wear the look of a man in whose head some great purpose lies. + +What that purpose was, was presently revealed when the time came for +healths to be drunk and speeches made. It was from time to time needful +that De Montfort should remind his followers and retainers of their +position, of the things which had been achieved, and of those which +still remained to be done. It seemed a fitting time, at the close of +this memorable year, to speak of the events which had marked its course, +and the successes which it had witnessed. To discourse thus, with the +Prince sitting by, was not perhaps the easiest of tasks; but De Montfort +had a gift for moderation and tact in speaking when his temper was not +ruffled. He played his part well, and elicited bursts of applause; and +the Prince himself applauded when he spoke of the rights of the nation +and the need for wise government by means of a council of Englishmen +rather than a crew of foreign favourites. In the end the Earl looked +directly at the Prince, drank to his good health and speedy release, +when the arbitrators appealed to should have given their decision, and +the coming Parliament have ratified the terms of the Mise of Lewes. + +Thus openly brought into notice, the Prince rose to his feet, thanked +his uncle and host for many kind marks of good-will, and expressed his +recognition of the courtesy and friendliness with which he had been +treated. But after having said this much he did not sit down; he stood +looking around at the company with a strange intent gaze. Deep silence +reigned in the hall, for all felt that there was more to come, and +waited breathlessly to hear. De Montfort looked up with a keen, quick +glance into the face of the Prince, and then a slight cloud as of +anxious thought passed across his thin face. + +"My lords and gentlemen," said the Prince, in clear tones that were +heard all over the hall, "I have once before addressed you, even as I +address you to-night. The sword had not then been unsheathed. My heart +inclined to the cause which you have made yours, and which even this day +I regard with much of good-will. But I warned you then that my duty to +my father would compel me to withdraw from your counsels, should you +elect to rise in arms against him. This has now been done. I kept the +word I gave you then, and to-day I am a prisoner in your chief's hands. +The fortune of the day is so far with you, but it may not always be so. +As I made an open declaration upon that occasion, so I make another +to-day. I have given my parole for the present not to seek to escape out +of this honourable captivity in which I am placed; and I redeemed my +word at Wallingford Castle, showing to you that when I say a thing, I +mean it; when I make a promise, I keep it. Now, in the presence of all +of you, and of you my uncle and cousins, I herewith declare that my +parole is for one year, dating from the battle of Lewes, when I gave +myself up into your hands. One year I give to you for arbitration, for +the assembling of Parliament, for all the reasonable steps which a +kingdom must take for the adjustment of difficult questions. After the +expiration of that year my parole expires. I will not then be bound by +any promise. If my liberty is not then accorded me, I shall seek, by +whatever means I may, to attain it. Already the nation is impatient of +seeing her King and her Prince in captivity. The thing, if needful for +the moment, becomes a monstrous iniquity in time. It will not be +suffered to continue. _I_ shall not suffer it to continue. Shut me up if +you choose in the lowest dungeon--keep all my friends away from +me--treat me as you will, I shall find means to escape from your hands; +and I shall then fight with every weapon in my power for the liberty of +my father, and for the restoration of that monarchy which, even though +abused, is yet the prop and the source of England's greatness, and +which, purged of its faults, will yet shine with undiminished lustre!" + +The Prince sat down amid a breathless silence. Men had not been prepared +for any such open declaration, and it took them by complete surprise. +The Earl himself felt that thrill of generous admiration which the +speech had enkindled in many hearts. + +"The father I can dominate; the son will be my undoing," was the thought +that came to him at that moment, and he felt it still more so when young +Simon sprang to his feet and began one of his ill-considered and haughty +speeches, which was listened to with cold displeasure even within the +walls of his own home, and which brought a little sarcastic smile to the +lips of his cousin Edward. + +The Prince turned suddenly to his uncle and said,-- + +"Uncle, I would that thou and I could rule this realm, and that my +father and thy sons could play at holding mimic court and gay tourneys +in sunny France. Then, methinks, we should see an end of this confusion. +But fate has willed that we shall stand in hostile camps; only believe +me that for thee and for thy aims and objects I have both love and +reverence; and if the day shall come when I sit upon the throne of this +realm, the lore I have learned from thee will be my safeguard when I am +tempted to forget the lessons learned in the school of adversity, and to +think myself too great a man to need to think of the welfare of my +people." + +Leicester's eyes suddenly softened; he put out his hand and laid it upon +that of the Prince. + +"I thank thee for that word, Edward," he said; "and believe me, I love +thee as though thou wert mine own son. If it were possible, we would +fight side by side; but thou hast chosen thy father's cause, and I am +pledged to that of the nation." + +"I know it cannot be," said Edward regretfully; "yet let us each +preserve the love which one brave and honourable man may feel for +another, even though he be a foe. In the days to come, if my star arise, +and I in turn be victor, I will not forget the kindness I have received +at thine hands. It shall be repaid--I promise it." + +"But not to me," said Leicester gravely, "for with this cause I sink or +swim--I live or die. If it is the will of Heaven to reverse the victory +accorded to us, I shall not live to see the day. There is always a +soldier's death left for the man who sees his cause lost." + +"Nay," said Edward warmly--for, strange as it may seem, he was full of +hope and courage to-day, whilst his victorious uncle seemed weighed down +by a load of care--"thou must live to be mine adviser and friend; for +the time will come when I shall need both, if indeed I live to sit in my +father's place." + +The Earl slightly shook his head, but uttered no word. He felt from time +to time a strange presage of coming trouble, and to-night the feeling +was strong upon him. + +The Demoiselle in the gallery, leaning over and listening eagerly to all +that passed, now turned back to her companions, almost stamping her foot +as she cried,-- + +"I would I could put a gag in Simon's foolish mouth! Why will he always +seek to give umbrage by his arrogance and pride? He has no talents, no +powers, nothing but the reflected glory of our great father's name; and +yet, to hear him brag, one might well think that he was the lord of all +the realm! Why have such sons been given to my noble father and royal +mother? They have greatness, talent, goodness, power! Why are their sons +such miserable braggarts? It makes my heart burn to think of it!" + +But there was no time for the consideration of this point, for a sudden +hush fell upon the hall. It was whispered round that the hour of +midnight had all but arrived, and in dead silence the company awaited +the stroke of the great bell which would clang overhead when the moment +should have actually arrived. Glasses were filled, and the company +stood, awaiting in breathless expectancy for the signal. + +The Demoiselle pressed up close to Alys, and pointed to a dusky mirror +hanging upon the wall of the little gallery in which they stood, which +was more of an alcove than a gallery proper. + +"Dost see yon mirror?" she whispered. "It was taken from one of the +rooms and hung here, because they said it was an uncanny thing. They say +that if you look in it as the bell tolls in the new year, you will see +therein the face of the man whom you will one day marry. It was moved +from the bedchamber, where once it stood, because they say it caused the +death of a maiden who looked in it, and saw therein a skeleton form with +a scythe over his shoulder. I looked once, but saw nothing. Wilt thou +not look to-night?--only one maid may do so each year--and I will turn +mine eyes away." + +Alys was shivering with a strange sort of tremor. Suppose young Lord +Amalric were to move so that his face should be reflected in the glass: +would that not seem like an omen to her? But he was leaning over the +balustrade and looking down into the hall below, and the Demoiselle +linked her arm in his as though to keep him where he was. + +The silence was a strange, uncanny thing in a place filled with a +multitude of revellers. Alys felt her breath come thick and fast, and +the colour ebb from her lips. + +"Boom--boom--boom!" + +The great bell overhead had begun to toll forth its message. Shivering +all over, Alys felt her eyes drawn as if by magnetic attraction to the +face of the dusky mirror. + +Suddenly a little gasping cry broke from her, drowned by the sudden +clamour that rose from below; for in the dim black surface of the +ancient mirror she had distinctly seen the face of Leofric Wyvill form +itself, and stand out distinct and clear! + + + + +CHAPTER XXVI. + +_PLOTS._ + + +At the sound of Alys's cry Amalric and his sister turned quickly round, +and the next moment a startled exclamation broke from young De Montfort. + +"Leofric! is this truly thyself? or do we see thy ghost?" + +Trembling in every limb, scarce able to separate the real from the +unreal, Alys turned round to see that Amalric was grasping the hands of +some person who had just opened the little door in the alcove, which was +opposite the dusky mirror, and it dawned upon her that it was no phantom +face she had seen, nor yet the freak of a disordered fancy; but that +Leofric Wyvill was at Kenilworth, and standing within a few feet of her. + +Yet for the moment he appeared not even aware of her presence. He was +speaking with Amalric in low, constrained tones. + +"Say only that I am not too late. The Earl, thy father, how is it with +him?" + +"Why, well," answered Amalric, in amaze; "thou canst see him below thine +own self. Something aged and worn he is by the cares which press upon +him; but for the rest, well. What do thy words portend, good friend?" + +"Have any mummers arrived of late at the Castle--mummers from foreign +parts?" asked Leofric, still speaking hastily and urgently. "They were +to be heard by New-Year's Eve. Has anything been seen of them?" + +"I have heard naught," answered Amalric, "There be comers and goers all +day long at such a season, and open house is kept for all who ask it at +Christmas. But of foreign mummers I have heard no word. Come, speak to +us more plainly. What dost thou mean? and what brings thee here in such +breathless haste, looking more like a ghost than a man?" + +"In sooth I have travelled something hard," answered Leofric, who was +travel-stained and pale with weariness and lack of sleep. "But mine +errand brooked no delay. There is a plot on hand to poison the Earl, thy +father; and they who are the tools are sent hither in the guise of +mummers--for all I know they may be mummers and jugglers by trade. But +they come hither with fell intent, and are paid by the Queen for their +crime." + +"The Queen!" cried the Demoiselle in horror--"our kinswoman whose bread +we have eaten! Would she plan such wickedness against my father?" + +"That is the news that Gilbert Barbeck brought post-haste to Oxford. His +father got wind of it through some of his sailors plying 'twixt here and +France. You know, perchance, how the Queen and her son Edmund are trying +by every means in their power to collect and land an army in England +for the rescue of the King. Contrary winds and other troubles have +baffled them hitherto, and now they are wellnigh desperate. It is +supposed the idea has been proposed to the Queen that to rid the realm +of the great Earl would secure her husband's liberty. Or perhaps it is +some other person who has conceived it, and gives out that it is by the +wish of the Queen. But however that may be, it is said of a certainty +that a party of foreign mummers has started for Kenilworth, and that +they are armed with a deadly draught, which is to be administered to the +Earl ere they leave." + +"And thou hast travelled all this way with the news?" + +"It seemed the best thing to do," answered Leofric. "I knew the way. +Gilbert was already worn and weary with his ride from the south. And +both secrecy and dispatch were needed. My pupils had many of them +dispersed for the time being, and I was able to leave. I could not rest +till I knew the rights of the matter, and whether in truth the evil deed +had been accomplished." + +At that very moment the doors of the great hall were flung wide open, +and amid the plaudits of the company there rushed in a motley crew of +strange-looking creatures, some disguised as gigantic beasts and birds, +some in motley, like fools, with jingling bells, all wearing masks, and +all capering about with antics and contortions, exciting outrageous +laughter from the already hilarious company. + +The leading figure was not bedizened like his troop, but wore a sombre +black dress, which flowed round him in ample folds. His mask was black, +and nothing of his face could be seen save a pair of shining black +eyes. He uttered strange cries and calls, which were responded to by his +troop, who varied the figures of their strange dance, and made +picturesque groups and combinations as they moved about in the only open +space in the hall, where the tables had been hastily thrust aside to +give them room for their gambols. + +Some of these creatures were jugglers, and performed feats of dexterity +and sleight of hand which provoked shouts of wonder and admiration. +Meantime, prompted evidently by the black-robed director, some of the +servants had brought in a small table covered with a black cloth, and +when this cloth was removed, the eager eyes of the onlookers fell upon +certain strange-looking objects which caused many of them to exclaim,-- + +"He is an astrologer, and he will tell our horoscopes!" + +At the same moment several of the strange-looking dancers whirled out of +the hall, and came in again leading with care and reverence a +white-robed, white-veiled figure, who came and stood beside the table, +but rigid and still, as though hardly endowed with life. + +At sight of that figure Alys gave a sudden start, and exclaimed in a +low, frightened voice,-- + +"Pray Heaven that be not Linda! It is just her figure and her carriage! +Oh, surely that magician cannot be Tito, and he have gotten possession +of Linda for his evil practices!" + +Leofric started, and gazed at the speaker with earnest eyes. + +"It cannot be Linda; she was safe in Oxford when I left. But she told me +that Lotta had lately disappeared, they knew not whither; only their +brother Tito had once been seen lurking near the city, and it was +thought he had perhaps come for his books and the instruments by which +he wrought his unholy trade. Lotta had had the care of them since his +departure, and had grown very strange. It may be that she has cast in +her lot with him. But can that in truth be he?" + +"He would sell his soul for gold," spoke Amalric between his shut teeth. +"But he has put his head into the lion's den at last. If he has designs +upon my father's life, we have a gallows on the wall whereon he shall +pay the penalty of his sin." + +"Methinks these mummers are no part of his real company," said Leofric. +"Probably he has joined himself to them, and given them something to win +him his entrance hither. But let us watch what he is doing. We must not +let any devilry of his go unobserved." + +"Nay, we will seek to catch him red-handed in the act!" hissed Amalric; +"and methinks I will go below, the better to guard my father from his +crafty wiliness." + +The wizard, as he now openly declared himself to be, was busy practising +the smaller arts of his calling upon the credulous, with results which +appeared to them to be marvellous. But not content with that for long, +he called upon the great ones of the company to come and hear what the +future held for them--to look into the crystal, or into the magic +mirror, and to ask of the white-robed vestal such things as they desired +to hear. + +Each person thus coming forward received from the veiled woman a cup +containing water from a sacred well; this cup he drained, placed within +it a piece of money, returned it to the vestal with a whispered +question, and then, looking in the mirror or crystal, awaited either a +reply from her lips or an image forming itself there. + +It seemed as though the questioners heard or saw enough to mystify them, +if not entirely to satisfy their curiosity, and there was quite a crowd +around the recess where the wizard had established himself; whilst from +time to time he called aloud on one or another of the company by name to +approach and test his magic. + +It was thus that the Prince and the Earl presently approached the table, +partly from curiosity, partly from a sense of semi-superstitious belief +in the power of these so-called magicians to read the future. + +"Shall we try our fate?" asked the Prince, and he stretched out his hand +for the cup. + +It was given into his hands with some whispered words which brought a +sudden flush into his face. He drained the cup, spoke a few words, and +then came away with a strange expression in his glowing eyes. + +"There is a spice of witchcraft about it," he said, with a laugh which +was not perhaps quite natural; and he retired to the far end of the +hall, grasping tightly in his hand a small fragment of paper which had +been slipped into it, he scarce knew how or by whom. + +The Earl had followed the example of his illustrious prisoner, his son +Amalric keeping close at his side. He, too, took the cup from the hand +of the maid; but ere he could lift it to his lips, Amalric cried out,-- + +"Have a care, sir; that cup is poisoned! Let the magician be seized till +this thing has been inquired into!" + +In a moment all was confusion and affright. The magician made a bound, +as though to flee before hands could be laid upon him; but he was held +by a dozen pairs of strong arms. He broke then into frantic pleadings +and excuses; but no word was addressed to him until the draught intended +for the Earl had been forced down the throat of a dog, which almost +immediately was racked with violent convulsions, and died within fifteen +minutes. + +Sternly and with black brow did the Earl and his attendants look on. It +was so easy to see what had been planned. The inquirer would have asked +some question as to the future, would have received some terrible +prophecy, and when this attack took him, those who stood by would think +it an access of fear at what he had heard; and in the confusion the +magician and his accomplices would effect an escape, even if suspicion +did light upon them. + +"How didst thou know this thing?" asked the Earl of his son; and Leofric +was brought forward to tell his tale. A cry of rage and execration went +up from the crowd as they listened. The terrified mummers, who knew +nothing of the plot, slunk away and hid themselves in any dark corners +they could find. No one heeded them, all eyes being fixed upon the +magician himself; and when his mask was plucked from his face, it +revealed the white, scared countenance of Tito Balzani. + +In vain he pleaded his innocence, and implored mercy. There was no mercy +in the stern faces around him. Even Prince Edward, in whose favour the +intended crime was supposed to have been planned, came forward with +wrath in his eyes, and desired the death of the miscreant. + +"He dares to say that my mother was the instigator of the crime!" he +cried. "Let him hang from the highest battlements for that foul lie! +Some evil-disposed person, thinking to do us service, may have planned +this hideous deed; but my mother--never! Let him die the death of a +perjured traitor!" + +"But my sister--who will care for my sister? She at least must not +suffer for my sin!" wailed the hapless man. "It is Roger de Horn who +ought to hang. It was he who showed me the gold, and tempted me to my +ruin. But he ever escapes, and leaves me to bear the punishment. Let the +woods be scoured for him, and I refuse not to die if he die too. But let +him not escape. And, I beseech you, save my sister; for if she knew--the +deed was none of hers." + +"The maid shall not suffer; her sex shall be her safeguard," answered De +Montfort sternly. "And as for that miscreant, whose name I have heard +before now, search shall be made for him, and he shall suffer the fate +he merits. Assassins and their accomplices find no mercy at +Kenilworth.--Guard him well, men, and with the first of the daylight let +him die!" + +Thus upon the morn of the new year, Tito Balzani met his death upon the +battlements of Kenilworth Castle; but though the woods were scoured and +the Castle hunted from end to end, no trace of the veiled maiden nor of +Roger de Horn could be found. It seemed as if in the confusion the girl +had slipped away, perhaps to give warning to their comrade without. None +had seen her from the moment when Amalric had denounced the wizard in +the hearing of the whole assembly. She must have taken instant alarm, +and have made good a clever escape, leaving her hapless brother to his +well-earned fate. + +The mummers, who soon explained their innocence and ignorance, were +permitted to depart unhurt; but from that day when he knew that his life +had been attempted, a darker cloud rested upon the stern, worn face of +De Montfort, and sometimes he would break into passionate speech when +alone with his wife or his sons. + +"If the realm has done with me and wants me no more, by the arm of St. +James let them say so, and I will be content to return to France, and +live a peaceful life there, away from all this stress and strife. Yet if +I do, all will cry shame upon me for deserting the cause to which I am +pledged; whilst if I stay, I am reviled alike by friend and foe, called +tyrant and usurper, and charged with all manner of crimes, of which not +one can be proven against me!" + +In truth, the Earl's position at this time was a very trying one. The +Earl of Gloucester openly charged him with self-seeking and striving +after personal aggrandizement, in order to cover his own defection from +the cause of the Barons. De Montfort's sons fomented the dissensions by +their haughty and overbearing conduct, so that all manner of charges +were raised against them by their foes. True, the conditions imposed +upon the captive King and Prince by the Parliament which met at +Westminster early in the year placed almost regal powers in the hands of +De Montfort; yet he himself knew that his tenure of power was most +precarious. In that very Parliament the Barons' party had been most +meagrely represented, so many nobles having declined to appear. Jealousy +and party strife were doing their disintegrating work amongst the +victors of Lewes, and the nation was beginning to murmur at the +detention of King and Prince. + +Plots of all sorts were being hatched for the deliverance of the latter +(the King himself being personally useless to head any national +movement), and the Earl, his uncle, was compelled by policy, as well as +by his own sense of right and justice, to make his captivity as light +and easy as possible. + +So his friends were permitted access to him at Kenilworth--even such +pronounced loyalists as Mortimer, Clifford, and Leiburn, who had +declined to lay down their arms at the close of the campaign, but had +retired into Wales in sullen displeasure, there to await the turning of +the tide. A safe-conduct was granted to these and to other friends of +the Prince to visit him in his captivity, albeit the Earl could not but +be aware that in all probability the end of the matter would be that the +Prince would escape from his prison, and immediately appear in arms +against the foes of his father. + +De Montfort was not, however, at Kenilworth in person now. He was in +Westminster, directing the deliberations of Parliament; and Henry was +left as the companion of the Prince, together with Thomas de Clare, +brother of the Earl of Gloucester, and other knights congenial to the +royal captive. The breach between Gloucester and Leicester had not yet +been openly proclaimed, and no actual rupture had occurred between the +members of the two houses. + +Amalric had, together with Leofric and the De Kynastons, returned to +Oxford. No formal betrothal had taken place between him and Alys. The +affairs of the Earl had taken up so much time and thought, that there +had scarce been space for the consideration of other matters. Moreover +the father had once said to Amalric,-- + +"Press not the matter home too soon, my son. It may be that we are a +falling, not a rising house. Link not the fate of an innocent maid with +thine till we see whether this rising cloud will disperse again, or +whether it will gather into a tempest that will overthrow us." + +Nevertheless it was well understood by the two fathers, ere the +Constable took his departure, that the betrothal of Amalric and Alys +would, if all went well, take place very shortly. Both Earl and Countess +bestowed upon her many rich gifts, and Amalric begged her acceptance of +a costly ring, which she could not refuse, the eyes of her elders being +upon her, although her heart misgave her that this would be regarded as +a pledge when the time came for the settlement of the question of her +marriage. + +"It may be thou wilt learn to love him yet," whispered the Demoiselle, +who took a keen interest in the matter, greatly desiring to have Alys +for a sister, and earnestly desiring her brother's happiness, yet +feeling a keen sympathy with the unconfessed romance which she guessed +at, and regarding Leofric as, after her own brother, a very proper mate +for her friend. "Amalric is more like our father than any of them, and I +trow he would be a gallant lover and a loyal husband. But thou shalt +never be forced to do a thing at which thy heart rebels. I will myself +tell him all sooner than thou shalt be made unhappy, sweet Alys." + +But at that Alys shrank as though touched upon a wound, and made almost +hasty answer,-- + +"Speak not so, dearest Eleanora; thou dost not know what thou sayest. I +shall seek in all things to do right; I only wish that my poor heart +were worth the winning of so gallant a gentleman as thy brother. I am +sore ashamed oftentimes to think what a paltry thing he seeks after." + +"It is not paltry to him, so it be all his own," answered Eleanora; but +at that word Alys winced again. + +However, the party for Oxford rode off from Kenilworth in due course, in +good spirits--Amalric willing to wait for his betrothal till his +father's affairs should be more fully arranged, yet full of confidence +that the day would come when he could call Alys his own. + +Meantime Prince Edward remained behind, the playmate of his little +cousin Eleanora at Kenilworth, a pleasant guest and kinsman, never +showing the least spark of resentment at his prolonged captivity, yet +bearing himself with a princely air to those about him, as though he +would have them remember that, if a prisoner, he was a King's son and +the heir of the realm. He received his friends with pleasure, and held +various consultations with them at different times. Henry de Montfort +looked with some suspicion upon these meetings, and wrote once to his +father cautioning him to put a stop to them. But the Earl would not do +this. He felt keenly the difficulties attending holding in captivity his +monarch and that monarch's son, and he was resolved to give as small +reason as possible for complaint. + +The talk of arbitration was still going on, but few believed in any +important results, save perhaps the release of King and Prince. Meantime +weeks and months slipped by in quick succession, and the affairs of the +state so engrossed De Montfort that he knew little of what went on +within the walls of his home, save what was reported by his wife and +son. + +With the approach of summer, outdoor exercise and amusements were taken +up with zest. The Demoiselle was a fearless rider, and loved to fly a +falcon, or to gallop side by side with her cousin over the green meadows +and golden moors. The Prince delighted in every sort of manly exercise, +and though always attended by a sufficient escort, was permitted to +indulge himself in these pleasures round and about the Castle of +Kenilworth. + +Presents were from time to time sent to him by his friends, and one day +there arrived at the Castle a fine horse, which had come from the Earl +of Gloucester. The Demoiselle was greatly pleased with the creature, +and eager for her cousin to try it. + +Upon the next morning, therefore, the party rode forth to a green meadow +about two miles distant, bounded on one side by a wood; and here Prince +Edward laughingly challenged his escort to a series of contests of +fleetness and strength. All entered with zest into the spirit of the +thing. The horses were drawn up, and the Demoiselle was called upon to +give judgment. + +"Six times round shall be the course," cried the Prince, "and whosoever +comes in first shall be victor." + +"Agreed!" cried the other young men, all well mounted, as was needful +when they had so great a prize as the King's son in their custody; and +forthwith the race began. + +Six times round that great expanse of turf, six times round at the +reckless speed which young knights strove to attain when engrossed in +feats of skill and daring, was no small strain upon a horse's powers, +and would be an excellent test for the stranger. + +Breathlessly did Eleanora watch the gallant creatures sweeping round and +round the course, sometimes one forging ahead, then another making a +gallant dash and passing his comrade, but all the field keeping near +together; for it was a point of honour with his escort not to let the +Prince get far out of reach, and perhaps it occurred to Henry de +Montfort that this might be a ruse on Edward's part to make some +desperate effort at escape. + +His year of parole had now expired. He was no longer bound by his +plighted word. Perhaps that detail had escaped the memory of the Earl; +at any rate no request or command had reached the captive for a renewal +of the promise, or for any stricter rule of captivity. + +Eleanora, however, thought of nothing but the excitement of the race; +and when upon the sixth round the field came sweeping up towards the +spot where she had placed herself, just within the friendly shade of the +adjacent forest, her face was flushed with excitement, and she cried +gaily,-- + +"Edward wins--the Prince wins!" just as he brought his panting and +foam-stained horse to a halt beside her. + +Edward leaped from the saddle, and made his cousin a graceful bow. There +was a slight rustle in the thicket close behind. + +"Farewell, sweet cousin," he cried; "we shall meet again ere long, I +trow!" and before any of those about him had taken in the sense of these +words, the Prince had vaulted upon the back of a strong young horse, led +forth that moment by an unseen hand. + +With a shout and an oath Henry de Montfort sprang forward, but was +forcibly held back by young De Clare. The next minute the Prince was +galloping off at a pace which rendered it impossible for any of the +jaded horses to strive to emulate. + +"Farewell, gentlemen," cried Edward, waving his hand; "I thank you for +your courtesy and good company these many days. And tell my royal father +that I shall soon see him out of ward! A merry meeting to us all another +day!" + +The last words were inaudible. Already the receding figure was +disappearing from their view. + +De Clare burst into a loud laugh, and turning fiercely upon Henry de +Montfort he cried,-- + +"Ride after him and welcome if thou wilt, young fool! He is by this time +with Roger Mortimer and a goodly following, who will hack thee in pieces +with a right good will! I go to join them and my noble brother. Neither +Gloucester nor England will long be content to be ruled by King Simon +the usurper!" + + NOTE.--The escape of Prince Edward really took place from Hereford, + though in the same fashion as that described above. + + + + +CHAPTER XXVII. + +_THE CAPTIVE A CONQUEROR._ + + +"We shall meet again!" the Prince had said as he rode off from +Kenilworth upon that bright summer's morning. + +The time was drawing near when that promise was about to be +fulfilled--when Edward, the King's son, was to come to Kenilworth once +more, not as captive, but as conqueror. + +All England was up in arms, watching with a sense of breathless +expectancy the result of the collision, when the armies of Prince and +Earl should stand face to face and meet in mortal conflict. + +De Montfort was still the idol of the people, and many a notable +fortress and city was in his hands, declaring for him and his cause. But +the anomaly of a captive King ruling through and by the will of a +conquering subject was becoming intolerable to knights and nobles. It +was a state of affairs which could last only so long as King and Prince +remained captives. The moment young Edward was free, ready to head a +party that was already gathering enthusiastically about him, De Montfort +knew that a great and grave peril threatened him and his cause. They +had the King in their hands, and the King was induced to disclaim and +denounce his son as "a son of rebellion;" nevertheless all the world +knew that, were Henry himself free, he would not lose a moment in +joining young Edward, and in crushing by every means in his power the +strong opposition of his Barons. + +And now the Barons' party was split and rent. Gloucester and all his +following had gone over to the Prince. He was master of all the line of +the Severn, and his own county of Chester had unanimously declared for +him. + +London and the Cinque Ports were all in the Earl's interest, and the +Welsh had joined with him against their English foe. The struggle was +plainly to take place out here in the west, where the Prince seemed to +be gathering power and the Earl losing it, unless indeed the wild Welsh +kerns could be regarded as a set off against the desertion of English +knights and nobles. + +The heart of the Prince beat high with anticipation of coming triumph. +He was at Worcester, and his position was not without elements of peril; +for Leicester was at Hereford, and was looking for reinforcements from +his son Simon, whom he had summoned from the south to meet him. It was +rumoured that Simon was returning by way of Kenilworth, and it was the +purpose of the Earl to hem in the army of the Prince between his own +lines and the advancing forces of his son. If he could achieve this +purpose, all might yet be saved; but Simon had already delayed too long, +and even now no certain tidings of his whereabouts had reached the +Earl's camp. + +The household of Kenilworth was broken up. Almost immediately after the +escape of the Prince, De Montfort had sent his son Amalric to fetch his +mother and sister away to some safer place, nearer to the coast, where +they would be farther removed from the scene of conflict, and ready to +leave the country should the day go against them. The Countess with her +daughter was now at Dover, eagerly seeking to gather and send +reinforcements to her lord in the west. + +Some of these things were known to Edward as he lay in his quarters at +Worcester; and yet his soul was in no wise dismayed, for he was +surrounded by brave hearts and willing hands, and had a premonition +within him that the tide of fortune had turned, and that the days of his +adversity were drawing to a close. + +He was walking to and fro in meditation in the precincts of the +Cathedral, where he had heard mass earlier in the day, when the sound of +rapid approaching steps caused him to turn, and he saw Hugh le Barbier +hastening towards him. + +"Comest thou with tidings?" asked the Prince eagerly. + +"I have been told that a woman has arrived at the city, desiring speech +with the Prince," answered Hugh. "She will not answer questions, nor +unveil her face, but says that she comes from Kenilworth, and that she +brings tidings for the ears of the Prince. Since she would not say more +whatever was asked of her, I came forth to find you. Will it please you +to grant her an audience? If she comes indeed from Kenilworth, she may +bring news worth hearing, for men say that young Simon de Montfort is +collecting reinforcements there." + +"I will see her at once," answered the Prince. "Go, have her brought to +my quarters, and come thou thither thyself. It may well be that she +brings tidings. I will hear what she has to say." + +Hugh hastened away, the Prince returned to his lodgings, and before long +there was brought before him a veiled figure that seemed strangely +familiar, albeit for the moment he could not recollect where or in what +circumstances he had seen it before. + +"Who art thou?" he asked courteously; "and whence dost thou come? and +what is thy message?" + +"I come from the forests surrounding the Castle of Kenilworth," answered +the veiled woman in a low voice. "I have come with news for thee, O +Prince. I have sworn to be avenged upon the house of De Montfort for the +death of my brother. I come now to sell one scion of that bloody house +into thine hands!" + +As she spoke the woman threw back her veil, and Hugh gave a great start +of surprise. For standing before him, wan and wild, haggard and +dishevelled, was the once beautiful Lotta Balzani, the woman who had +once madly loved himself--or feigned to do so--the twin sister of his +own wife! + +For Hugh was married now. He had wedded Linda shortly after the battle +of Lewes, with the full consent of his parents. His wife was not far +away, for Hugh's home lay not any great distance from this town, and he +had but lately parted from her to join the standard of the Prince. With +a great astonishment in his eyes he gazed at the changed face of Lotta. +There was in her look something of wildness akin to madness, and when +her eyes met his she gave no sign of recognition. It seemed as though +the present had completely blotted out the past. + +The Prince was eyeing her intently, almost sternly. + +"Art thou the veiled woman who whispered strange words to me at +Kenilworth on New-Year's Eve, and brought to me a word in writing from +my mother?" + +"The same," answered Lotta, in her still, low-toned fashion. + +"The sister of him who did strive to do to death mine uncle, the Earl of +Leicester, in his own house? Was it, in sooth, thine hand which placed +the fatal chalice in his?" + +"It was!" answered Lotta, flinging back her head in a superb gesture of +scorn; "and would that he had drained it on the spot! I knew not then +what it contained, though I would have given it to him even had I known; +for why should I pity or spare? none has ever showed pity upon me! But +when he did to death my brother--when I saw that lifeless form swinging +from the battlements of the Castle in the dim light of dawn--then, then +I lifted my hand to heaven, and vowed vengeance upon Earl Simon and his +house! I have bided my time--I have waited and watched--and now the hour +for vengeance is at hand. I will sell him into the hand of his foes, +even as Jael sold Sisera. Would that I could with these very hands +drive a nail into his temples, that he should no more lift up that +proud head!" + +There was something so wild and strange in the manner of the woman that +the Prince recoiled a little, and glanced at Hugh with questioning eyes. + +"I know her well," he replied in a whisper to the Prince. "She is that +strange creature of whom we have told you, the twin sister of my +wife--the one of whom we heard that she had been dabbling in black magic +and forbidden arts, and that she had disappeared from her home, no one +knew whither." + +Edward, who had the proverbial memory of royalty, bent his head. He +remembered the strange story told him of the twin sisters, and the +adventures which had befallen Hugh during his courtship of the one. +Little likeness now existed between the gentle Linda and this gaunt, +haggard sister; but the Prince's eyes rested with interest upon the once +beautiful face, and he spoke more gently as he put the next question,-- + +"But the Earl of Leicester is at Hereford; what canst thou do against +him?" + +"Simon the elder may be there, but Simon the younger is at +Kenilworth--feasting, drinking, idling his time away; whilst +his men lie not within the strong walls of the Castle, but in the +village--unprotected, careless, secure! They spend their days in +drinking confusion to the Prince and his army, and laugh to scorn all +thought of fear. Instead of pressing on to join his father, the foolish +youth delights himself in his present pleasant quarters, and sends +forth wine and all good stores from the Castle, to refresh and +strengthen the men after their march, as he says, but rather that they +may enjoy themselves and sing songs to his honour and glory. He is so +puffed up that none may speak a word of warning to him. Fall then upon +him. Cut his army in pieces. There will be none to resist, none to give +battle. All are sunk in the security of the fool; the Lord will give +them a prey into thine hand." + +Edward's face lighted up with a strange expression. If this news were +indeed true, it was a great thing for him to know. He had been aware of +his own peril should father and son effect a junction, and he had +marched thus far to seek to avert it. If he could fall upon young +Simon's army in this state of demoralization, and effectually rout it or +cut it to pieces, why then he could give battle fearlessly to the Earl, +with at least equal chances of success. + +But if this should be a trap? + +He looked earnestly into the woman's face. The eyes were wild, but there +was no shiftiness in them. Rather it seemed as though a fire of fury +burned within her--as though she were inspired with a prophetic fire. +Suddenly she raised her arms and called aloud in tragic tones,-- + +"Fall upon them! fall upon them! do unto them as they have done! The +Lord has given them an easy prey into thine hand. Let not one of them +escape thee! Slay them without mercy, even as Elijah slew the prophets +of Baal at the brook Kishon. Let the river which washes the walls of +Kenilworth be dyed red by the blood of those that serve the bloodthirsty +Earl, who slew my brother!" + +The Prince turned to Hugh and said in a low voice,-- + +"Methinks she speaks truth. These may be the words of madness, but not +of falsehood. I will forthwith summon the men, and to-night we will make +a rapid march and seek to surprise this sluggard captain. But what shall +we do for this poor creature? She is not fit to be left to wander in the +woods as she speaks of doing. She should be cared for somewhere, and +brought if possible to her right mind." + +"I will take care of her," answered Hugh quickly; "I will take her home +to my wife, her sister. If any one can do her good, it will be my gentle +Linda. Methinks that the old fire of malice and jealousy is burnt out. +She seems not to know my face or voice. Let me have the charge of her, +and I will join your highness's forces at Kenilworth as soon as may be." + +"Yes, that will be best," answered the Prince. "Take her to thy home and +thy wife, and leave her not till thou dost see all well betwixt them. +Then follow me if thou canst; for methinks the tide of battle is about +to turn, and that soon I may have the power as well as the will to +reward those faithful and loyal servants who have followed me in the +days of adversity." + +Hugh approached Lotta, who with trembling hands was drawing the veil +over her face once again, and he noted that she seemed to sway like a +broken reed. + +"Lotta," he said, in a very gentle tone, "come with me, my sister. I +will take thee to Linda." + +A little shiver ran through her frame, and suddenly she spoke in wild, +eager tones,-- + +"Linda! Linda! Linda! O sister, sister, have pity, have mercy upon me!" +and then she burst into wild weeping, and sank senseless to the ground +at his feet. + +A litter was quickly prepared, Lotta was placed in it, and before +nightfall Hugh had arrived with his charge at the door of his own home. + +Already the stir of arrival had aroused the inmates, and Linda came +running forth from the parlour, uttering a cry of joy as she flung +herself upon her husband's neck. Then Hugh, holding her close to him, +whispered in her ear the strange story he had to tell, and Linda +approached the litter with a face full of awe, affection, and eagerness. + +"Lotta!" she said softly, "dear, dear Lotta! Thou hast come back to +me--at last!" + +With a strange strangled cry Lotta sprang forward, clasped her sister +wildly in her arms, and then once more fell senseless to the ground. + +Late that night, as Hugh sat over the fire after having told all his +tale to his parents, who had then gone to bed, the door opened, and +Linda stole in, a strange expression upon her pale face. She made +straight for the shelter of her husband's arms, and lay there, the tears +coursing quietly down her face. + +"How is it with Lotta, sweetheart?" he asked. + +"Hugh," answered Linda, "I think she will die; but she has no desire to +live. I think she has bitterly repented of the past; and if she can but +lay aside her thoughts of hatred, and learn to forgive even her +enemies, methinks death would perhaps be the happiest thing for her. Oh, +she has had a strange and terrible life! Heaven grant that she has not +lost her soul, seeking after unhallowed things! But that was Tito's +fault. Surely God will not visit it upon her!" + +Then Linda told to her husband the tale that she had heard in fragments +from her sister's fevered lips. + +After the failure of the second attempt upon Hugh's life and liberty, +when Lotta had been forced to the conclusion that she would never win +him against his will, and when Tito and Boger, who had been the authors +of both plots, had been forced to fly, the unhappy girl had turned her +attention to the study of those black arts of magic and mystery which +had so fascinated Tito, and of which he possessed a certain amount of +knowledge, gleaned from books in his possession. Lotta now studied +these, with the result that a morbid and unhealthy curiosity arose +within her, and she believed herself gifted by some occult powers which +she might develop, did she but know how. + +Thus it was that when, after a considerable interval, Roger and Tito +ventured once more to return to England, and Tito desired to obtain +possession of his books and other things, he found that Lotta was eager +and willing to join them; and in their travels she proved a valuable +ally, her gifts of thought-reading and her mesmeric powers, which +rapidly developed with practice, making her a useful medium. + +They travelled both in England and in France, and after a time she +married Roger de Horn, who appeared to have transferred to her the +fierce affection he had once shown for Linda. It did not appear, +however, that her heart was greatly drawn towards her husband. It was +more of Tito that she talked, and his untimely and tragic death was +plainly graven upon her heart in characters of fire. + +Of the poisoning plot itself Lotta had small knowledge. She could not +say at whose instigation it had been planned, though she knew that a +large sum had been paid to her husband and brother for the death of the +Earl, which they had sworn to compass. Part of the reward was paid +beforehand, but the bulk was to be given if the matter were brought to a +successful issue. When all was lost, Lotta had rushed out to seek to +rouse Roger to some desperate attempt at the rescue of the hapless Tito. +But not only did Roger refuse to move hand or foot; he also forcibly +withheld her from seeking to save him or to die with him, as she +desired. Since then there had been burning within the sister's heart a +fierce flame of hatred against the Earl who had condemned her brother, +and against the man who refused to try to aid his comrade in the hour of +extremity. + +She had refused to leave the neighbourhood of Kenilworth, and Roger had +seemed afraid to leave her there alone. They had led a strange life in +caves and fastnesses of the forest, living upon such game as they could +snare and shoot, and upon the wild berries and herbs of the woods. They +had money, and occasionally bought from the peasants, but feared to show +themselves openly; for it was said that there was a price set upon the +heads of the accomplices of the wizard, and they were afraid of being +recognized. + +Now, however, in the confusion and excitement of Lord Simon's arrival +with his disorderly host, and their ill-advised stay at and about the +Castle of Kenilworth, Lotta felt that her day of vengeance had come. +Without a word to her husband--who was drinking with the soldiers, +secure now from recognition in so great a company--she had started forth +to find the army of the Prince, and having delivered her foe into the +hands of the enemy, it seemed as though all wish for life had expired +within her. To be avenged for the fate of Tito had been her one desire; +if that were accomplished, she seemed to have nothing else for which to +live. But she had turned with all the affection of childhood towards her +sister, and Linda's tears flowed as she spoke of this. Lotta appeared to +have no real recollection of the episodes of her life in which Hugh had +a part. When Linda had spoken of them, she had assented with something +of perplexity in her face, but without seeming to recollect fully what +it was all about. She appeared to know that her sister was married, and +showed no emotion at the sound of her husband's name. To hold Linda's +hand, to feel her near, to feel her kisses on her cheek, appeared all +she wanted. She was so tired, she kept saying, she wanted to rest--to +rest. And presently when she sank to sleep, Linda had gone to find her +husband to tell him all. + +"I must forth to join the Prince to-morrow," he said; "but I am right +glad to leave Lotta so well cared for. Perchance she will live to be our +sister and friend yet; and I will seek news of that evil man her +husband, and we will hope that he may yet come to repent of his sins. +Keep her safe, and let her rest. Whether she live or die, we shall +always be glad that we have seen her again, and that she has returned to +her better self." + +Hugh rode forth at break of day, after a few hours of rest, and in due +course found himself drawing near to Kenilworth. The sun was sinking by +that time, and he was aware of a great tumult and excitement as he +approached. All the country folks were in a state of the greatest +agitation and alarm, and from them Hugh first learned the nature of the +engagement in which he had not partaken, but which had occurred early +that very morning. + +It had been as Lotta had described. In fancied security, in the heart of +his own county, where all were loyal to the cause, the younger Simon had +neglected all precautions, had left his soldiers outside the Castle +walls, and had not even posted sentries to watch the roads. + +At dawn upon that fatal first of August, the sleeping soldiers had been +awakened by the clash and crash of arms, and by loud, fierce cries. + +"Come forth, traitors; come out of your holes, ye dogs! Ye shall all be +slain. Ye have betrayed your King. His vengeance be upon you!" + +Then had followed a scene of indescribable confusion. The wretched men, +thus awakened from sleep, their enemies actually upon them, sprang from +their beds, and rushed half naked to their death. Some fought gallantly +for their lives, and fighting fell. Some fled across the moat, and found +a temporary asylum in the Castle with Lord Simon himself, who, paralyzed +by terror, could do nothing but hide behind his strong walls, with a few +of his own immediate knights and gentlemen about him, whilst his army +melted like snow before this vigorous attack, and the waters of the moat +were dyed red with the blood of the slain. + +This was the tale that Hugh heard from the terrified peasants as he rode +onwards, and indeed soon enough he saw for himself abundant signs of +carnage. But the slaughter, if sudden, had been brief; for the Prince +had given quarter to all who asked, and had been content to permit the +escape of great numbers of raw youths, who, having been hastily levied +during Simon's march, were ready to disperse in the extremity of terror, +and could be trusted, once they reached the safe shelter of their own +homes, not to tempt their fate by taking up arms again. + +As for the plunder, that was something to boast of. Simon had made +requisition all along the route from the friendly towns, and his mother +had collected and furnished him with ample supplies. The horses taken +were so numerous that the very pages and foot-boys of Edward's army +could ride the steeds of knights, and the weary chargers which had +brought the victors all those miles from Worcester could take their ease +in the wake of the army, whilst the Prince, with fresh horses, rode +forward as fast as he would. + +For he had no desire to tarry here, nor to attempt to storm the fortress +itself, with its small garrison and Lord Simon at the head. The Prince's +great aim and object now was to meet the Earl in person on the +battlefield, and to try conclusions with him once and for all, before he +had had time to recover from the heavy blow struck him to-day, of which +he could not yet be aware. + +Hugh found him giving personal orders for a rapid march on Gloucester, +with prisoners and booty, from which place he would next march against +De Montfort's army, and overthrow it in open battle. The light of +victory was already in Edward's eyes, and his cheerful confidence seemed +to have communicated itself to all his host. + +A touch upon his arm made Hugh look suddenly round, and he found himself +face to face with his quondam comrade Gilbert Barbeck. Gilbert was not a +man of war, but had fallen in with the Prince's army as he was taking a +journey upon business. He had seen the battle and its result, and now +spoke a word in Hugh's ear. + +"Come," he said; "I have somewhat to show thee." + +And when Hugh followed him wonderingly, he added,-- + +"Dost remember how we fruitlessly pursued Roger de Horn into the forest +long ago, and how he once and again escaped the fate he deserved? Well, +he has not escaped it to-day. He has been eating and drinking and +sleeping with the soldiers of young De Montfort since they came here. +And now he lies in the trench with the slain, and will trouble the earth +no more. He has met the fate his deeds deserve, albeit not as we once +desired." + +Hugh started at the sound of these words, and followed Gilbert quickly +to the spot where the soldiers of Edward were burying the slain. If +indeed this thing were so, he ought to know it for a certainty. + +"See there," said Gilbert, pointing downwards; "methinks there is no +mistaking that face!" + +Hugh looked, and a slight shiver took hold upon him. + +"True enough," he answered briefly, as he turned away; "that is the dead +face of him who was Roger de Horn." + +So Lotta was a widow! + + + + +CHAPTER XXVIII. + +_THE FATAL FIGHT._ + + +The mellow light of an August evening was falling upon the cloistered +walls of the Abbey of Evesham, and in deep thought a martial figure was +pacing the smooth sward of the quadrangle formed by the various +buildings. + +The face of the Earl of Leicester was lined by care; but the light in +the eyes was not quenched, and the old eagle look was even more marked +than before, now that the features were more sharp and chiselled. + +One of the monks approached the Earl, and waited till he should pause in +his walk. Then he delivered his message. + +"A party of riders has just arrived, asking for the Earl of Leicester, +and one of them calls himself your son." + +De Montfort started, and looked round him eagerly. + +"My son? Then bid him come to me at once;" and as the monk retired, the +Earl repeated slowly, "My son, my son--which son? Henry and Guy are with +me. It can scarce be Simon. He will come with banners flying and the +sound of martial triumph. Sure it must be Amalric, with news from my +dear ones in the south. He comes in good time, I trust and hope, to +witness another gallant victory." + +At that moment there was a little stir, and a few figures appeared in +the archway which divided the grassy quadrangle from the outer world. +Over the Earls face there flashed a look of welcome and pleasure. + +"Amalric it is," he cried; "come in a good hour, and with good tidings, +I trust and hope," and he tenderly embraced his son as he spoke. + +Amalric knew nothing of the misfortune which had overtaken his brother. +His heart was full of hope, and he eagerly made answer,-- + +"The hearts of the people are very warm in our cause. I have met with +kindness and good-will wherever I have been. I have left my mother at +Dover, where all men are her very loyal and true servants; whilst at +Oxford all hearts are with us, and I have even brought thence a few +comrades, eager to serve 'neath our banner once again." + +And with a wave of his hand he indicated some half-dozen youths, +clustered together in the gateway, amid whom were numbered Leofric +Wyvill and Jack Dugdale. + +The Earl looked at them with a softening of his glance, and came and +spoke them kindly words. + +"I trust we shall again achieve a victory," he said. "If I can but join +forces with my son, methinks all will be well. Yet he hath tarried +overlong, and delay at such times is fraught with danger. The issue of +the struggle is yet undetermined, and let none join with us who will not +stand beside us in the moment of disaster. Faint-hearted soldiers never +yet won battle." + +But Amalric's little band were not faint-hearted, and none of them moved +at this word, save to toss their caps in the air, and cry,-- + +"God save the Earl of Leicester, the saviour of the kingdom! Confusion +to his enemies! Success to the noble Earl!" + +De Montfort gave them thanks for their good-will, and after charging his +friendly hosts to look to their bodily wants, he linked his arm within +that of his son, and began discoursing with him of many things. + +Amalric had good news to give of his mother and sister, and of the +loyalty to the cause displayed by the governors of the Cinque Ports, who +had refused to give up their fortresses at the demand of the King's son. +Simon had been to Dover, and obtained supplies lately; Amalric was +astonished that he had not already joined his father, and the Earl's +face looked careworn and grave. + +"My heart misgives me about Simon," he said. "He was always rash and +headstrong. I summoned him a long while since to meet me, and join +forces; and had he obeyed without question, we might perchance this day +be standing victors once again. But instead of coming to me, he has been +marching through the country gathering reinforcements. These may serve +us well, I do not doubt; yet sooner would I have had his help with a +smaller band at an earlier date, than have waited all this while, with +our enemies gathering strength daily. The Prince is nigh at hand, and +he is no mean soldier, for all his rashness at the battle of Lewes. That +blunder he is not likely to repeat, and I myself have trained him in the +art of war on the Gascon plains. I trow he will not forget my lesson a +second time!" + +"And the King--where is he?" asked Amalric. + +The Earl pointed to the chapel of the monastery. + +"He is with us. He professes to call his son a rebel. Yet in his heart I +know that he longs to see that rebellion crowned with success. Edward +will place him once more on the throne, if he succeed; and he will again +surround himself with foreign flatterers and sycophants. For ere that +day dawn, the hearts of those who have beat high with love for their +country's best weal will lie cold and still in death." + +"Nay, father, say not so!" cried Amalric, with sudden pain in his voice, +for it was not like the Earl thus to speak of impending disaster; his +was rather a nature that looked forward to triumph and success. + +"God grant it may not be so!" he answered; "but my heart is heavy within +me this evening. I have a premonition that ere the sun set once more +some great event will have befallen this land, but whether for weal or +woe who can say?" + +When Amalric that night joined Leofric in their quarters--a clean, bare +cell, which they were to share together--he related to him all that his +father had said. + +"Dost think, good comrade, that a man, upon the eve of some great crisis +in his life, can foresee what lies before him?" + +Leofric shook his head doubtfully. + +"Nay, I know not how that may be. Yet didst not thou thyself, Amalric, +in bidding farewell to sweet Mistress Alys, speak as though thou didst +portend misfortune to thy cause?" + +"I trow I did," answered the youth, thoughtfully. "I know not how or +why, but there came upon me the feeling that I was looking my last upon +that sweet face, and I could have wept aloud had not my manhood cried +shame upon such weakness. Yet methinks she saw somewhat of the trouble +in my face, for ere we parted she did give me the ring from her hand, +and never before had she given me token of her own to wear--nothing +beyond that silken banner, which, if I fall to-morrow, Leofric, must be +my shroud. Let it not fall into the hands of the foe. I would go down to +my grave wrapped in its martial folds." + +Leofric made no response, his heart was too full for words; and long +after Amalric was sleeping quietly he lay broad awake, turning many +things over in his mind, and wondering if this presage of evil, felt by +both father and son, was a foreboding of some misfortune soon to fall +upon them. + +Leofric had had no intention a short time back of meddling more in wars. +He was now a Master in Oxford, with a career before him there, and the +profession of arms had no real charm for him. Yet when Amalric had +suddenly appeared there, to take leave of Alys and of his old friends +and comrades, and had told all he knew of the position of parties, and +of the peril which threatened the cause dear to many through the action +of the escaped Prince, Leofric's heart had burned within him, and it had +seemed impossible to him to let his friend and once master ride forth +perhaps to his death without his esquire at his side. + +So Leofric had resolved once more to leave Oxford, once more to face the +perils and uncertainties of war. There were others who were of like mind +with him, and Amalric had gathered together a compact little body-guard, +who had accompanied him upon the slightly circuitous route he had +decided to take, and were with him now at Evesham Abbey, where he had +joined his father. + +Next morning, with the first dawn of the day, the little community was +astir. Mass was said in the chapel, and the King and Earl, and all the +more devout of the leaders and men, attended with pious devotion. Then +they repaired to the refectory to breakfast, but had not been long +seated before Nicholas, the Earl's barber and personal attendant, came +running hastily in. + +"Good news, my lord and gentlemen!" he cried, "good news, indeed! The +banners of Lord Simon are approaching us from the direction of +Kenilworth. He will be with us ere another hour has passed." + +The Earl sprang to his feet in great excitement. + +"Art sure they are the De Montfort banners, and not those of the +Prince?" he asked; and Nicholas, who combined a knowledge of heraldry +with other miscellaneous accomplishments usual in one of his craft, +declared that he was absolutely certain of this, and described the +banners he had seen, and their blazonry. + +"These are without doubt the banners of my son," said the Earl; "I will +myself mount the Abbey tower, and mark the order in which they advance." + +The King calmly remained seated at table, and the Prior and many of the +others remained with him; but the Earl and his son, and two or three +others amongst whom was Leofric, ascended the tower, and gazed long and +earnestly at the advancing host, which could plainly now be seen coming +toward them. + +The banners of De Montfort floated in the front ranks; but even as the +Earl looked with sparkling eyes upon them, a sudden change was made. +These banners were halted and sent to the rear, whilst the leopards of +young Edward were now brought forward and placed in the van. + +The Earl understood in a moment what had happened, and his face took a +strange grey pallor. + +"Simon has been overcome," he said; "his banners have been wrested from +him. It is our foes, our victorious foes, who are marching to meet +us--not our friends." + +A moment of dead silence ensued, and then Amalric said with an air of +cheerful confidence,-- + +"Let them come. We are here to meet them. We will show them battle +without fear." + +At this moment he felt his arm touched, and glancing round saw that +Leofric was standing beside them with a white, troubled face. He did not +speak, but only pointed in two directions different from that in which +they had all been gazing. The Earl and his son looked too, and from +Amalric's lips there broke a startled exclamation. + +The Prince was advancing upon them from one point, but he was not the +only assailant. Upon two other sides there now appeared the banners of +Gloucester and Mortimer, hemming in the devoted little army of De +Montfort upon flank and rear. The only unmenaced side was where the Avon +with its flowing waters cut him off from all hope of retreat. + +Truly the Prince had learned his lesson. This simultaneous advance +showed a masterly generalship that was wholly unlike the headstrong +recklessness which had characterized his actions only the previous year. + +"By the arm of St. James," cried the Earl, "they come on right +skilfully; they approach in admirable order. They have learned this +style from me, not from themselves." Then turning towards his sons, who +stood looking on in amaze, he said: "Let us commend our souls unto God; +as for our bodies, they are our enemies'." + +"Nay, father, do not despair!" cried Amalric passionately. + +"I will not," answered the Earl sadly; "yet I fear me that the pride and +rashness of my sons has been mine undoing. Our friends have been turned +to foes by their haughtiness, and when peril threatened they have proved +disobedient and unready." + +Henry hung his head. He knew how often his father had had good cause to +chide him for these very faults; and now throwing himself almost on his +knees before his sire, he cried,-- + +"Father, if the fault be ours, let us bear the brunt of the battle. Do +thou fly whilst there be yet time, to be the prop and stay of the +country another day. We will do our best to die like brave soldiers, and +thou wilt avenge our fall when thou shalt return once more victorious." + +Amalric would have joined his brother's plea, but the Earl spoke with +almost stern decision. + +"Far be it from me, my sons, to turn my back in the hour of peril. I +have grown old in wars, and my life hastens to an end. There is that in +my blood which will not let me flee before danger, for never, methinks, +did our forefathers so fly. But you, my sons, do you retire, lest you +perish in the flower of your youth--you who are to succeed me (God grant +it) and prolong our race, illustrious in the glories of war." + +But not one of the young men would consent to move. They would conquer +or die, fighting at their father's side beneath the banner of De +Montfort. + +No time was to be lost in mustering the men and putting them in battle +array. The situation was a desperate one. They were hemmed in on all +sides. There was but one hope, and that a forlorn one--the chance of +cutting their way through Edward's ranks before those of Gloucester and +Mortimer could close up. + +It was but little that Leofric saw of that desperate and fatal fight at +Evesham. Soon after the impact of the deadly struggle, when foe met foe +in unexampled fury, Amalric received a deadly wound, and falling upon +his horse's neck, would have slipped to the ground and been trampled +underfoot, had not Leofric and Jack, with the energy and determination +of despair, got him between them, and by fighting every inch of the way +with a resolute valour which overcame all obstacles, bore him at last +into the precincts of the Priory, where they were safe. Nor did Leofric +omit to carry with him the precious banner, which he knew his comrade +was certain to ask for if his eyes ever unclosed in this world again. + +The good monks tended the dying youth with care and skill, but knew from +the first that the case was hopeless. Leofric knelt beside him, striving +to win one glance of recognition or one farewell word; and Jack hurried +to and fro between them and the tower, bringing news of the battle, +which was grimly fought, but which had been from almost the first moment +a hopeless struggle. + +"The traitorous Welsh are flying! They will be our undoing!" he cried. +"They are fleeing away like smoke before the wind, causing confusion and +dismay in our ranks!" + +Amalric's eyes suddenly opened, as though something in the urgency of +Jack's tones had penetrated to his senses. + +"The battle--how goes it?" he faintly asked. + +"I fear me badly--for us," answered Leofric gently. + +"My father?" questioned Amalric, with wistful eyes. + +Leofric looked at Jack, who answered quickly,-- + +"I saw him fighting as though the strength of ten were in him. I trow +had we but fifty such as he, not all the Princes and nobles in the land +would turn the tide of fight against us!" + +Amalric's eyes opened more widely, and fixed themselves upon Jack's +face. + +"Go, and bring me back word of him, good comrade," he said. "Ye should +not have borne me hence. I would I might have fallen fighting by my +noble fathers side." + +"It was his will that thou shouldst be taken out of the press," answered +Leofric gently, and for a while the wounded man said no more; but +presently he roused himself to ask, "Is there any hope for my life?" + +Perhaps what he saw in Leofric's face was answer enough, for he said, as +though he had received a reply,-- + +"Methought not. I feel my life ebbing away. I would seek the help and +counsel of one of our good monks. But first, I have a charge to thee, my +trusty friend and comrade. Thou hast the banner safe; thou wilt see that +it is my shroud when they lay me in the dust. But take now this ring +from my finger; I have somewhat to say to thee anent it." + +Leofric obeyed, and gently took Alys's ring from the pulseless hand of +his friend. + +"Let me kiss it once," he said; "and then keep it for her, and give it +back to her, telling her how I fell, and that I loved her to the last. +But, Leofric, she hath never loved me, save with the love which a sister +bears a brother, or as friend bears to friend. I have sought the other +love, but I have found it not. Sweet she was, and gentle and tender, and +her father approved my suit. But in my heart of hearts I knew that her +love was never mine. Tell her I am well content now that it should be +so. I die the easier for knowing that her heart will not be widowed. I +doubt not that one day she will make another happy with that love which +I trusted once myself to win." + +This was not all spoken at once, but bit by bit as the dying man could +gather strength. Leofric listened with a beating heart, holding the ring +to the lips of his companion. + +"Yet she gave you this token," he said. + +"Yes, but only in that sort of pity and love with which a maid will +always regard the departure, perhaps to his death, of one who has truly +loved her. Methinks perhaps her heart, too, told her that we should meet +no more. Sweet Alys, farewell, farewell. Now methinks I have done with +life. It is after all but a battlefield to fit us for the haven of peace +beyond. Pray God be with my father in his hour of extremity, and give to +us a meeting on the other side!" + +Leofric bent his head and spoke a low-toned Amen; then one of the monks +approached to administer the last rites of the Church, and hear the +faint confession breathed by those white lips. + +How went the battle? Leofric was rent in twain by the desire to fling +himself into that fight and die for the cause he had embraced, and by +reluctance to leave his comrade whilst the spark of life still lingered. + +Suddenly Jack came rushing back, his breastplate covered with blood, his +sword reeking, his whole aspect distraught. He had no horse under him, +and he staggered slightly as he pressed onwards; but when Leofric sprang +to his side, he said,-- + +"I am not wounded--would that I were--I am but choked with dust and +reek. Undo my vizor and give me air. Leofric, the battle is ended. The +great Earl is dead!" + +"Dead!" cried Leofric, startled in spite of himself, and the look upon +Jack's face as it was exposed to view corroborated his words. + +"I could not get near him, though I fought like a fury. Methinks my +right arm has slain a score of men this day. I cared not how soon they +hewed me down, and yet I escaped. But I was near; I heard and saw, and I +heard what they said of him. They brought him news that Lord Henry had +fallen, whereat he grasped his sword in both hands and cried, 'By the +arm of St. James, then is it time that I died also!' With that he laid +about him right and left with such fury that men fell like thistles +around him. But others pressed on from behind, and all called aloud upon +him to surrender--to surrender--" and Jack drew his breath hard in rage +and scorn. + +"But he did not?" + +"Didst think he would? Nay, his was no coward blood that would surrender +to caitiff churls. I, even I, heard that clarion voice ring out once +more amid the din of battle. 'Never will I surrender to dogs and +perjurers!' it cried. 'To God alone will I yield. To Him I give up my +spirit.' And even so saying he fell, pierced by a hundred wounds;" and +there Jack suddenly broke off, with a look upon his face of concentrated +fury which for the moment Leofric did not understand. + +"And Lord Henry is dead, thou dost say? What of Lord Guy?" + +"Wounded and made prisoner. Some say he too will die; but the Prince has +given orders that he is to have every care. The Prince is a noble +victor; but for those dogs that he allies himself with--" + +Jack set his teeth as though he could say no more. + +"What have they done?" asked Leofric breathlessly. + +"Wellnigh hacked his body in pieces," cried Jack, with quivering lips. +"Roger Mortimer claims one hand to send to his wife as a trophy. Another +they vow shall be sent to the Countess of Leicester at Dover--his own +wife, Leofric, his own loving wife! I trow if the Prior had not come +forth from the gates, with his monks after him, and carried away the +headless trunk, that it would have been truly hacked to pieces by the +savages who surrounded it. They are even now carrying it devoutly into +the chapel, to lay it beneath the altar. But the head, the hands, the +feet--they cannot prevail to save those. Our great and noble Earl--to +think that it should come to this with him!" + +Jack turned away to hide the tears which bodily exhaustion and mental +distress forced from his eyes. Leofric, with a shocked face, returned to +the side of Amalric, where the monk still retained a place, although the +rites were all concluded. + +Amalric's eyes flashed open once more. + +"My father?" he asked. + +"Thou wilt see him soon; he has gone before thee," answered Leofric +gently; and Amalric understood at once. He closed his eyes with a faint +smile. To him the strife of arms, the clash of wills, the storm and +stress of life, meant nothing. He was drifting out upon an ocean where +such things had neither part nor lot. Perhaps in that hour it soothed +his spirit to know that his father had passed thither before him. The +things of time had no concern for one who was launching forth upon the +tide of eternity. + +"Is he dead too?" asked Jack, with a break in his voice. + +"It is better sometimes to die than to live," answered Leofric softly in +his ear. Then both knelt down by the side of their comrade, and the monk +commended the departing soul into the hands of God. When they arose, +Amalric lay still with a smile upon his lips, and the monk, folding the +hands upon the mailed breast, said reverently, "_Requiescat in pace_." + +Jack's sobs could not be controlled; Leofric's tears were on his cheek, +but he commanded himself, and whispered a word in the ear first of the +monk and then of his companion. + +Together they lifted the inanimate form and reverently carried it to the +chapel, where before the altar, beneath a velvet pall, lay the mutilated +body of Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester. + +They laid Amalric down beside his father, and Leofric spread over him +the silken banner which had been worked by the fingers of Alys and +Linda. + +It mattered not in the eyes of the monks that De Montfort and his sons +lay under the ban of papal excommunication. England had never altogether +submitted to the tyranny of the Pope, and at a moment like this nothing +was remembered by those pious men save that the Earl had fought a good +fight, had been their friend and the friend of the people, and had died +a hero's death upon the field of battle. + +For long was it reported that marvellous miracles were performed by the +remains of the slaughtered warrior, and he was regarded by a large +portion of the nation as both saint and martyr. Many were the songs +composed to his memory, most of them being in Norman-French, of which +this may be cited as a specimen, showing how greatly the hearts of the +people were wrapped up in him:-- + + "I needs must sing, my heart so bids, although my words be drear; + With tearful eyes was made this song of England's barons dear, + Who for the peace made long ago went down unto the grave, + Their bodies maimed and mangled sore, our English land to save. + Now here lies low the flower of price, + Who knew so much of war, + Brave Montfort knight, his woful plight + The land shall long deplore + + "But by his death the Earl Montfort the victory has won; + Like holy martyr Thomas, he to cruel death was done; + Like Thomas, would not that aught ill should holy Church betide; + Like Thomas, fought, and showing naught of flinching, like him died. + Now here lies low the flower of price, + Who knew so much of war, + Brave Montfort knight, his woful plight + The land shall long deplore." + + NOTE.--Amalric de Montfort, though wounded and made prisoner, did + not really perish upon the field of Evesham. + + + + +CHAPTER XXIX. + +_LEOFRIC'S REWARD._ + + +Strange as it may appear, it was with tears in his eyes that Edward, the +victorious Prince, attended the obsequies of his two cousins, Henry and +Amalric de Montfort, after the fatal fight of Evesham. He and Henry had +been playfellows in childhood and comrades in youth. The tie between +them had not been broken even when one was a captive and the other his +jailer. Warmly as he had espoused his father's cause when it came to a +question of arms, Edward had always felt a deep respect for the policy +of his uncle, and would have kept the peace between the rival factions +had he had power to do so. It was with sorrow of heart that he looked on +whilst the grave closed over two such brave young warriors. He had +already given orders that every attention should be bestowed upon the +wounded Guy, and had even expressed a hope that he might be permitted to +join his mother as soon as his wounds were sufficiently healed for it to +be safe for him to travel. + +Although elated by his victory, and the object of an immense amount of +praise and laudation, Edward was not puffed up by his success, and +strove to influence his father to act with moderation and +liberal-mindedness. He had not been able to save the corpse of the Earl +from dishonour and despite; but he was resolved to let all the world +know that he was not ashamed to show affection and respect for the sons +of the great noble, or disposed to put on one side his own near +relationship to them. + +He would not be dissuaded from attending in person the obsequies of his +cousins, and it was when standing at their grave that his glance +suddenly rested upon the bowed head and pale face of Leofric. + +"I would speak with that youth," said he to Hugh, who chanced to be near +at hand; "bid him come presently to my tent." + +So later in the day Leofric once more stood face to face with the King's +son. + +Leofric had never attempted to fly from the scene of the battle. He +scarce knew whether he was ranked as a prisoner or not. No one had +spoken to him or molested him. It seemed as though the common bond of +brotherhood had now asserted itself amidst the ranks of the rival hosts. +The leaders of the rebellion (as it would soon be termed) would +doubtless receive punishment in the form of fines and confiscations when +there was time to consider their cases; but the Prince was in favour of +a general amnesty to rank and file; and though the adherents of the +Barons were melting away like snow in a thaw, no attempt was made to +keep them. They were, for the most part, suffered to depart to their own +homes. Numbers had laid down their lives in the slaughter of the battle +day; the rest were free to return whence they had come. Leofric was +meditating a journey to Oxford as soon as he should be fit for the long +ride; but both he and Jack had had little heart to think of their own +affairs, their distress at the loss of the cause and of so many true +friends and comrades having for the time being driven all else from +their minds. They had, however, the previous evening decided that there +was nothing left for them to do here after the morrow, and had settled +that upon the following day they would set forth for Oxford, taking with +them a few mementos of their fallen hero, and carrying to Mistress Alys +the last message and token of her whilom lover Amalric de Montfort. + +This summons from the Prince, however, might possibly cause a change in +their plan. Jack looked a little apprehensive as he heard it; but +Leofric had no fear. He had faith in the good-will of Edward. + +"Thou canst come too, good Jack," said Hugh, who had brought the message +from the King's son. "He has some words to speak to many of those who +have served under the De Montfort banner. Be in nowise afraid. He is a +right noble Prince, and meaneth well to all." + +When Jack and Leofric reached the tent where Prince Edward had preferred +to establish himself--leaving the quarters in the Abbey for his father +and the older nobles--they found awaiting them, just without, several of +the Oxford students who had joined Amalric at the last, and had been +present at the fatal fight of Evesham. Together they all entered the +presence of the Prince, conducted by Hugh le Barbier and Gilbert +Barbeck, who seemed to have the oversight of this matter. Gilbert had +joined the Prince shortly before the march on Kenilworth, bringing him +supplies of money which had been entrusted to him by his father. It was +reassuring to the students to see these comrades of theirs at such a +moment, and to feel that there was no ill meant them. + +Within the tent stood Prince Edward, his face grave and thoughtful, but +wearing a look of friendliness also. He returned with courtesy the +salutations made to him, and then began to address the youths who stood +silently before him. + +"My friends," he said, "I have desired to see you and to speak with you +face to face, and therefore have I had you brought thus privately to my +quarters here. England has just been through a time of terrible trial, +and I hope and believe that the benefits of this great struggle will not +quickly pass away. War is a fearful thing at all times, but tenfold +worse when waged betwixt brethren. I trust that the sword sheathed +to-day will not be again drawn in such a fashion. Brethren should live +together in unity and peace. Is it not so?" + +He looked around him as he spoke, and only Leofric dared to make reply. + +"Yes truly, sire, if peace can walk hand in hand with honour and +freedom." + +Edward gave him a piercing glance. + +"I know what thou wouldst say Leofric Wyvill, and in part thou art +right.--I stand before you here this day to testify to the love and +reverence I bear to a great man who has passed away from this world, who +has died the death of a hero. Though I be the King's son, and though I +myself bore arms against the great Earl mine uncle, yet here I stand +before you, and boldly avow that the cause in which he laid down his +life was a noble one, and that I bear no enmity towards those who fought +at his side, even though they fought against me. Can you understand +this, my friends?" + +A murmur of assent went up from the wondering group. They had little +expected such an avowal from Prince Edward; and yet, to those who knew +him and his history, there was nothing incompatible in his words and +actions. Duty to his father and to his own position had forced him to +rise against the usurper of the royal prerogative and the custodians of +his own and his father's person; nevertheless he fully and candidly +recognized the justice of the cause in which his foes had embarked, and +even gave it in no small measure his sympathy. + +"You will ask why I say all this to you," he said; "but I will soon +explain myself. You come from a city which has been forward in the cause +of the Barons, a seat of learning, whose voice must ever weigh with the +people. For the moment the cause you have at heart is, or seems to be, +lost. Its leader is dead, its army cut to pieces, its fugitives +straggling back to their own homes. Yet the feelings which gave rise to +the movement are not dead. They live immortal in the hearts of a free +people; and if the teachers and leaders of that people's thought preach +once more a national crusade, doubtless leaders could be found to bring +an army again into the field." + +The youths looked at one another with a covert surprise. It was strange +to hear their Prince speaking to them thus. + +Edward noted their glances, and a slight smile crossed his handsome +face. He looked earnestly upon his listeners. + +"My friends," he said, "I speak to you thus freely because I have +somewhat to ask of you. I pray you use all the influence you possess +with your comrades and townsmen, and preach to them the doctrine of +patience. If they will but be patient a few years, I trow that the +causes of complaint will speedily be removed. Listen, and I will further +explain. My father grows old. Twice has he been wounded; his powers are +failing him somewhat. It may be that his life will not be greatly +prolonged; or that if it is, he will take his son, mine unworthy self, +more fully into his counsels. I cannot honestly believe that he himself +will greatly change his methods or his habits. Change comes easily +enough to the young, but not to the old. I fear that many abuses will be +revived, but I trust and hope that it will not be for long. I am growing +of an age to claim my share in the government, and to speak openly to my +father. The people, I think, have some love for me, and I desire their +welfare with my whole heart. In all things I shall seek to counsel my +father to wise measures, and to a policy akin to that which the Barons +have so long and vehemently urged upon him. If in course of time I +should sit upon England's throne, I will strive to profit by the lessons +learned in these days of struggle and adversity, and to rule wisely and +well. I have never loved my father's foreign favourites. I would +surround myself with native-born counsellors; I would withstand the +unlawful tyranny of the Pope; I would have England to be a free and +prosperous country--prosperous at home and respected abroad. That is +what I shall seek to attain to if ever I sit upon her throne. Wherefore, +my friends, preach patience to those from whom ye have come, if they +speak bitterly of those things which have been done. Seek not to raise +up another leader, but wait till your Prince can with honour be the +leader and head of his people. Believe me, I love the English nation, +and will never patiently see the poor trampled under foot, or the +charters of the nation set aside. Only have patience, only wait awhile, +and all will be well." + +These sincere and politic words were eagerly listened to by the Oxford +students, and received with a buzz of applause. It was indeed a hopeful +sign that the heir to the throne should thus address them. They knew +well that for the present it would be hopeless to renew the struggle; +and yet that the nation, having begun to assert her rights, even at the +sword's point and in the teeth of royal oppression, would not easily be +content to forego the ground once won. But if she could be taught to +regard the coming King as her best champion, how much misery and +wretchedness might be spared! Leofric's face kindled at the thought, +and there was an eager look in the eyes of all which told the Prince +that his words had been understood and appreciated, and that he had won +himself friends and advocates in the heart of one of the most important +cities of the kingdom. + +Then Prince Edward dismissed the greater part of his guests with words +of courteous thanks and good-will; but he signed to Leofric to remain +behind, and Jack remained with him. + +"And now, my good friend," he said, very graciously, "I have long +desired to redeem my pledge, and to reward thee for the service thou +once didst render to me. Hitherto I have had small chance of keeping my +promise, but for all that it has never been forgotten." + +Leofric spoke a few words disclaiming any service; but the Prince cut +him short. + +"Twice hast thou rendered to me notable service," he said: "once when +thou didst risk thy life in the forest of Kenilworth to save me from the +furious assault of the boar; and again when thou didst bring timely +notice to Kenilworth of the attempt to be made upon mine uncle's life, +which attempt, if successful, would have been laid, however unjustly, at +the door of my mother, or perhaps even at mine own, seeing that I was a +captive guest within those walls, having intercourse with friends from +without. I have owed thee this debt of gratitude for long. But the time +has come when thou shalt receive thy reward;" and the smile in the +Prince's eyes was frank, and pleasant to see. + +"I have taken counsel, therefore, with our good friend and thy comrade +Hugh as to what may be done for thee. I would have bestowed upon thee a +fair manor, where thou couldst have lived at ease; but he has told me +that thine heart is inclined to learning, and that at Oxford, perchance, +a career of honour lies before thee. I would have placed thee in some +vacant benefice if thine heart did incline to the Church; but as it is +not so, I must wait till thou art something older ere I can place thee +in some office which thy talents will adorn." + +Leofric made a grateful bow. To have the favour of the heir to the +throne was no small matter in those days. He might well look forward to +a career of great success and honour if he were marked out by the royal +favour. + +"Meantime," added the Prince, "I have instructed the steward of Beaumont +Palace to pay to thee one hundred marks year by year; and when thou hast +become a notable disputer, lecturer, doctor, perhaps, and when thou art +ready for a change, there will be promotion and honour awaiting thee +elsewhere. I shall not forget one who was so faithful in his friendship +to a losing cause, and who was so well beloved by those whom I loved +well." + +A sudden quiver in the Prince's voice betokened a wave of unwonted +emotion. He had been deeply attached to the De Montfort family, despite +political differences, and he knew how Leofric had followed Amalric, and +had been with him at the moment of his death. This formed a strong link +between them now, and as Leofric would have stammered out his thanks +for this great and wonderful gift, the Prince held out his hand +suddenly, and said,-- + +"Farewell, good Leofric; we shall meet again. Be thou as true and +faithful as thou hast ever been, and happiness and success will surely +attend thee." + +Leofric bent the knee, pressed his lips to the hand of the Prince, and +then, making a deep obeisance, he retired from the tent, Jack following +him open-mouthed with amazement. + +He broke into loud exclamations of delight. + +"One hundred marks a year! Why, good comrade, thou wilt be rich for +life!" he cried. "Thou canst take a Hall of thine own, and become rich +and prosperous. Or thou canst wed Mistress Alys--" + +But there Jack was brought to a sudden standstill by the look upon his +comrade's face. Leofric flushed crimson, and then turned pale, and said +almost sternly,-- + +"Jack, Jack, thy tongue doth run away with thee. Dost thou not know by +whom the Mistress Alys was beloved?" + +Jack grew red in his turn, but he muttered beneath his breath, half +afraid that Leofric might hear,-- + +"Marry, I know well enough who loved her, but maidens do not always +return the love of their finest suitors." + +Leofric's cheek was rather flushed; Jack could not say whether he had +heard these words or not. He returned to his first theme. + +"At least thou canst hire a Hall, and scholars will flock to thee. Thou +wilt be renowned for thy lectures, and wilt become a Regent Master, if +thou dost not 'incept' in theology or law, and wear the Doctor's gown. +Thy fortune is secure now, and some day, doubtless, when the Prince has +ascended the throne (which pray Heaven may be soon), he will raise thee +to great honour and dignity; for methinks he hath a princely heart, and +hath taken a mighty liking for thee." + +"But thou shalt not leave me, Jack," cried Leofric, "even though we have +a grander lodging than we have known before. Thou wert my first friend. +Thou hast stood at my side in many an hour of peril. If I have won the +crown of success, thou hast merited a share in it. Thou art a bachelor +thyself, and thou shalt assist me in my lectures, and use my school for +thine own. We will not part company. We have travelled too long the same +road. Thou hast throughout been my faithful friend. Thou wilt not desert +me now?" + +Jack gripped his friend's hand hard, and there was a huskiness in his +voice as he declared that he desired nothing better than to remain +always by his comrade's side. + +A few days later the camp broke up; but Hugh had declared that Leofric +and Jack must pay a visit to his house before they journeyed to Oxford, +and Jack was desirous to travel by way of his own home and see his +relatives ere he took up his abode once again at the seat of learning. + +So first they journeyed to Worcester, eager to hear news of Lotta, whose +strange history had been related to them, and whose tidings, brought to +Prince Edward so promptly, had been the immediate cause of the defeat of +De Montfort. + +Already the country had begun to assume a more peaceful aspect. Traces +of war's ravages were everywhere only too visible, but it was plain that +the overthrow and death of the Earl of Leicester had for the moment +crushed in the hearts of the people any idea of further fighting. They +revered his memory, they mourned and wept for him, they regarded him as +a martyr and a hero; but there was no one upon whom his mantle could +fall, and the hopes of the nation gradually began to centre in Prince +Edward; for the King's life had already lasted beyond the ordinary +limits attained in those days, and it might well be that before long his +son would succeed him upon the throne. + +The news of the victory at Evesham had preceded Hugh to his home, but +not that of his personal safety, so that his arrival sound and whole was +the signal for great demonstrations of delight throughout the household. + +Hardly had the little cavalcade ridden into the courtyard before Linda +was at her husband's side, welcoming him with tears of joy; and she had +a very gracious and joyful greeting to give to Leofric and Jack, both of +whom seemed so closely linked with her past life. + +The board was quickly laid, the hungry travellers sat down, and +breathlessly did father, mother, and wife listen to the story of the +bloody fight at Evesham, and the death of the great Earl and his sons. + +Linda's tears fell as she heard of Amalric's death. She had known him +well in old days, and there was something about him which always won the +hearts of those with whom he came in contact. + +"I can be thankful now," she said in a low voice to Leofric, "that sweet +Alys never truly yielded him her heart. She loved him as friend and +brother, but she never gave him the treasure he longed to possess. There +have been moments when I have been almost sad at heart to see this, but +now I can rejoice." + +Leofric's face changed colour a little. + +"My Lord Amalric said somewhat of this to me as he lay dying," he +answered, in a low voice; "yet I had thought that he and the maiden were +very much one to the other, and that their betrothal was nigh at hand." + +"In truth they might, had things gone otherwise, have been betrothed by +the act of their elders; but the heart of Alys was not truly his. I have +not lived with her as sister and friend all those years without knowing +that much." + +Leofric said no more. A thoughtful look settled upon his face, and into +his eyes there began to creep a new look. He did not care to ask himself +what the hope was which suddenly awakened in his heart, but it seemed in +some strange way to change and glorify his whole life. + +Hugh now claimed his wife's attention. He asked news of Lotta, and heard +that she was recovering strength slowly, but that her mind seemed +strangely affected. She appeared to be losing hold upon recent events, +and was going back more and more to their childhood's days. She spoke +constantly of their mother, and asked for her, and wondered when she +should "go home!" Linda did not think she now remembered that she was +the wife of Roger de Horn, and heard the news of his death with feelings +of great relief. + +"I trust it is not wicked, but I cannot grieve for him. I do not think +Lotta would even understand if told: from that night when you brought +her here and went away, everything seems to have been gradually fading +from her mind that belongs to the stormy and unhappy part of her life. I +believe now that if I were to take her to mother and Aunt Bridget at +Eynsham, where I lived so peacefully and happily myself, she would be +perfectly happy there; and that mother would be the happier for having a +daughter to love and tend." + +For Linda had recently heard that her mother was a widow, and had +retired to live with her sister at Eynsham. Balzani had never really +recovered from the shock of hearing the manner of his son's death, and +had shortly afterwards taken a fever and died. It would no doubt be a +comfort to the widow to have one of her children back again with her, +especially if she needed motherly care and tendance. + +So it was quickly arranged that as soon as Lotta could bear the fatigues +of a journey, she should be carried by easy stages to Eynsham; whilst +Linda should take this opportunity of paying a visit to Alys, who had +earnestly prayed her at parting not to be too long without coming to see +them. + +Leofric and Jack would visit their old homes--the farm and the monks of +St. Michael--and join the other party as they approached Oxford. Leofric +had the messages and the token to deliver to Alys from Amalric, and +greatly would he have feared this part of his task had it not been for +Linda's words. + +They often talked of Alys as they paced the alleys of the garden +together during the few days that Leofric remained the guest of Hugh, +recalling the past days of their student life in Oxford, and how +strangely fortune had dealt with them, throwing them together, and into +the company of the Constable's daughter. + +Now Linda was the wife of a prosperous gentleman, who by the favour of +the Prince had good prospects of rising to knighthood; and Leofric, from +being a poor clerk, almost of the begging class, was a Master, a man of +some substance, as riches went in those days, and could, as Linda once +softly suggested, "mate with any maiden, even of a noble house, for his +learning and the prospect held out to him of princely favour." + +Then a red flush crept into Leofric's cheek, and he made answer,-- + +"There is only one maiden in all the world for me; and how can I dare to +hope that she will have thought to spare for so humble a suppliant as +myself?" + +"Thou hadst better ask her what she thinks of the suppliant," said Linda +softly. "Methinks a faint heart beseems not an earnest wooer." + +Leofric gave her a searching look. + +"Mistress Linda, what dost thou mean?" he questioned. She looked at him +with a smile in her eyes. + +"Thou hadst better ask Alys what I mean." + + + + +CHAPTER XXX. + +_ON THE STILL ISIS._ + + +The breath of spring was in the air. The verdant meadows had put on +their rich new dress, and the flowers were springing up as if to welcome +the returning strength and heat of the sun. The fritillaries gemmed the +river-banks, and the stretches of woodland were blue with the carpet of +fragrant wild hyacinth. The song of the cuckoo was in the air, and on +north slopes the star-like primrose lingered yet. The chill east winds +were changed to soft, summer-like zephyrs from the south, and everything +in nature spoke of joy and hope and coming summer-tide. + +Between its green banks, fringed sometimes by stately forest trees; +meandering sometimes through wide stretches of green pasture, where +cattle fattened upon the rich herbage or stood knee-deep in the shallow +tide, the silent Isis slipped leisurely along. + +Passing the Abbey of Eynsham, it widened out to a considerable breadth +as it pursued its leisurely course towards the city of Oxford, seeming +to linger lovingly in these pleasant reaches, far from the tumult and +stir which surrounds the abodes of man. + +The sun shone lovingly down upon the green world, and upon the shining, +silver river, on this bright day in May. A boat was drifting slowly +along the tide, propelled sometimes by the strong arms of the rower, at +others idly lying upon the bosom of the stream, gently floating +downwards with the slow, still current. Half-way betwixt Oxford and +Eynsham two fishermen on the banks awaited the return of the tardy boat; +but engrossed by their occupation, and soothed by the soft stillness of +the afternoon, they were in no haste for its arrival. They had met with +considerable success in pursuit of their craft, and a number of shining +fish lay upon the bank beside them. + +Edmund de Kynaston and Jack Dugdale were the fishermen; the fair Alys +and Leofric Wyvill were the occupants of the boat. + +They had all started forth together, with the intention of paying a +visit to Lotta and her mother; but in the end the temptations of the +river had proved too much for the anglers. Instead of waiting till they +reached the pool near Eynsham, they had been landed some miles lower +down; and whilst Alys and Leofric pursued the original plan, they +remained engrossed by their sport, in no hurry at all for the return of +their companions. + +Nor did those companions appear in any haste to rejoin them. + +Eight years had passed away since Leofric, an almost penniless lad, had +first entered Oxford, uncertain whether or not he should ever succeed in +maintaining himself there. Now, although not yet five-and-twenty, he had +achieved many successes and distinctions, and was regarded by the +authorities of the place as a promising young Master, secure of honours +and rewards. He had become the recipient of royal bounty, and was in a +position of modest affluence, which seemed to him almost like riches. + +Already he had in part carried out the plan suggested by Jack when first +the knowledge of the Prince's generosity had been made known to them. +One hundred marks represented something like sixty pounds, and sixty +pounds in those days was equivalent to several hundreds in our times. It +was positive wealth to Leofric, and enabled him to enter at once upon a +new phase of his career. + +Since the exodus of students from Oxford a couple of years before, the +Halls and houses had not filled up to quite their former strength, and +there were still buildings to be had at moderate rentals. Leofric found +a couple of houses in Cat Street, which their owner was glad enough to +rent to a man of substance. One of these Leofric retained for a +dwelling-house for himself and his friend and assistant Jack, turning +the lower floor into a commodious lecture-hall, and repairing and +furnishing the upper story for his own use, although it was larger than +he required at present. + +The second house was speedily furnished as a Hall for clerks and +students, and already was full to overflowing. The personal popularity +of the young Master was great, and his determination to accept as his +pupils only men who really desired to study, and who would refrain from +joining in the tumults and riots of the city, made something of a new +departure amongst the keepers of Halls, and attracted at once the better +sort of student, to whom a quiet place of abode, where study was the +rule, was regarded in the light of a boon and a blessing. The Chancellor +had expressed great approval of the rules boldly laid down by Leofric +for the regulation of his house, and Jack was invaluable to him in +assisting him to carry out his plan. + +Leofric had recognized the fact that in order to keep his pupils within +reasonable bounds he must make their quarters comfortable. How could +they be expected to remain at home after dark if lights and fires were +denied them, and if the rooms they lived in were kept foul, +ill-smelling, and wretched? So simple were the ideas as to plenishing +and furnishing in those days, that Leofric found it easy to provide for +his pupils comfort sufficient to render his Hall the favourite +throughout Oxford. He insisted on cleanliness, and by doing his own +share to ensure it, stimulated the lads to second his efforts. They paid +him rather more than some Hall Masters asked (save those who were really +poor yet honestly studious, to whom he showed himself liberal and +generous); but they received a liberal diet, comforts undreamed of in +other places, good fires in cold weather, lights after dark, liberty to +play reasonably quiet games in the lecture-room if desired, and a +well-aired and cleanly dormitory to sleep in. + +Already many nobles and prelates had sent their sons to Leofric, and he +had been obliged to refuse applications from some of the most notable +men of the day. The Chancellor was urging him to open another Hall; and +already it was being whispered that if the schemes already being +discussed for the foundation of regular colleges should be carried out, +Leofric Wyvill would be the man to place over such an institution. + +Leofric was keenly interested in these proposed schemes, and had held +many discussions with those in authority upon that very subject. It was +evident to all that the present condition of Oxford must be reformed; +that the massing together in one place of hundreds and thousands of lads +and men, under no regular discipline and control, was likely to lead to +grave evils, and had been the cause of an infinite amount of bloodshed +and confusion. + +Walter de Merton and John Balliol had already given endowments, and the +question of the establishment of colleges, where students should reside +beneath sufficient oversight and control, was being earnestly discussed. +Probably other benefactors would come forward when once a start had been +made; and there seemed little doubt that in the near future Leofric +would obtain a high place as Master or Dean of one of these proposed +buildings. + +Leofric's personal popularity was great, and his position rather unique. +He was the favourite of the Prince, from whom he received an annual +bounty; so that all those who supported the royal cause regarded him +with favour. But he was also known as the friend of the De Montforts, as +one who had fought side by side with young Amalric at the battles of +Lewes and Evesham. A halo of glory therefore surrounded him in the eyes +of those who favoured the popular cause, and all men listened to him +with respect and enthusiasm, as to a man who had seen great things, had +shared in the most notable movement of the day, and had covered himself +with glory and renown. For all sorts of stories were afloat about his +prowess and valour, many of which he had combated in vain. He was fain +to submit at last to be regarded in the light of a hero, though +marvelling not a little at having won such a reputation. + +His position, however, was assured. Although a layman, and resolved to +remain one, he saw before him a career full of possibilities. He knew +that his advancement would be more rapid if he consented to take orders, +but he had never wavered in his resolve against so doing. A man might +now advance to high distinction even in the University, and yet remain a +layman, and Leofric had never been tempted for a moment to the clerical +vocation. Perhaps some amongst his closer friends knew the reason why. + +He had been admitted to the Castle for long as the friend both of Edmund +and his father. The Constable liked and respected him, and his successes +had made him rather a notable man. The death of Amalric had taken some +hold upon the minds and hearts of the De Kynastons, who had loved him +well, and regarded him almost in the light of Alys's betrothed husband. + +She herself had been much affected by the story of his death, and had +looked pale and pensive for some time. But to-day her cheek had regained +its bloom, her eyes were bright and soft, and her voice and laugh showed +a heart where happiness had made its home, and from which sorrow and +pain had been banished. + +A journey by water to Eynsham was always a treat to Alys. Linda and she +corresponded as regularly as the uncertainty of messengers would permit; +and when she heard from her former companion, she always sought to take +news of her to the mother and sister dwelling beneath the Priory walls. + +Lotta had never recovered from the effects of her strange illness. Her +mind remained a blank as to the events of her stormy girlhood. She was +like a gentle child, living in the present, or in the more remote past, +happy with her mother, and always eager for news of her sister, yet +without any real comprehension or memory of the events which had +transpired during the past eight years. + +The news to-day was of an exceptionally happy nature. Linda was the +mother of a fair son, and Hugh had received knighthood and the gift of a +goodly Manor at the hands of the Prince. There had been extensive +confiscations of the estates of the supporters of the De Montforts, and +the Prince had not forgotten Hugh when he came to distribute this spoil +amongst those who had served him at the critical time of his career. + +Having brought tidings of these good things to Lotta and her mother, +Leofric and Alys were on their way to rejoin their companions; but the +beauty of the day, and the warmth of the sunshine upon the flowing +river, tempted them to idleness. They were talking of past days, and of +how the friendship between them had grown and grown. + +"The first time I saw you," said Alys, "was when you lifted me from my +palfrey, that day when he was frightened and nearly threw me to the +ground. How little we thought then of all that would happen later!" + +"Indeed yes," he answered earnestly. "Looking back to those days, it all +seems like a dream; and yet, Alys, I think I loved thee from that very +day. Dost know that thou hast always been to me a bright particular +star, set high above me in the sky, yet leading me ever onwards. Alys, +sweetheart, I have waited long, but tell me I have not waited in vain. +Hope has sprung up in my heart of late. Sweet Alys, dost thou love me?" + +A beautiful light leaped into her eyes. She put out a hand and laid it +upon his. + +"I think I have loved thee always, Leofric," she said. + + +THE END. + + * * * * * + +HISTORICAL TALES + +BY E. Everett-Green. + + +A CLERK OF OXFORD, and His Adventures in the Barons' War. + +THE YOUNG PIONEERS; or, With La Salle on the Mississippi. + +IN TAUNTON TOWN. A Story of the Days of the Rebellion of James, Duke of +Monmouth, in 1685. + +SHUT IN. A Tale of the Wonderful Siege of Antwerp in the Year 1585. + +THE LOST TREASURE OF TREVLYN. A Story of the Days of the Gunpowder Plot. + +IN THE DAYS OF CHIVALRY. A Tale of the Times of the Black Prince. + +LOYAL HEARTS AND TRUE. A Story of the Days of Queen Elizabeth. + +THE CHURCH AND THE KING. A Tale of England in the Days of Henry VIII. + +TOM TUFTON'S TRAVELS. + +DOMINIQUE'S VENGEANCE. A Story of France and Florida. + +THE SIGN OF THE RED CROSS. A Tale of Old London. + +EVIL MAY-DAY. A Story of 1517. + +IN THE WARS OF THE ROSES. + +THE LORD OF DYNEVOR. A Tale of the Times of Edward the First. + +THE SECRET CHAMBER AT CHAD. + + +_Published by_ + +T. Nelson and Sons, London, Edinburgh, and New York. + + * * * * * + +Library of Historical Tales. + + +Dorothy Arden. A Story of England and France Two Hundred Years Ago. By +J. M. Callwell. + +_A story of the dragonnades in France in the time of Louis XIV. Also of +the persecutions in England under James II., the Monmouth rebellion, the +Bloody Assize, and the Revolution._ + + +How they Kept the Faith. A Tale of the Huguenots of Languedoc. By Grace +Raymond. + +"_No finer, more touchingly realistic, and truthfully accurate picture +of the Languedoc Huguenots have we met._"--Aberdeen Free Press. + + +The Lost Ring. A Romance of Scottish History in the Days of King James +and Andrew Melville. + +"_The plot of the romance is skilfully constructed, the dialogue is +admirable, and the principal actors in the history are portrayed with +great ability._"--U.P. Missionary Record. + + +The City and the Castle. A Story of the Reformation in Switzerland. By +Annie Lucas, Author of "Leonie," etc. + +_Faithfully portrays the state and character of society at the time of +the Reformation (in Switzerland)._ + + +Leonie; or, Light out of Darkness: and Within Iron Walls, a Tale of the +Siege of Paris. Twin Stories of the Franco-German War. By Annie Lucas. + +_Two tales, the first connected with the second. One, of country life in +France during the war; the other, life within the besieged capital._ + + +Under the Southern Cross. A Tale of the New World. By the Author of "The +Spanish Brothers," etc. + +_A thrilling and fascinating story._ + + +Alison Walsh. A Study of To-Day. By Constance Evelyn. + + +La Rochelle; or, The Refugees. A Story of the Huguenots. By Mrs. E. C. +Wilson. + + +Wenzel's Inheritance; or, Faithful unto Death. A Tale of Bohemia in the +Fifteenth Century. By Annie Lucas. + +_Presents a vivid picture of the religious and social condition of +Bohemia in the fifteenth century._ + + +Helena's Household. A Tale of Rome in the First Century. + + +The Spanish Brothers. A Tale of the Sixteenth Century. By the Author of +"The Dark Year of Dundee." + + +The Czar. A Tale of the Time of the First Napoleon. By the Author of +"The Spanish Brothers," etc. + +_An interesting tale of the great Franco-Russian war in 1812-18; the +characters partly French, partly Russian._ + + +Arthur Erskine's Story. A Tale of the Days of Knox. By the Author of +"The Spanish Brothers," etc. + +_The object of the writer of this tale is to portray the life of the +people in the days of Knox._ + + +Pendower. A Story of Cornwall in the Reign of Henry the Eighth. By M. +Filleul. + +_A tale illustrating in fiction that stirring period of English history +previous to the Reformation._ + + +T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK. + + * * * * * + +"Living to Purpose" Series. + + +General Grant's Life. (From the Tannery to the White House.) Story of +the Life of Ulysses S. Grant: his Boyhood, Youth, Manhood, Public and +Private Life and Services. By William M. Thayer, Author of "From Log +Cabin to White House," etc. With Portrait, Vignette, etc. Reprinted +complete from the American Edition. + + +Success in Life. A Book for Young Men. With Plates. + +_The great principles of action which, under God, secure "success in +life"--perseverance, industry, integrity, economy, etc.--illustrated by +many examples._ + +"_Yet There is Room._" + + +Loving Work in the Highways and Byways. By Lady Hope, Author of "Our +Coffee-Room," "Changed Scenes," etc. + +"_It is a volume calculated to stimulate home missionary zeal, and +to suggest spheres of necessity, both spiritual and temporal, that +lie immediately around us waiting the application of the powers +within the Christian Church that have not yet been called into +exercise._"--Christian Leader. + + +Living to Purpose; or, Making the Best of Life. By Joseph Johnson. + +_An earnest, practical book; shows how some of the greatest and most +gifted men of the past have lived, and links counsels to their +examples._ + + +Living in Earnest. Lessons and Incidents from the Lives of the Great and +Good. By Joseph Johnson. + +_True "life in earnest" described in its various forms, with counsels as +to study, health, amusement, etc._ + + +Village Missionaries; or, "To Every One His Work." By the Author of "The +Copsley Annals," "Father's Coming Home," etc. + + +No Cross no Crown. A Tale of the Scottish Reformation. By the Author of +"The Spanish Brothers." + +_A tale, more of facts than fiction, of the plague in Dundee, 1564, and +the life and times of George Wishart._ + + +Records of Noble Lives. By W. H. Davenport Adams. + +_A most suitable volume for a prize or a present. Its object is to +inspire, by graphic biographical notices of great and good men._ + + +Masters of the Situation; or, Some Secrets of Success and Power. A Book +for Young Men. By William James Tilley, B. D. + +"_One of the books which must be read.... Will be invaluable to young +men._"--Sword and Trowel. + + +The Life and Letters of W. Fleming Stevenson, D.D., Dublin. By his Wife. +With Portrait. + + +T. NELSON AND SONS, LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK. + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43077 *** |